A forbidden romance. A modern mystery. Wuthering Heights as you’ve never seen it before.

Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad’s famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?

Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years—a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn’t die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her—starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.

Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.

Chelsea has always been told that her mom died when she was very young. One night she finds a letter from her mother telling her otherwise, so Chelsea sets out on a mission to discover the mystery of her mother’s disappearance. This is how she ends up in New York at the club that her mother grew up in along with the mysterious Hence. Turns out, Hence is Chelsea’s mom’s old boyfriend and one true love. Together, they must find out what happened to Chelsea’s mom.

Catherine has grown up in the music scene for as long as she can remember. Her dad’s the owner of a famous club, and she’s on the right track to Harvard. But things start to change when Catherine meets Hence, the boy without money or a place to stay. Convincing her father to let Hence stay in their basement, they slowly begin to develop feelings for one another. But their relationship gets rocky and their love gets put to the test. Will their pride tear them apart or will they make it last?

I instantly fell madly in love with Catherine by April Lindner. The words, plot, character….everything…they were all so gorgeous. I devoured the book in a little over a day, and I was depressed towards the beginning that it was going to end soon. I especially loved Catherine and Hence. What a gorgeous couple! I wish that the book would have eliminated Chelsea’s section and just focused on the romance between Catherine and Hence, because their relationship was one of the best things I’ve ever experienced.

It was interesting to read about Chelsea’s POV. For awhile, I really didn’t know what happened to Catherine, and it was cool reading about Chelsea play detective. Again, though, I wish that she hadn’t existed. I wanted to read about Catherine and Hence, and I found myself wanting to fast forward through Chelsea’s sections.

I want to point out that I have not read Wuthering Heights before, so I have no idea what happens at the end of it. I’ve heard positive and negative things about it. One thing I’ve heard is that the main male character plays a very domineering male, which is something that I am not interested in reading about. But let me tell you, if the ending of Wuthering Heights is ANYTHING like the ending of Catherine, I will never ever ever ever EVER read it!

The ending of Catherine upset me so much that it dropped from a 5 star to a 2 star in less than five minutes. I finished the book the night before I’m writing this review and my emotions are all over the place. I’m angry, sad, and devastated. I had guessed what had happened to Catherine and everything that surrounded her mysterious disappearance long before the ending, but I thought it was some sick joke when Lindner put it to action. I wanted to see romance between Catherine and Hence, I didn’t want to see her completely ruin her story and her character.

As I’m writing this, I’m trying to give as little away as possible because the ending was so intense and upset me so much. I do want to say that I will never read this book again. Not only that, but I didn’t even finish the book. After what she did at the end, I didn’t even care about the last few chapters. I skimmed them and turned off my laptop. I was not impressed.

I honestly felt a little violated, actually. I invested so much time and energy into that book. I fell in love with it and considered it one of my favorite books of the year. I cannot recommend this book, because I know that the ending will devastate other readers. Some might say that the ending was romantic, but I would disagree. It wasn’t romantic…it was sick! No. I am really disappointed with Catherine, and I will not be reading it again in the future.

People who loved Wuthering Heights might enjoy this book..I really don’t know. But as someone who has not read Wuthering Heights, I was really crushed by what was done to the book. I want my contemporary to have a romance that will last. And when the romance is so beautiful, I don’t want it to be messed with. So, I wouldn’t really know how to recommend this book even if I wanted to. I guess if you loved Wuthering Heights, give it a shot. But if you didn’t read Wuthering Heights, stay far, far away.

Pages: 320

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Publication Date: January 2nd, 2013

Rating: :

The rules governing middle school are often a mystery, but for Eric Haskins, they’re a mystery he needs to solve, and fast. He’s a normal, average kid, until sixth grade starts. For some inexplicable reason, the class bully and his pack make Eric the Grunt. Even his best friend since first grade turns on him. Eric can’t figure out why he’s the Grunt until he hears about the Bully Book, a cryptic guide that teaches you how to “make trouble without getting in trouble, rule the school and be the man” and how to select the Grunt-the kid who will become the lowest of the low.

