Shallow Graves by Kali Wallace

Title: Shallow Graves
Author: Kali Wallace
Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books
Release Date: January 26, 2016
Rating: 3/5

The Gist: When seventeen-year-old Breezy Lin wakes up in a shallow grave one year after her death, she doesn’t remember who killed her or why. All she knows is that she’s somehow conscious—and not only that, she’s able to sense who around her is hiding a murderous past. In life, Breezy was always drawn to the elegance of the universe and the mystery of the stars. Now she must set out to find answers and discover what is to become of her in the gritty, dangerous world to which she now belongs—where killers hide in plain sight and a sinister cult is hunting for strange creatures like her. What she finds is at once empowering, redemptive, and dangerous.

Review:

Shallow Graves features a new and interesting concept of the dead.  Breezy is dead, or undead, but not in the 'must have braiiiiiiiiiiins' fashion that has become so popular in fiction today.  She seems just like a regular girl, she just can't die.  And believe me, she has tried.  One of my favorite parts of this book featured Breezy's lists, one of which was her list of ways in which she has tried to die including drowning, shooting and crashing head-long into a tree.  The writing style worked well and Breezy is a great new voice.

I love seeing diversity in main characters and Breezy ticks a lot of boxes; she is a Chinese, bisexual teenage girl who loves Science and was obsessed with being an astronaut.  I really felt her pain as she lamented the fact that her one ambition in life was now off limits despite the fact that she was now perfect for the job - no need to eat or breathe and apparently indestructible.  It was also really interesting to read as she tried to apply her analytical mind to the new task at hand - namely figuring out this new world and finding out why she isn't dead.

Shallow Graves does not follow down the traditional path of distracting from the plot with an ill-fitting love interest.  There is a boy, there is potential with the boy, but neither of them seems interested in pursuing that at the moment.  There is also an underlying thread that makes social commentary on the issues of slut shaming and victim blaming.  I loved that Breezy was self and socially aware enough to recognize how differently her life (and death) would have been if she had been a teen boy murdered rather than a girl and these sections come off as thought-provoking, rather than preachy.

Unfortunately, not everything in this story worked quite as well as it could have.  The author chose a non-linear manner of storytelling which worked in parts, but other times was strange and confusing.  There are two main mysteries and neither of them ends particularly strongly.  I was particularly disappointed in the reveal of who killed Breezy.  I was hoping for one of those 'oh my god, no way?!' moments, but it just fell a little flat and felt frustrating.  The other storyline featured a big baddie who, rather than being defeated, was merely contained.  This made the book feel like the first in a series, though that doesn't appear to be the case, and I didn't like that ambiguousness. 

Bottom Line: A fun book with an interesting new character.  Wish it was a series though....

A Madness So Discreet by Mindy McGinnis

Title: A Madness So Discreet
Author: Mindy McGinnis
Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books
Release Date: Oct 6, 2015
Rating: 3/5

The Gist: Grace Mae knows madness.

She keeps it locked away, along with her voice, trapped deep inside a brilliant mind that cannot forget horrific family secrets. Those secrets, along with the bulge in her belly, land her in a Boston insane asylum.

When her voice returns in a burst of violence, Grace is banished to the dark cellars, where her mind is discovered by a visiting doctor who dabbles in the new study of criminal psychology. With her keen eyes and sharp memory, Grace will make the perfect assistant at crime scenes. Escaping from Boston to the safety of an ethical Ohio asylum, Grace finds friendship and hope, hints of a life she should have had. But gruesome nights bring Grace and the doctor into the circle of a killer who stalks young women. Grace, continuing to operate under the cloak of madness, must hunt a murderer while she confronts the demons in her own past.

Review: 
Grace Mae, pregnant and broken, has been locked away in an asylum by the family that is supposed to love and protect her, but which has done neither.  She endures the abuse and neglect of the asylum until she meets Dr. Thornhollow, who performs surgery on the more violent offenders.  She concocts a scheme which will allow her to escape both the asylum and her family and which leaves her in the care of the doctor as his assistant.  Under his tutelage, she begins to learn the science of profiling and seeking out murderers.  As they get closer and closer to the serial killer they are trailing, Grace's past comes back with a vengeance and she creates a trap to punish her abuser, and save all those who might become his victims. 

A Madness So Discreet explores the emerging science of profiling.  Dr. Thornhollow and Grace study crime scenes in order to create a picture of the murderer and narrow down the pool of suspects until they are able to locate their prey.  Unfortunately, this meant Grace received regular "lessons" in which Dr. Thornhollow droned on about profiling.  If this is new information for the reader, it would be interesting.  However, I feel like profiling has become such a big plot point for so many movies and TV shows now that all of this information seems like something everyone knows already; that murderers like to revisit the crime scene, that they are often impotent, that they have overbearing mothers etc.  Since I was pretty familiar with all of this, these scenes were rather tedious and slowed down the plot.

The plot is can really be broken into three parts: the Boston Asylum, Grace's Instruction, and Grace's Revenge.  The first section is a great read, but is full of triggers.  The treatment of patients in the asylum is deplorable and, as a mother, I found certain scenes very difficult to get through.  However, this sets the tone for a very creepy novel about madness and the treatment of the insane, but that is not the book that we get.    Once she escapes, the tone changes completely and the plot slows considerably as Dr. Thornhollow teaches Grace the basics of profiling and she acclimates to her new hospital.  Things become interesting again in the final part as we start to see a whole new side of Grace.  By this point, she has received enough instruction to be able to operate capably on her own and has finally begun to take control of her own life.  This makes her a much more interesting character.  At this point, the plot moves much more quickly and we get to see just how devious, and forward thinking, Grace can be. 

The novel was hit and miss when it came to the characters.  Some, like Grace, were interesting and well developed while others, like Dr. Thornhollow and his sister were flat and unbelievable.  Thankfully, there were no romantic elements as would often be expected in this type of novel and I was quite glad that the only part of Grace's body that the doctor seemed interested in was her mind.  There are also characters that, while enjoyable, did deplorable things that were applauded.  Overall, there was a theme of women gaining revenge against the men who wronged them, however they often did it in ways that I simply couldn't stomach.     

Bottom Line: Solidly in the "Meh" category.  It wasn't bad, but there wasn't anything that I LOVED about it. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 15 and up
Sex: None
Violence: Sexual Abuse, Abuse of a patient, Murder
Inappropriate Language: Bitch, Bastard, Whore
Substance Use/Abuse: Smoking

The Weight of Feathers by Anne-Marie McLemore

Title: The Weight Of Feathers
Author: Anne-Marie McLemore
Publisher: Thomas Dunne
Release Date: Sept 15, 2015
Rating: 3/5

The Gist: For twenty years, the Palomas and the Corbeaus have been rivals and enemies, locked in an escalating feud for over a generation. Both families make their living as traveling performers in competing shows—the Palomas swimming in mermaid exhibitions, the Corbeaus, former tightrope walkers, performing in the tallest trees they can find.

Lace Paloma may be new to her family’s show, but she knows as well as anyone that the Corbeaus are pure magia negra, black magic from the devil himself. Simply touching one could mean death, and she's been taught from birth to keep away. But when disaster strikes the small town where both families are performing, it’s a Corbeau boy, Cluck, who saves Lace’s life. And his touch immerses her in the world of the Corbeaus, where falling for him could turn his own family against him, and one misstep can be just as dangerous on the ground as it is in the trees.

