What I Didn't Say by Keary Taylor Review

Title: What I Didn't Say
Author: Keary Taylor
Publisher: Create Space
Publish Date: April 30, 2012
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Pages: 326
Source: Author

Getting drunk homecoming night your senior year is never a good idea, but Jake Hayes never expected it all to end with a car crash and a t-post embedded in his throat.

His biggest regret about it all? What he never said to Samantha Shay. He's been in love with her for years and never had the guts to tell her. Now it's too late. Because after that night, Jake will never be able to talk again.

When Jake returns to his small island home, population 5,000, he'll have to learn how to deal with being mute. He also finds that his family isn't limited to his six brothers and sisters, that sometimes an entire island is watching out for you. And when he gets the chance to spend more time with Samantha, she'll help him learn that not being able to talk isn’t the worst thing that could ever happen to you. Maybe, if she'll let him, Jake will finally tell her what he didn't say before, even if he can't actually say it.

Jake has it all. It’s his senior year of high school, the world is at his feet and the future lies ahead of him in an endless map of opportunity. Plus, there’s the girl in school that’s loved for eternity, and he thinks it might just be time for him to tell her. In an instant though, Jake’s entire future is thrown to the wind. In one rash decision, Jake gets drunk, gets in the car with a very drunk driver and they crash violently. In an instant, Jake’s future is one hundred percent different. His life is a gift, and while he’s lucky to be alive, he’s lost his voice forever. There are so many things he didn’t say while he had the chance though – including telling Sam he loves her – and now he never will.

Guys, I’ve been reading Keary Taylor’s novels for a while now, and I love her take on the paranormal. She has a rich, engaging writing style that is both emote and vivid, luring the reader into her web. So, naturally, I was thrilled to have the chance to try her take on contemporary. What I Didn’t Say is a powerhouse novel hidden in an overflowing genre. Rife with tension, this book will shatter your heart into a thousand little pieces then slowly piece it back together again. With careful, deliberate emotion and endless dramatic reality, we’re given two very broken characters and are allowed the opportunity to watch both put their lives back together again. 

Contemporary has always been a bit of a hit or miss thing for me. There has to be an absolutely seamless blend of drama, emotion, character growth and, heck, a little sweet love thrown in the mix. What I Didn’t Say promised me all of the above. Even better though? It delivered. Jake is the proverbial character who has everything he could ever want, including a girl he’s madly in love with but just can’t seem to find the words to tell her. Sam is the girl who, on the outside seems completely perfect, but inside her heart is breaking. In a single instant, Jake’s life falls to pieces, and we watch as he spirals into a pit of depression, but a very lost and sad girl helps pull him from the abyss and put his life back together. We’re privvied to extensive insight into the innermost thoughts of Jake after the accident as he dwells on everything he didn’t say or do while he had the chance. We’re not, however, allowed access into Sam’s struggles until the most poignant moment of all – a catalyst that tests their friendship, their bond and maybe even the potential for love blossoming between the two. What I Didn’t Say is heartbreakingly powerful. It certainly doesn’t skimp on the drama, but it’s never cloying or unreal. It’s painful, it’s tangible and it’s something that makes you feel real, true, gut-wrenching emotions. Most of all though, when you strip away the pretty words, we’re given two very basic characters who find the most pure and powerful connection of all.

To be honest, I was completely blown away by What I Didn’t Say. If you’re like me and are on the fence, I advise you to hop off and read this one. I give it a 4.5 out of 5, and I highly recommend it to all fans of YA fiction, especially those who enjoy issue-driven contemporary fiction.

I received this book free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.

How to Use Pinterest for Your Book Blog

Guys, I'm a social media manager for a small marketing agency just North of Boston by day, so I'm usually inundated by clients and potential clients asking how a social media platform can be used for their business. Recently, however, a lot of book bloggers have been asking if Pinterest can be used to enhance their blogs' reach. The short answer? Of course it can! The longer answer? Pinterest is still quite new, but the target market is huge, so there's a lot of untapped potential.

I bit the bullet about 6 months ago and got a Pinterest account for me, myself and I. After a while, I began to see the possibility of, perhaps, using it in part for my blog, as well. Now, some of you might be asking yourselves what exactly Pinterest is. It's pretty simple, actually.

