I was SO excited for this one. While I am no expert, I definitely love to hike. I have always been fascinated with the woods and exploring different trails. So I thought this one would be perfect for me. What also drew me to this book was the cover. Its so simple and pretty. I like the colors and the camping emojis. 

McKenna and her best friend Courtney have been accepted into college for the fall but they have decided to defer to hike the Appalachian Trail. When her best friend backs out, Mckenna is determined to make the dangerous trip alone. On the trail she meets Sam who has escaped his abusive father and has been walking with no goal or future in sight. They fall in love despite their opposite lives.

I liked this book because It mentions Harper's Ferry West Virginia being the halfway point. I love going to Harper's Ferry for the hiking and mountains so it was cool to see the mention. I liked this book because McKenna had such big plans for herself, she was very smart and studied for this trip for a long time.

I would have LOVED this book if McKenna had made smart decisions, and didn't fall in love with a boy who basically derailed her trip. I would have LOVED this book if it was about a girl who overcomes others doubts about her hiking alone, if the book focused on McKenna hiking and the states and places she stopped, it would have been great. 

As soon as she met Sam she started making stupid decisions to get him to like her and not run off. These decisions cause her to almost get herself killed and ruin the trip. This book had the perfect opportunity to write a story about feminism and girl power. Hiking the trail alone and overcoming everyone's doubts about her. Instead its about a girl who had big plans for herself who put them in jeopardy for a boy. 

**SPOILER FREE**

The cover is beautiful, the story fell short.

This was my first book about mermaids AKA sirens. We read from Kahlen's point of view, she was rescued by the Ocean from a drowning that killed her family. To repay her debt she has to serve the Ocean and become a siren. Sirens use their voice to lure in boats so they will sink. In turn, the Ocean gets a new girl. While she can never use her voice on land, she still spends her time watching people and waiting for her freedom. She eventually meets a boy Akinli who she falls in love with. The Ocean will do everything she can to keep them apart. 

I mostly enjoyed the second half of the book where things really stopped being repetitive and picked up. I felt like I wasnt really getting a story here, it repeated itself, Kahlen wishing for her freedom, her and the other girls moving every so often it wasnt really much of a story until the second half. 

I enjoyed reading from the Ocean's point of view. Kiera Cass painted her as lonely and trapped. Although it wasnt terrible and I did enjoy it, I felt like it could have been so much more. 

 **SPOILER FREE**

This is a stand alone, which is nice because I don't read to many stand alone novels. Everything seems to be a trilogy or some dragged out series.

I loved this book because it was nothing like anything I have read before. It is categorized as Y/A fantasy. It takes place mostly in a mute Chinese village centering around Chinese folklore. That in itself was enough to intrigue me. Our main lead is Fei, she lives in a mining village on top of a mountain. They are starving and going blind. The village relies on a zipline at the bottom for all of their food. When the metal they are mining becomes less and less, so does the food. All Fei, has is her sister Zhang Jing, she looks out, and acts like a mother to her. One night Fei, is awoken by a loud noise. Suddenly, sound is her weapon. She sets out on a journey with a miner, who brings the possibility of romance to discover what is happening to her and her village. 

I definitely thought this book did not need a sequel. However, because it was only about 260 pages I felt that some parts of the story were rushed. Big scenes felt like they needed more time to explain. Their journey down the mountain only took about three pages. I felt like that should have been written more as an exciting, nerve wracking scene. I would have also liked to know a time period that this story takes place in. I know they have lost track of the Kings from the town that sends them food, but that's all we know. I also think that the world building could have been done better. We don't know much about the location, history or the township that that brings them the food. I guess a fantasy novel can be hard to write in a stand alone that only has 260 pages. 

I loved that this book centered around a mute community. I have never read from that point of view before. I also have never read anything about Chinese folklore. I did love the writing style used, it makes you feel sad and a need to figure out what is going on with this village. I loved the relationship between Fei and her sister. You could tell that Fei would do anything for Zhang Jing. I think overall, the book concluded nicely and didn't leave me guessing about anything. 

**SPOILER FREE**

Treasure hunt through time! 

This one will be hard to explain without giving away spoilers so it will be brief.

I went into this book not really expecting much. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Our main character Henrietta, is thrust out of her life as a violin player and must travel through time to find a very important "treasure" that many people have been after for hundreds of years. Along the way she uncovers secrets about her mother. She travels through time with our other lead Nicholas who is also our love interest. I did feel that the love interest was a little bit of a classic case of insta-love. As soon as Nicholas was introduced we knew this would be a love interest. I did love the inter-racial relationship between Henrietta and Nicholas. I cant say I have read another Y/A book with it, unfortunately it isn't very common. 

I love the rules about time traveling that Bracken creates. It makes the book have a sense of urgency. She creates all types of emotions from tears to laughter while reading. She created characters I loved and hated in this one and it made the book all the more enjoyable. The ending was a complete surprise that totally caught me off guard! This will be a duology, the second book is titled Wayfare. 

This is unlike anything I have ever read before. I'm only half way through and I would already recommend everyone go read it! I'm loving the writing and feeling this book gives off.