"Story Time" by Edward Bloor

"All I know is this," Kate told her brusquely. "I'm not going to Lincoln with you on Monday morning, I'm going to Whittaker. And I'm not going home with my mother and fatehr tonight, I'm going home with just my mother. So I guess I don't believe in wishes coming true, either. If I really want good things to happen, and bad things to stop happening, it'll take more than wishing. I have to act. And I have to act now."

Kate and her uncle, George, are regular kids. Kate is in eighth grade, Uncle George is in sixth. Kate is ready to go to Lincoln middle school and play Peter Pan in the play, and George is ready to learn things and invent things as well.
And then Uncle George passes the entrance exam to the Whittaker Magnet School.

Before they know it, both Kate and George are absorbed into the Whittaker Magnet School district 'octopus' and are attending the school with the highest scores on standardized tests. Although George is excited to be in a place where his genius is appreciated, Kate is not too happy to be in with the 'mushroom children' and personal assistant to Heidi Whittaker, the girl who dresses like a 'Swiss Milkmaid'.
But when eerie things begin in the school, neither of them know what to expect. With the help of a woman who only speaks in nursery rhymes, Kate's mother June, the staff of the White House, and a whole cast of other characters (Whether willingly or not), the two children will uncover a mystery that stretches back to the founding of the school, and nothing will be the same again.

Kate stared at the supine figure of Walter Barnes. She felt a pang of sympathy for the old librarian. but that pang was quickly replaed by another feeling, a feeling that something big had just happened. She didn't know what it was, exactly, but she did know this: It was something that the Whittaker-Austins, with all their money and all their power, could not control. It was a first chink in their armor. Perhaps it was a door to a door to a door that would lead her out of there.

I rather enjoyed this book.
As a homeschooler, it fills me with a sort of righteousness when I read about the failings of the public school system, and this book is a criticism of said system of schools. With a school that only focuses on standardized tests (much like many schools nowadays actually do), it emphasizes the positive aspects of imagination, art, fantasy, and whimsy.
This book is also written somewhat like A Series of Unfortunate Events or Pepperment in the Parlor, so if you liked any of those books, I believe you'd like this one. Sort of in that J fiction and yet... aimed for older people type of writing. It's interesting.

I have to say, however, that I did not particularly like Kate until near the end of the book where she goes through a character change. Uncle George was cool, however, and I liked some of the other characters as well.
Also, although I think the ending was okay, it wasn't spectacular or anything to be overly impressed with. I'd recommend this book, but I'd also say not to expect anything mind blowing from it.

"Incarceron" by Catherine Fisher

Walls have ears.
Doors have eyes.
Trees have voices.
Beasts tell lies.
Beware the rain.
Beweare the snow.
Beware the man
You think you know.
~Songs of Sapphique

Incarceron is a prison. Built to contain the undesirables of a world, it's huge. Vast enough to contain cities, mountains, oceans, valleys. Built to be a paradise, Incarceron has become a hell, and there is no escaping. Trapped until they die, most of the inmates have given up on leaving.
But not Finn.

In the Outside, time seems to have been stopped at the 17th century. Artificially preserved, Claudia's world is run by computers and protocal. She's doomed to an arranged marriage and tangled with an assassination plot she doesn't support but doesn't discourage either.

When the lives of Finn and Claudia collide, there's no telling what will happen.
Incarceron is everywhere.
Incarceron is everything.

They stared at the dark slit, waiting. She half expected a crowd of Prisoners to burst through.
But nothing happened, so she stepped forward, and opened the gate.
And looked Inside.

This book was rather rare for a couple of reasons. First of all, it's a YA book that I actually enjoyed. Second of all, there were several plot twists I didn't predict, and third of all, I only hated one of the characters.

The setting of this book is very interesting. It's a peculiar mix of Gregor the Underlander, 2001: A Space Oddyssey, Labyrinth, Alice in Wonderland, The Supernaturalist, Doctor Who, and a whole lot of imagination. It was fascinating if only for the setting, and I enjoyed it immensely. Incarceron was spooky, and reminded me a bit of HAL, which captured my interest immediately. If nothing, read for Incarceron!

The characters were interesting as well. It was difficult, but I decided that my three favorite characters were Keiro (Finn's oathbrother), Jared (Claudia's tutor), and The Warden (Claudia's father.). The single character that I truly did not like at all was Attia, who I found to be jealous, petty, stuck up, "holier than thou", and just annoying. But the others were pretty cool, I must say.

