REVIEW: Holding Court by K.C. Held

Holding Court
by K.C. Held
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: March 1, 2016
Genres: YA, Contemporary, Mystery
Pages: 352
Buy at: Amazon, B&N
Add on: Goodreads
Find the author at: website, Facebook, Twitter

Sixteen-year-old Jules Verity knows exactly what’s in store at her new job at castle-turned-dinner-theater Tudor Times. Some extra cash, wearing a fancy-pants dress, and plenty of time to secretly drool over the ever-so-tasty–and completely unavailable–Grayson Chandler. Except that it’s not quite what she imagined.

For one, the costume Jules has to wear is awful. Then there’s the dead body she finds that just kind of…well, disappears. Oh, and there’s the small issue of Jules and her episodes of what her best friend calls “Psychic Tourette’s Syndrome”–spontaneous and uncontrollable outbursts of seemingly absurd prophecies.

The only bright side? This whole dead body thing seems to have gotten Grayson’s attention. Except that the more Jules investigates, the more she discovers that Grayson’s interest might not be as courtly as she thought. In fact, it’s starting to look suspicious…

Rating: ★★★★★ (5 out of 5 stars)

My Review:

I knew I was going to love this book when I started laughing at the very first sentence. I thought to myself, “This is going to be one of my favorite authors.” Before I go into all the wonderful reasons of why I adored this book, let me tell you a little bit about what it’s about.

Juliet “Jules” Verity has always considered herself a freak, thanks to her annoying habit of uncontrollably spewing crazy-sounding prophecies at random. It’s made a lot of things in her life very difficult — such as trying to find a normal job or speaking with her longtime crush Grayson Chandler. Jules is out of a job for the summer when her mother has to close down her antique shop for a temporary job in Paris. So when her bestie Cami finds a job listing at the interactive castle theater called Tudor Times for the part of psychic Maid of Kent, she reluctantly applies because she’s desperate to buy a car since her grandma’s hot pink golf cart is her only motorized choice for transport. Little does she know that her unavailable crush works there, the Mad Maid of Kent is a crazy nun, and that she’ll find a dead body that disappears and leads her into investigating a murder no one believes her about.Ah! This book had everything I look for in a young adult contemporary. Witty and charming characters, crazy funny dialogue, easy writing style, a story that makes you read through the night, and did I mention lots of laughs?! Add to that romance filled with hilariously awkward moments, mystery involving castle intrigue and dashing knights (or should I say, squights), and lovable family and side characters that made me crack up. Jules’ prophetic gift made for a unique approach to the genre and it ended up being one of my favorite aspects of the book. Jules and Grayson also made it to my OTP list — their mutual love of The Princess Bride was oh-so-cute. The mystery was great — usually I can predict whodunits immediately, but I only guessed around halfway through. I am in shock that this is the author’s debut novel. Please, I need more!! Her writing style really reminded me of one of my favorite authors ever, Jenny B. Jones. All I can say is that K.C. Held has made me a forever fan with Holding Court!

If you enjoy laughing, you will enjoy this new YA. *wink* Seriously though, it was adorably hilarious and I savored every moment. Totally recommended for those who like the YA contemporary genre.

*I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

{Content: Some mild language (batsh-t crazy and sh-t). Main character mentions cleavage a lot and crushes on a boy with a girlfriend. Talk of two girls romantically rendezvousing in a secret passage. Would recommend for ages 14 and up.}

GIF THE FEELING:
|| I’m trying out something new on my book reviews, where I find a GIF to share that explains my overall feelings for the book. Hope you like! ||

Are you adding this one to your to-be-read pile? What would you rate the cover? What books are you most looking forward to reading this month? Thanks for visiting my blog! ♥