Review:  

Cluck and Lace come from performing families that have been feuding for longer than either of them have been alive.  Each holds a touch of magic and a fear and hatred towards the other.  The families each carry with them a list of crimes committed by the other tracing back to a mysterious flood that took a member from each side.  The fued has been going on for so long that the younger generation doesn't appear to have any idea what it stems from, they simply continue to perpetrate crimes against each other as taught by their elders.  

 

In the middle are Cluck and Lace.  An unfortunate accident throws them together, though neither knows the background of the other, and they are forced to confront generations of hatred and misinformation.  As their love for one another grows, they seek out the truth behind the flood and an end to the violence.  

 

The magical families and their history was the most fascinating part about The Weight of Feathers.  Each family creates an air of mystery during their performances, but still take great pains to hide those things that are truly magical about them.  While the Paloma's dance in the water, the Corbeau's dance in the trees, each building fears and superstitions regarding the realm of the other.  Throughout the novel, we piece together parts of history to create a narrative them speaks of terrible tragedy and disasterous decisions. 

 

While the families themselves created an enthralling universe, unfortunately, the main characters did not.  Cluck and Lace had no real sense of chemistry and nothing in common.  Despite Cluck claiming passion and excitement at Lace's mere touch, it did not come across on the page.  I was interested in the mystery of them, in the mystery of their families and in what the future would bring for them, I just couldn't root for them as a romantic couple.

 

The plot is a slow and steady burn towards the truth which culminates in the families having to face the reality of their circumstances, however, nothing really seems to change for anyone other than Cluck and Lace.  I really did LIKE this book but, while the writing was lovely and the magical elements were wonderful, there was simply too much riding on a lackluster romance for me to love it.

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 15 and up
Sex: Kissing
Violence: Fist Fighting, Familial abuse
Inappropriate Language: Bitch
Substance Use/Abuse: None

The Shadow Behind The Stars by Rebecca Hahn

Title: The Shadow Behind The Stars
Author: Rebecca Hahn
Publisher: Atheneum Book for Young Readers
Release Date: Sept 1, 2015
Rating: 3/5

The Gist: Heed this warning, mortal: stay far away from the three sister Fates. For if they come to love you, they might bring about the end of the world…

Chloe is the youngest. Hers are the fingers that choose the wool, that shape the thread, that begin it. The sun smiles upon her. Men love her without knowing who she is. She has lived forever and will live forever more. She and her sisters have been on their isolated Greek island for centuries, longer than any mortal can remember. They spin, measure, and slice the countless golden threads of human life. They are the three Fates, and they have stayed separate for good reason: it is dangerous for them to become involved with the humans whose lives they shape.

So when a beautiful girl named Aglaia shows up on their doorstep, Chloe tries to make sure her sisters don’t become attached. But in seeking to protect them, Chloe discovers the dark power of Aglaia’s destiny. As her path unwinds, the three Fates find themselves pulled inextricably along—toward mortal pain, and mortal love, and a fate that could unravel the world.

Review: 

The Shadow Behind the Stars features the three fates of Greek mythology.  On a desolate island the sisters spin, measure, and cut, shaping the lives of humans they were sure to never meet.  Until Aglaia appears on their doorstep and forces them to once again engage with the human world.  While many books will feature encounters with the fates, this is the first time I have read one where they are the main characters.  I loved the concept and the humanization of such epic characters.  With only a handful of details written about the sisters in Greek mythology, it allows a wealth of opportunity to expand their story and imagine their world.  Hahn capitalizes on this in the best way possible, creating characters that are interesting and intricate with thousands of years of experience to motivate their actions. 

As with her previous book, A Creature of Moonlight, Hahn's writing is beautiful and haunting.  She keeps true to the spirit of the old Greek tales and also makes a nod to Shakespeare with the inevitability of death that features so prominently in Macbeth.  However, The Shadow Behind the Stars is not a particularly fast paced novel and does require a patient reader who can appreciate the beauty of the writing and forgive the sometimes slow crawl of the plot.

I loved this book almost all the way through, but it did take a downturn in the ending.  After the novel was over, nothing really seemed to have changed for the characters.  I don't think life after the story would have been all that different for the sisters if Aglaia had never shown up in the first place.  As such, I'm not sure what the point of the entire adventure was.

Bottom Line: The Shadow Behind the Stars is beautifully written and, despite some pacing and plot issues, will surely be a hit with readers who love Greek Mythology.

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age:16 and up
Sex: None
Violence: Rape, Murder
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Use/Abuse: None

Daughter of Dusk by Livia Blackburne

Title: Daughter of Dusk
Author: Livia Blackburne
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Release Date: August 4, 2015
Rating: 3/5

The Gist: After learning the truth about her bloodlines, Kyra can’t help but feel like a monster.

Though she’s formed a tentative alliance with the Palace, Kyra must keep her identity a secret or risk being hunted like the rest of her Demon Rider kin. Tristam and the imprisoned assassin James are among the few who know about her heritage, but when Tristam reveals a heartbreaking secret of his own, Kyra’s not sure she can trust him. And with James’s fate in the hands of the palace, Kyra fears that he will give her away to save himself.

As tensions rise within Forge's Council, and vicious Demon Rider attacks continue in surrounding villages, Kyra knows she must do something to save her city. But she walks a dangerous line between opposing armies: will she be able to use her link to the Demon Riders for good, or will her Makvani blood prove to be deadly?

In this spellbinding sequel to Midnight Thief, Kyra and Tristam face their biggest battle yet as they grapple with changing allegiances, shocking deceit, and vengeful opponents.

Review: 

Daughter of Dusk picks up shortly after the events of Midnight Thief.  Kyra is working for the council and struggling to keep her birthright a secret.  In this second book, a former background character steps forward as the big baddie.  His aims go far beyond the destruction of the Makvani race and Kyra must discover his secrets before both sides suffer tragic losses. With one foot in both worlds, Kyra is the only one who can prevent a war and save those she cares about.  

I stopped and started Daughter of Dusk a couple of times as the beginning was quite slow.  There is a little too much political drama and too little action. Kyra spends a great deal of time contemplating whether or not she is a monster and has a difficult time coming to terms with who she is.  This is not necessarily a BAD thing as it makes for good character development, but I was pretty anxious to see her meld both sides of her heritage and kick some serious butt.  Things picked up at about the halfway point when circumstances demand that Kyra leave Forge and come out of hiding as half-human and half-Makvani.  During this time we also get to learn more about Kyra's family history and there are one or two interesting surprises.  

The characters are enjoyable and I was particularly happy that we got to see another side of Flick.  I was quite pleased that he never became a serious love interest and thrilled that he found his own match (can we get a story about them please?)  The romance between Kyra and Tristam continues to be teased as both realize their stations make a serious relationship impossible.  While I like these two characters together and we got to see a deeper side of Tristam as he struggles with his own prejudices towards the Makvani, I didn't feel a great deal of chemistry between them, so that part of the plot fell a little flat.  

Daughter of Dusk has a satisfactory end that leads me to believe it is the last in the series (at least the last that tells Kyra's story) but there are still stories to tell.  We may see these in novella form or in additional books set in this world, but concentrating on other characters - at least that is what I am hoping. 

Bottom Line: Daughter of Dusk is a solid second book in a series with potential for more. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 13 and up
Sex: Kissing
Violence: Swordplay, Knifeplay, Violence towards a child
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Use/Abuse: None

A History of Glitter and Blood by Hannah Moskowitz

Title: A History of Glitter and Blood
Author: Hannah Moskowitz
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Release Date: August 4th
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions: Meh. Moskowitz has had much better.

The Gist: Sixteen-year-old Beckan and her friends are the only fairies brave enough to stay in Ferrum when war breaks out. Now there is tension between the immortal fairies, the subterranean gnomes, and the mysterious tightropers who arrived to liberate the fairies.