Also, the plot twists. I'm usually pretty good at predicting the way that books will go. In fact, some of the earlier twists I predicted immediately, but about three fourths of the book the author threw a twist at me that literally left me sitting and going "Wow. I did not see that coming. Wow. Wow. O.o". The plot is interesting, not very predictable, and has plenty of things going on that it moves quite quickly.

Overall, this was a really good book, and I'm definitely going to read the second one. :)

"Geek Fantasy Novel" by E. Archer

As any aeronautical engineer will confirm, fairies do remarkably well in unicorn-drawn carriage crashes. Their strategy is simple: Keep to the center of teh carriage and fly with quivalent speed against the rapidly decreasing velocity of the vehicle.

Ralph Stevenson has been taught never to wish for anything. As anyone will tell him, wishes are dangerous and should therefore be avoided. As an extreme geek growing up being teased by his peers, he has also learned not to mingle with people.
So Ralph focuses on his video game designing.
When he is suddenly jerked out of his day to day life by an invitation to go visit his relatives in Europe, his parents immediately say no. But Ralph has other ideas, and soon sneaks off to visit his odd British relatives.
But that's not all...
Ralph is soon whisked away into magical lands where bunny rabbits explode, where narrators mess with the story line, where teddy bears work as headsets, and where you never exactly know what's going to happen next.
Not even the narrator.

Prisoners magically trapped beneath planks of flooring do moderately well. The otherwise death-hastening wood serves like the lap restraint on a roller coaster.

I really did like this book a lot. It was some random novel that my mom picked up at the Salvation Army and gave to me one day at piano lessons. The name is interesting, and the synopsis/back cover are as well. This book was original, it was witty, it was funny, it was clever, and it was geeky.
The concept in particular was fascinating, and I don't think I've ever seen a book where this has been done before... Not to mention the fact that the characters are simply brilliant. I loved them all. Even Chessie. Even the narrator.
Maybe particularly the narrator?
Either way, this was an amazing book.

Axe-wielding duchesses, however, make out substantially worse. And unfortunately, an axe-wielding duchess careening about a carriage is a problem for everyone.

"The Agency: A Spy in the House" by Y. S. Lee

Insurance fraud.
Sunken ships.
Guilt money.
A ransacked office.
There was at least one more missing detail...

Mary Lang is a preteen girl living in the streets of Victorian era London. She picks pockets and breaks into houses to survive, until she is caught and sentenced to hang.
When she is miraculously rescued from the gallows and sent to Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls, it's a new life. A life away from the crime and theivery she left behind. It's a new chance to be independent- a rare thing in Victorian era Britain.
But when Mary, now going with the last name of Quinn, finds herself yearning for more, she is hired by the headmistresses of the academy to work for The Agency- a top secret detective agency exclusively for women agents.
Mary's thrilled to be working for The Agency, and even more thrilled when she recieves her first assignment. Posing as a hired companion, she's to assist a more experienced agent in investigating missing ships containing smuggled items. But not all is as it seems in the household, and no one is who they appear to be.

Just before he caught her, she had a moment of sick premonition. It had been the same way the first time- the last time- she'd been caught. A flash of dread, of knowing. And then it happened.

I picked this book up from the library because I'm fascinated by the Victorian era. I decided that it looked interesting, took it home, and read it in what would amount to about 24 hours. It's a pretty fast read, particularly once you get more than halfway into it.

The interesting thing about this book is not just that the characters are amazing, but that it seems like an incredibly realistic portrayal of Victorian era London. The jacket says that the author completed her PhD in Victorian literature and culture, and studied London. You can definitely tell this while reading the book- she includes many details that make the backdrop of this book to be exciting and foreign- and yet utterly realistic.

The characters are also quite amazing- Particularly James and Mary (the main characters), who happen to have some of the most wonderfully witty lines that I've read for a while.
However, although I enjoy the characters, I find the plot to be a little meandering and it has a slightly confusing end in my opinion. There were several times when I had to go back and reread as section because I didn't quite catch what was going on. Several times also near the end things just seem to go a little too good for the characters, with Mary's mysterious instincts. I also didn't particularly like the end- it was a little abrupt and it made me a little sad.
Despite this, I consider it to be a good book and if I see more from this series, I will be getting them from the library.

"The Falcon" by Jackie French Koller

"Sure." I heard Jim's pen scribbling again. "Our time's about up anyway. Just one more question, though. Do you have any idea why so many unusual things happen to you?"
"Yeah," I snarled. "God hates me."

