When a therapist suggests that 16-year-old Amy Richards start a journal to help her deal with things, she scoffs at the idea. She's not really the "Dear Diary" type. When she starts writing her entries as letters to her best friend, though, she can't stop. Amy will never send the notes - heaven doesn't have a mailbox - but writing them helps her to remember Julia. They help her cope, help her grieve, help her move on. Sort of. The thing is, Amy knows she's responsible for Julia's death and that's something she won't get over. Ever.

Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott is one of those hard-hitting issue novels that's as evocative as it is disturbing. Amy tells it like it is in a raw, authentic voice that will speak loud and clear to teenagers. The book packs a powerful message, without sounding too preachy. I didn't love Love You Hate You Miss You, but I think it's an important story and one that will resonate with anyone who's had to live with the soul-crushing guilt and regret that come from letting someone down. And, really, isn't that all of us?

(Readalikes: Reminded me a little of Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher)

If this were a movie, it would be rated: R for language (1 F-bomb, plus other, milder invectives), sexual innuendo, and depictions of underrage drinking and illegal drug use

To the FTC, with love: I received a finished copy of Love You Hate You Miss You from the generous folks at HarperTeen. Thank you!

I've read some disheartening novels in my time, but I'm not sure I've ever encountered one as depressing as Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell. From its icy blue cover to its frigid setting to its crusty characters, the book's as cold and bleak as a Missouri winter. Which is, I guess, the point. But still - talk about depressing.

The story revolves around Ree Dolly, a 16-year-old girl living in the hills of the Missouri Ozarks in a community full of her ne'er-d0-well relatives ("...dead to wonder by age twelve, dulled to life, empty of kindness, boiling with mean. So many Dolly kids were that way, ruined before they had chin hair, groomed to live outside square law and abide by the remorseless blood-soaked commandments that governed lives led outside square law" [8]). She plans to escape her poverty-stricken life the second she's old enough to join the Army, but for now, she's stuck taking care of her two young brothers and her mother, whose mind took a hike years ago. It's a hard, squalid existence, one Ree stoically endures while dreaming of something better.

All Ree's hopes are dashed one glacial winter morning when Johnny Law comes nosing around, asking about her father. A notorious crank chef, Jessup Dolly has skipped town, presumably to avoid his upcoming court date. He's posted the Dolly's home and timber acres as his bail bond; if Jessup doesn't appear in front of the judge, Ree and her family will lose the few assets they have. Knowing she can't keep her family together without a roof over their heads, Ree vows to drag her father home, no matter what it takes. It's a dangerous task, involving confrontations with the vilest Dollys the Ozarks have ever produced. With little choice, the determined teen sets out across the frozen hills on a life-or-death quest to save the only things in her world that are worth redeeming - her still-innocent brothers. And, maybe, herself.

As hardened as Ree is, she's an admirable character, one who's easy to root for if difficult to like. She is, in fact, the only (semi-) bright spot in the brutal, arctic landscape of Winter's Bone. Woodrell's raw, unsympathetic look at families steeped in the Ozark drug culture is both vivid and compelling, just not particularly uplifting. The novel's a quick read, to be sure, but not an easy one at all. If it had been one page longer, or if I hadn't been too sick to get out of bed when I read it, I wouldn't have finished Winter's Bone. It's well-written, just not my cup of tea. Like at all.

(Readalikes: Although the settings are vastly different, Winter's Bone reminds me of The Road by Cormac McCarthy)

Grade: C

If this were a movie, it would be rated: R for strong language, violence, sexual content and portrayals of illegal drug use

To the FTC, with love: I bought Winter's Bone from Borders (*sniff*) with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.

Blink's not sure what exactly he saw outside of the CEO's hotel room, but it didn't look to him like Jack Niven was taken by force. The businessman appeared to be calm, unharmed. That's all Blink means to tell Jack's daughter when she calls on the Blackberry her father left behind - he doesn't want to start talking to her, doesn't want to be confiding in her, and, most of all, doesn't want to trust her. Except he does. As much as Blink needs to walk away, he has to help Alyson Niven find her father and not just because he feels bad for her, but because she'll pay him to do it.

(Readalikes: Reminded me a little bit of The Client by John Grisham)

Grade: B

If this were a movie, it would be rated: R for strong language, violence, and some sexual innuendo/content

To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of Blink & Caution from the generous folks at Candlewick Press. Thank you!