Invitation Only by Kate Brian | Rating: ★★★★☆

Sequels can often be a bore but in the case of the second novel in the best-selling Private series by Kate Brian, it's even better than our introduction to Easton. Invitation Only picks up immediately where Private ended and toys with us as we grow more and more captivated to the now-luxurious everyday life of Reed Brennan. Just a bit of time she's spent at her new, ultra-exclusive boarding school, Reed has found herself as the newest member of the campus' most notorious housing department: Billings.

The Billings Girls are everything anyone has ever dreamed to be and certainly the most sought-after dorm throughout the entire school. They're the brightest and most beautiful female students and with her newfound position amongst their ranks, Reed's future seems brighter than ever. If you ignore her missing kind-of-boyfriend Thomas Pearson, the pressure of excellence and the probability of being hazed (what is she, their maid?) by her new dorm mates before officially becoming one of their own.

Just as Reed is finding her way around these speed bumps at her new school, it is obvious that things are just going to keep her on her toes. From the ever present affection from one of the senior boys, who insists on showering her with gifts, and with whom she has no real feelings for but her former roommate Constance does, to becoming Billings unofficial maid, to wondering where the hell Thomas is and if she should move on, to her currently roommate Natasha seemingly blackmailing her--threatening her entire future at Easton--it's obvious to say that Reed has a lot more on her plate than she'd ever expected.

Sweet Little Lies by Lauren Conrad | Rating: ★★★☆☆

Fame and style, scandal and gossip, Lauren Conrad is at it again with her bestselling drama L.A. Candy.  Sweet Little Lies follows the introduction to the trilogy quite well and showcases a tale of fluffy goodness, rivaling the novels Gossip Girl and The A-List in terms of guilty pleasure enjoyment. Because of Conrad's start on MTV with a hugely successful spin on reality television with Laguna Beach and The Hills, L.C. knows her stuff when it comes to unexpected fame and a sultry backdrop.

Not everything is as it seems and who can you really trust when it all boils down to fame? Jane Roberts' world was thrust into chaos after she and best friend, Scarlett, are approached to star in a reality series. Now, a scandal has sent her into hiding with her new, untrustworthy, friend and co-star Madison. After news leaks of Jane having cheated on her delicious, celebrity boyfriend (with his best friend, no less) and unbecoming photographs of her begin popping up in the tabloids, the series is hotter than ever. Nothing beats a good scandal in Hollywood and Jane has just provided one for the ages.

Desperate to get away from everything, Jane is swept up by Madison for a little vacation. Little does she know that Madison is the one who betrayed her and caused the storm to materialize.

The Nine Lives of Chloe King (#1-3) by Liz Braswell | Rating: ★★★★☆

Before it was a brief–cancelled too soon!–television series on ABC Family (now named Freeform) The Nine Lives of Chloe King was a little book series of three unique and sweet installments targeted at young adults in the early 2000s. Think Gossip Girl meets mythological creatures and chosen ones with a twist, in terms of its tone and lead-ins. Do I have your attention yet?

What I loved about it was that it didn’t take itself too seriously and was flawed, it could be messy and the characters could be hasty, but it also zoomed in on the mythology of it quite well. It was a fast read with a lot packed into it and left me on the edge of my seat multiple times.

Plus, the characters–Chloe and her friends–all acted like the teenagers they were meant to be. They cursed. They did stupid things. They were fickle with their hearts and sometimes their friendships. They hooked up. They fought with their parents.

So, no. You won’t always like them. Chloe's best friend, Amy, for example, could often rub you the wrong way in this little guy. Looking back now, as I reread the bind-up of the entire trilogy in my twenties, they do and say many cringe worthy things. But I think that’s what makes them real and the novel itself solid. It’s fantasy and full of things we couldn’t ever imagine dealing with, but reading between the lines they are accurately portrayed.

My Sweet Audrina by V.C. Andrews | Rating: ★★★★☆ (4.5)

"There were shadows in the corners and whispers on the stairs and time was irrelevant as honesty."

In preparation of Lifetime's adaptation of this very book, I've decided to revisit the very first book I'd ever read that disturbed and haunted me in my early teen years. V.C. Andrews is known for her enthralling works of twisted fiction--family sagas twinged with great descriptions and horror, betrayal and rags to riches. All the trigger warnings are necessary for her novels and they certainly aren't for every one. Our biggest trigger would be sexual violence.

