Tag: Netgalley

I Killed Zoe Spanos Review and Favourite Quotes

Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

Thanks to NetGalley, McElderry Books and Kit Frick for providing the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I Killed Zoe Spanos
Publisher: McElderry Books
Release date: 30 June 2020
Genre: Young Adult Mystery, Thriller

Panda Rating:



“The YA thriller of the summer.” —Bustle
For fans of Sadie and Serial, this gripping thriller follows two teens whose lives become inextricably linked when one confesses to murder and the other becomes determined to uncover the real truth no matter the cost.

What happened to Zoe won’t stay buried…
When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe Spanos, a local girl who has been missing since New Year’s Eve. Anna bears an eerie resemblance to Zoe, and her mere presence in town stirs up still-raw feelings about the unsolved case. As Anna delves deeper into the mystery, stepping further and further into Zoe’s life, she becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected—and that she knows what happened to her.
Two months later, Zoe’s body is found in a nearby lake, and Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Anna’s confession is riddled with holes, and Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn’t satisfied. Did Anna really kill Zoe? And if not, can Martina’s podcast uncover the truth? Inspired by Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca, Kit Frick weaves a thrilling story of psychological suspense that twists and turns until the final page

Amazon (US) | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Book Depository | Kobo | Google Books

Note: The quotes below are taken from an advanced/unfinished copy and are subject to change in the final version.

“I have something better to do this summer, someone better to become.”

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#WWWWednesday: 24 June

Dini @ dinipandareads15 Comments

Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?

Since last Wednesday I’ve managed to finish four books. The majority of my reads are still for blog tours, which I’m surprised to have completed well ahead of my dates this week, but I also read two romances because my mood told me to!

The Crow Rider (The Storm Crow #2) by Kalyn Josephson ★★★½
This was a really satisfying conclusion to this duology. We get more strong friendships, some character growth, intriguing revelations, an awesome battle, and plenty more crow magic with a cheeky little crow that will steal your heart. Friday is my stop on the blog tour so be on the look out for my review then!

Walk of Shame by Lauren Layne ★★★½
I picked this up immediately after the lovely Emer suggested it in part one of her rom com recs. This was my second book by Layne and I thoroughly enjoyed it! This was easy to speed through in one sitting and was great for a laugh. I loved the characters and there was just the right amount of angst. Although the ending felt rushed and “too easy” this was still a fun romcom with great banter and quirky characters. Review coming very soon!

I Knew You Were Trouble by Lauren Layne ★★★½
I decided to read another book by Layne after finishing Walk of Shame and again, this was easy to quickly devour in one sitting. The level of angst in this one was a bit higher but the chemistry was undeniable and the antagonistic banter was just as good! I loved our hero, Nick 💜 Although this is book four in a series it can definitely be read as a standalone because I didn’t read the other three before this. Review coming very soon!

I Killed Zoe Spanos by Kit Frick ★★★½
I have to admit to being a bit disappointed that I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I’d hoped especially with the ‘big reveal’/ending. It’s said to be for fans of Sadie and while I get it with the mixed media format, that was a bit of the extent of it. I was surprised by how eerily atmospheric Frick’s writing was though and this was definitely not the typical sunshine and wealth Hamptons that we’re used to seeing. Although I struggled at the start, once the pace picked up I sped through it. I know I’m in the minority with my opinion though and I think it’ll be a big summer hit. My stop on the blog tour is TOMORROW so be sure to look out for my review then 😉

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Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp

Dini @ dinipandareads7 Comments

We’re back with another Sundays in Bed With… meme! This meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning and is hosted by Midnight Book Girl. Come share what book you’ve been you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed with, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

I’ll be spending the rest of this Sunday in bed with I Killed Zoe Spanos. I’m reading this for the blog tour coming up next week but for reasons that I’m sure have 100% to do with my mood, I’m struggling to get into it. I put it down to read something else last week but I’m hoping that when I pick it up now I’ll find it easier to get into! It’s being compared to Sadie and I loved that book so I’m hoping I’ll end up loving this one too!

This gripping thriller follows two teens whose lives become inextricably linked when one confesses to murder and the other becomes determined to uncover the real truth no matter the cost.

What happened to Zoe won’t stay buried…
When Anna Cicconi arrives to the small Hamptons village of Herron Mills for a summer nanny gig, she has high hopes for a fresh start. What she finds instead is a community on edge after the disappearance of Zoe Spanos, a local girl who has been missing since New Year’s Eve. Anna bears an eerie resemblance to Zoe, and her mere presence in town stirs up still-raw feelings about the unsolved case. As Anna delves deeper into the mystery, stepping further and further into Zoe’s life, she becomes increasingly convinced that she and Zoe are connected–and that she knows what happened to her.
Two months later, Zoe’s body is found in a nearby lake, and Anna is charged with manslaughter. But Anna’s confession is riddled with holes, and Martina Green, teen host of the Missing Zoe podcast, isn’t satisfied. Did Anna really kill Zoe? And if not, can Martina’s podcast uncover the truth?

What are you currently reading?