But when Beckan's clan is forced to venture into the gnome underworld to survive, they find themselves tentatively forming unlikely friendships and making sacrifices they couldn't have imagined. As danger mounts, Beckan finds herself caught between her loyalty to her friends, her desire for peace, and a love she never expected.

Review:

I have a love/hate relationship with Hannah Moskowitz.  I love her creative settings, enthralling characters and well paced plots.  I hate how very, very, very, dark her books are.  A History of Glitter and Blood was no exception.

The reader was treated to a book in progress.  Scrap writes about events as they unfold, with a back and forth between before Cricket's death and after.  The tenses change to differentiate between the two and helps keep the reader on track.  The idea of reading the events as they happen gives a unique sense of suspense as we are never quite sure where the story will go or if it will end abruptly.  It also adds an interesting element as Scrap is clearly not the most reliable of story tellers.  He self-edits as he goes, leaving chastising notes for himself and also writes about events for which he clearly could not have been present.  The text itself is sprinkled with additional elements like pictures and pasted in parts from other books.  This adds beautiful visual interest and my only complaint is that I wanted more! I was left really longing for more photographs, particularly of the trio and the different races.
 
Moskowitz creates a really intriguing world in this novel.  Fairies that live, not flitting about in forests but anchored in a city with real jobs.  I was really fascinated by the idea that the fairies never really died.  Instead, they can lose pieces of themselves, but they will always feel them.  No one really knows at what point the fairies stop existing - if they every do.  The plot is evenly placed but, other than the final few scenes, does not have a great deal of excitement.  Rather, it spins a steady tale in which we learn the history of the war and its eventual end.

As always, Moskowitz's world is strange and dark.  She always seems to feature some type of sexual exploitation, especially with young characters and I think it is this inclusion, more than any others, that make me uncomfortable in reading her books.  Perhaps it is being a teacher of teenagers, or having children, but I just find this part of her writing very difficult to get through.  In this book, she explores prostitution.  Beckan, Scrap, and Cricket sold their services to the Gnomes in exchange for food.  However, it is written about in a very strange way.  The characters seemed to revel in their work, despite the very dangerous situations they were placed in and the fact that it had already resulted in the "death" of their friend.  I think it is this that made it so difficult for me to connect to the characters.  I found that I had much more sympathy for the character that was already "dead" than for any of the ones I was supposed to be left rooting for.

Bottom Line: Though this novel didn't quite work for me, it certainly had a unique world and an interesting style of storytelling.  It will be a fantastic read for those readers who are already fans of Moskowitz and those who wish to delve into a dark fantasy with an unreliable narrator who will leave you questioning most of what he writes.

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 16 and up
Sex:  Sex between teenagers
Violence: Gunplay, Knifeplay, Eating of other creatures, Loss of limbs
Inappropriate Language: Fuck, Bitch, asshole, Whore, Bastard
Substance Use/Abuse: Smoking

Other Issues: Prostitution

I Am Princess X by Cherie Priest

Title: I Am Princess X
Author: Cherie Priest
Publisher: Scholastic
Release Date: May 26, 2015
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions: Love the cover art.  The princess looks amazing (I am a big fan of the chucks). 

The Gist:

Once upon a time, two best friends created a princess together. Libby drew the pictures, May wrote the tales, and their heroine, Princess X, slayed all the dragons and scaled all the mountains their imaginations could conjure.

Once upon a few years later, Libby was in the car with her mom, driving across the Ballard Bridge on a rainy night. When the car went over the side, Libby passed away, and Princess X died with her.

Once upon a now: May is sixteen and lonely, wandering the streets of Seattle, when she sees a sticker slapped in a corner window.

Princess X?

When May looks around, she sees the Princess everywhere: Stickers. Patches. Graffiti. There's an entire underground culture, focused around a webcomic at IAmPrincessX.com. The more May explores the webcomic, the more she sees disturbing similarities between Libby's story and Princess X online. And that means that only one person could have started this phenomenon---her best friend, Libby, who lives.

Review:

As young girls, May and Libby bonded over the creation of Princess X.  May wrote the stories, Libby drew the comics.  Both girls lived vicariously through the Princess' adventures until the day Libby died.  Supposedly.  For years, May dreams of her friend misses the days they spent creating a world for themselves.  Until the day she discovers a sticker that looks remarkably like their Princess X.  This leads her on a search throughout the city for more proof and she quickly realizes that there are just too many parallels for the comic to be coincidence.  With the help of her neighbor and hacker (with slightly criminal leanings) Trick, May begins to delve deeper into the world of Princess X and realizes that Libby's death may not have been as real as she had believed.  She is still out there, and she has left clues so that Libby can find her and bring her home. 

I Am Princess X is a really unique blend of graphic novel and traditional storytelling.  Sprinkled throughout the book are pieces of a graphic novel that features a princess trying to escape her captor and find several items of power in order to save her kingdom.  The illustrations are beautiful and the story of Princess X melds with the mystery of the missing girl in a really interesting way.  I do wish my review copy had included more of the illustrations, but I will definitely be picking up a finished copy when it is released.  

I enjoyed the characters but I do wish there had been more development and that they had been more consistent, for example Trick is given the backstory of having made some poor decisions, losing his scholarship and doing whatever he can in order to earn enough money to pay for school himself.  However, once he meets May, he drops all of that in order to run around the city looking for clues to Libby's whereabouts.  I was pretty happy with the complete lack of a romantic storyline.  That is downright refreshing in a YA novel and I felt that May had a pretty realistic relationship with her parents.  

Unfortunately, I Am Princess X suffered from that same old issue when writers who are used to writing for an adult audience make the foray into young adult.  They just don't seem to give young readers enough credit.  This leads to a strange style of writing where they appear to "dumb things down", as if the writer thought she had to make it easier in order for a teen to "get it".  This meant there was lots of repetition of things that we already knew (like the fact that she went to Libby's funeral or that she prefers hot chocolate to coffee), bland statements of facts and recaps of events, with little to no nuance to the mystery itself.  It also made reference to tech and social media in a very "look, I'm a cool adult, I know what twitter is" kind of way.   

Ultimately, I am Princess X is a suspenseful story about a missing girl.  And it does this very well.  May searches for clues in the comics and then those translate into real life adventures to find the "keys" Libby has left behind.  There is a real sense of danger as the bad guy is your Criminal Minds type kidnapper with an intelligent manner of planning and some serious tech savvy skills that keep the kids running.  

It is a great read for those interested in a quick mystery and it will really appeal to fans of graphic novels who want to explore how the genre can work within a traditional story.   

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 12 and up
Sex:  None
Violence:  Kidnapping, Drowning, Gunplay
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Use/Abuse: None

This and other reviews can be seen on Young Adult Books Central

Mark of the Thief by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Title: Mark of the Thief
Author: Jennifer Nielsen
Publisher: Scholastic
Release Date: Feb 24, 2015
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:

The Gist: When Nic, a slave in the mines outside of Rome, is forced to enter a sealed cavern containing the lost treasures of Julius Caesar, he finds much more than gold and gemstones: He discovers an ancient bulla, an amulet that belonged to the great Caesar and is filled with a magic once reserved for the Gods -- magic some Romans would kill for.

Now, with the deadly power of the bulla pulsing through his veins, Nic is determined to become free. But instead, he finds himself at the center of a ruthless conspiracy to overthrow the emperor and spark the Praetor War, a battle to destroy Rome from within. Traitors and spies lurk at every turn, each more desperate than the next to use Nic's newfound powers for their own dark purposes.

