are certain stories that make you happy to have read them, LOVE AND OTHER ALIEN EXPERIENCES is one of those reads, It is sweet and funny and romantic and a little bit sad, Its main character, Mallory Sullivan, is interesting and entertaining, sympathetic, amusing, and braver than she knew herself to be, And with her wellmeaning if slightly devious brother Lincoln and best friend Jenni, two cute boys, and a seemingly outrageous plan to achieve the impossible, it promises to make you laugh, smile, swoon, and keep you captivated from beginning to end.
After her father left without an explanation as to why, where he was going, or if hed be back, Mals life began to fall apart.
Now the only place she feels safe is at home, attending school remotely by webcam, socializing only with her brother and her best friend the only friend who stuck with her after her major meltdown and posting on the We Are Not Alone message board.
While she wished she never had to leave the house, she knew her therapist wasnt going to let her off that easy, her mother couldnt take much more of her being a recluse, her physics teacher was insisting on an inperson midterm, and shed never be able to find and confront her father from the selfimposed prison she called home.
If she could just con herself into believing she was strong enough, capable enough, safe enough, she might be able to pull it off and get back the life she lost.
Or maybe all she needed was an impossible challenge and a huge incentive to overcome her fears,
Kerry Winfrey penned an absolutely delightful and engaging and unputdownable story that lightly touches on a number of issues agoraphobia, anxiety, pressure, stress, unrealistic expectations, unfair judgment, abandonment, and failure.
She keeps her story from becoming weighty by adding humor, flirtation, and romance, And she keeps it exciting by incorporating drama, tension, and a few unexpected surprises, twists and turns of event,
The author introduces a lovable heroine who is fighting to regain control of her life and involves her in an outlandish scheme that will either prove a huge success or an abject failure.
Her supporting characters are a mix of goodintentioned, helpful and understanding, and frustrated, confused, misunderstood and moody, But they all play a role in Mallorys road to recovery,
Everything wraps up nicely at the storys end, though the ending does feel a bit rushed and some aspects might have been fleshed out more to keep the pacing more consistent.
But this doesnt take you out of the story or take away from its enjoyment,
LOVE AND OTHER ALIEN EXPERIENCES is a quick, enchanting, and feelgood read that can easily be devoured in one sitting.
It is heartwarming and uplifting, with both a character and a love story you cant help but want to root for.
Its a story youll fall instantly in love with and want to read again,
Original GR comments:
Such a super cute story, Romantic, sweet, funny, a little bit sad, Quick read, likable main. Lightly touched on some more serious issues family, anxiety, passing judgment on others, Everything wraps up at the end, Pacing great throughout, though things did move a little too quickly at the end and could have used a touch more fleshing out.
Loved it. Totally recommended feelgood story.
TK I'm never going outside again,
Mallory hasn't left the house in sixtyseven dayssince the day her dad left, She attends her classes via webcam, rarely leaves her room much to her brother's chagrin, and spends most of her time watching The XFiles or chatting with the always obnoxious BeamMeUp on New Mexico's premier alien message board.
But when she's shockingly nominated for homecoming queen, her life takes a surprising turn, She slowly begins to open up to the world outside, And maybe if she can get her popular jock neighbor Brad Kirkpatrick to be her homecoming date, her classmates will stop calling her a freak.
In this heartwarming and humorous debut, Mallory discovers first love and the true meaning of homejust by taking one small step outside her house.
Love and Other Alien Experiences by Kerry Winfrey
Release Date: July,
DNF
Thanks so much to the publisher for sending me over an EARC for an honest review via Netgalley thank you again!
Okay, I was so swayed to pick this book up, because, I mean, aliens.
ALIENS. Me and aliens are like, . . me and Bigfoot but not as rapid as my love for the big furry creature, I was always fascinated by it as a child and the stories that I would read thank you, junior high librarian for letting me sneak out the reference book full of weird supernatural stories that included alien adventures and Bigfoot sightings that has now fueled my random YA obsessions.
So, of course, the moment I saw aliens, I was like GIMME GIMME GIMME MORE,
Okay, first and clearly foremost, not enough aliens, THERE WAS NOT ENOUGH OF MY LITTLE GREEN CREATURES, I wanted lots and lots of aliens and alien talk and talk about alien sightings and alien kidnapping and beaming up and at least some Star Trek references, but nooooooooo.