Pinterest is a Virtual Pinboard. Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.

Best of all, you can browse pinboards created by other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests

*via Pinterest.

Do you see the goldmine of opportunity there?! Anything beautiful you find via the search engines (barring Facebook - don't be creepy - and some sites that have blocked the Pin It Button) can be pinned to your boards and shared to your followers. The potential for things to go viral is enormous.

So, what could book bloggers pin?

- Book covers (WoW posts that track back to your blog) 

- Book reviews (Pin the covers and track back to your blog)

- Writing inspiration 

- Book-inspired jewelry 

- Book-inspired art

- Features (Share your graphics and track back to them)

- Authors

Just as a little example, this is what my bookish pinboard looks like.

If you think about it, the list is pretty much endless. Pinterest has the same idea as any social media platform - sharing. If you find book bloggers out there on Pinterest, share their content! If you find authors and publishers, do the same! We're all dipping our toes in the water at about the same time, so the market's open. Have fun with it!

Some publishers that have bitten the bullet and established Pinterest accounts include HarperTeen, Penguin, Random House, Scholastic and more. Heck, even Book Expo America is on Pinterest. Visit The Well-Read Wife for a list of bloggers on Pinterest, and check out this list on YA Highway for Authors and more publishers on Pinterest to get some ideas!

Let's Talk: Book Censorship in Schools

Let's Talk is a new weekly feature here at i swim for oceans. I think it's important that we all have our say, and there's something to be said for raising our voices. Simply put, here on the little old blog, I like to host some of my very own discussion posts because, well, I like to converse with you all.

And so, Let's Talk will feature questions or prompts, which I will answer, too. Love it or hate it, weigh in or don't, it's my hope that Let's Talk will at least get you thinking...and maybe even get you discussing with the rest of us!

Question: What are your thoughts on book censorship in schools?

Hello, hot-button issue! When I started this feature, I knew I wanted to make it a mix of fun discussion topics and heavy-hitting, relevant issues that concern people beyond the book blogging and publishing world. What is a bigger discussion topic than censorship? Censorship, in and of itself, simply makes my skin crawl. I believe that there is merit to just about any written work, and to ban a book across the board, regardless of the content makes me want to pull up my soap box, stand with my head held high and preach to the world just why exactly I think book censorship in schools is wrong.

I'll state it right here and now: my opinions will rub some people the wrong way. I don't apologize for my opinions because they are really and truly my own. Just as I want people to respect my opinions, I truly respect opposing viewpoints. Simply put - I think that banning books across the board in schools is wrong. Many school boards like to gloss over the messiness and call their reading curriculum a "selection," rather than the blatant banning that I believe it is. I'm not going to lie and say that some of the banned books I've seen don't have messy content...because they do.

Consider Breathing Underwater by Alex Flinn. One of my all-time favourite authors takes a harrowing story of an abusive (both emotionally and physically) relationship between teens and creates a story that is startlingly realistic and relevant for the young adult crowd. Is it brutal? Heck yeah. There's no glossing over the violence and the drama. There shouldn't be. Abuse is abuse. There are no shades of gray, and a story like that is important for teens who might otherwise be scared into silence because they are the abused and ashamed, or they're the abuser and are afraid to seek the help they need to get better. A Washington school district banned this book due to the graphic nature of the content. Is it right to take this book out of schools just because it makes the parents uncomfortable that their children are reading it? It should make the kids uncomfortable. It should make them think.

Take, for another example, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. Written about a young teen who is raped at a party, haunted by the memory, taunted by classmates and friends and damaged to the core, this book is harrowing. I'm not going to lie. It's not an easy read to stomach. Last year, it was referred to as "soft core porn." Needless to say, the bookish community was outraged. Such a comment says that we should ban this book because the victim brought it on herself. The rapist should be allowed to run free through the story. Should such a book truly be banned because it makes someone upset? It's not meant to be pretty, or easy, or simple. Real life is messy. Real pain is tangible and speaks volumes to someone who might otherwise be too afraid to speak up that they, too, were a victim. The same goes for another of the author's novels, Wintergirls. Tackling eating disorders and cutting, it's a hard-edged approach to an all-too common disease. Should it really be pushed under the rug?