In a quest to stop the rebellion, save Rome, and secure his own freedom, Nic must harness the magic within himself and defeat the empire's most powerful and savage leaders.

Review:

Working in the mines and obeying orders (at least the ones that aren't stupid), Nic has one goal - to free himself and his sister.  When the men discover a mysterious cave one doesn't come out, and the other will never be the same again.  Forced to enter the cave himself, Nic encounters a fearsome Griffin and an ancient Bulla (an amulet given to male children in Rome).  Stealing both, he ends up on the run from a general who has darker plans for Rome and finds himself at the center of a plot to overthrow the emperor and a world of magic that he never dreamed existed.  Now, Nic must fight for freedom, his sister, the empire and discover who can be trusted in a world of intrigue.

Nic is a very reminiscent of Sage from Jennifer Nielsen's The False Prince trilogy.  He is clever and witty.  He is always willing to deliver a scathing retort - even when he probably shouldn't.  I was a little disappointed that his inner monologue was not nearly as interesting as Sage's was, and I found myself skimming those parts to get to the action.  Nic has a great frenemy in Aurelia.  She is determined, single-minded, and great with weapons.  Nic and she have a very love-hate relationship, but I don't really see this going the romantic route.  More, they will continue to gain respect for one another and become strong allies.  We only see a little of Livia, Nic's sister, and I am really excited to see what type of role she takes on in the next book.

I knew very little of Ancient Rome coming into this book and the author did an excellent job of describing the architecture, politics, and methods of entertainment.  The magic of this world is really well incorporated into the Roman belief system.  I was a particular fan of Nic's new found power to talk to animals.  I can see this having fantastic implications as the series continues.  I also loved that where most media concentrates on the gladiator fights that took place in the colloseum, this one features the animal fights.  It was interesting to see a different side of these events. 

The plot is fast paced and fun.  There are very few moments of downtime as Nic attempts to escape the consequences of stealing the Bulla.  For the first half, he spent a great deal of time simply reacting to the situations unfolding around him and I began to get frustrated with his inability to concoct a plan.  As we reached the middle of the book he took on a more controlling role and started to meet challenges head on, rather than attempting to run from them.  This developed his character further and allowed me to engage more with the plot.   

Mark of the Thief is a fun and exciting start to a promising new series. Young readers will love Nic's adventure and the historic elements on which the plot is built.

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 10 and up
Sex: None
Violence: Knifeplay, Swordplay, Death of animals, Death by magic
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Use/Abuse: None

Lies I Told by Michelle Zink

Title: Lies I Told
Author: Michelle Zink
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: April 7, 2015
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  Not as compelling as it could be.  I like the mysterious feel of the shadowy figure but this cover has been done before. 

The Gist:
Grace Fontaine has everything: beauty, money, confidence, and the perfect family.

But it’s all a lie.

Grace has been adopted into a family of thieves who con affluent people out of money, jewelry, art, and anything else of value. Grace has never had any difficulty pulling off a job, but when things start to go wrong on the Fontaines' biggest heist yet, Grace finds herself breaking more and more of the rules designed to keep her from getting caught...including the most important one of all: never fall for your mark. 

Review:
Lies I Told tells the story of a family of con artists as they embark on their biggest heist to date.  Having spent considerable time in the foster care system and been adopted during her teens, this life is the only one that Grace knows.  She trusts her family implicitely and follows their rules to elude suspicion.  Until there is a boy.  Logan is supposed to be just another mark and Grace is supposed to worm her way into his good graces in order to allow her family the opportunity to steal from his father.  But this is different than other jobs and Logan is different from other boys.  Grace finds herself losing her drive and wishing for a different life, a life in which she can have a future with the boy she is falling for.  Meanwhile, her brother Parker is becoming more and more disillusioned with the life they have been taught to lead.  He wants out, and he wants Grace to come with him.  As she falls deeper and deeper into the con, Grace must decide which will stand, her loyalty to her brother, to her parents, or to the boy who has won her heart.

While the first half of the book is a little slow to get started, it does feature some fascinating facets of the life of a con family, for example the fact that they have a "war room" in each home and that details of the job are only discussed there.  It also develops the details necessary to pull of their job and allows for the developing romance of Grace and Logan, a romance that is, thankfully, more slow-burn than insta-love.  The plot gets more and more exciting as we approach the heist and it has some truly heart stopping moments.  

I was a little disappointed in the characters.  Most of them are pretty one-dimensional and, other than Grace herself, we see most characters as part of a larger group and don't get to know any of them all that well on their own.  The one stand-out was Rachel.  She was suspicious of Grace from the moment she met her and didn't quite fit the stereotype of Rich Girl Queen Bee.  In fact, I found myself wishing that this had been written as a dual narrative so that we could watch Rachel as she sought out the truth about Grace and her family.  I wasn't a great fan of Grace at the beginning as she tended to whine a little too much about the type of life she had.  Coming into the book, I had been hoping for a character who reveled in the life and, perhaps, began to change her ways through the plot.  Grace however, was already becoming frustrated with never staying in one place and with the guilt that came from befriending people only to betray them.  As the novel wore on, she became much more of an agreeable character and, with help of the surprising ending, I have high hopes for her in the next novel.  
The novel truly shines in its ending.  From the moment the heist itself gets under way the plot becomes much more exciting and each page had me coming up with a new theory about how it would end.  I was surprised by how satisfying the ending was, while still making me anticipate the next book. 

Lies I Told is a solid introduction into a new series and a great read for fans of espionage and betrayal. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 13 and up
Sex: Kissing, Sex between teenagers - not described
Violence: None
Inappropriate Language: Fuck, Shit, Assholes, Bitch, Jesus
Substance Use/Abuse: Underage Drinking, Marijuana Use

This Review can also be found on Young Adult Books Central

Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver

Title: Vanishing Girls
Author: Lauren Oliver
Publisher: Harper Collins
Release Date: March 10, 2015
Rating:  3/5

Cover Impressions: Pretty, but not outstanding.

The Gist: Dara and Nick used to be inseparable, but that was before the accident that left Dara's beautiful face scarred and the two sisters totally estranged. When Dara vanishes on her birthday, Nick thinks Dara is just playing around. But another girl, nine-year-old Madeline Snow, has vanished, too, and Nick becomes increasingly convinced that the two disappearances are linked. Now Nick has to find her sister, before it's too late.

In this edgy and compelling novel, Lauren Oliver creates a world of intrigue, loss, and suspicion as two sisters search to find themselves, and each other.

Review:
Vanishing Girls wasn't a bad book, in fact, it was a pretty damn good book.  The characters were fine, not overly annoying and there was a fairly distinct voice difference between the two sisters.  The love interest was dramatic enough to add interest but didn't overtake the plot.  There was a sense of mystery that would keep readers on the edge of their seat, but - and this one is a big but - I feel like this story has been told before.  In fact, I'm pretty sure I have read this story 2 or 3 times before.

The problem comes with the big plot twist - I'm going to try not to spoil anything, but that may get difficult so please, stop reading if you don't want to ruin your own reading experience.  I figured out the big, unexpected, plot twist about 10% into the book and spent the rest of the time hoping that I was wrong.  Once I had figured it out, it all seemed rather obvious and there were a lot of clues dropped along the way.  I would love to hear from someone else, who perhaps hadn't read this particular story before and see when/if they figured it out and how their enjoyment of the novel differed. 

