Friday, January 3, 2014

Book Reviews For Stories About Melissa Series By Bethany Lopez

Synopsis:

Melissa begins her freshman year with one goal in mind, getting Brian Jackson to be her boyfriend. She will soon learn that things don't necessarily turn out the way you plan them, the value of true friendship, and the importance of family.

Goodreads:

My Review

5 of 5 TTFN

First off I would like to say Thank You to Trish over at YA Bound for allowing me to be a part of the XOXOXO tour which is the second book to this AMAZING series!

Melissa is just your ordinary girl who comes from a large family and wishes she was the only child. She is the oldest so she is supposed to help out with the kids and the chores. She is starting high school in the fall and just wants the end of the summer to come fast because she is missing her best friend and she can not wait to see her secret crush Brian Jackson.

On the first day of school Melissa comes face to face with her best friend who is acting strange and that secret crush of hers is no where to be found. So she asks Jimmy where Brian is and Jimmy tells her he is sick and won't be in school for a few days. Man oh man is that a bummer for her because she wanted to see him.At least she has Layla to sit with and talk to. As the day comes to end Melissa tells Layla Freshmen year is not shaping up to well.

I have to say that this book really took be by surprise. It is written in Diary form and I was hooked from page one. This is a story about a girl coming of age and starting high school with new fears and lot's of possibilities. Melissa will face some tough issues and she will have to make tough decisions but in the end what she gains in well worth it.

Sometimes it's hard to see what is in front of you when you have on horse blinders. But sometimes family is all you need. When the going gets tough hold on to your family and enjoy the ride. This book is a great story about what happens when you enter high school and are treated like an adult. It is also about first loves, first crushes and first heart breaks. Come along for the ride of a lifetime because you will not be disappointed!

First Day of School:
WORST DAY EVER! First, my outfit did not turn out the way I wanted it to. I felt uncomfortable and awkward all day. Second, Brian wasn’t even at school. I looked for him everywhere and then Jimmy Rogers said that Brian has been sick for a week and didn’t come to school today. To make matters worse, my “best friend,” Jess, apparently became a super goth chick over the summer, and now I am not cool enough to be her friend.

We rode home in silence, with Jess and Jimmy each holding one of my hands. I just felt numb. I am sure I had makeup and snot running down my face, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. When we got to my house, they both took me inside and Jess put me in my bed. I heard them talking to my parents, but couldn’t understand what was said or bring myself to care.

My song for this book is Say by One Republic

Synopsis:

Melissa has learned a lot since her freshman year began, but it isn't over yet! Her world is about to change again with the birth of her new sibling, and she has to figure out how she will adjust to being the eldest of five kids. She, Jess, andJimmy are inseparable, and she is having a fantastic time although she can't help but miss Brian as she tries to learn how to deal with his relationship with Layla. Everything seems to be happening at once and that is when she is introduced to Ben Campbell, a senior at Dearborn High, who becomes an interesting distraction as he helps her deal with the new developments in her life.

Goodreads:

My Review

5 of 5 XOXOXO

I want to say a big THANK YOU to Trish at YA Bound for allowing me to be on this blog tour. Bethany has created a world so real that I could not put this book down. I read book one and then started on book two. Man I could not get enough and I am rushing summer so September can get here and I can read book three.

XOXOXO picks up right where Ta Ta For Now left off. Melissa has been forbidden to see Brian by her parents but there is an up side to everything. She is back to being best friends with Jess and now they have a new member to the team Jimmy. So they are the three musketeers and they are taking the year book photography by storm. Jimmy and Jess stood by Melissa when her parents told her she couldn't see Brian anymore. He was no good and broke her heart and any boy who did not respect their daughter was no good and to be left alone. So Jimmy and Jess are there for her and they start taking pictures for the Freshman class.

Even thought Melissa is heart broken over Brian she still talks to him and Layla. As Melissa is finding herself she receives some devastating news from her parents. In this part of the story Melissa has to learn how to handle the news and find a way to keep her sanity. Melissa at least has Jimmy and Jess to help her get through all this craziness. Plus Melissa has to work out why Jimmy is acting weird all of a sudden. Then to add to the mix Melissa starts crushing on a senior who is leaving for the Navy after school ends. Lord what is a girl to do? 

I loved this second book because Melissa has to make decisions that will effect her whole family and effect her friendships. She has to face old loves and decide if she is willing to start on a new love. What is a girl to do when Freshman year is ending and a summer is in the works.

