Monday, December 16, 2019

One Old, One New: The Emma Mills Edition

One Old, One New features two books - one old, one new, which are connected in some way. Today, I am sharing two books by one of my favorite YA authors - Emma Mills. Below, I feature her upcoming release along with her debut, and with this, I have read ALL of Mills' books.
Lucky Caller
Emma Mills
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Henry Holt
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads
With the warmth, wit, intimate friendships, and heart-melting romance she brings to all her books, Emma Mills crafts a story about believing in yourself, owning your mistakes, and trusting in human connection in Lucky Caller.

When Nina decides to take a radio broadcasting class her senior year, she expects it to be a walk in the park. Instead, it’s a complete disaster.

The members of Nina's haphazardly formed radio team have approximately nothing in common. And to maximize the awkwardness her group includes Jamie, a childhood friend she'd hoped to basically avoid for the rest of her life.

The show is a mess, internet rumors threaten to bring the wrath of two fandoms down on their heads, and to top it all off Nina's family is on the brink of some major upheaval.

Everything feels like it's spiraling out of control―but maybe control is overrated?
There are many reasons why Emma Mills is one of my favorite YA authors, and this book is just one of them.

Once again, I have finished reading an Emma Mills book, and I was left floating on a cloud of happiness. Seriously, this was me, after reading Lucky Caller:


I guess, the plot of this story was Nina's radio show, and how a plan to attract more listeners sort of took on a life of its own. It was quite hilarious, did a nice job driving the story, and, you know, o, what a tangled web we weave and all that, but as always, I was won over by the characters and the relationships that Mills depicted within the story.

The book opened with Nina celebrating Christmas with her mother, two sisters, and her mother's new fiancee, the Dantist. Right away, I could tell I was going to adore this family, because the sisters had a great vibe with each other and enjoyed an easy rapport with their mother, while it was obvious how hard Dan was trying to show his affection for the girls. I love seeing positive YA families, and this one warmed my heart.

Not only did Mills give us great families, but she also assembled quite a wonderful group of friends for Nina. Chance, and a mandatory group of four, brought Nina, Joydeep, Sasha, and Jamie together. They had such a great dynamic, and the scenes featuring all four of them almost always left me laughing and grinning. I never imagined them gelling so well, when they were first introduced, but they were a perfect squad, and I had so much fun on and off the air with them.

Speaking of Jamie, Nina had quite a complicated relationship with him. They had grown up, side by side, and were very close friends until an incident in middle school forced a wedge between them. Mills slowly revealed the details over the course of the story, and obviously, it made me sad, but you know what made me happy? The fact that the radio show pushed them back together, and that they renewed their friendship. I'm getting all warm and fuzzy just thinking about the moments they shared, and the mushy exchanges they had as they were growing closer and closer to each other, once again. It was a wonderful thing to watch, and Mills let it unfold quite beautifully.

There were also all these wonderful and subtle life lessons in there. One thing, which came up in a few different ways over the course of the story, was about endings. Marriages, friendships, and other relationships may end, or simply have some bad parts, but it doesn't erase or devalue the entire experience. I think sometimes it's hard to remember that, when you are hurt or hurting, and it's good to remind yourself that all experiences hold some sort of value. It could be something that we keep in our heart or something that serves as a learning experience, but it has value and always will.

Things to love in this book:
✓ Fabulous family
✓ Fantastic friendships
✓ Sisterly bonds
✓ Radio fun
✓ Kingdom and Prince Hapless
✓ M&M filled cakes
✓ Mills fandoms - TION, Megan Pleasant
✓ Friends-to-more romance
✓ Sweet unicorn boy love interest
✓ Unexpected and wonderful surprises
✓ The Dantist
✓ The ending ❤️

As always, Mills gifted me with a hartwarming story, which touched me and left quite a bit of sunshine in my heart.

**ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

The radio show Nina and her friends created featured hits from the 90s - a different year each episode. I have nothing but love for 90s music, and I challenged myself with creating a playlist with one song from each year of the decade. It was really difficult, but I narrowed it down to the 10 below.