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#WWWWednesday: 18 June

Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

For the second week in a row I somehow forgot to share my #WWWWednesday posts as it completely slips my mind! Oops… So even though it’s Thursday I thought I’d still share my update!

Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?

Since two weeks have passed I’ve managed to read more books than has been ‘the usual’ for me this year. This is mostly because of the blog tours I’m participating in and in the last weeks, there have been quite a few! Sadly, it’s still mostly because of those books that I’m pushing myself to read, but otherwise my moods have been in such disarray that I don’t know what I feel like reading, and that’s if I feel like reading at all! 😔 But before I go off on an even bigger tangent, here’s what I’ve read over the last two weeks. I can’t believe I’m about to say this but I’m not including two books that I DNF’d–yep, you read that right! I finally made the decision to DNF two books. Perhaps it’s my erratic mood but I just couldn’t connect with them and it was such a struggle to read one page after another, so I decided to put them away. I feel pretty guilty still but I know I made the right decision!

Promises Forged (Venators #2) by Devri Walls ★★★★½
The sequel to book one was just as fast-paced and full of action, along with some very satisfying character growth! I enjoyed book one but loved book two and can’t wait for the third! Read my full review.

The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones by Daven McQueen ★★★★½
This was equal parts heart-wrenching and heartwarming. This historical YA is so relevant to everything that’s happening right now. McQueen’s writing was wholly atmospheric and both Ethan and Juniper Jones will steal your heart. Read my full review.

Half Life by Lillian Clark ★★★½
This ended up being more of a contemporary with hints of sci-fi rather than the full-on sci-fi that I was expecting. It was still a really good read and I loved the concept and Clark’s observations on perception/truth. That said, I wanted more from the ending! Read my full review.

The Kinder Poison (The Kinder Poison #1) by Natalie Mae ★★★★½
This is probably my favourite YA fantasy read of 2020 so far. It sucked me in from the very beginning and didn’t let go until it spit me out, flabbergasted and clambering for more, at the very end! It had an interesting quest-style plot, loveable complex characters, and magic. Can has book two naow, pls? Read my full review.

The Storm Crow (Storm Crow #1) by Kalyn Josephson ★★★½
I’m so glad I finally picked this one up after having it sit on my shelf since its release! While the world building could’ve been better, I liked learning about the characters and loved the crow magic. I’m very curious to see how everything is resolved in the final book of this duology. Review coming very soon!

Royal Decoy (Fate of Eyrinthia #1) by Heather Frost ★★★☆☆
I can’t remember the last time I read a romantasy but this book has sparked up my interest in the sub-genre! It’s a fast paced fantasy with a deliciously slow burn romance. While it’s a bit cookie cutter to what’s out there in the fantasy world, it was still an enjoyable read! Read my full review.

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#TopTenTuesday: Summer 2020 Possibility Pile!

Dini @ dinipandareads24 Comments

So, we’re back with another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s prompt is: Books on my Summer 2020 TBR (or winter if you’re in the southern hemisphere).

It’s already June but also how is it still only June?! Thinking about a summer possibility pile of ten books is tough because there are so many I want to read and how do I even choose?! Since last year when I really got into the book community I’ve tried focusing my June reads on LGBTQ+ books because of pride, but this year is a little different. One because I have really not been reading as much due to Animal Crossing, but mostly because as a mood reader it’s already hard having any ‘fixed’ kind of list, but it’s become even more impossible this year when my moods have been as wildly unpredictable as the year itself. I could just list the blog tour reads that I’ll be doing but I decided to pick a random mix of books that have been on my mind and that my mood has been leaning towards lately, so there’s a somewhat *high possibility* of me reading them this summer 😂

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The Kinder Poison Review and Favourite Quotes

Dini @ dinipandareads29 Comments

Thanks to NetGalley, Razorbill and author Natalie Mae for providing the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Kinder Poison (The Kinder Poison #1)
Publisher: Razorbill
Release date: 16 June 2020
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Panda Rating:



Perfect for fans of Victoria Aveyard and Holly Black, this enthralling fantasy adventure follows a teenage girl chosen to be the human sacrifice in a deadly game between three heirs who will do anything for the crown.

Zahru has long dreamed of leaving the kingdom of Orkena and having the kinds of adventures she’s only ever heard about in stories. But as a lowly Whisperer, her power to commune with animals means that her place is serving in the royal stables until the day her magic runs dry.

All that changes when the ailing ruler invokes the Crossing: a death-defying race across the desert, in which the first of his heirs to finish—and take the life of a human sacrifice at the journey’s end—will ascend to the throne and be granted unparalleled abilities.

With all of the kingdom abuzz, Zahru leaps at the chance to change her fate if just for a night by sneaking into the palace for a taste of the revelry. But the minor indiscretion turns into a deadly mistake when she gets caught up in a feud between the heirs and is forced to become the Crossing’s human sacrifice. Zahru is left with only one hope for survival: somehow figuring out how to overcome the most dangerous people in the world.