There was like none of that, There was some talk of arguing on the alien message board, which seemed very promising although to be truthful, the thing they were discussing sounded far more Bermuda Triangle than aliens oh dear gosh, why do I know that.
So, I was more than a bit upset about that, I just wanted lots of kooky alien fun and there was no lots of kooky alien fun,
Secondly, I felt like I read this story before, Like, girl gets set up with one guy but oh, look, his mysterious and "bad boy" brother is around who is a total jerk to MC for no reason.
Hmmmm I wonder what's going to happen
And then let's talk about that for a second more, because it's official: I'm over the love interest being a jerk to the main character.
I know some people love this trope one of my best friends lovesssssss it, but I, AM. DONE. Why can't the guy be sweet and kind and caring Why does he have to hate on the main character for no reason How is that attractive If a guy acts like a jerk to me and picks on me and tells me I look horrible, I'm going to veto the man out of my life and not somehow fall in love with him I'm just really tired of this trope, especially when the authors fail to create the characterization that is needed and instead the guy just looks more like a jerk than the guy that will somehow be redeemed.
That's what Jake was in this situation, I love me a guy with complex issues, but dear gosh, I just wanted to throw a football at this guy's head.
Multiple times.
And then there was the storyline, which I was having multiple issues with, Mallory has anxiety issues. Anxiety is becoming a huge part of YA, and discussing it is so issues, I'm pretty sure I saw a statistic that anxiety in people is growing faster than it ever has, and young people are especially in harm's way.
I've read a few books this year that have handled it wonderfully, but this book It seemed like Mallory would get confused about her disorder.
Like, she could go outside, but then she would get scared and pass out, And she could go to the front door and open it with no worries go outside in her backyard to grab something and SHE GOES OUTSIDE TO PLAY FOOTBALL WITH BRAD AND JAKE.
Yes, she does have some anxiety over it, but it seems to fade in and out Like, oh, I'm so nervous, but now Brad is throwing a football at me, but oh, maybe this will kill me, but do you know what will really kill me, Brad touching me, because wow.
Also, the storyline about the homecoming queen, I was more than a little concerned and disturbed by this, Mallory is clearly not in school, but she still Facetimes with her best friend during the day and also is forced to call in via webcam for all of her classes.
Some people at the school decide to nominate her to the homecoming court which is a straight up bullying move since it's making fun of her illness.
Yet there is no conversation about it none of her friends treat this as anything but something good when this a move that could severely hurt someone.
Why did the adults not reach out Mallory's mom lets another mom make a snide remark about it to Mallory.
I get it's trying to move the plot along, but I'm more than a bit upset about the reaction the book gives about something that could viciously hurt someone.
Okay, I had more than a few rants that I didn't intend to have in this book, Maybe give some good parts so I don't feel so bad I did like the writing style it was easy to read and I did manage to read all of thisin one swoop.
And there were parts that I did like and a few lines that actually did make me laugh out loud, which was the reason that I didn't give up sooner.
I did like Mallory, and I thought she had a good voice, As I said, I really did enjoy some parts, but the bad kind of outweighed the good on this one.
No crowns since I DNF'd it, and a Snow White rating! Very cute!!! This story follows a young, agoraphobic girl named Mallory who cannot leave her house after her dad leaves.
After being nominated for homecoming queen, Mallory doesn't know what to do,
Love and Other Alien Experiences was completely different from what I thought it would be, Though predictable with stereotypical characters, I found this entertaining in itself and it had some surprising twists that I found very light.
This is a great novel to get out of a reading slump or just for a very light, fun, easy going read.
Even though I did find the characters stereotypical, they were cute and honest what's wrong with being stereotypical these characters made the book feel like it came to life, I was able to connect with these characters and was able to understand them because they were normal.
Well, as normal as an anxious, agoraphobe could be, I really liked where this novel went, This novel was pulled together really well and the character development, though not much, was excellent as to how it ended.
I really loved this laughoutloud contemporary, Mal is relatable and interesting and flawed and brave, The pacing was seriously perfect, and I just want to hug all of these characters they were each so distinct and vibrant.
I never say this about contemporary books why!, but MORE PLEASE, Original Post: sitelink blogspot. co. ke/
Love And Other Alien Experiences is a really quick story, It's a fun filled and cute story, I totally fell in love with this story,
This book will give you so many feels, It'll make you laugh, cry, angry and excited, I couldn't put this book down and finished it in three hours, This book totally left me wanting for more,
This story is literally EPIC!