On top of this, the whole "girl goes missing" mystery felt tacked on as a means to get the main character investigating, thereby revealing the plot involving her own family. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 15 and up
Sex:  Kissing,
Violence:  Car crash, exploitation of underage girls
Inappropriate Language: Dick, Shit, Fuck, Slut, Tits
Substance Use/Abuse: Underage drinking, smoking, use of drugs (marijuana, mushrooms, cocaine)

Oblivion by Sasha Dawn

Title: Oblivion
Author: Sasha Dawn
Publisher: Egmont USA
Release Date: May 27, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions: I'm not usually a fan of full face covers, but I like this one.  The eyes are very detailed and the writing keeps your eye moving across the cover.  I am not, however, a big fan of the title font.
The blurb sounds really interesting and I am excited to read about someone who suffers from graphomania.  I have heard of this condition before and I really hope the author gets her facts right.  I do wish they had left the whole "new guy at school" part off, I don't see any reason for this story to be wrapped up in a romance.

The Gist:  Calliope Knowles suffers from Graphomania - a compulsion to write.  Words pop into her head and torment her until she is able to get them out.  The disorder started the night her father, a local minister, disappeared with a young girl from the parish.  Callie was found in her old apartment, scrawling I KILLED HIM across the bathroom walls.  Since that day, she has no memory of what happened, but as she refuses to take her medication and slips deeper and deeper into the grip of the words that haunt her, they begin to form a pattern.  These clues lead her on a search that uncovers more family secrets than she ever thought possible.

Review: 

I skipped over this book when I was in the middle of a reading slump and decided to wait to review it until I was more likely to enjoy ANYTHING that I was reading.  I'm very glad I did because Oblivion got off to a pretty slow start and and needed some patience.  There was something about the writing style that didn't quite grab me.  There was a distinct lack of transition between Callie's narrative and her Graphomania episodes and hallucinations/memories.  There was a great deal of description every time one of these hit (which was A LOT) and it really started to slow down the plot.  Callie spent a ridiculous amount of time searching for a pen, which drove me insane.  Every time her graphomania hi, she went frantic looking for a pen and notebook and I kept questioning why someone who suffers from this disorder doesn't have a pen in every pocket.  The plot was also slowed by the whole romance element.  Callie has a boyfriend, but naturally starts to fall for another guy who, unfortunatly, is the current interest of her foster sister - which leaves him off limits.  This led to a lot of pages dedicated to teen angst when all I was interested in was what actually happened to Callie and if she killed her father.  Eventually, I started to skim until I got to the halfway mark and things got interesting.

The mystery was less of a whodunit, and more of a whatexactlydidtheydo.  There were some decent surprises along the way.  I did feel like this book could have been more effective as a mystery if they cut some of the boyfriend drama and gotten rid of some of the repetition and made the book shorter.  By the time the main mystery had been resolved, it felt like the story was done, but there was a great deal of time spent wrapping up some of the loose ends, which left me a little bored. 

Callie was a decent main character, though she had more a tendency to follow along with other people's plans rather than to take charge of her own life.  When she did make her own decisions, they usually left her squatting in an unoccupied apartment with no real plan for the future.  The most interesting part about her was the graphomania.  I would love to know how accurate a portrayal this was and if Callie is representative of what people living with this issue actually go through.  I would also like to know how someone who has experienced this felt about John referring to it as a gift.  None of the other characters were particularly compelling, except Callie's mother, who is barely featured.

Oblivion didn't work for me right away, but the last 1/4 or so picked up and I enjoyed the mystery plot. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age:15 and up
Sex: Sex between teens
Violence: Physical Child Abuse, Sexual Child Abuse, Knifeplay, 
Inappropriate Language: Piss, Bitch, Fuck, Whore, Shit, Slut
Substance Use/Abuse: Underage Drinking, Marijuana Use

Audio Book Review: Cress by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cress
Author: Marissa Meyer
Publisher: MacMillan Audio
Release Date: February 4, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Review:
I thought I would do a quick review for Cress as a) most people who are interested have probably read it already and b) it took me SO LONG to get through this audio book that I have completely forgotten most of the details.

First of all: I don't really blame this book for my taking months to finish it.  I think it was more about my personal life: while I was listening to this I found out that I am pregnant with my second child and that threw my reading life into a complete tailspin.  

I did have some trouble connecting with Cress the way that I did with Cinder and Scarlet in the two previous books but I did enjoy Cress and Thorne together.  I am hoping that Meyer will throw a wrench into the oh-so-predictable pairings by making sure that Jason is not a love interest for Snow.  I also didn't find the plot of this novel as compelling as the previous ones.  I realize that a lot of actions had to happen to pull these characters together, but I would have preferred some more forward momentum in the whole overthrow-the-evil-queen plot. 

I'm fairly certain I will be back in for Winter but, at the same time, I am hoping that the series isn't planned to go on much longer than that. 

ARC Book Review: I Kill the Mockingbird by Paul Acampora

Title: I Kill the Mockingbird
Author: Paul Acampora
Publisher: Macmillin
Release Date: May 20th, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  Super cute and I love the colors.

Review:
To Kill A Mockingbird is a staple on any summer reading list.  Despite this, it is rarely read or enjoyed by Lucy, Elena and Michael's peers.  They set out to change that by hiding copies of the book in every bookstore that they can.  They also set up a website: Ikillthemockingbird.com and leave their flyers in every place that they strike.  They begin to see an uptake in interest in the book and, very quickly, their little scheme takes on a mind of its own when others get involved and the movement starts to spread across the country.

The characters in I Kill the Mockingbird are extremely cute.  I wish I had friends like this when I was a kid.  They are quirky and well read, but have a tendency to come off as a little overly precocious.  I teach kids they age that these characters are supposed to be and can't imagine any of my students quoting classic novels in everyday conversation!  There is also a "romantic" element between two of the characters that feels forced and unnecessary.  I would much rather have spent more plot time on the post-cancer family dynamic.

The plot point that really worked for me was the relationship between Lucy and her parents in the wake of her mother's cancer treatment.  I could relate to Lucy doing whatever she could to try and alleviate the pressure on her parents. She also tried to take on a more mothering role, which naturally caused a great deal of stress for her and her mother.  These sections of the book were where I could really settle in and enjoy the characters.  Unfortunately, the same could not be said of the whole ikillthemockingbird plot.  There was no real sense of conflict as the kids aren't technically doing anything illegal and, despite some pretty clear clues that they were behind the endeavor, no one really tries to stop them.  The ending and wrap up is rather anti-climactic.  Overall, the book has a cute premise and is well written, but it didn't really blow me away. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age:  10 and up
Sex: One Kiss
Violence: None
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Use/Abuse:None

ARC Book Review: Life By Committee by Corey Ann Haydu

Title: Life By Committee
Author: Corey Ann Haydu
Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books
Release Date: May 13th, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  Cute, I like that the image connects so well with the pictures that members of the Life By Committee website post.  The blue of the font is a nice contrast but I wish the shoes were another character - they blend a little too well with the background color.

The Gist: Tabitha kissed another girl's boyfriend.  The secret is eating her up inside.  She can't tell anyone who knows her but she can tell the Life by Committee - a website dedicated to those who have secrets to tell.  As a member, she must share a secret and then receive an assignment.  At first, having the LBC make her decisions for her is freeing and she is doing things she never thought she would.  Soon, however, the assignments take a dark turn and Tabitha must decide if keeping her secrets is worth the fallout that the assignments will bring.

Review:

I chose this book for review because I was really interested in the premise.  I have to say, I was a little disappointed that (after searching) there was no Life By Committee website - holy missed marketing opportunity Batman!