Everything about V.C. Andrews and her original catalog is filled with twists, turns and great sums of controversy. For years, her novels have dominated their genre and gone past the decades that have come and gone. This is due primarily to her captivating and disturbing tale of Flowers in the Attic and the novels that followed in the Dollanganger Series. I guarantee you that a good portion of us have all read at least one book by her and loved or hated it due to its content. Andrews isn't for the weak of heart and while she wasn't the greatest author to exist from her generation, or any that have since passed, you've gotta give it to her for standing the test of time.

My Sweet Audrina is one of the most frightening, heartbreaking and twisty turny stories I've ever had the privilege (or misfortune, at times) of reading.

I Will Always Love You (GG #12) created by Cecily von Ziegesar | Rating: ★★★★★

They chose each other.

Just then, the dark sky lit up with fireworks. A cab sailing the street honked in celebration . In the night air, Nate thought he could hear Serena and Blair's laughter, though he knew that was impossible; they were too far away by now.

But as we know, in this city anything is possible.

Flashback to 2008 or 2009: in a surprising move due to the popularity of the then-hit television series, Gossip Girl came back for one final look into our beloved teenagers lives as they explore adulthood and come home for the holidays during breaks in university. Much like the final books and spin-offs of the original series, it is penned a ghost writer and not Cecily herself.

I Will Always Love You, or as I like to call it: the pitiful (but still fun) attempt at drawing in fans of the television series and unnecessarily destroying the characteristics of the books, takes place over the course of four years and is told in the usual rotating narration and blog entries. We’re split up to focus ONLY on the four years of holidays our kids have as breaks from classes.

(I’m being a bit dramatic: the installment wasn’t horrible it just wasn’t Gossip Girl in the way longtime readers wanted it to be. There were some redeeming qualities to it, though, like the endgames. Which is why I've still given it a high review like the rest of the series.)

City of Fallen Angels (TMI #4) by Cassandra Clare | Rating: ★★★☆☆

“Hearts are breakable," Isabelle said. "And I think even when you heal, you're never what you were before".”

My reread of The Mortal Instruments, in preparation for the new television adaptation Shadowhunters, continues with City of Fallen Angels. Serving as the fourth book in the expanded series, we see our favorite Shadowhunters and Downworlders return in a new mystery set a brief time after the events of City of Glass. It is also the weakest book of the series but does a decent job at setting up for this second arch therefore it doesn't dampen my love for this incredible series.

Now that The Mortal War is over, Sebastian (or Jonathan) and Valentine are dead, and the truth has all been revealed, our favorite kids think that they can finally sleep safely at night. Now, they can head back down the path of whatever normal is meant to be–for some that means hunting, for some that means love, some that means acceptance, for the Lightwoods it means mourning the loss of Max and others it means training.

And then there’s avoidance. But we’ll get to that later. I’m going to start with characters.

Mistletoe: Four Holiday Stories by Various Authors | Rating: ★★★☆☆

Starting off my celebration and talks of stories that fit in with the holidays wonderfully, the first collection of holiday themed stories that comes to my mind is Mistletoe. In fact, it was the very first collection of four holiday stories that I’d ever picked up, due to my love of Melissa de la Cruz and Aimee Friedman.

While Mistletoe: Four Holiday Stories has the promise of a lot of fluffy goodness, it isn’t the best release out there. I loved all the stories in it once upon a time, but upon my reread of it last week, I’d discovered that only two of these stories still warmed me up. This isn’t to say that the short stories aren’t good, because that’s completely untrue, it’s just that they seemed to have… well, not aged well.

I’ll start with the first story from the collection. If I were you I wouldn’t expect me to go in story order, though.

At the time of its original release, I didn’t know much about Hailey Abbot’s work. My [then] best friend was once obsessed with her Boys series, and I just couldn’t get into it at the time. Which surprised me when I found that I loved her story in this one.

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare | Rating: ★★★★★

“There is no pretending," Jace said with absolute clarity. "I love you, and I will love you until I die, and if there is life after that, I'll love you then.”

City of Glass was the original end to the then-planned-trilogy The Mortal Instruments. As action packed, mysterious and sexy as the previous two books, we find our favorite Shadowhunters and Downworlders battling it out with Valentine one last time in an effort to end his terror. But as always, things aren’t always what they seem; surprising plot twists, revelations and characters come about in unexpected ways. And tears will be shed at the loss of a character.

Clary has big plans at the start of City of Glass but she isn’t the only one with a thing or two up her sleeves. Strong, witty and intelligent as always Clary is on point and undeniably a teenager. Her actions all reflect that from the start. At the beginning of the novel, we see our favorite feisty redhead explore the options to save her mother as she prepares to go to the Shadowhunters home country, Idris, with the Lightwoods.