Seriously EPIC!
Love And Other Alien Experiences is the story of an agoraphobic teenage girl.
Mallory can't go outside of her home, She studies at school while sitting at her home with the help of a web cam, Mallory has no social life, No one knows her, she's like this dumb invisible person at school, Her life is a complete challenge, But something extremely exciting happens,
She gets nominated for homecoming queen, Now this is the part from where the oh my god story starts, Her brother and best friend are boosting her up while the whole school is making fun of her but Mallory needs to win this title so she can win the money and secretly meet her dad who doesn't care if his children are still alive.
This story has a really cute irritating love triangle that'll probably bore you, But I loved it anyways, You'll feel yourself totally connected to the character as she tells you more about her oh so full of depressing life.
The pressure from her mom , her therapist's forcing, . . it's sometimes cruel but Mallory needed that,
I really want to tell you more but it's best for you to find out the rest by yourself.
Love And Other Alien Experiences is recommended to everyone, This story is written in an amazing way and is really emotional, You'll find yourself crying at the end, The ending is perfect. Maybe some people won't find this story interesting but I think everyone should give it a try,
Thank you Paper Lantern Lit for the book! Did you find this review helpful Find more of my reviews at sitelinkPop! Goes The Reader!
I wonder what could have stopped Dad from leaving.
A cup of coffee from Mom Tripping over the rug One less sarcastic remark from me
If I could live it over again, could I fix it and avoid all this
I wish I could be like Lincoln his reaction was the exact opposite of mine.
While I shrunk further into myself, Lincoln seemed to grow two inches overnight, He got more extroverted, he smiled more, he laughed all the time, Its almost like he was relieved, He just says I need to move on, like Dad has,
But how am I supposed to move on without an answer Isnt it normal to be concerned when one of your parents disappears without a trace
Im not the weird one here, am I
A selfproclaimed alien obsessive who enjoys spending time with her best friend, Jenni, and perusing We Are Not Alone, an online message board for all things extraterrestrial, Mallory Sullivan is an ordinary girl with her head in the clouds or cosmos and her feet firmly planted on the ground.
Or, more precisely, within the confines of the home she shares with her mother and younger brother, Lincoln, In fact, Mallory hasnt left their home in sixtyseven days, her everpresent anxiety having escalated into debilitating agoraphobia after her fathers sudden disappearance from their lives.
When its announced that the Birdwatchers Association, a group in which her father had always been a devoted and passionate member, will be holding their annual excursion in November, however, it seems as though Mallory finally has an incentive powerful enough to inspire her to conquer her fears and confront the man for whom she has so many unanswered questions.
The only problem The five hundred dollar admission fee, With little money and fewer means of earning any when stepping foot outside her front door is a virtual impossibility, it seems as though all hope of attending is lost.
That is, until an unexpected nomination for homecoming queen and the accompanying five hundred dollar prize for the winner offers Mallory the opportunity to recapture some semblance of normalcy that shes so desperate to acquire.
As Mallory struggles to juggle spirit points, dress fittings, conspiracy theories, therapy sessions, XFiles reruns, and an outofthisworld physics assignment, life and her known universe will never be quite the same again.
BeamMeUp: Pizza demands to be eaten with hands, I cant believe youre a forker,
AlienHuntress: A forker! Come on, Pizza is hot, its greasy, and its way easier to eat with a fork, Also Im civilized.
BeamMeUp: Cute.
AlienHuntress: Did you just call me cute
BeamMeUp: I called your pizzaeating style cute, Dont get too full of yourself,
AlienHuntress: What do you eat your pizza with, your massive ego
BeamMeUp: Sounds like something a forker would say.
I dont participate in blog tours very often, In fact, over the course of my entire blogging career, you could likely count those I have taken part in on two hands.
When I was approached by Paper Lantern Lit and invited to participate in the blog tour for debut author Kerry Winfreys Love and Other Alien Experiences, however, I didnt need to think twice.
Putting aside the fact that Ive long been an ardent fan of Kerrys current project, A Year Of Romantic Comedies Seriously, its absurdly cute.
You should read it. Go on. Ill wait here. as a sufferer of anxiety, my own personal connection to Mallorys story ensured that Winfreys debut was one book I couldnt bear to miss.