One of the downfalls of this novel came in the form of the main character.  Tabitha was really difficult to relate to.  I could understand her being swept up in the forbidden romance of her flirtations with Joe.  Chatting well into the night, trading secrets has a secret allure that makes it exciting.  However, it was her actions with regard to her family and her friend Elise that made her rather unlikeable.  It is understandable that she be shell shocked, having been abruptly ditched by the people she thought where her friends but, throughout the novel, she comes across as whiny and self centered.  She doesn't seem to understand her role in her situation and makes decisions that negatively impact her family and friends.

I found the other characters and, in particular, Tabitha's school, rather weird.  As a teacher, I always find it rather difficult to believe that crunchy granola, feeling circle, kind of schools actually exist.  There are several instances where the actions of the teachers and the school in general are really unrealistic and prevented me from staying absorbed in the plot.  I was immensely annoyed with the actions of the guidance counselor, and the things that she was saying made me question the honesty of Tabitha as a narrator.  I also had a hard time with the portrayal of the other students.  Even in a very progressive, new agey school, I am not sure that Sasha could have gotten away with some of the stuff she pulled.

There was a great deal of slut shaming and, though Tabitha was on the receiving end and it was completely undeserved, I am not sure the lesson was made clear that this is NOT how to treat a person.  Despite having been ditched by her friends for suddenly growing boobs, Tabitha still wants them back and is willing to put up with their abuse rather than stand up for herself.  There is also a rather creepy character who touches girls without their permission and never gets any comeuppance - this bothered me.          

As the plot goes on, the things that the LBC group are asked to do get more and more outlandish. Zed starts to come across as more and more pretentious

ZED: it's a moral obligation to have us ALL live our best lives.  There's doing the right thing and there's doing the best thing.  They're not always the same thing.  The best thing is a challenge, the right thing is often a submission.

 I felt like he was some asshole pulling the strings of all these gullible young people, laughing as they took on his outlandish dares and never took any risks himself.  At one point, when one of the other members is revealed, it takes on the feel of a cult mentality - the character is unable to decide on any actions on her own and must check with Zed first.  This all led to a rather lackluster ending.  It was a little to Mean Girls, a little too unbelievable and didn't provide the big reveal didn't provide the shock value that I think it intended.  

Not sure if I will check back in on this author, guess it depends on the premise of the next story and whether or not I can expect the same level of slut shaming.

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age:  15 and up
Sex: Kissing
Violence: None
Inappropriate Language: Fuck, Whore, Shit, Bitch, Slut, Piss, Dick
Substance Use/Abuse: Marijuana Use

ARC Book Review: The Break Up Artist by Philip Siegel

Title: The Break Up Artist
Author: Philip Siegel
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release Date: April 29, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  Cute and unique.  The artistic style is really interesting and I like the colors though I am a little confused about some of the elements in the background...

Review:
Becca Williamson has a unique part-time job.  She recieves requests from jilted friends and then sets out to break up the relationship that caused the issue.  She has an excellent track record and few people even know that she exists.  Backed up by her sister, a young woman who is suffering bitterly from her own break up, Becca sees herself as freeing her school from the clutches of tyrannical rule of the couples.  Poised to embark on her biggest mission yet - to break up the school's most noteworthy power couple, and her former best friend - Becca must step out of the shadows if she hopes to succeed.  But, her talents were not hidden as well as she had hoped and devastated ex-girlfriends are well on their way to discovering the identity of the Break Up Artist.

I was really excited to read The Break Up Artist because of its interesting premise.  I can certainly relate to the teenage girl feeling like everyone had paired off, leaving the single girls an object of pity and ridicule.  It is so easy as a teenager in a relationship to make that the be-all, end-all of your existence and I loved the thought of one girl fighting back.  The Break Up Artist delivered on the teenage drama, if not quite on the espionage.  The novel was paced well enough to keep me interested, with Becca moving further and further into Huxley's sphere of influence while still attempting to ruin her prom queen life.  I wasn't all that keen on the writing style, much of it seemed superficial and I would have liked to see what was going on beneath the surface, but it didn't distract a great deal from the plot.

As a character, it is clear that Becca is dealing with some issues.  Watching her sister fall apart after being dumped on her wedding day changed everything that she believed about the possibility of love and she began questioning every relationship that she saw.  It is clear that Becca cares about her sister and her work as the Break Up Artist gives an outlet for some of their collective anger.  This sets us up for a character who, despite having a rather flexible set of morals, is loyal to a fault.  This led to some anger issues in myself, as a reader, when Becca makes the choice to betray someone that she cared about - for a boy.  This choice by the author undermined everything that he had already told us about the character.  The supporting characters in this story are rather flat and boring.  Her best friend is obsessed with finding a boyfriend - any boyfriend and, despite their seemingly strong bond, I don't see any real connection between her a Becca.  Huxley is clearly a Regina George clone and, once she began to have a real part in the story, brought a Mean Girl's vibe to the rest of the plot.  The one character I did want more of was Becca's sister. Dianne was clearly suffering from some serious emotional trauma and I liked that the story followed her to some degree.

One of the major issues that I had with this book was the apparent views of the author.  Having never BEEN a teenage girl, perhaps Mr. Siegel should have chosen a less demanding subject.  He seemed to believe that all teenage girls think about is relationships.  That every move made, every club joined and every word spoken is part of a calculated plan to snag a man.  He also seems to think that any boy will do and that the boys have the upper hand.  They choose a girl, and she goes along for the ride.  This left me angry.  I teach teenage girls and yes, boys take up a large part of their time, but they are not looking for ANY boy, and they are not sitting around waiting to be chosen.  Give them some credit.  I also found the boys in this story to be completely unrealistic.  The huge romantic gestures were laughable and the thought that any teenage boy would do something so public without the least amount of ribbing (or far worse) from their peers is ridiculous.  And, as a more petty side note, teenagers do not use email.  They text, they snap chat, they tweet but they do not use email outside of emailing a school project to themselves.  EVERY DAMN TIME HE MENTIONED EMAIL (which is a lot) I WANTED TO QUIT READING THE BOOK.          

Despite the issues in this novel, it was redeemed slightly by the ending.  A new bad guy is revealed and receives his comeuppance (though another one goes completely scott-free).  Becca learns how much her "profession" was hurting people and may possibly embark on a new, more moral friendly, though just as manipulative, career.  

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age:  15 and up
Sex: Kissing
Violence: None
Inappropriate Language: Bitch, Piss, Flamer (referring to homosexuality), Slut
Substance Use/Abuse: Underage Drinking

ARC Book Review: Sleep No More by Aprilynne Pike

Title: Sleep No More
Author: Aprilynne Pike
Publisher: HarperTeen (Harper Collins)
Release Date: April 29th, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions: Love the color, but I feel like the cover model must be choking on her own hair.  The tagline is decent and the fonts work fairly well.  There isn't much else to say as there isn't much more to it.

Review:
Charlotte learned the hard way not to interfere with the future.  As an oracle, she has always seen glimpses of what is to come - usually boring and insignificant events but occasionally a terrifying vision will break through.  As a child, Charlotte saw the death of her aunt, Sierra and, in trying to prevent it, brought about the events leading to her father's death and the crippling of her mother.  Now, Charlotte listens to Sierra's teachings and blocks every vision that she can.  On the day she finally fails, she sees the murder of a classmate and, when the body is found, she is wracked with guilt about not having prevented it.  As more visions come, she is approached by a stranger claiming that he can help her take control of her visions and catch the murderer, but it means betraying everything that Oracles believe in and putting herself in the crosshairs of a killer. 