1990 - Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana
1991 - Bro Hymn by Pennywise
1992 - Would by Alice in Chains
1993 - Hey Jealousy by Gin Blossoms
1994 - Stay (I Missed You) by Lisa Loeb
1995 - M+Ms by Blink-182
1996 - Wonderwall by Oasis
1997 - Semi Charmed Life by Third Eye Blind
1998 - Inside Out by Eve 6
1999 - Shoulder to the Wheel by Saves the Day

First & Then
Emma Mills
Age/Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Henry Holt
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads
Devon Tennyson wouldn't change a thing. She's happy watching Friday night games from the bleachers, silently crushing on best friend Cas, and blissfully ignoring the future after high school. But the universe has other plans. It delivers Devon's cousin Foster, an unrepentant social outlier with a surprising talent for football, and the obnoxiously superior and maddeningly attractive star running back, Ezra, right where she doesn't want them: first into her P.E. class and then into every other aspect of her life.

Pride and Prejudice meets Friday Night Lights in this contemporary novel about falling in love with the unexpected boy, with a new brother, and with yourself.
Do you know how to make yourself happy? Well, you can just read TWO Emma Mills books in a row. That's what I did, and I now know, that Mills has been writing stupendous novels since her debut.

This story opened with Devon's guidance counselor encouraging her to push herself in order to pad her college resume. Though, she had always been happy with her predictable and average life, she was willing to put herself out there in the name of college, and what she found was some beautiful and unlikely human connections.

This book was about family...

Devon's family took in her cousin Foster after his father passed away and his mother was unable to care for him. Devon did not immediately warm to him, as she had spent 17 years as an only child, but the more time they spent together, the bond just began to grow and grow, and by the end of the book, they were sharing the kind of love siblings have for one another.

This book was about friendship...

Mills never fails to write brilliant friendships, and she blessed me with quite a few in this book. I loved the unlikely friendship, that developed between Foster and Ezra, the captain of the football team. Foster was so open and honest with a youthful exuberance for most things, while Ezra was very reserved and hard to read. However, after seeing some talent in Foster, Ezra decided to mentor him, and a genuine relationship developed on its own.

This book was about unrequited love...

Devon had spent years and years pining for her best friend, Cas. She watched him go through a myriad of girls, but always held onto some hope, that he would eventually reciprocate her feelings. This was part of the plot, which was tough for me. I grew to adore Devon, and I didn't want her to miss out on something wonderful, because she was holding out for something that would never happen, and unrequited love always makes my heart ache.

This book was about romance...

There was quite a bit of romancing going on in this story, with several romantic storylines woven into the plot. Obviously, my favorite was between Devon and Ezra. It was so subtle until it wasn't, and I rather enjoyed the slow burn. I was also happy to see someone recognizing how amazing Devon was, and who better than a misunderstood, grumpy hero.

This story was about change...

Devon might have been satisfied with the status quo at the beginning of this book, but by the end, she was willing to stretch herself. She grew so much. She began to see outside her little two person bubble, and she discovered there were a lot of wonderful people and things to enjoy out there. I liked snarky, self-centered, and sort of stuck Devon from the beginning of the book, but I loved caring, generous, and go-getting Devon at the end of the book.

This quote from First & Then pretty much sums up how this book made me feel:
"and there was just this pure, unadulterated, highly concentrated happy. Baking chocolate for the soul."
Have you ever called into a radio show?
Let us know in the comments!

34 comments:

  1. Lucky Caller sounds like a big squishy hug. :) Love the sound of Nina, her family, the squad, and Jamie.

    Can we still be friends if I admit that the 90's are a music low-point for me? There were plenty of exceptions, of course, but for the most part I ignore the music from that decade. LOL It just didn't speak to me. I wanted my 80's back. :)

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    1. Tanya not sure if Sam will still want to be your BFF :-)))))))))))))

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    2. Tanya will always be one of my most favorite people, even if she doesn't love the 90s.

