The Queen Of Bright And Shiny ThingsBy:
Ann Aguirre
Release Date:
April 7, 2015
Published:
Feiwel & Friends
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Summary:
Sage Czinski is trying really hard to be perfect. If she manages it, people won’t peer beyond the surface, or ask hard questions about her past. She’s learned to substitute causes for relationships, and it’s working just fine… until Shane Cavendish strolls into her math class. He’s a little antisocial, a lot beautiful, and everything she never knew she always wanted.
Shane Cavendish just wants to be left alone to play guitar and work on his music. He’s got heartbreak and loneliness in his rearview mirror, and this new school represents his last chance. He doesn’t expect to be happy; he only wants to graduate and move on. He never counted on a girl like Sage.
But love doesn’t mend all broken things, and sometimes life has to fall apart before it can be put back together again…
Lindy's Thoughts:
The Queen Of Bright And Shiny Things is a magnificent story. It is profound, emotional, and meaningful. It impacted me greatly, and brought tears to my eyes.
In this story, we get Sage and Shane's story. Sage is currently living with her Aunt Gabby in the small town of Farmburg, Illinois. At the beginning of the story, we know that Sage is environmentally conscious, has an extremely small circle of friends, and is referred to as "Princess Post-It" at school. Sage likes to brighten people's day by picking one person who needs a pick me up. She then writes them a compliment on a post-it note and sticks it to their locker.
Shane just moved to Farmburg. He keeps his head down, doesn't interact with others, and appears anti-social. His mother died a few years ago from Cancer, and he has been bounced around in the system, until he finally gets his father to take him in on the condition that Shane takes care of himself.
Sage is drawn to Shane. She see's the sadness in his beautiful blue eyes, and can relate to some of his struggles. She goes out of her way to help him, and let him see that she cares. Something that Shane, and Sage's peers aren't aware of is that she hides her own dark past. Sage puts on a facade of a cheerful, happy-go-lucky teenage girl, but deep inside she hides her emotional struggles and scars. Can two broken people help mend the pieces of each other's broken hearts?
The Queen of Bright And Shiny Things was a story that resonated within my soul. Sage and Shane's pain spoke to me as I rapidly turned the pages of their story. The emotions that overtook me were powerful ones, and my heart broke for these two teens that had lost and suffered so much in their young lives.
I highly recommend this story! Sage and Shane were strong multi-layered main characters, and were surrounded by an excellent cast of secondary characters. The plot kept my attention, and had revelations and a few plot twists. I loved the major themes in this story, which were friendship, first love, strength, resilience, courage, and transformation. I felt like I was reliving the emotions of what it feels like to experience one's first set of butterflies, first kiss, first love, and all of the first's that come with one's transformation from a child to a young adult.
My Rating:
I give, The Queen Of Bright And Shiny Things, by Ann Aguirre, 5 Powerfully Poignant, Healing, Courageous Transformation, Exciting First Love filled Stars! Read this for a profound, emotional, and amazing realistic romantic fiction Young Adult read!
My Favorite Quotes:
"You can lie to yourself about all kinds of things. Until you can't, anymore. Until reality pounds a hole through your fantasy castle and the reality check must be cashed." (eARC, Loc. 129)
~Sage
"I smile, and I act happy, and I pretend. I'm the queen of bright and shiny things, eternally looking for the positive and seeking a silver lining in the dark." (eARC, Loc. 2334)
~Sage
Mikki's Review:
I don't read many YA novels, but when I do I want them to be just like The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things. This story was fun, beautiful, emotional, sweet and romantic. Ann Aguirre did a fantastic job at writing Sage and Shane's story. It was a memorable reading escape!
Both of these characters have a difficult and heartbreaking past. Life has not been easy for them. Sage is living with her aunt Gabby and Shane is left on his own to build a home for himself. From the moment that Shane walks into math class, Sage is mesmerized by him and what hides behind those beautiful blue eyes. As days go by, they get closer and they start to open up about their pasts. Sage and Shane embark on a journey that neither of them expected. What they find along the road is a learning experience that will change their life.
This story was very well written. I could feel all kinds of different emotions while reading this book. Sage and Shane were such fantastic characters to follow! It was easy to cheer for them. They are so freakin' adorable!!! Their chemistry was great and I loved to see them grow. The Sage and Shane that I read about in the beginning are far from the people that ended the story. They have come such a long way and I am so very proud of everything that they have accomplished! The courage that they had was remarkable. It was not an easy road for them. It was filled with many ups and downs. They found the courage to overcome whatever was thrown their way, and they did it with such a determination that I was left speechless!