Sleep No More was an enjoyable, exciting novel but I felt it suffered slightly from a lack of substance.  The plot was fast paced and suspenseful.  I even found myself skimming some of the dialogue because I was genuinely excited by the action in the story.  My most constant reading time is just before bed and I found, in reading this one, that it was actually hard to get to sleep.  This pace continued until about 3/4th of the way in, when things got a little strange.  At this point, the action of the plot mostly occurred on Charlotte's "Supernatural Plane".  The rules in this realm were difficult to understand and, just when I thought I had a handle on them, they would change.  I found this slowed down the plot a little and, in order to move forward, I had to just let go of trying to understand how that world worked and just go with it. 

I think this novel could have benefited from some more interesting and compelling characters.  Charlotte was boring, but seemed intelligent enough.  I was surprised at how easily she allowed herself to be manipulated and how little she did to inform herself of how her power worked.  To be fair, a large part of this came from the choice by the author to have Sierra act as a complete stonewall.  She refuses to give Charlotte any information about her gift (or curse) and even goes so far as to deny her access to any books - locking them in her room whenever she leaves the house.  I really despised this aspect to her character as she left Charlotte with no resources and without the sense of trust that would have sent her to ask Sierra for help when she was clearly in over her head.  The last character that really needs discussing is Linden.  Naturally, we cannot simply have a YA paranormal mystery, we have got to have a love interest.  I did not feel any sparks or excitement when it came to their romance and it made me feel sorry for Charlotte, having pined away for this boy for years.  The one positive thing I will say about the romance is that it ended very well.  I was happy to see my suspicions confirmed and that we did not go down the typical lovecanovercomeallodds route. 

 The big reveal of the murderer wasn't much of a reveal at all.  It didn't have the impact that I expected it to and was pretty easily predicted.  I think I would have much preferred if he had turned out to be a plain ol', albeit evil, human.  Once the killer was out in the open, the book slowed down considerably for me.  I knew where it would be going, but it seemed to take a very roundabout route to get there.  Before and after the climax, we are told quite a bit of information regarding the murderer's past and motivation that could have been much more effective were we shown it through the plot rather than told after the fact through wind-down dialogue.     

Sleep No More features some particularly brutal murders, including choking, stabbing and even dismemberment.  These scenes might be disturbing for some readers and I had a hard time getting through one or two of them.  

This was my first foray into Aprilynne Pike's work and I am not sure that there was enough that was unique about this book to bring me back to her work in the future.   

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age:15 and up
Sex: Kissing, Light Petting - Non-Graphic
Violence:Violent Murders, Gunplay, Knifeplay, Choking
Inappropriate Language: Bastard, Shit, Bitch
Substance Use/Abuse: Marijuana Use

ARC Book Review: House of Ivy & Sorrow by Natalie Whipple

Title: House of Ivy & Sorrow
Author: Natalie Whipple
Publisher: HarperTeen (HarperCollins)
Release Date: April 15, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  Very pretty.  I love the title, though it is a little misleading.  I do feel like the cover is missing some focal point and I find myself trying to figure out if there is some pattern to the image behind the writing.

The Gist: Josephine Hemlock is a young witch in training living with her grandmother in their mysterious and powerful house.  The last of the Hemlock line, she is constantly in fear of the curse that took her mother and the witch that cast it.  When a mysterious stranger comes to town covered in a darkness Jo has never seen before, she realizes that it is time to stop hiding and time to start fighting.  But, the spell is stronger than she ever realized and fighting it may not only put her in danger, but also all the people that she loves. 

Review:

First off, a disclaimer.  In order to enjoy this novel, you have to realize that, despite the gothic title and the fanciful cover, this is not a dark and sorrowful tale.  I believe this was poor marketing as it is setting readers up for one type of story and leaving them disappointed when they get another.  If you can accept that this is not an author attempting to give Poe a run for his money, you can settle in and enjoy a fun story with some interesting world building and enjoyable, if not all that well developed, characters.

The best part of this novel was the world building.  It had an interesting take on witches and magic where nothing came without a sacrifice.  This led to some pretty gruesome scenes where characters yanked out handfuls of hair, chopped off pieces of flesh or even (YUCK!) pulled out their own fingernails.  I really liked how the witches had to sacrifice for what they wanted and that it made them think about how much they were willing to give up, as opposed to many other books where the witches cast spells willy nilly. 

I also really enjoyed the relationship between the three girls.  So many books today show the catty side of teenage girls and allow the story to get bogged down with nastiness and jealousy.  I was happy that in House of Ivy and Sorrow Jo, Kat and Gwen showed an intense loyalty and a willingness to sacrifice for one another. 

While the novel was relatively fast paced, with one disaster following another, it did suffer slightly in that I didn't quite understand how the curse worked and the twists were a tad predictable.  Where it really got waylaid was in the puppy love between Jo and Winn.  Their sweeter than sugar romance became more than a little nauseating as the novel wore on and I could never see (other than the fact that he was handsome) what Jo actually saw in Winn.  There was also the fact that Jo was constantly being proclaimed as the most beautiful creature in the entire world and that everybody immediately wanted her.  I believe we could have gotten a more well rounded character and relatable character if we were not told over and over again how drop dead gorgeous she was, as if that one defining characteristic eclipsed all others.  

I actually liked this book and had a fun time reading it, despite its downfalls.  I don't think that this is meant to be a series, but I would definitely pick up a sequel if it were offered, if only for the interesting witchy world that this one presented. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 15 and up
Gender: Girls
Sex: Kissing, Making out - nothing particularly racy.
Violence: Self mutilation: removal of hair, skin and fingernails
Inappropriate Language: Piss, Shit, Bastard
Substance Use/Abuse: None

Audio Book Review: World After by Susan Ee

Title: World After
Author: Susan Ee
Publisher: Brilliance Audio/Skyscape
Release Date: November 19, 2013
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  The cover works very well with the one for the first novel.  I love the difference of the bat wings this time and am hoping that is an indicator that we will get lots of Raffe this time around as well.

Review:
World After picks up directly where Angelfall left off, with Penryn back with her family - but paralyzed and left for dead.  As she begins to stir, the member of the resistance are shocked to find her alive and wary of both her, her taser wielding mother and her stitched and strange baby sister.

When the hunger drives Paige to unspeakable acts, a mob chases her away and Penryn sets forth once again to reunite her family.  This time, without Raffe.  Her search takes her deeper into the Angel's territory and reveals their nefarious plans for human beings and the world.

The world, this time around is especially bleak.  I couldn't seem to find any hope that the human race is going to survive and it is made the book a little difficult to get through.  There were very few moments of triumph or even simple success, compounded by the fact that any gains made by the human race in the last book are quickly revealed to have had no impact whatsoever.

This novel is incredibly dark and has some really disturbing scenes of violence.  I found it particularly difficult, as a mother, to listen to the scenes involving parents being separated from their children.  About halfway through, another blogger mentioned that this series is meant to be 5 books.  I am entirely sure that I could handle this level of hopelessness for that many more novels.  I feel like the battle between angels and humans is like a man and a mosquito and I seriously need a win on the human's side before I die from frustration.

Despite its darkness, or perhaps because of it, the plot is quite exciting.  There is very little downtime between action scenes and Penryn continues to be a no-nonsense, get-it-done kind of girl, so that whining about Raffe's absence is kept to a minimum.  That being said, he doesn't REALLY show up until quite near the end of the book.  This allow time for Penryn to develop as a character and for the author to explore the new relationship between the two sisters.  However, I did miss that element of sexual tension which provided at least a momentary break from the bleakness and violence of the situation.

I really enjoyed how the sword became like another character and how she had a real impact on the plot.  She shows Penryn dreams and visions which not only allow Raffe to be present in some form and to reveal his history but also serve as a very clever way to have Penryn learn to use the sword proficiently in a rather short period of time.   

