Take a Hint, Dani Brown by Talia Hibbert

DANI HAS AQUINAS
WHY IS SHE TAKING CODEINE
ANXIETY REP. 

And the Bi Rep.
The Red cameos.... Just like. I can't....
Also like....I did not come here to be called out like this.
400 Pages

TS: Glitch, Sweet Nothings (in particular the second verse)

City of Nightmares by Rebecca Schaeffer

At first it was giving me Metamorphosis Kafka vibes.
What happened:

But also. The concept that you'll change into your nightmares.....
I love vampire boy. I just do. I just.... Can I keep him.
384 Pages

Twice in a Lifetime by Melissa Baron

Hey guys. Look it's in Missouri.
The Brooklyn 99 Reference. Boom boom.
When you casually make a joke about moving to Idaho because your brother is in Wyoming and your sister is in Utah, and then they bring up Idaho.
I'm not crying... I have no idea what you're talking about.
The fluff.

325 Pages

TS Song: Forever Winter, This Is Me Trying, Invisible String

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

.....No one is 6'7"....
Me watching all this high school drama: 

So Rose is immature--but she's a teenager, so like....I have to cut her some slack.
*remembers how toxic I was in high school and college and cringes
Dimitri and Rose:

Me cringing at the 2007 book in 2022 cause eesh some of this did not age well.... mostly in terms of like....sensitivity to mental illness and stuff.....
So Lissa is Rapunzel but different.
Me knowing all of the tropes
352 Pages

Fangirl Vol 2: The Manga by Rainbow Rowell and Sam Maggs

GINGERBREAD LATTES.
AND THE OUTSIDERS SCENE.
And the iconic "I'm scared of everything. And I'm crazy. Like maybe you think I'm a little crazy, but I only ever let people see the tip of my crazy iceberg. Underneath this veneer of slightly crazy and socially inept, I'm a complete disaster.”
Hi excuse me....where's the release date for Volume 3....
On the bright side, there be no cliffhanger because the book version is published
224 Pages

Mr. Perfect on Paper by Jean Meltzer

Literally the first chapter with Chris gave me anxiety because the fear of breakfast going horribly wrong and the parent and child relationship.
We love Chris. He's cool. 
I really liked that we got to see a character with GAD and her coping mechanisms. And like....someone who validates the coping mechanisms, no matter how weird they seem to be.
Single dad with a preteen girl shenanigans. We love it. 
I feel like that the relationship was rushed--in the sense that the characters thought a lot of things about the other, but they never really said anything to each other, and then they were saying "I love you"
Sooooo I'm like....mildly upset because it could have been steamier....
Like... it was hinted and then never brought up. THERE WAS POTENTIAL.
416 Pages

Icebreakers by R. L. Graziadei

Insert the get-along shirt
They both love FMA Brotherhood
ALSO: the surviving on Iced Coffee
"Tom Holland and Zendaya: A bisexual's dream" I mean.
Ok but the dissociating when the depression is bad just hits. 
and the parents taking care of the kids but not knowing the kids....oof. 
ok but the fanfic.....smirk face. 
320 Pages

Taylor Swift Song: this is me trying (and Sparks Fly)

Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

fdskallfjlsakflja;;gsldfhjfjkdsafjklsfdjklfds
Insert that scene of Rita Skeeter talking to Harry: "boy of 12" "...14"
I just. Love all of this. The fanart/fanfic aspect, the art and the writing, the angst and the mental health issues, and like jfkldsajklsfs.
I love Wallace and I love Eliza and I just wanna protect them. 
Also baby brothers. fjkdls
432 Pages

A Forgery of Roses by Jessica S. Olson

Hey look! It's Spoon Theory!
The anxiety rep.
....Do I feel like I'm in a Bob Ross video when they mention the paint colors...yes...
Puppy. I'm crying... Yes it's because I have a dog. 
Jessica Olson has hurt me before, so I was worried. 
August. Heart eyes.
384 Pages

The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun

It's fluffy and it has all the fanfic vibes.
Also. We love great representation of mental illness. Especially the physical symptoms of depression and anxiety/panic attacks, and how it just generally make life difficult. The talking about the stigma around mental illness, in the workplace and in social settings.  
People caring about other people's mental health and just being supportive of it is my favorite. I'm just gonna go cry and think about my friends. 
Also the ace and demi rep is just. My favorite. 
I wish we would have had more of Charlie's backstory, because I love angst, but also like. I love him because he's awkward and adorable and trying his best. 
368 Pages

The Nobleman's Guide to Scandal and Shipwrecks by Mackenzi Lee

My baby is so anxious and I feel so seen. 