Written with the same effervescent wit, vivacity and humour that I have now come to recognize as Winfreys signature style, Love and Other Alien Experiences is a sweet, gentle exploration of one girls journey of self discovery and first love which is sure to appeal to the hopeful romantic inside us all.
If youve ever dreamt of a bouquet of freshly sharpened pencils, questioned whether men and women can ever truly be friends, or have sworn that the truth is out there, Love and Other Alien Experiences might be the book for you.
Dana Scully would never sit around and wait for a guy to send her a message, Thats because shes way too busy performing autopsies or trying to convince Mulder that the Loch Ness Monster isnt real, but still, shes a woman of action.
And I can be, too,
When I was a child, I was what one might call fretful, I worried. About everything. While other kids were riding their bikes and scraping their knees, I was eating my peanut butter toast with a knife and fork and checking to make sure that the doors were locked and the stove was off.
Again, and again, and again, I wasnt able to shed these obsessive thoughts like my baby teeth and untameable curls, And though Im fortunate enough to be able to manage my anxiety through routine and medication, and have not suffered from agoraphobia firsthand, aspects of Mallorys story are not dissimilar to my own.
I know what its like to allow my anxiety to overwhelm me, To feel frustrated and trapped and embarrassed by feelings largely outside my control, To long for a less complicated version of normal, While one neednt discover a new best friend or potential lover in a story in order for it to resonate or be deemed valuable, theres no doubt that a personal connection with a character can be a transformative experience.
In this case, seeing some variation of my own story on the page was as empowering as it as liberating.
As shes eventually told by her devilsadvocateturnedfriend, BeamMeUp, Mallory is a force to be reckoned with, Smart, sarcastic, brave, and resilient, Mallory recognizes her failings and actively works to confront them headon, This journey can be messy and ugly and even unkind, but it is never untrue, With a deft hand and thoughtful sensitivity, Winfreys exploration of Mallorys anxiety is authentic and harrowing while also remaining hopeful and optimistic.
Best of all, her growth and transformation are entirely selfmotivated, While there is a romanceinspired secondary storyline, this is by no means presented as an answer to Mallorys problems, A number of people contribute to Mallorys recovery in a positive manner her mother, her brother, her therapist, and her best friend but ultimately her strength and healing come from within.
“Not fair,” Jake protests, “You get the star player and I get Mallory No offense, ”
“Plenty of offense!” I yell back,
“Yeah, offense is super important!” Brad adds, not even ironically,
Of equal importance are these secondary characters who buoy Mallorys spirits and traverse their own equally compelling adventures over the course of the novel.
Most prominent of these is Lincoln, Mallorys younger brother, who recently came out and is embracing his sexuality and embarking on his first serious homosexual relationship.
Though the two are more likely to exchange sarcasm than sincerity, the reader is left with absolutely no doubt as to their depth of feeling and the lengths to which they will go to help one another.
Equally engaging is Mallorys closest friend, Jenni, an Indian beauty blogger who is always ready to lend a helping hand, whether it be in achieving the perfect winged eyeliner or earning enough spirit points to win the homecoming crown.
Jenni is ineffably charming and undeniably quotable “If you wear your look with confidence, people will accept it, no matter what.
Just pretend youre Beyoncé at the Grammys, or Beyoncé at the Met Ball oractually, just pretend youre Beyoncé, Its a solid life philosophy, ” Each of Winfreys characters, both primary and periphery, shine more brightly than the last,
Everything in the universe thats everything, no matter how small exerts a gravitational force on everything else.
A pencil exhibits a force on the sun, A quarter on Jupiter. A scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream on a scoop of chocolate ice cream, And that means you exert force on the universe, too, You, AlienHuntress, are a force to be reckoned with, Dont count yourself out before you even start the game,
Perfect for fans of Paula Stokes and Lauren Morrill, Love and Other Alien Experiences is a charming, hopeful, heartening contemporary romance that has a little something for every reader.
Whether youre interested in a little fun flirtation or a sincere reflection on mental illness, this debut has it all in a darling story that can easily be devoured in a single afternoon.
A novel that focuses not on the destination but the journey, Love and Other Alien Experiences celebrates the infinitesimal triumphs and failures along the way, and reminds us that showing up is often half the battle.
With a dash of humour, a drop of affection, a pinch of mystery and a generous helping of heart, Kerry Winfreys winning recipe for romance will quickly have readers exclaiming “Ill have what shes having!”.