Luke Carver is a 17 year old who can't seem to help getting in trouble. Every time he goes anywhere, he seems to get in trouble. He messes up so many times that it sure seems like God hates him. After all, how else would he get into such wacky, horrible situations?

Luke has secrets, though. There are things he hasn't told anyone. He hasn't even told his journal the full truth. After all, if it isn't his fault, why does he have to tell anyone?

"Yes," I said quietly. "I'm fine." Then I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the seat. I was tired, too. So, so tired...
Just like I am now.

This was one of the shortest books I think I've read. It was, strangely, also one of the most interesting. It was one of those books where you think that it's not going to be that gripping, but then you find yourself wondering, throughout the day, what's going to happen next.

I really liked the way that the author pulled out the mystery of what happened to Luke before the book started. It was really interesting, even though it wasn't as "dark" as they made it out to seem. It was interesting, though.

I would actually recommend this book to anyone who really liked The Catcher in the Rye, mostly because the writing style seemed quite similar to me, and it's about the same sort of aged guy.

All in all- pretty good of a book.

"The Eleventh Plague" by Jeff Hirsch

“In the aftermath of a war, America’s landscape has been ravaged and two thirds of the population left dead from a vicious strain of influenza. Fifteen-year-old Stephen Quinn and his family were among the few that survived and became salvagers, roaming the country in search of material to trade for food and other items essential for survival. 
But when Stephen’s grandfather dies and his father falls into a coma after an accident, Stephen finds his way to Settler’s Landing, a community that seems too good to be true, where there are real houses, barbecues, a school, and even baseball games. Then Stephen meets strong, defiant, mischievous Jenny, who refuses to accept things as they are. And when they play a prank that goes horribly wrong, chaos erupts, and they find themselves in the midst of a battle that will change Settler’s Landing forever.”-goodreads

Hehehe. So, I had a misconception (I have no idea why I thought this, actually, look up there it even says influenza) that “The Eleventh Plague” was about zombies. As in, zombies being the eleventh plague. Yeah. It’s not, FYI. However, I went into the book expecting zombies and didn’t get them, but wasn’t disappointed. (Books don’t have to have zombies to be good for the record. It’s just a bonus.)  Instead of a zombie smashing book I found a book about life after “the Collapse” (which I assume is the collapse of humanity-- a culmination of wars with other countries and the plague, but that’s not explained specifically), a book about survival, and ultimately, for me: a book about hope and community, and its necessity even after a disaster. Even if the world is technically already ‘over’ if you will. Even though the book wasn’t overly emotional these were the impressions it gave me.

Stephen is a nomad at the beginning of the book; both in the moving around all the time literal sense of the word, and to me, emotionally. He’s only close to his grandfather (if you can call what we see of their relationship that) and his father, and he used to be close to his mother before she met her end. That’s the other thing: this book is kind of about loss. Overcoming loss and finding that hope and community. Throughout the book Stephen has to figure everything out. That’s probably why I liked him so much a main character-- he didn’t know everything, not even close. He had a ton of flaws. Sometimes flaws (kind of like I was talking about in my Anna and the French Kiss review) can make the book if they’re done right. This is one of those books, I think.

Additionally, there quite a bit of action and when necessary, creepiness. There was romance that I didn’t expect (I basically thought she was going to continue ignoring him completely) with a troubled girl who really identified with Stephen. The ending was great because it wasn’t completely picture perfect-- also, it left me wanting more without being a total cliffhanger and infuriating me. I believe there’s a sequel or companion novel coming though this novel could easily stand-alone, I look forward to more of the story!

"Jane Jones: Worst. Vampire. Ever." by Caissie St. Onge

For someone who had, prior to that week, never broken a school rule, I'd sure made up for it in two days. I'd become a one-woman crime wave! Okay, maybe just a one-girl minor-infraction machine. Still, I'd gotten pretty bold.

What do you think of when you hear "vampire"? Do you think, fabulous life style? Do you think, sexy undead creature who will never die? Do you think, Dracula?
You probably don't think, "Blood intolerant, flat chested, teenage girl from the Dust Bowl who is forced to live to eternity".
So, basically, you don't think of Jane Jones.

Jane's life is pretty wacked up. She's lived for years, moving around with her family, who just happen to also be vampires. Her brother is a genius, but forced to be a preteen forever. Her dad works long hours during the day (eesch), for minimal pay. Her mom wants to do her best for her daughter, but doesn't really know how, and Jane?
Esh.
If Jane's life sounds weird as it is, what's the adjective when
1. Her favorite teacher starts acting strangely
2. She's accused of being bullimic
3. Two boys, one alive one vampire, fall for her simultaneously
4. She finds a "cure for vampirism"?

