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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rise to the Sun packs a surprising amount of heart. Slightly more coming of age than romance, Rise to the Sun follows the dual povs of unlucky in love Olivia and aspiring musician Toni who's afraid of getting close to anyone as they slowly break down each other's walls at the Farmland music festival.
Both Toni and Olivia are so precious to me. I love how deeply Toni cares about Olivia and sees through her insecurities and fronts. And I both love and hate how messy Olivia is. She's a social chameleon fitting herself to whomever she's with and I love seeing her be able to be so open around Toni. But there were absolutely parts where I wanted to scream at her to just ride the damn Ferris wheel with her friend.
There are also some fun moments such as the Golden Apple scavenger hunt in which the winner is allowed to perform with the festival's headline act (Toni's dream) that provide some very cute flirty moments between Olivia and Toni and establish the atmosphere of the festival.
Both Toni and Olivia are so precious to me. I love how deeply Toni cares about Olivia and sees through her insecurities and fronts. And I both love and hate how messy Olivia is. She's a social chameleon fitting herself to whomever she's with and I love seeing her be able to be so open around Toni. But there were absolutely parts where I wanted to scream at her to just ride the damn Ferris wheel with her friend.
There are also some fun moments such as the Golden Apple scavenger hunt in which the winner is allowed to perform with the festival's headline act (Toni's dream) that provide some very cute flirty moments between Olivia and Toni and establish the atmosphere of the festival.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If I didn't check this book out at the library I would have thrown it across the room.
The "love" story was too fast, melodramatic, and completely unbelievable.
The main characters are all thoughts and no actions. Why is everything a summary? I need authors to stop doing this immediately.
Also, I hate that the MCs act like no one truly "understands" them except for each other. Like they both don't have whole bestfriends who have stuck beside them and their shenanigans for years. Bestfriends that are attending the festival with them, while they continue to shenan.
Both main characters need therapy, and to learn how to appreciate the people they have in their lives. They don't need a "romance" that has like three "breakups" before it even starts.
Eyerolled to infinity on this one.
The "love" story was too fast, melodramatic, and completely unbelievable.
The main characters are all thoughts and no actions. Why is everything a summary? I need authors to stop doing this immediately.
Also, I hate that the MCs act like no one truly "understands" them except for each other. Like they both don't have whole bestfriends who have stuck beside them and their shenanigans for years. Bestfriends that are attending the festival with them, while they continue to shenan.
Both main characters need therapy, and to learn how to appreciate the people they have in their lives. They don't need a "romance" that has like three "breakups" before it even starts.
Eyerolled to infinity on this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexism, Grief
Mentionable Quotes:
“Sometimes the best thing you can give someone is their space, you know? Goodbye can be the right answer, even if it doesn’t feel like it.”
“What good is the music if you don’t get to share it with the person who makes you want to sing in the first place?”
“I read a Zora Neal Hurston quote once that said, ‘if you are silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it.”
Olivia is a girl that is an expert at falling in love but always seems to get hurt and heartbroken in the end. She is struggling with how she wants to deal with her latest break up. One that involved some pictures circulating that were meant for her boyfriend’s eyes only.
Toni is a lover of all things music. Her dad is the one that introduced her to it and pushed her to pursue her dreams. She is grappling still with the loss of her dad that was sudden.
Olivia and Toni meet at a music festival called The Farmland. It turns into a whirlwind of a friendship/relationship. Both girls are working through trauma in their own lives. Will their blooming relationship be too much?
Rating:
A 4.75/5 ⭐️s.
I really enjoyed this book. Leah Thomas has a way of creating characters that you fall in love with and end up report c for. I will admit though throughout at least 3/4 of the book Olivia was an unlovable character. She seemed very self-centered and I just wanted to scream at her to make better decisions. #teenagerthings
After reading Leah’s second book I know that anything she writes I will be reading. She always has a character who I adore and this book was no different.
TW: parental loss, panic attacks, gun violence, and non-consensual image sharing
“Sometimes the best thing you can give someone is their space, you know? Goodbye can be the right answer, even if it doesn’t feel like it.”
“What good is the music if you don’t get to share it with the person who makes you want to sing in the first place?”
“I read a Zora Neal Hurston quote once that said, ‘if you are silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it.”
Olivia is a girl that is an expert at falling in love but always seems to get hurt and heartbroken in the end. She is struggling with how she wants to deal with her latest break up. One that involved some pictures circulating that were meant for her boyfriend’s eyes only.
Toni is a lover of all things music. Her dad is the one that introduced her to it and pushed her to pursue her dreams. She is grappling still with the loss of her dad that was sudden.
Olivia and Toni meet at a music festival called The Farmland. It turns into a whirlwind of a friendship/relationship. Both girls are working through trauma in their own lives. Will their blooming relationship be too much?
Rating:
A 4.75/5 ⭐️s.
I really enjoyed this book. Leah Thomas has a way of creating characters that you fall in love with and end up report c for. I will admit though throughout at least 3/4 of the book Olivia was an unlovable character. She seemed very self-centered and I just wanted to scream at her to make better decisions. #teenagerthings
After reading Leah’s second book I know that anything she writes I will be reading. She always has a character who I adore and this book was no different.
TW: parental loss, panic attacks, gun violence, and non-consensual image sharing
it would feel criminal to give this a bad rating after how much i adored [b:You Should See Me in a Crown|50160619|You Should See Me in a Crown|Leah Johnson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1568912283l/50160619._SX50_SY75_.jpg|69288604] but this really did not hit the mark for me. i might just be outgrowing YA romance, so i'm not going to rate this. it still holds impactful conversations surrounding gun violence and accountability for sexual harassment. i'm mostly just glad that queer preteens and teens now have access to the kind of stories that Leah Johnson writes!
Toni and Olivia meet at the Farmland Music and Arts Festival where each is searching for a way forward. Despite being strangers and, apparently, having nothing in common, they find they have to work together to make the things they are sure will give them the answers they are seeking happen.
Johnson has created two characters that are appealing, but, unfortunately, she forgot to give readers enough to tell them apart. They are interchangeable and thus hard to remember as individuals. Readers will find themselves returning to the chapter headings to figure out whose chapter it is, but sometimes even that didn’t help. What would have helped is if the author had fully fleshed out her characters for her readers.
This book is full of teenage angst, some humor, and a little romance. If that sounds appealing, then this book is for you. If you like characters to be defined in a way that will have you rooting for them throughout the book, this is not the book for you.
My thanks to Scholastic Press and Edelweiss for an eARC.
Johnson has created two characters that are appealing, but, unfortunately, she forgot to give readers enough to tell them apart. They are interchangeable and thus hard to remember as individuals. Readers will find themselves returning to the chapter headings to figure out whose chapter it is, but sometimes even that didn’t help. What would have helped is if the author had fully fleshed out her characters for her readers.
This book is full of teenage angst, some humor, and a little romance. If that sounds appealing, then this book is for you. If you like characters to be defined in a way that will have you rooting for them throughout the book, this is not the book for you.
My thanks to Scholastic Press and Edelweiss for an eARC.