[Made-Me-Depressed Book Review] Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda
by Becky Albertalli  

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met. 

GOODREADS 

Is there something wrong with it? Because everyone on the Internet loved this book & I'm sitting here like... mehhh.

Story introduces us to a sixteen-year-old Simon Spier who even though is not openly gay, is completely comfortable with it and just haven't found the right opportunity to announce it to his friends and family. Although emailing with a mysterious boy and getting more flirty is intriguing, he doesn't want anyone to find out. So when his classmate "blackmails" him into hanging out with one of his friends, he wouldn't want the emails getting out. 

Let's stop right there..

Simon is great. Shy and funny and lovable character with great family and friends, he's into that "lovey-dovey" romance that many and MANY girls drool over.. But it was just not for me. at all...

I actually got depressed while reading this book. Yup, that's how much I wanted to DNF it but had to finish because of the buzz it's been getting. Damn book buzz and it's incredible appeal to my visual senses. 

So yes, let's just mark that into it's-not-you-it's-me category so I can go be happy again.

[Negative Review] The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

The Distance Between Us
by Kasie West 

Seventeen-year-old Caymen Meyers studies the rich like her own personal science experiment, and after years of observation she’s pretty sure they’re only good for one thing—spending money on useless stuff, like the porcelain dolls in her mother’s shop.

So when Xander Spence walks into the store to pick up a doll for his grandmother, it only takes one glance for Caymen to figure out he’s oozing rich. Despite his charming ways and that he’s one of the first people who actually gets her, she’s smart enough to know his interest won’t last. Because if there’s one thing she’s learned from her mother’s warnings, it’s that the rich have a short attention span. But Xander keeps coming around, despite her best efforts to scare him off. And much to her dismay, she's beginning to enjoy his company.

She knows her mom can’t find out—she wouldn’t approve. She’d much rather Caymen hang out with the local rocker who hasn’t been raised by money. But just when Xander’s attention and loyalty are about to convince Caymen that being rich isn’t a character flaw, she finds out that money is a much bigger part of their relationship than she’d ever realized. And that Xander’s not the only one she should’ve been worried about.

AMAZON | GOODREADS  

From the very beginning I couldn't wait to read The Distance Between Us. Earlier in the year I've read author's Pivot Point & was blown away. But unfortunately it didn't feel like that with this one & I'm very disappointed. 

Story begins with the dollhouse where Caymen works with her mother. They own the store and live upstairs. They're poor in a city with rich people. can you see it coming? So Caymen starts off talking about her dry humor, her mother, blah blah. But okay, I'll bite it, sounds interesting. 

& then she meets Xander..

THE. MOST. BORING. & UNDEVELOPED. CONVERSATIONS. EVER.!!!!!!

I mean seriously... How can someone base SO MANY talks about hot chocolate? Makes me vomit just thinking about it.

He's rich, she's not, they fell in love but still try to play it cool because the author needs to fill out 300 pages of back and forth teenage bickering that noone really cares about. 

Now that I think about it, I don't really know what the book was about. Ever had that happen? Oh yeah! Almost forgot. The love triangle.. That almost could have made this story good but it was pretty much nonexistent. Everyone just assumes that she's into the guy but just because she talks to him, DOESN'T MEAN SHE WANTS TO DO HIM! 

Tired just writing about this book. & now I'm pretty sure I dislike it even more than when I finished reading it because I'm actually trying to retell the story. Gah