The first bump of the series? Her supposed brother and secret crush Jace is attempting to leave without her, to keep her safe. In these moments he calls the only person who would want to protect Clary as he would: Simon. In spite of the two teen boys’ differences, they both love Clary and want to keep her from harms way as much as they can.

City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare | Rating: ★★★★★

“There's no need to clarify my finger snap," said Magnus. "The implication was clear in the snap itself.”

Cassandra Clare’s brilliantly fun and dashing The Mortal Instruments series continues with its first sequel City of Ashes; immediately following the events of its sarcastic and dark predecessor. After being introduced to this world, these characters, and watching a world of mystery unfold, readers were left grappling for the next installment.

So many things left us questioning what could possibly happen next; what each previous revelation means for the overall plot flow. It is just as vivid, thrilling, mysterious and twisty as City of Bones–there’s a whole world of magic out there just beyond our reach and we’ve only dipped our toes into it.

We left off with quite a bit on our plates. Joceyln’s lies, and her reasoning, Clary’s unusual gift, family connections as well as romance, demons, Downworlders, history, the mortal cup and so much more.

With Jocelyn seemingly asleep, Valentine growing stronger and building an army of his own, the world seems just a bit more dangerous than it was before.

So let’s start with connections thus far:

Don't You Forget About Me (GG #11) created by Cecily von Ziegesar | Rating: ★★★★★

At last, summer is coming to an end for our kids but their exploits are far from over. Drama boils over as love triangles grow and decisions are made. We’re reunited for one final party in the city before everyone departs for college. Dan’s sexuality is explored and his mother makes a surprise appearance. Don't You Forget About Me is Gossip Girl in all its glory: pure fun and sarcasm and romance and fashion.

Although university is just around the corner; their changes are only just beginning and this summer is sure to end on a high note. Who will actually follow through with their plans for university? Can Blair, Nate and Serena work out their problems?

We start off with the return of Blair and Nate; they have spent the last few weeks of their summer together on a romantic getaway. Passion was high, the sun gave them that perfect tan others will surely envy and they are preparing to start at Yale together.

Or so Blair thinks. There’s that little matter of Nate not actually receiving his diploma…

Would I Lie to You (GG #10) created by Cecily von Ziegesar | Rating: ★★★★★

You can expect the usual realistic and sloppy portrayal of the teenage mind in this hot installment. Gossip Girl continues to cater to its audience–light, juicy, fashionable and fast reads that leave you giggling a little bit to yourself. It’s dizzily trashy and that’s what makes it dazzling. Yes, it is the perfect summer treat for those who want to kick back, lose themselves in luxury and drama.

Summer lives on as the drama reaches an all time high in Would I Lie To You? the second to last installment in the original series. And with filming at an end for Breakfast at Fred’s, Blair and Serena wind up staying in the Hampton’s as fashion muses for a very famous designer.

Of course, this doesn’t mean they will be the face of this designers new line and have to share the spotlight with their own lookalikes. Neither duo seems to be happy about this, and Blair feels that the models are very much so up to something.

They happen to be living next door to Nate, too, and because of this their love triangle is back on. Blair, Nate and Serena reunite as the best friends that they are but there’s always more lingering in their hearts. While things heat up between Nate and Blair once more, Serena begins to question her feelings for Nate and comes to the conclusion that she has loved him all along.

Breaking Dawn (Twilight #4) by Stephenie Meyer | Rating: ★★☆☆☆

"You could run from someone you feared, you could try to fight someone you hated. All my reactions were geared toward those kinds of killers – the monsters, the enemies. When you loved the one who was killing you, it left you no options. How could you run, how could you fight, when doing so would hurt that beloved one? If your life was all you had to give your beloved, how could you not give it?"

Breaking Dawn gave me a m a s s i v e headache this time around. That’s my first thought when rereading it: BD is headache inducing.

Way back when, I loved this novel with all my heart but now my feelings about it are mixed at best. As I’ve said before in past revisions and reviews, the Twilight Saga will always have a special place in my heart–it’s just that I’ve grown out of it and in place of the love I once had for it, I mostly am indifferent towards it.

Hailed as a romantic and action packed finale to the much beloved series, Breaking Dawn follows Bella and Edward as they prepare and celebrate their upcoming nuptials with friends and family. Together, they plan their future and Bella attempts to make a compromise when it comes down to sex, college and when she shall be changed to a vampire. After all, becoming one is the only way Bella and Edward can have a “true” happily ever after.

But is happily ever after really in the cards for these two?