Something sharp hit me right between the eyes and before I knew what was happening, I was on the floor defending my life. When I finally got the better of my attacker, I stood up and discovered, to my horror, I 'd been fighting with a pair of antique skis and a long moth-eaten wool robe that had fallen on me from what I now saw was an overstuffed closet.

This was a pretty... interesting book. Unusually, I actually found it humorous, and I enjoyed it. I liked the fact that Jane wasn't fabulously beautiful or rich, but on the other hand, I also think that that card has been played a little two often in the past few years. This is definitely not "good literature" but I don't think I lost any brain cells from reading it. I'd recommend it only as a "I'm bored what can I read" sort of book, or when you've read a big heavy book and need some fluff to recover from it. Or, you know, if you love vampires of all forms and are just looking for another book to read.

Also, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone who can't take any jabs at the myths of vampires, vampire slayers, or teenagers.

"Five Flavors of Dumb" by Antony John

“The Challenge: Piper has one month to get the rock band Dumb a paying gig. 
The Deal: If she does it, Piper will become the band's manager and get her share of the profits. 
The Catch: How can Piper possibly manage one egomaniacal pretty boy, one talentless piece of eye candy, one crush, one silent rocker, and one angry girl? And how can she do it when she's deaf?  Piper can't hear Dumb's music, but with growing self-confidence, a budding romance, and a new understanding of the decision her family made to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby sister, she discovers her own inner rock star and what it truly means to be a flavor of Dumb”-goodreads

“Five Flavors of Dumb” was NOT dumb. I didn’t know what to expect when picking up this book at the library, all I knew was that the cover was cool and the concept sounded really interesting-- rather musically themed book in which there’s an upcoming band, named Dumb, managed by a deaf girl.

Well. Let me set expectations for you, reader, then: It was fabulous.

The voice was different, sarcastic at times, emotional at others, real and raw the whole time. I adored main character Piper. Her dry humor, cleverness, and mostly matter-of-fact attitude made her likable, interesting, and unique. She was emotional, she went through a lot, and she was deaf and wishing to hear the music, really hear it, but she never gave up. I loved Piper’s brother, too. The whole premise of the band and the group of mis-matched misfits labeled as Dumb for the purpose of their rockstar dreams was a little bit cliché, as was the ending, but it didn’t hinder the whole book. I liked it because it wasn’t sugar coated; there were struggles, complicated family relationships, problems outside of being deaf, the problem of being deaf and living anyway (living MUSIC for that matter) and none of that was ignored. It all melded together for an epic book.

"Twelfth Grade Kills" (Vladimir Tod, #5) by Heather Brewer

(If you haven't read the previous ones in the Vladimir Tod series, I suggest you visit my reviews for 1, 2, & 4. Not a spoiler-y review. But seriously, check out the other books, at least, they're pretty awesome.)

I have waited a while to read the last installment of the Vladimir Tod series. I think this is just because I’ve been a bad minion and was forgetting about it, but maybe my subconscious just didn’t want to see the series end. After all, endings can be disappointing. Sometimes they can ruin your impression of the series all. And sometimes they’re just sad. Have you ever noticed, in the last book, people always die? Usually important people? (“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” and “Alex Rider: Scorpia Rising” are examples that come to mind.)

But, all good things come to an end and The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod with “Twelfth Grade Kills”  is no exception. Fortunately, the good things came to an end but continued to be good, I was not disappointed with it. Although, at the end, I did not feel it was necessary for a certain beloved character to die (I keep you guessing, right?), it was still a great ending to the series. The series was wrapped up nicely-- not everything resolved, but all the important things, so that one can kind of imagine how everything else will pan out, the ‘happy-ending’ and what not. Otherwise, like the others in the Vladimir Tod series, the action was bloody, the emotions strong, and the writing epic.

I look forward to “The Slayer Chronicles”, and the first book to those, “First Kill” which features Joss as a lead character rather than Vlad. I’ve had mixed feelings about Joss throughout the series, but in the end I really liked him as a character. The Slayer Chronicles will also be a five book series, and the first comes out September 20th!  (For more information, I suggest you visit Heather Brewer’s website, here!)