I have a few songs for this book.
Melissa and Ben Love Me When I Am Gone by 3 Doors Down

Melissa and Brian's song
Bloodstream by Stateless

Melissa and Jimmy's song
My Love By Sia

A lot has changed in the last six months. Jess, Jimmy, and I have been inseparable. My parents call us the Three Musketeers (Such an old person saying). I am glad that Jess and Jimmy never actually dated because now we are the best of friends! Brian and Layla are still hanging out and are annoyingly sweet to me whenever we run into each other (which seems to happen all of the time!). Megan has started seeing Mark, and he is at our house all of the time now. I can never seem to be in the living room or kitchen for five minutes without them running in and taking over the TV or grabbing a snack. Nothing has really changed with Mikey or Monica, and Mom is still pregnant. She looks like she is about to burst. It seems like she is always in pain and eating weird food, like grits with maple syrup. I feel bad for her!

He kept his hand on my face, as the other reached around and freed my hair, making it flow around my shoulders. “I have wanted to do that all day.”
Then he put his fingers in my hair and pulled me close to him. His lips gently touched mine for a moment and then he tilted his head, slanting his lips over mine. I had never felt anything like that before. I felt almost weightless, as if I was floating in his arms. I couldn’t help it, didn’t even know what I was doing, but I tilted my head the other way and I put my heart into the kiss. I sighed softly and my arms came up around his neck. It was the most beautiful moment of my life.

UNTIL NEXT TIME.........

Synopsis:

Melissa has had a fantastic summer hanging out with her friends and making new ones. Life as she knows it will change when they all come together to begin their sophomore year at Dearborn High. Connections will be made and friendships will be tested. Will Melissa’s family and friends be able to help her through the challenges she will face in the upcoming months?

Goodreads:

My Review

5 of 5 Ciao

I have to say that I LOVE BETHANY LOPEZ! Her writing never ever ceases to amaze me. She has this writing style that draws you in and you can't help but want to finish the story to see where the character has gone. The world she describes has you right there waiting and wanting like nothing you have read before. A huge thank you to YA Bound for hosting this great tour and allowing me to once again be on it. Trish and the girls at YA Bound host the best tours!

In Ciao we pick up right where XOXOXOXO left off. Melissa is enjoying her summer with her family and friends. Ben has gone off to the army and her and Layla are semi friends but her and Jess, Jimmy and Brian are close. Her baby brother Max is doing great and she has made a new friend that moved down the street. Life couldn't get better for Melissa. She is excited because she is going into her Sophomore year in high school and she is really enjoying writing in her journal.

As the summer comes to a close she is excited to be starting school again and can't wait to see what everyone has been doing. This year is different because they have two new friends on the scene and one of them is an exchange student from Italy Giovanni who is a riot through out the book and Cassie who quickly becomes friends with Mis and the gang.Things start off right but they quickly start to go down hill for Mis and she will go through a lot of stuff before winter break.

What is a girl to do when she loses someone she loves? What will she do about Brian? Love him or leave him? What will she do about Jimmy? She will fall in love in this book but it is with someone you least expect it to be. ALso Melissa will have to grow up and learn what true friendship is and what it means to put it all out there no matter the outcome.

I love this series and I can't wait for TTYL which is the fourth book to come out in 2013. Happy Reading and enjoy Melissa and the gang!

Synopsis:

The last few months have been a rough road for Melissa. Her grades have slipped, her parents treat her like a prisoner, and her closest friends are too involved in their own lives to spend time with her. Desperate to escape her depressing funk, she starts spending more time with Layla, who introduces her to a new crowd...the wrong crowd. When Melissa starts to go down a dangerous path, can anyone get through to her before she does something she'll regret?

Goodreads:

My Review

5 of 5 TTYL

Okay so Bethany is the bomb with this series because she explore so many issues that teens face as they are growing up. No one ever thinks about what teens are facing and feeling when they enter high school. First off it is a very scary thing because teens are faced with bullying and the need to fit in so they do not get ridiculed.

In TTYL Missy and her friends have suffered a great loss and they are reeling from that. Her best friend is spending all her time with her boyfriend because he is going back to his country and they won't be able to see each other for a while. Then her other friend Jimmy is reeling from the loss of his girlfriend. 

So with everyone kinda in their own worlds Missy is left in the wind and decides to start hanging back out with Layla and her boyfriend. Missy soon meets a guy that makes her feel good but she knows he is bad for her and she soon finds herself in a world of trouble. She is sneaking around going to clubs and doing things she should not be doing. 

Finally Missy's parents catch on to what is going on and punish her and in her time on punishment she realizes what she is doing is wrong and decides she needs to try and get along with her family. It isn't until she spends time with Ben that she realizes she needs to change and mean it.

I love what Missy went through and the things she did because it showed us that teens do make mistakes but in the end if they have someone they love there to support them they will choose the right path in the end.

About Author:

Bethany Lopez began self-publishing in June 2011. Since then she has published various YA and NA books. She is a lover of romance, family, and friends, and enjoys incorporating those things in what she writes. When she isn't reading or writing, she loves spending time with her husband and children, traveling whenever possible.

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