Never Have I Ever (TLG #2) by Sara Shepard | Rating: ★★★★★

“My enemies are everywhere. And sometimes, those we least suspect turn out to be our biggest threats.”

Emma Paxton’s life is growing more and more complicated as she races to solve the murder of her long-lost twin sister, Sutton Mercer. Sutton’s spirit is tied to Emma’s and is forced to follow her twins every move in the afterlife; allowing her to to know the sister she didn’t know she had and longing for closure. Silently, both girls are given the chance to know each other even though death separates them.

It’s all very sad and scary but very, very intriguing.

In order for Emma to solve this unexpected murder-mystery, and get back to life as she knew it, she has had to take her twins place unknown to anyone besides the cute-and-mysterious Ethan Landry and of course the murderer.

And although Sutton is there with her in spirit, she has no recollection of what happened the night she was killed and has no way of communicating with Emma. Everything is one giant mystery for both girls and it’s surprising the way it unfolds.

Making the stakes higher than ever, Emma is blackmailed into playing a convincing Sutton–for all those in Sutton’s world, they don’t know that she is dead. And in order for the killer to get away with murder, Emma is the key to everything.

Only in Your Dreams (GG #9) created by Cecily von Ziegesar | Rating: ★★★★★

Summer is here and things are heating up for our recent high school graduates in the ninth book of the pop culture phenomenon that is Gossip Girl. Sadly, Only In Your Dreams is the first of the series to be written by a ghost writer instead of Cecily von Ziegesar and it definitely shows.

But the ghost writer does capture Cecily’s series in a way the mimics her style perfectly. While it isn’t the best of the series, it is still juicy and stylish in the way that only Gossip Girl can be.

Everyone’s favorite Upper East Siders are nearing adulthood and have vowed to make this summer their best yet. Serena’s begun production as the lead in Breakfast at Fred’s, only to find out acting isn’t quite as easy as she thought. Her only saving grace is her looks and her ridiculously adorable and sweet costar, whom she definitely develops a crush on.

But is this something she can pursue? Or is he just not that into her?

And then there’s Vanessa who, after getting booted from her apartment by her older sister Ruby’s return, finds herself temporarily homeless.

Luckily for her, with Serena’s help, she is able to land a job on the movie set. And she moves in with the Humphrey’s. Rufus is surprisingly cool about it and soon she finds herself staying in Jenny’s old room. It’s a cozy little set up and things look up for our favorite edgy, badass, bald, budding filmmaker.

The Lying Game by Sara Shepard | Rating: ★★★★★

"I understood we used to be close. But they were like books I'd read two summer ago; I knew I'd liked them, but I couldn't tell you now what they'd been about."

In true Sara Shepard fashion The Lying Game is filled with style, wit and mystery to the highest degree. All made simple in its fast pace and entertaining tone. Armed with her easy-to-read and suspenseful style, Shepard glides through the first installment of her under appreciated series smartly and leaves readers with a heavy, dark and vivid image of what is yet to come.

Much like Pretty Little Liars, the series starts with a spooky and mysterious tone: death and possible betrayal is at a high. Sara Shepard will fuck with your mind and pull the rug out from under you every time you think you've got it solved. For The Lying Games, our narration is split into twos: Emma’s thoughts in life and Sutton’s in the afterlife. It’s a refreshing twist to her writing and Sara covers ground pretty well with both girls thoughts.

Emma Paxton is a kind, intelligent, sarcastic and down-on-her-luck teenager who is fast approaching her eighteenth birthday. Ever since her mother, Becky, left her to fend for herself at the age of five she has bounced back and forth between foster homes.

Nothing Can Keep Us Together (GG #8) by Cecily von Ziegesar | Rating: ★★★★★

After the not-so-shocking dramatic end to Nobody Does It Better, Gossip Girl heats up as high school graduation approaches, their futures now closer than ever, new and old romances ignite, long standing friendships fall apart and Jenny looks into various boarding school options.

And word on the street is that a certain filmmaker is looking to remake Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Any guesses as to who is one of the many, beautiful, hopeful young actresses? Breakfast at Fred’s seems to be generating a ton of buzz and this serves as a central plot point along with graduation.

With Nate and Serena as a couple, Blair decides to take her life into her own hands and start fresh. Yale has accepted her and she finally feels as though she’s gotten back into her groove; although it’s clear that she feels the sting of Nate and Serena’s newfound couple status.

Nobody likes to see their two best friends date, especially when one of those best friends is the love of her life. But luckily for B, Nate is just as devastated by this turn of events as she is. He so clearly misses Blair. Surprisingly, the same could be said for Serena. In fact, their so-called romance is built more on the point that both want to prove to Blair that their surprise hookup in the last book was more than just a hookup between two friends.