Eric Haskins may be this year’s Grunt for now, but he’s determined not to stay at the bottom of the social ladder forever. Hilarious and compelling, The Bully Book is a must-read for every tween, tween parent, librarian and educator!

Eric Haskins has just started 6th grade. Up till now, he’s been perfectly normal. He’s had good friends, even a best friend, Donovan. He’s done pretty will at school, he’s never been bullied or gotten into any real fights. Life has always been pretty good for Eric. Of course, that all changed the moment he walked into his 6th grade homeroom class and was labeled the “Grunt.”

What exactly is the “Grunt?” That’s exactly the question that Eric wants to know. Everyone liked him before, so why all of a sudden is he the social outcast? Now, Eric is being constantly bullied by people he’s never even met. He’s being beat up, picked on, humiliated. Poor Eric has got some real trouble on his hands, and he doesn’t even know what he did to cause it.

On a mission to find out what the “Grunt” truly is, he starts to investigate. Shockingly enough, Eric soon learns that he’s not the only Grunt around! In fact, there seems to be one for pretty much every grade level starting after sixth grade. Teaming up with his fellow grunts, Eric sets out to find out exactly why he’s the grunt, what made him the grunt, and how to stop his tormenters and ruin their Bully Book once and for all.

The Bully Book was very hard for me to pick up, because I’ve experienced some of the bullying and trauma that Eric was subjected to. I felt like I was going to be placing myself into an unsafe situation which made me a little uncomfortable. Once I picked up The Bully Book, I finished it in an entire setting. I read The Bully Book in under 4 hours, which is the fastest I have read any book since elementary school.

Eric’s story was so realistic that it simply broke my heart throughout most of the entire book. Bullying is a very real thing that goes on in this world, especially in public schools, which is something that Eric Kahn Gale portrayed very nicely. I was captivated from the very first journal entry, and it lasted until the very last page.

One thing that I loved about this book, and it’s probably going to offend some, is how realistic Eric Kahn Gale portrayed the teacher’s in this story. Many teachers out there do not stand up for their student’s who are being bullied. They ignore it, don’t notice it, blame the victim, etc. Is that harsh? Maybe, but that’s what I experienced. I never had a teacher stand up for me, and I went to many different schools. Many teacher’s will not do anything unless the student who is being bullied directly confronts the teacher about it. Why should the student have to say anything? Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there are plenty of cases out there where the teacher’s really don’t know that bullying is going on. However, there are MANY cases where they should know. It’s not the student’s responsibility to ask for help. It’s the teacher’s job, and they need to stand up for their student’s.

The substitute teacher in The Bully Book made me so mad. I just wanted to jump into the story and throttle that stupid woman. If student’s were using their vocabulary words to harass another student right in front of me, I would do something about it. I would get student’s suspended or expelled over that, because bullying is NEVER acceptable. NEVER. I was really offended for Eric, and I wish just one person would have really stood up for him.

Another thing that bothered me during The Bully Book were the parents. A parent should know when their child is miserable. They should know when something is wrong. You may not want to admit to yourself that your child is being bullied, but odds are that it has happened at least once. You need to ask your children how other student’s treat them. It doesn’t matter that it’s an uncomfortable conversation or if your child gets angry that you brought it up. What matters is that you took an interest and made sure that they were safe. I honestly, for a large part of this book, thought that Eric was going to commit suicide from the torture that he was receiving. Never once did an adult take an interest in him. Never once did his mom say, “Eric, is everything alright at school?” And his dad? His dad laughed! Not at the fact that Eric was being bullied, but he turned bullying into some sort of joke. It’s not a joke. It’s not funny. It’s actually rather disgusting. And the parent’s in this book disgusted me even more.

