My Very First ARC

I have an account at Goodreads.  If you find me over there, which you might after I'm done writing this post, don't judge me by what I read.  Never mind, judge all you want, I can take it.  I hadn't planned on going onto Goodreads, but I was looking for authors and books and a way to keep track of what I read and they seem to do it best.  The fact that it's all kind of out there in the public is the only part that makes me squirm a little.  My Mother might threaten to wash my eyes out with soap if she sees some of the books on my list!!

I stumbled upon It Was You by Anna Cruise one day and gave it a read.  I liked the idea of the story being about twin sisters that went against the normal idea of identical siblings.  It was a well written, quick, good read and  I enjoyed the book.  I gave it 4 stars.  I also wrote my first review after finishing the book.  

There was a reference to In-N-Out Burger and mayonnaise and Styrofoam cups.  I couldn't help myself, I had to say something!  I enjoyed the book and the fact that I focused on the  mayo made me laugh.  I did mention in my review that I was on the upswing from the flu and starting to get my appetite back so the mention of In-N-Out made quiet the impact on me.  There was also a little baseball thing that I caught, but it wasn't a big deal. 

Ms. Cruise liked my review of It Was You enough that she offered me an ARC (Advanced Readers Copy) of her new book that is being released this month.  I felt like a rock star.  An author offering me an advanced copy?  Yes, please!

I received If I Fall yesterday.  I read it in one day.  It was really good!  It falls into the mature YA genre, but it's different.  It's gritty and edgy.  There's an uncomfortable truth in the characters and settings.  I thought about the book overnight before writing my review.  It took me 3 hours to write a 4 paragraph review!

Now I'm sitting here wondering if I wrote a good review.  No pressure or anything.  I mean, it was only the first review to be written about the book.  It releases in 4 days so the review won't be up long by itself.  There will be others to give it company and not make it stand out so much.  I gave it 5 stars and I didn't do it just because the book was given to me.  It earned 5 stars mostly because it's different than the rest of the books in the genre and it's very well written. 

Yup, I went from stressing about a book review to rambling on the internet.  I'm going to go do some work or look for more books or...something.