Blog tour review of BETTER THAN REVENGE by Kasie West

 

Better than Revenge

Kasie West

Tour Schedule

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Publishing date: January 7, 2025

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound

Synopsis:

A swoony new romance from the author of Sunkissed! When her football-player boyfriend and now ex lands the podcast job she’s been dreaming of, a girl takes matters into her own hands by enlisting the help of his nemesis to get revenge.

Seventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school’s podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses her idea—she’s left confused and betrayed. 

Determined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, almost. 

By chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen’s spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen’s cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can’t let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge?

MY REVIEW

I haven’t read a book by Kasie West in a while, so when I saw this tour sign up, I jumped at the chance to review this. 

I really loved this book! It was a fun, sweet YA romcom. Finley was burned by her (now) ex boyfriend, Jensen. He auditioned for the school’s podcast Finley had been working for, and he got it and she didn’t. I loved the funny things she thought of to get revenge on him. But then sometimes they backfired, and it was so funny. Then, she thinks of the one thing that could possibly work, and Finley needs help from Jensen’s football rival, Theo. 

This book is so fun. Finley is a great character. She is goal driven and dealing with some hard things. I loved her podcast with her grandma and what came from that so much. I also adored Finley’s friends, and Theo! The two of them had great banter and the development of their friendship/relationship was fun to read. 

5 out of 5 stars!

More purchase links (affiliate)

Amazon Kindle / Amazon paperback / Audible

Kasie West is the author of many YA novels, including The Fill-in Boyfriend, P.S. I Like You, Lucky in Love, and Listen to Your Heart. Her books have been named ALA-YALSA Quick Picks, JLG selections, and ALA-YALSA Best Books for Young Adults. When she’s not writing, she’s binge-watching television, devouring books, or bury-ing her toes in the sand of the Central Coast. Kasie lives in Fresno, California, with her family. You can find her online at kasiewest.com

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back by Sariah Wilson

The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back

Author: Sariah Wilson

Publisher: Fire & Ice Books

Published: August 15, 2012

ebook: 194 pages

Genre: YA General

ASIN: B008YIE740

FTC FYI: Review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads Summary:  Everyone knows how all those fairy tales go. The princess gets beautiful, nabs her prince, falls instantly in love, lives happily ever after and leaves her evil stepsisters in the dust.

But what happens when you’re the ugly stepsister and your obnoxiously perfect—read pretty, smart, and, worst of all, sickeningly nice—stepsister is dating the charming, tall, devastatingly handsome guy you’ve had a thing for since you were nine years old?

Quirky, artistic and snarky Mattie Lowe does not lead a charmed life. Her mother is constantly belittling her on Skype. Mercedes, the school mean girl, has made it her personal mission to torment Mattie. But worst of all? Her stepsister Ella is the most beautiful, popular girl in school and is dating Mattie’s secret longtime crush, Jake Kingston.

Tired of being left out and done with waiting for her own stupid fairy godmother to show up, Mattie decides to change her life. She’ll start by running for senior class president against wildly popular Jake.

Ella can keep her Prince Annoying. Mattie’s going to rule the school.
And no one, not even a cute and suddenly flirty Jake, is going to stop her.

My Review

I was asked to read The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back by Sariah before it came out in July.  Even just reading the first page, I knew I would enjoy it immensely!  The characters were so well written and very fun.  Mattie was so funny, oh, the things that went through her head sometimes.  Jake and Mattie end up in detention together, and he thinks he can use his charms to get Mattie to do something for him.  Boy, was he wrong.  I liked Mattie because she was strong, and she doesn't let herself be taken for granted.  Even by the guy who she has liked for years.  As much as I liked Mattie though, Ella stole the show for me.  She is genuinely a great person, and such a sweetheart.  I laughed out loud many times, and smiled throughout.  I also asked Sariah if my teenage daughter could read it too, and she loved it just as much as I did.  Here is what Michalla had to say.

"The characters were fun to get to know.  I laughed a ton.  It was so fun to read, and I loved every minute of it."

4 1/2 out of 5 stars.  Everything about this book is fun and anything that makes you smile this much is worth it.  What I liked most were the strong female characters.  Sariah has written several books.  Find out more about her on Goodreads and her Blog.  Sariah is graciously giving TWO copies of The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back, either by an Amazon coupon or Smashwords.

AMAZON / BARNES AND NOBLE / IBOOKS / SMASHWORDS / KOBO

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Knee Deep by Jolene Perry

*Due to subject matter, please see content warning in review*

Knee Deep

Author: Jolene Perry

Publisher:  Tribute Books

Published: May 1, 2012

eBook: 240 pages

ISBN: 9780983741886, 9781476060316

FTC FYI: Review Copy

Summary:  Shawn is the guy Ronnie Bird promised her life to at the age of fourteen. He's her soul mate. He's more uptight every day, but it's not his fault. His family life is stressful, and she's adding to it. She just needs to be more understanding, and he'll start to be the boy she fell in love with. She won’t give up on someone she’s loved for so long.

Luke is her best friend, and the guy she hangs with to watch girlie movies in her large blanketopias. He's the guy she can confide in before she even goes to her girlfriends, and the guy who she's playing opposite in Romeo and Juliet. Now her chest flutters every time he gets too close. This is new. Is Ronnie falling for him? Or is Juliet? The lines are getting blurry, but leaving one guy for another is not something that a girl like Ronnie does.

Shawn’s outbursts are starting to give her bruises, and Luke’s heart breaks as Ronnie remains torn. While her thoughts and feelings swirl around the lines between friendship and forever, she’s about to lose them both.

Content and Review

First of all, I feel I need to start with a content warning.  This is a very well-written book, with a very heavy subject matter.  There are two F-Bombs, sexual content, and some violence.  The characters don't have sex, but there is a scene where Ronnie is attacked by Shawn.  She is not raped, but almost.  You may ask, why I would even review a book with this heavy subject matter, the answer is simple.  I'm sure there are girls out there, parents out there, friends of girls out there, who this is happening to.  It is a subject that possibly isn't talked about much, and this book would start a great dialog.

Ronnie keeps making excuses for Shawn.  She is always doing what she can to make sure he is happy.  Even down to not wearing the type of shoes she wants because they make her too tall, or performing in the school play because it takes time away from being with him.  Luke is her friend, and is always there when she needs him.  Mindy is Ronnie's best friend.  At first Ronnie can't understand why Mindy doesn't want to constantly be with her boyfriend, she truly is so blindingly in love with Shawn, that it takes her a while to see his flaws.

3 1/2 stars.  It would of been 4 if not for the language and sexual content.  That being said, there was a lot that I liked.  I loved Ronnie's relationships with her father, Luke, and Mindy.  Her dad did stand back a times, but I think it was to help her make her own decisions.  He wanted her to ask for help.  Although, he didn't know the scope of what was happening to Ronnie until later, he would of interfered sooner if had known all the facts.  Ronnie was good at keeping secrets, especially from herself.

Jolene is a talented author with many great books out now.  Her latest Left to Love is available now on Amazon.  It is Book 2 after The Next Door Boys.  Look for my review of Left to Love in July.  She has also written Night Sky.

Follow Jolene on FACEBOOK / TWITTER and her writing blog.  Tribute Books FACEBOOK / TWITTER pages. Purchase links:

AMAZON / NOOK / SMASHWORDS / PDF / GOOGLE