Review: Pointe by Brandy Colbert

Book Title: Pointe

Author: Brandy Colbert

Published Date: April 10th, 2014

Publisher: Penguin

Genre: YA Contemporary

Standalone

Book Link: Goodreads

Purchase Links: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, The Book Depository

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Theo is better now.

She's eating again, dating guys who are almost appropriate, and well on her way to becoming an elite ballet dancer. But when her oldest friend, Donovan, returns home after spending four long years with his kidnapper, Theo starts reliving memories about his abduction—and his abductor.

Donovan isn't talking about what happened, and even though Theo knows she didn't do anything wrong, telling the truth would put everything she's been living for at risk. But keeping quiet might be worse.

Disclaimer: This book was a personal purchase.

Review:

Um...

Um...

Holy catfish, this book was far more complex than I ever gave it credit for. It's not "just" a ballet book with kidnapping and anorexia subplots. It involves friendships, boys, choices and, even a more dark subject matter, rape and I think realizing that was important. There was definitely more than met the eye for this book. It tackled a ton of tough subjects and it was done well, really well. When you first start reading this book, you think it's going to head in one direction, but it doesn't and that really threw me off for a little while.

Theo didn't always make the best decisions, but that's what I loved about her. She was real, she was human and she was dealing with more issues than I had ever dealt with in my life. She loved and was devoted to ballet, something that never wavered throughout the book. She was loyal to her friends Sara-Kate and Philip. She had supportive and loving parents who she had put through the wringer. And there's Hosea, he's spoken for, but Theo cannot help but be drawn to him. 

And then, there was Donovan. Her best friend who she hadn't seen in 4 years. In those four years there had been leads, but all had been false. Until the day, he returns. It's an ordinary day, a day much like the previous days. Except Donovan is back. 

Theo is desperate to see him, to talk to him, but he's not talking, his mother is honoring his request to keep a low profile. So Theo has no choice but to wait.

Waiting is hard for Theo. She likes being in control but she cannot control this situation. She cannot control anything about Donovan's return and the legal case that will follow it. Because there will be a legal case. The person who took Donovan will be put on trial. Worst of all, Theo must testify about the last time she saw Donovan before he disappeared. Secrets threaten to come to the surface, but Theo knows that she can't keep quiet anymore. She knows that she must spill secrets that she's kept for four years. 

The feels were definitely there in abundance. I cried a lot in the beginning of the book and I cried a lot at the end of the book, so major kudos to Colbert for giving her readers those all important feels. This book didn't read like it was penned by a debut author. It read much more like Colbert was a seasoned author. It was well written and beautifully written. 

I think this book was incredibly important for reasons that you'll find out as you read the book. It touches on important topics and it does it with honesty. As I laid awake in bed after finishing it, I felt my feelings for this book only soar higher. I want to be able to give this book a full five stars, but I wanted to see Donovan more in the book. He was the one I wanted to know more about. 

Yet I understood why he wasn't in the book that much and my favorite part between Donovan and Theo was at the end. It was beautiful, heartfelt and so damn perfect. 4.5 stars to this extremely important and beautifully written book. I definitely would recommend it to fans of contemporary YA and I will definitely read anything this woman writes.

Review: Skin and Bones by Sherry Shahan

Book Title: Skin and Bones

Author: Sherry Shahan

Publish Date: March 1st, 2014

Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company

Genre: YA/Contemporary

Standalone

Book Link: Goodreads

Pre-Order Link: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Sixteen-year-old Jack, nicknamed "Bones," won't eat. His roommate in the eating disorder ward has the opposite problem and proudly goes by the nickname "Lard." They become friends despite Bones's initial reluctance. When Bones meets Alice, a dangerously thin dancer who loves to break the rules, he lets his guard down even more. Soon Bones is so obsessed with Alice that he's willing to risk everything-even his recovery.

Disclaimer: I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Warning: Could be a trigger book for those of you who have dealt with eating disorders.

Review:

Let me start off by admitting that I don't know that much about eating disorders but the psychology behind them has always fascinated me. Not only that but I have been gravitating towards "tough subject books" So when NetGalley approved me for this one, I jumped at the chance.

When we first meet Jack aka Bones,he's checking into the EDU with the support of his mom, dad and older sister Jill.Yes, Jack and Jill. I won't lie. I really cringed at those names. Clearly the author couldn't come up with anything more original.I did love that his family was intact and loving towards one another. That's something that a lot of YA books don't have.A family who is fully present in each other's lives.

I loved, LOVED Bones' roommate Lard. He was one of those guys who told it how it was. Sort of the tough love stuff.I could tell that Lard was trying to get better and he was not making excuses for what had happened.He owned up to it.That actually took Bones a long time. He didn't own up to it until the book was nearly over.

Theresa, Mary Jane and Elsie were all in varying stages of recovery but as the book viewed them as only secondary characters, not much was delved into with them. Dr. Chu seemed like a very laid back guy.In a way that was great,but I wanted to see him give a little more guidance to these teens. I loved Nancy, the nurse. She exuded compassion,especially near the end of the book.

Of course I have to talk about Alice. She was the stereotypical dancer who needed to be thinner and thinner in order to preform to the best of her ability.She was one of the patients that was very similar to the way eating disorders are talked about in the media. Dancers are always under an immense amount of pressure to be thinner and thus lighter on their feet.It's never really delved into as this book was more about Bones' journey, but I have a feeling Alice's struggles with the disease were from a combination of wanting to succeed as a dancer and wanting her very absent parents to notice her.

The one family session that was depicted in the book was beyond heartbreaking. It involved all the patients of the EDU and their parents. There was a chance to see the different family systems and try to figure out what had driven these teenage patients to the lengths that they were now going to.This part was the first time I cried while reading the book. I wanted to strangle Theresa's mother so badly.I also wanted to wring Alice's parents' necks.It was infuriating and heartbreaking all at once. 

I loved watching the friendships develop, Not just same sex friendships either. The friendships between Lard and Alice and Bones and Theresa were slow to develop, but I loved seeing them.Opposite sex friendships are not widely seen in YA.The character development overall was top notch. I really felt like I got to know these characters individually.

The pacing and the editing was great. Despite the tough subject, I really enjoyed this one. The only issue I had was that the end didn't get sewn up in a nice little bow. I still had questions about the book and it's characters. It was a nearly perfect book that brought out all the feels in me. So I'll be giving this one 4.5 stars.