Amazon (US) | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo | Google Books

Note: The quotes below are taken from an advanced/unfinished copy and are subject to change in the final version.

“All good stories start with bad decisions”

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Half Life Blog Tour: Review and Favourite Quotes

Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

Hi, friends! I’m so excited to be back with another The Fantastic Flying Book Club tour post today for Half Life by Lillian Clark! Huge thanks to the FFBC for organising these amazing tours and to the authors for making the eARCs available to us.

Be sure to click on the banner above to see the other bloggers on tour! 😊

Half Life
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release date: 09 June 2020
Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction

Panda Rating:



An overachiever enrolls in an experimental clone study to prove that two (of her own) heads are better than one in this fast-paced, near-future adventure that’s Black Mirror meets Becky Albertalli.

There aren’t enough hours in the day for Lucille–perfectionist, overachiever–to do everything she has to do, and there certainly aren’t enough hours to hang out with friends, fall in love, get in trouble–all the teenage things she knows she should want to be doing instead of preparing for a flawless future. So when she sees an ad for Life2: Do more. Be more, she’s intrigued.

The company is looking for beta testers to enroll in an experimental clone program, and in the aftermath of a series of disappointments, Lucille is feeling reckless enough to jump in. At first, it’s perfect: her clone, Lucy, is exactly what she needed to make her life manageable and have time for a social life. But it doesn’t take long for Lucy to become more Lucy and less Lucille, and Lucille is forced to stop looking at Lucy as a reflection and start seeing her as a window–a glimpse at someone else living her own life, but better. Lucy does what she really wants to, not what she thinks she should want to, and Lucille is left wondering how much she was even a part of the perfect life she’d constructed for herself. Lucille wanted Lucy to help her relationships with everyone else, but how can she do that without first rectifying her relationship with herself? 

Amazon (US) | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Book Depository | Kobo | Google Play

Note: The quotes below are taken from an advanced/unfinished copy and are subject to change in the final version.

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The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones Review and Favourite Quotes

Dini @ dinipandareads20 Comments

Thanks to NetGalley, Wattpad Books and author Daven McQueen for providing the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones
Publisher: Wattpad Books
Release date: 16 June 2020
Genre: Young Adult Historical Fiction

Panda Rating:



It’s the summer of 1955. For Ethan Harper, a biracial kid raised mostly by his white father, race has always been a distant conversation. When he’s sent to spend the summer with his aunt and uncle in small-town Alabama, his Blackness is suddenly front and center, and no one is shy about making it known he’s not welcome there. Except for Juniper Jones. The town’s resident oddball and free spirit, she’s everything the townspeople aren’t―open, kind, and full of acceptance.

Armed with two bikes and an unlimited supply of root beer floats, Ethan and Juniper set out to find their place in a town that’s bent on rejecting them. As Ethan is confronted for the first time by what it means to be Black in America, Juniper tries to help him see the beauty in even the ugliest reality, and that even the darkest days can give rise to an invincible summer.

Amazon (US) | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo | IndieBound

Note: The quotes below are taken from an advanced/unfinished copy and are subject to change in the final version.

“It is also, first and foremost, a story about race. It’s a story about the struggle that it was and is to be black in America. And because that is a hard thing, this story deals heavily with racism in the attitudes and languages of certain characters.”

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Top 5 Saturday: Books Set Near/On the Sea

Dini @ dinipandareads24 Comments

We’re back with another Top 5 Saturday! Just in case you don’t know Top 5 Saturday is a weekly meme created by Mandy @ Devouring Books and it’s where we list the top five books (they can be books on your TBR, favourite books, books you loved/hated) based on the week’s topic. You can see the upcoming schedule at the end of my post 🙂 This week’s topic is: books set near/on the sea.

This is a great topic that I don’t think I’ve ever answered in a meme before. Now that I’m thinking about it, I realise that I have a lot of books set near/on/in the sea, so it’s clear I love the idea of a story set by the sea or on the sea. I say I love the idea because these are all on my TBR (*cough*) LOL

It’s funny when I think about it because when I think of books set on the sea I always think of fantasy (mostly YA) and when I think of books set near/by the sea, a lot of the time I think about women’s fiction books that are set in the summer and revolve around quaint sea-side towns and have cute fluffy romances! That said, when thinking about books for this list none were the latter but one was the former 😂 I’m looking forward to reading all of these though and I’m really hoping I’ll be able to get to them them at some point this year!

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#WWWWednesday: 03 June

Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

This is starting to feel a little bit like de ja vu but how is it already Wednesday now? What have I done this week? I feel like I’ve accomplished nothing and… that actually shows in my reading! *womp womp womp*

Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?

Since last Wednesday I’ve only finished one book. Technically, I read two but for the first time in pretty much ever I purposefully set aside a book and decided to DNF it. Yep, it’s a mood. But anyway, I’m going to focus on the one book I did finish this past week: The Fallen Angel by Kenneth B. Andersen. This is book five in The Great Devil War series and while I enjoyed it, it wasn’t my favourite in the series (that title still belongs to book four)! My review will be posted later tonight so be on the look out for that 😊

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