"I ain't going to no secondary location"
Percy again. for the win. 
"you'd apologize if someone poured soup in your lap" ...I know that reference

This book has the audacity to make me cry because it makes me feel seen. Like.... the tension of having conversations with people. Staaaaaap. Also like...Sibling relationships in relation to trauma and like...working on sibling relationships. 
It's the mental illness and anxiety representation for me. 
592 Pages

Psalm of Storm and Silence by Roseanne A Brown

A new ship shows up: thanks I hate it. 
The whole "Find one thing" just...resonates with me for so many reasons.
And there's Madam Zeroni vibes

560 Pages

The Autoimmune Brain: A Five-Step Plan for Treating Chronic Pain, Depression, Anxiety, Fatigue and Attention Disorders

  The Autoimmune Brain: A Five-Step Plan for Treating Chronic Pain, Depression, Anxiety, Fatigue and Attention Disorders 

by David S. Younger

Pages: 288

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

This is not a book that most people will every word or even every page. Younger goes into great detail describing how the brain should work and how people with autoimmune disorder's brains do not work that way. He not only addresses how changes in the immune system affects and changes the brain, but particularly looks at bacterial, viral ,and parasitic infections and just in time for 2020 and its lingering affects -- traumatic stress both physical and emotional. He also tackles how this all works together with genetics as well. As a reader I definitely no longer felt alone with my long list of symptoms, but with my fuzzy brain, I wasn't able to delve into this book the way I would have liked. I plan to return to it and give it another try.  

Fangirl Volume 1 by Rainbow Rowell and Gabi Nam

Soooooooooooo I love Fangirl....so having it manga/comic form is super cool.
Still not how I picture Levi but like.....I picture him like the guy from the youtube scene. 
Ok so I love that it shows the progress of the manga like an Archive of Our Own heading. 
216 Pages

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown

Ok but the way that this book shows anxiety and mental illness!!!! fdjklsajfdjklsajklfds;a
I love Malik. He is so strong and precious and beautiful.
I loved the world and the magic and everything.
Hyena is iconic.
I would die for Karina. She must be protected. 
496 Pages

Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich, with Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek, and Justin Paul

Soooooo Evan's anxiety..... I feel seen.
Also all the self-loathing and feeling like a burden.....
I loved the musical (I haven't actually seen it, but I love the music!) so getting to be in Evan's head and see Connor's perspective....
I love that the audiobook was read by the actors that play Evan and Connor (and we get to hear Zoey singing).
368 Pages

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Ok but in all seriousness. I have lots of feelings about this book and I already love it. I love Davis.
Mustard. Yup. Mustard. Just Aza's thoughts on her own mental illness and herself...accurate. The self hatred and identity crisis.
Ok so open-ended ending that technically isn't open-ended...
320 Pages

Scorched by J. Lynn

Scorched by J. Lynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was generally good, though not especially memorable. One of the characters deals with some serious issues and not always in the best ways. Since about a year passed since I had read the first book, I couldn't really remember these characters, which were previously side characters. However, it didn't really matter, because this stands alone pretty well.

Pages: 238

Pushing the Limits Series by Katie McGarry

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2018

Katie McGarry is an Author Goddess. She writes words that wrap me up inside so tight that I don't care about the world going on around me. Her characters are complex and layered. Her storylines are interesting and so effective. She takes every emotion I have and forces me to feel it at max volume. It melts my face off, and I love it.

This is my 2nd time through this book, and I'm still stunned by this story.

Book 309 read in 2018

Pages: 392

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
It's emotionally gut-wrenching in the cry so many tears the page gets blurry kind of way. The characters are complex and well-developed. The storyline is fascinating and fast-paced. The voice is good, the writing admirable, and I love the alternating POVs.

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Dare You To by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2018

I'm really glad I decided to revisit this series, because it has so many things I enjoy in a good story. The characters are complex, well-developed, and show a lot of growth. There is a school counselor who is interesting and quirky and does a whole lot to help these teens with their struggles. The parents are all flawed individuals, who also don't make the best choices, so that's a recurring theme that continues to be interesting.

They're also romantic in a realistic, believable sort of way, and Katie McGarry is a phenomenal storyteller. I'd read the sports pages, if she'd write them (not that I get a newspaper, I don't, because this is 2018).

Book 310 read in 2018

Pages:456

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Crash into You by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2018

I don't know how many of you had a moment in your teenage years, or maybe even early 20s, where you realize your parents are more screwed up than you are (or than you ever even understood). If you did, then you'll relate to this series on a whole different level, because it showcases a lot of flawed and complicated family relationships, which make the stories more interesting, though often more painful.

Isaiah is a delicious book boyfriend, even if he sometimes needs to dial down the overprotective vibe. And watching Rachel deal with her anxiety and panic attacks, and/or not deal with them, added another layer of concern to the story.

I definitely still appreciate the pro-therapy/counseling message of this series.

Book 311 read in 2018

Pages: 474

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
I'm so upset that this story ended. I can't even talk about it right now. I just wanted to stay in the world for as long as possible, and now I'm kicked back out of it and devastated. Boo on reality. This is going to be an ugly book hangover.

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Take Me On by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

#BecRereads2018

There were so many characters in this story on their own difficult journeys. Every person in the story has a purpose, and every major side character is developed well enough that you really get invested in everyone, not just the main couple.

This is the story of a boy who can't stop fighting everyone and everything, and a girl who did nothing but fight and now never wants to fight again.

Book 312 read in 2018

Pages: 544

PREVIOUS REVIEW:
Don't love fighting. Do love this book. Katie McGarry writes flawed characters who are so lovable I hate when our time together ends.

View all my reviews

The Silent Waters by Brittainy C. Cherry

The Silent Waters by Brittainy C. Cherry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think this is my favorite of the series so far. It's the perfect combination of sweetness and turmoil.

Book 293 read in 2018

Pages: 316