Nobody Does It Better (GG #7) by Cecily von Ziegesar | Rating: ★★★★★

Nobody Does It Better is serving up the scandal and luxury Gossip Girl is known for. Things are looking up for our favorite Upper East Siders as graduation nears and their futures become all the more clear. In these teens charmed lives, anything goes and it’s clear that anything can happen in the city that never sleeps.

But even in all their glamorous exploits, decisions have to be made. So what does the future hold for Blair, Serena, Nate, Jenny, Dan, Vanessa, Aaron and Chuck? Where will their lives lead them next? It’s bound to be juicy and Gossip Girl is there to report everything.

Where we left off in You’re the One That I Want: Blair and Nate finally have sex and are stronger than ever–or are they? Blair’s expectations are high and notoriously framed around her favorite films… but is it possible for her to have it all? Or is she destined to become just another society princess in a sea of designer wearing women?

As for her relationship: Gossip Girl’s it-couple has always been up and down. And that is no different in Nobody Does It Better, in spite of the romantic and picture perfect ending to the previous installment.

Unbelievable (PLL #4) by Sara Shepard | Rating: ★★★★★

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the naughtiest of them all?

Sara Shepard’s bestselling series Pretty Little Liars continues on with its fourth installment: Unbelievable – with more drama and revelations than the last. It should be noted, too, that a good chunk of our questions are finally answered and the identity of the notorious anonymous texter is revealed.

And with every answer, with every turn, the title proves to be a proper fit. As with the last three books from the series, we pick up right where we left off in the residents lives of Rosewood. Now, answers are near the point of being revealed when it comes to discoveries on who killed Alison and who is tormenting the girls anonymously.

Aria, Spencer, Emily and Hanna have all suffered from the harassment of A and in Unbelievable we can sense that this was only the beginning. A’s little game is far from over. Each girls lives have been changed drastically over the years and the gap between them all has only grown since the death of their clique leader all those years ago and now the wrath of A.

Can they escape this vicious circle? Is it possible?

Hanna is currently in the hospital after finding out the identity of A; who had promptly hit Rosewood’s resident It-Girls with a vehicle to shut her up. Life as Hanna knows it had already been on the rocks, as she lost everything she’d worked so hard for.

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer | Rating: ★★★☆☆

“And the sound of your heart," he continued. "It's the most significant sound in my world. I'm so attuned to it now, I swear I could pick it out from miles away. But neither of these things matter. This," he said, taking my face in his hands. "You. That's what I'm keeping. You'll always be my Bella, you'll just be a little more durable.”

Upon finishing my reread of the entire Twilight Saga, I have come to the conclusion that the series is incredibly dull and I can’t understand how I was so into it way back when. While Twilight was a solid introduction to Stephenie Meyer’s supernatural romance, New Moon was thoroughly horrendous. I had little hope for improvement while going into Eclipse regardless of the fact that it was at one time my favorite in the series.

What frustrates me most about the book is that Stephenie has a great grasp on human emotions. She does wonderful describing it; letting you into her characters minds. Meyer’s is also good at creating a new take on supernatural creatures as well as painting us a clear image of what the world her characters live in is like. It’s only when she tries to put it all together and make the story go a certain way when things get a bit wobbly.

Eclipse improves on a lot of things, in particular what New Moon failed. Bella is happy to have Edward and the Cullen’s back in her life and is now certain that one day soon she will become a vampire and live happily ever after with her friends. Blah-blah-blah. Her only struggle is trying to maintain a friendship with Jacob, her shifter best friend who is openly in love with her.

Perfect (PLL #3) by Sara Shepard | Rating: ★★★★★

She knew too much. -A

Sara Shepard’s completely addictive bestselling series Pretty Little Liars continues down its dark and delicious path of Rosewood through its third installment, Perfect, and picks up right where Flawless left off.

Everyone’s favorite liars and readers alike have hardly had a chance to breath, and things are only looking more dramatic from here on out. Trouble is certainly brewing in the beautiful, exclusive town of Rosewood -- what could possibly happen next?

Pretty Little Liars is wildly entertaining in the vein of Cecily von Ziegesar's Gossip Girl book series, for its exploits of rich, mysterious and beautiful teenagers, with dashes of a good old vintage young adult thriller reminiscent of Lois Duncan. With every clue, with every description and development, with every answer comes about a dozen more questions.

And that, my friends, is what makes the suspense of A and who killed Alison DiLaurentis so fun.