I would like to note that this is not a novel for the faint of heart.  It has some truly horrific scenes of violence that can be incredibly disturbing for some readers.  There are unwanted and unnecessary surgeries, violent riots, dismemberment, disembowelment and cannibalism.

There are scenes where angels are the monsters but also ones where humans are.  I would certainly never recommend this series for anyone on the young end of the young adult spectrum but it may be right up the alley of a reader who already enjoys a serious touch of gore.

In the end, it didn't really feel like World After accomplished much.  Paige is back, again.  Penryn and Raffe are back together again.  A few of the Angel's secret plans are revealed, but it doesn't feel like anything really changed from the last book to the end of this one.  We are left just as uncertain about the fate of the human race and no real battle was fought.  At the end of Angelfall we had a huge explosion at the Aerie.  It was big, loud and brightened the mood of the reader rooting for the downtrodden humans.  This book had not such pay off and I actually found myself questioning whether or not this book was necessary.  I get it, the whole point was allowing Penryn to grow and accept Paige and for her and Raffe to find one another again, but I can't help wondering if this could have been accomplished in a novella instead.  As it is, this book just felt like unnecessary filler.

I will definitely stick around for at least one more book but I can't say that I have high hopes of finishing all 5.  The bleakness will probably do me in long before the conclusion. 


Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 16 and up
Gender: Both
Sex: Kissing
Violence: Swordplay, Gunplay, Knifeplay, Violent Riots, Dismembering, Disembowelment, Cannibalism, Kidnapping, Torture, Unwanted Surgeries, 
Inappropriate Language: Bastard
Substance Use/Abuse: None

ARC Book Review: Manor of Secrets by Katherine Longshore

Title: Manor of Secrets
Author: Katherine Longshore
Publisher: Point (Scholastic)
Release Date: January 28, 2014
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  Pretty girl in a pretty dress with a pretty staircase in the background.  Nothing that stands out at first glance.  The tagline (on my ARC) is "Upstairs.  Downstairs.  Drama."  Which sends me into Downton Abbey territory - which I love.  The cover model even looks like a younger version of Lady Mary.

The Gist: Charlotte lives a life of luxury.  Sheltered in the manor by a cold and distant mother, she longs for a life of adventure.  Janie works in the kitchen under the tutelage of her mother.  Having spent a tumultuous childhood wondering where her next meal is going to come from, she clings to the only place that she has ever felt secure.  As the girls' paths cross their lives are thrown together.  Charlotte sees a manner of escape, Janie sees a lonely girl who has never known love.  Together they begin to learn more about each other, and themselves and seek to unravel the secrets of the Manor.

Review:
I will admit it.  I, Zabet Reading, am a Downton Abbey Junkie.  With the show off the air until next season, I was excited to read a book that seemed to follow that type of world quite closely.  In fact, I couldn't help but picture the characters and set from Downton Abbey.  (Of course, Charlotte was Lady Sybill despite the cover model's clear resemblance to Lady Mary.)  Manor of Secrets doesn't quite hold up to Downton, but then that is a pretty high bar to reach.  On it's own, it was an interesting story and a quick and easy read. 

The setting was beautiful and the author clearly delineated between the opulence and quiet of the upstairs and the simplicity and chaos that came downstairs.  Personally, I preferred the drama and quarrels of the servants' quarters to the cold and oppressing formality of Charlotte's world and could completely understand why she would want to escape it.  I would have enjoyed seeing a bit more of the "downstairs" back-story - particularly why Tess and Mollie hated Janie so much.  Had we had an opportunity to learn a little more about this history, I think the events in the second half of the book would have had more impact.  The first half of this novel was much stronger than the second.  In the first half we watch a sheltered young woman begin to break out of her shell and a romance that was clearly going to cause a great deal of turmoil.  By the second half, most of the secrets had been revealed and the reader was left to watch as the two girls tried to decide which path to take.    
 
I did find the plot a little bit predictable but it moved fairly quickly and the only moments of lag came from some eye-rolling dialogue near the middle.  The relationship between the two girls developed rather quickly for my taste.
The main characters seemed rather true to form: Charlotte was the clueless aristocrat who had no idea how much trouble she could cause for her servants in simply seeking a bit of "adventure" and Janie was trying to be kind to a lonely girl while still protecting her livelihood.  The side characters were interesting but not quite as fleshed out as I would normally prefer.    The men were all rather bland and I found Andrew's loyalty after Charlotte's scandal, to be a little hard to believe.  I think the book could have benefited from featuring a smaller cast, so that we could get to know each one a little better.
 
This is my first foray into Katherine Longshore's writing, though I am familiar with her previous books.  I am putting her on my "search for" list in the hopes that I come across her earlier work in a second hand bookstore. 

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 12 and up
Gender: Female
Sex: Kissing
Violence: Fist Fighting
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Use/Abuse: None

Book Review: Antigoddess by Kendare Blake

Title: Antigoddess
Author: Kendare Blake
Publisher: Tor (Macmillan)
Release Date: September 10, 2013
Rating: 3/5

Cover Impressions:  I really like this cover, though it doesn't quite have the impact of Blake's last two books.  The feather got me curious and I was glad to see how prominently it featured in the book - I wonder if this theme will continue with the next book.

The Gist: The old gods are dying and that is something Athena simply cannot abide by.  With the help of her brother Hermes, she sets out on a mission to discover the meaning behind their affliction and a way to cheat death.  This path leads her to Cassandra, a young girl with visions of the future, and no idea that she is the famous prophetess of mythology - nor that she is not the only reincarnated soul in her small town.  But Athena is not the only Goddess searching for Cassandra.  There are other Gods, darker Gods who would like to use her for their own purposes - the question is, can she trust any of them?

Review:
I really enjoyed Blake's first two books and even chose Anna Dressed in Blood as one of my student bookclub books this year.  This one, however is missing the gore of her other books.  It is pretty tame by comparison.  Although, I will admit several moments of cringing whenever Athena had to remove a feather. 

It was also missing the unstoppable power that Anna held as a character.  In Antigoddess, I didn't quite love any of the characters.  I liked them, but they were a little bland and missed some of the quirks that make for really interesting and compelling characters.  I also felt like I spent most of my time, early on in the book, trying to figure out if the peripheral characters (like Cassandra's brother and friend) would turn out to be important characters from mythology.  That being said, I did really like the worldbuilding and the unique take on a fairly common theme (the death of the gods).   

While the premise was interesting, the pacing suffered from moments of lag.  There was a little too much talking for my liking.  It seemed like whenever a group of characters got together we were treated to lengthy discussions in which they hashed out issues from a millennial ago.  When we did get to the action scenes, these were quite well done.  The villains were true villains in their terrifying and damaged glory and we did have a few very effective death scenes.

I was a little disappointed that none of the big questions were answered.  I never found out why the Gods were dying or why they were dying in the manner in which they were.  Nor was it revealed why some Gods were spared or why the big baddies thought that they could save themselves by killing their kin.  I realize that this is the first book in a series, but I normally appreciate a little more information to be revealed. 

I did like this one enough to give the series another shot.  I am hoping that the second book will be a bit more compelling now that the initial getting to know the characters bit is behind us.

Teaching/Parental Notes:

Age: 13 and up
Gender: Both
Sex: Kissing
Violence: Hand to hand combat, explosions (buildings being blown up), near drowning
Inappropriate Language: Bitch, Whore, Asshole, Bastard, Shit, Fuck, Prick
Substance Use/Abuse: Underage drinking