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  2. I've been meaning to read Emma Mills for forever!! You have convinced me. Actually, I'm pretty sure you convinced me a long time ago, but this time you REALLY convinced me. I swear. :-)

    Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction

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  3. great post. i have called into a radio show, but it has been a very long time ago
    sherry @ fundinmental

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    1. I used to call in all the time when I was younger, trying to win stuff. Is it even a thing anymore?

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  4. Emma Mills is one of my all time favorites! Glad to know her next book is one to look forward to!

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    1. Her books! I just love them so much, and her latest book was fabulous!

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  5. I seriously think I have both of these books still to read as well, the one since release date. I definitely need to pick them up! Wonderful reviews. :D

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    1. If you like sweet, adorable contemporaries with lots of family love and friendship, you can't go wrong with an Emma Mills book.

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  6. They both sounds so good! I must see if my library has either of them.

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    1. Lucky Caller comes out in January, but First & Then is several years old. I hope your library has something by Mills. All her books are wonderful

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  7. I neeeed to read this one! I've actually only read First & Then by her, but I own two others!! And I need to read them asap because I really love family and friendship-focused stories and I always hear good things about these 😍

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    1. I feel like reading any book by Mills is a great way to spend my time. I love the cute, fluffy, feel-good goodness she is peddling, and I am HERE for it.

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  8. First & Then was my first Mills read and I really enjoyed it for all of the reasons you mentioned. I'm thinking Lucky Caller needs to go on my TBR too now. I love that it has a radio show and features so many older musical references. Those kinds of reads are always fun and nostalgic for me.

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    1. Oddly enough, I have had First & Then for quite a while, but it was my LAST Mills book. Now, I have read them all. Mills never makes a lot of pop culture references. She actually creates a fandom and utilizes one of her already established fandoms. There are a few 90s hits referenced, but not many.

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  9. I absolutely LOVE Emma Mills as well Sam, she reminds me a lot of a quirky Morgan Matson. I've read First and Then and loved it, so beautiful and so beautifully written as well. Lucky Caller sounds brilliant! I love the nineties music and seeing sisters who support one another and have a wonderfully positive relationship with their mum. Looking forward to grabbing a copy. Lovely reviews Sam, so glad you enjoyed these!

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    1. Mills can do no wrong by me. I have read all her books, and each one never fails to give me the warm-fuzzies. She always takes the time to craft these fabulous friend groups, and she gives YA families a good name, which I love seeing.

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  10. I love that song by Lisa Loeb! And I also love Emma Mills - her characters always feel so real and she writes the best relationships, especially among families.

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    1. One of my all time favorite songs! Right? Mills is fabulous. I hope she has many, many more books in the future for us

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  11. Wonderwall started playing in the back of my head right after I saw it on your playlist. Such a classic 90's song. And I love that you listed the things that you loved in Lucky Caller. "Sisterly bonds" is something I always have a soft spot for.

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    1. I loved Oasis so much, and that's another song that always gets an emotional response from me. The three sisters in Lucky Caller were fantastic! I was all about being adopted and becoming the 4th.

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  12. Ahaha I am glad to see reading these back to back made you so happy, and I am completely not surprised that they were both such high ratings for you. Seeing these reviews back to back you can see how friendships and family are very much key themes for her books. I think I am really going to like them when I try them (on my tbr because of you, of course).

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    1. I am grateful to have discovered Mills. She joins my YA all-star list, because her books never fail to make me smile. I hope you do get to sample her work at some point.

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  13. You've successfully convinced me to read Lucky Caller!
    Ah, Nevermind... That's an album that takes me back to my teens even though it was a decade old by then! :)

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    1. Nirvana was a band I loved, a big part of my teen years, and I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when I heard of Cobain's death. (I was standing on a chair, eating a jello-shot, a big one, with a spoon, listening to a live band at my daughter's father's fraternity house.)

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  14. Lucky Caller keeps getting a bit lost in my TBR, and after reading your review, I need to move it up to ASAP level. It sounds so ridiculously good, and I'm so so excited for it. I love so much of what you said, so it's going to be so enjoyable. Great reviews! :)

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    1. It's EMMA MILLS AND SHE WRITES YA PERFECTION! Have you read any of her books? They were all so wonderful for me.

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