There are so many books out there today that are banned because of their "offensive" content. Think of Catcher in the Rye, or the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Think of Bridge to Terabithia, or Harry Potter, or Lord of the Flies. Yes, books might offend people. Content speaks volumes to different people in different ways. That's a good thing. In my humble opinion, parents should read what their children are reading. If you have a problem with the material, discuss it with your child. Don't fight it. Embrace the challenge and open the communication. Speaking about it might just diminish the fear of those words, and children might actually stand to gain more from reading it.

A Want So Wicked by Suzanne Young Review

Title: A Want So Wicked
Author: Suzanne Young
Publisher: Balzer & Bray
Publish Date: June 26, 2012
Genre: YA, Paranormal
Pages: 288
Source: Publisher

Elise is a normal seventeen-year-old girl until the day she wakes up in a desert park, with no idea who she is.

After that episode, her life takes a bizarre turn. She’s experiencing unexpected flashes of insight into people’s lives—people she’s never met before. Strangers frighten her with warnings about the approaching Shadows. And although Elise has never had a boyfriend, she suddenly finds herself torn between two handsome but very different young men: Abe, the charming bad boy whose affect on her both seduces and frightens her, and the mysterious Harlin, who’s new to town but with whom Elise feels an urgent, elemental connection—almost as if they are soul mates.

Now Elise begins to question everything about her life. Why do these guys both want her so desperately? What are the Shadows? Why does the name Charlotte inspire a terrifying familiarity? And who is Elise, really?

Elise’s life has changed rapidly ever since waking up in the park with absolutely no memory of how she got there. But the changes are fast, frightening and just enough to keep her awake at night and rock her to the very core. Without and forewarning, Elise can now read into people’s lives, which is both an entirely inconvenient and unwanted gift. She can see what makes things tick, and she knows there’s a darkness lurking around her, but she has no idea why. To make matters worse, there are two very attractive boys suddenly vying for her attention. One draws her in with his bad-boy charm. The other exudes a familiarity and connection she can’t look past. What are these changes happening in Elise’s life, and can she discover the meaning of it all before it’s too late?

I remember reading the first book in this series, A Need So Beautiful last year, and I really loved the story. Although not the freshest idea, perhaps, it was well written with just enough angst to keep me riveted. Suzanne Young has crafted a worthy follow-up with her sophomore novel, A Want So Wicked, in which we’re invited, once again, to share in her characters’ epic journey to self-discovery and ultimate triumph over darkness. With vivid imagery, strong prose and a cast of emote and well-rounded characters, the story is well-fleshed out with a strong beginning, middle and end. Most of all though, we’re given a heroine that we can relate to, and we become invested in her journey through A Want So Wicked.

I have to admit that I’m a bit on the fence about A Want So Wicked, to be honest. I remember really enjoying book one, and feeling that the journey moved at a good pace, was well-rounded and had tons of self-discovery through our heroine, Elise. However, with book two, I felt almost as if we had the same exact scenario playing out before us, though we were given a new setting and different characters. If I’m being completely honest, I’m not sure if the story evolved much in this installment, which is a bit unfortunate because, heck, I wanted to know what’s happening with Elise! Now, don’t get me wrong, the writing style is just as fluid and fast-paced as before. The plot is still engaging and entertaining, and I definitely still wanted to know what was happening throughout the novel. Plus, A Want So Wicked gives us Harlin who, let’s be honest here, is pretty much awesome all wrapped up in a sexy little bow. He’s a very heartfelt character, and he’s one that I can actually feel for. His emotions, his actions and his demeanor just ooze charisma, and his addition really heightens the investment we have in Elise’s journey, which is a definitive strength. One other qualm I, unfortunately, had was that the villains were just so blatantly obvious throughout the story. The characters might not have seen it, but I did, and I prefer a bit of shock and awe. Regardless of its faults though, A Want So Wicked is engaging in its writing style, and the characterization is true to form, rich and inviting.

Despite a few flaws, A Want So Wicked was a good story overall. It will definitely find its place on many a bookshelf. I give it a 3.5 out of 5, and I recommend it to all fans of YA, especially those who enjoy paranormal and paranormal romance.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.