I was hoping for a little bit more with Melody, Donovan and Colin, three of the main characters in The Bully Book. Donovan had been Eric’s best friend since the first grade, and, all of a sudden, he hated Eric. He went along with Eric being the grunt and he turned into a complete and utter asshole. I was hoping to see a change in Donovan, and I didn’t. I also wanted to see more interaction between Eric and Donovan. It didn’t matter if it was good or bad interaction, but I really feel that their story is unfinished.

I absolutely despised Melody’s character. Melody played a good friend to Eric, and he also had a really big crush on her. Melody ends up dating the guy who labeled Eric the Grunt, and she watches him get beat up and bullied and doesn’t do anything about it. This is actually very common. I understand that these are sixth graders, but sixth graders are not babies. They know right from wrong, and Melody was definitely in the wrong almost 100% of the time. She’s lucky she wasn’t my kid, because I would have never put up with that. I just wish that we had seen a little more interaction between Melody and Eric towards the end of the book. They definitely have a lot to hash out, and we didn’t get to see that. I’m not sure if there will be a second book, but there’s a lot in The Bully Book that needs to be resolved and finished out.

Then we come to poor, little Colin. Colin was my absolute favorite character, and only a slightly lesser geek in the sixth grade population than Eric. He was so sweet and lovable, and I wish we would have seen Eric and Colin grow into very close friends. That’s what I expected to happen from the beginning, and I was very disappointed that that didn’t happen. I wasn’t very thrilled with how Eric treated Colin, and I really hope to gain the opportunity to watch Eric apologize and have them grow into very close friends.

This book definitely hit a lot of my triggers. If you’ve been bullied, then The Bully Book might be a little difficult for you to read. The messages in it are amazing, though, and I definitely think that everyone should give it a chance. Most importantly, I think that people who haven’t been bullied or people who have bullied other people should read this book. It’s important that you know how you’re making others feel when you pick on them. It’s not ok, and it’s not something that I will or would ever forgive. Bullying is a big issue in America and it needs to stop. The Bullying Book was an amazing read that took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. My heart broke, my eyes welled with tears, and I swear my blood pressure rose massive amounts. I got angry, sad, happy, fearful….all these emotions that I can’t even describe to you guys. I definitely will be looking out for more work by Eric Kahn Gale. Great book!

Pages: 240

Publication Date: December 26th, 2012

Publisher: HarperCollins

Rating: :

Teaser Quote: “I hate the Bully Book and I hate the Grunt.”

“Stop making fun of Colin. It makes you sound like an idiot. And stop calling people gay. I don’t even know why that’s an insult. There are real gay people in the world, you know, and there’s nothing wrong with them. Calling someone gay, like it’s a bad thing, is like calling someone a dentist- it doesn’t make any freaking sense!”( Pg 139 ARC)

C.J. Redwine is the author of Defiance, which published in August, 2012. C.J. took the time out of her own schedule to do a guest review of Chime by Franny Billingsley. You can find out more information about C.J. Redwine on her website.

Chime by Franny Billingsley

Reviewed by C.J. Redwine

Before Briony’s stepmother died, she made sure Briony blamed herself for all the family’s hardships. Now Briony has worn her guilt for so long it’s become a second skin. She often escapes to the swamp, where she tells stories to the Old Ones, the spirits who haunt the marshes. But only witches can see the Old Ones, and in her village, witches are sentenced to death. Briony lives in fear her secret will be found out, even as she believes she deserves the worst kind of punishment.

Then Eldric comes along with his golden lion eyes and mane of tawny hair. He’s as natural as the sun, and treats her as if she’s extraordinary. And everything starts to change. As many secrets as Briony has been holding, there are secrets even she doesn’t know.

The setting is a character in its own right in CHIME. Both the village and the swamp are gorgeously atmospheric and very gothic. I almost felt like I’d been pulled underwater where reality was muffled and magic was slowly unfolding all around me while I just let myself sink into this new realm.

Rating: :