I did not expect Sage to turn out to be such a strong and determined heroine. I had no clue what to expect of this story, but I have to admit that it kept me glued to my seat from beginning to end. I loved how they slowly fell in love. I got butterflies in my stomach and it made me smile big time! Shane is amazing! *Swoon* I was not expecting him to be so romantic. I loved how his layers started melting away and how he opened up about his past to Sage.
Overall, this was a memorable reading journey. It was amazing to see Sage and Shane fight for what they believed in. My heart broke for them in so many occasions. I loved how together they grew stronger. I loved how the whole idea of the post-it notes was intertwined in this story. I am so happy to see this included in a story. I have been on the receiving end of one of those post-it notes. There is a person at my gym that does that all the time!!! I was so happy when I saw that the post-it notes that Sage left behind changed so many lives. They really do! When you least expect it, somebody will turn things around and make you smile :)
Both of these characters have a difficult and heartbreaking past. Life has not been easy for them. Sage is living with her aunt Gabby and Shane is left on his own to build a home for himself. From the moment that Shane walks into math class, Sage is mesmerized by him and what hides behind those beautiful blue eyes. As days go by, they get closer and they start to open up about their pasts. Sage and Shane embark on a journey that neither of them expected. What they find along the road is a learning experience that will change their life.
This story was very well written. I could feel all kinds of different emotions while reading this book. Sage and Shane were such fantastic characters to follow! It was easy to cheer for them. They are so freakin' adorable!!! Their chemistry was great and I loved to see them grow. The Sage and Shane that I read about in the beginning are far from the people that ended the story. They have come such a long way and I am so very proud of everything that they have accomplished! The courage that they had was remarkable. It was not an easy road for them. It was filled with many ups and downs. They found the courage to overcome whatever was thrown their way, and they did it with such a determination that I was left speechless!
I did not expect Sage to turn out to be such a strong and determined heroine. I had no clue what to expect of this story, but I have to admit that it kept me glued to my seat from beginning to end. I loved how they slowly fell in love. I got butterflies in my stomach and it made me smile big time! Shane is amazing! *Swoon* I was not expecting him to be so romantic. I loved how his layers started melting away and how he opened up about his past to Sage.
Overall, this was a memorable reading journey. It was amazing to see Sage and Shane fight for what they believed in. My heart broke for them in so many occasions. I loved how together they grew stronger. I loved how the whole idea of the post-it notes was intertwined in this story. I am so happy to see this included in a story. I have been on the receiving end of one of those post-it notes. There is a person at my gym that does that all the time!!! I was so happy when I saw that the post-it notes that Sage left behind changed so many lives. They really do! When you least expect it, somebody will turn things around and make you smile :)
My Rating:
I give, The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things, by Ann Aguirre, 4 heart-melting, healing, courageous, sweet and romantic stars!
Book Teaser:
About Ann Aguirre:
Ann Aguirre is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author and RITA winner with a degree in English Literature; before she began writing full time, she was a clown, a clerk, a voice actress, and a savior of stray kittens, not necessarily in that order. She grew up in a yellow house across from a cornfield, but now she lives in sunny Mexico with her husband, children, and various pets. Ann likes books, emo music, action movies, and she writes all kinds of genre fiction for adults and teens, published with Harlequin, Macmillan, and Penguin, among others.
There are so many to choose from I think I'd like to be in a paranormal ya book because anything is possible as for what I'd be doing or what book I'm not sure. ;)
ReplyDeleteI'd definitely be in a paranormal YA novel.Probably falling in love with a vampire!
ReplyDeleteI would want to be in a YA fantasy on some amazing adventure! :)
ReplyDeleteSo many peeps are loving this one. I need to get to it. I love the idea of the post-it notes. I just want to read this to my students at school. Guess I should read it first and then maybe I will.
ReplyDeleteYou should read it! I think your students would LOVE it!!!
DeleteYour reviews are great. They've reminded me of why I put this book on my TBR. I can't believe I still haven't read it yet! I really like the post it notes idea, that's so cute! :) Can't wait to finally read this one.
ReplyDelete