"Lock and Key" by Sarah Dessen

“What happens when your past is not just past, but wiped clean entirely? How do you figure out where you’re going when you can’t even claim where you’ve been? These were the questions that inspired Lock and Key. It’s the story of a girl named Ruby who is abandoned by her mother and determined to make it on her own, even—and especially—when she is sent to live with her long-lost sister in a whole new world of privilege, family, and relationships. As Ruby learns, there’s a big difference between being given help and being able to accept it. And sometimes, it takes reaching out to someone else to save yourself.” - Sarah Dessen's website

This is the second Sarah Dessen book I’ve read, the first being The Truth About Forever. I guess everyone’s right, she’s amazing! Her writing is so gorgeous. It’s very descriptive and emotionally charged, she makes you FEEL the characters, everything seeming so real. I might have felt kind of disconnected from Ruby if it weren’t for that, but I didn’t. The whole story is full of Ruby (and sometimes Nate’s) raw emotions and that made the whole thing more enjoyable. I felt so bad and so confused for Ruby, after her mom’s disappearance. I had a feeling of what Cora would tell her, and that Ruby’s impressions weren’t necessarily true, and I was right. (What am I talking about? I’ll give you my usual answer: read the book.)

My favorite character was probably Jamie, he tried to hard for Cora and Ruby to give them what they never had and be there for them. He was hilarious, too. The whole UMe thing was quite funny too. I liked all of the characters, actually (well, all the good characters, anyway). Olivia was great and I could really appreciate her helping Ruby… and Gervais was just amusing. The only qualm I have with the characters (and really, this is my qualm with the book in general, though not that bad) was Nate. I liked Nate, I liked how Ruby and him got along and could relate, they kind of needed each other, BUT I never really got to like him that much… despite his emotions showing through sometimes and his action, I never felt a connection to him as a character, and I missed that, I think that might’ve helped me love the book rather than just quite liking it, though I’m not sure why it effected me so.

"Repossessed" by A.M. Jenkins

"Shaun... did something happen today? Anything out of the ordinary?"
Well, Shaun died, but other than that...
"Nope," I told Shaun's mom. "It' s just been a normal, regular day."

Kiriel doesn't like the term "demon". It's far too negative. He prefers "Fallen Angel", which is the proper technical term, anyway.
Though he doesn't really enjoy his job, either.
Kiriel isn't an "important" demon... His job is simply to reflect misery back onto the souls in hell. That's all. Nothing more important.
The big guy hasn't even paid any attention to him. Only important fallen angels get attention from God.
And trouble makers.

When Kiriel discovers that hell doesn't blow up when he doesn't do his job, he decides to take a vacation. It's not like he's ever had one before... Who cares if it's technically against the rules? Maybe it'll get him some notice in the end.

So he steals a body. The boy who it used to belong to was barely using it anyway, so what does it matter that he takes over for a few days?

Through the body of Shaun, a typical slacker highschooler, Kiriel discovers what it's like to be a human. And he likes it.
But how long does he have before the body is "repossessed"?

Whatever the reason, they punish themselves. I merely oversee; I don't actually do anything about anything.
Mine is a useless occupation.

I really liked this book. It was a very interesting point of view, reading from the head of a demon. Surprisingly, although Kiriel decides to see what's so enjoyable about sinning, he seemed to be one of the more innocent characters in the book. He had a very interesting outlook on the life he leads in Shaun's body, and I actually ended up agreeing with his points.
So, I think the author did very well making him a relatable character.

Besides that, it was just a very interesting book. Some of the themes can be carried over and related to our own lives... Especially us teens. You know, the whole, "my place isn't important," "my job isn't important" "no one notices me", and all that crap.

I also liked how it made fun of teenagers, and our lives.

You have to be warned however, that there are quite a few mentions of sex in this book, and some swearing. So if those sorts of things concern you, I wouldn't read this book.

"The Power of Six" (Lorien Legacies, #2) by Pittacus Lore

August 23rd, 2011 - Harper Teen

(The description for this book is rather spoiler-y to the first. If you’d like to read the summary, visit the goodreads page here. This review also probably contains minor spoilers for the first book. YOU ARE WARNED.)

The Power of Six was a good follow-up to I Am Number Four. I liked it as much as the first book. It shared many of the great qualities of its predecessor! Playing out like a really good action movie in your head, The Power of Six unfolded with a ton of surprises and action.

My favorite thing about The Power of Six is that it’s not just in Four’s perspective. You also get to see parts of the story (almost every two chapters, then they get closer together) from Number Seven, Marina. That made the book a bit fresher, because it’s always nice to see things two ways, or see completely different situations going on and see how they come together. That bit was fascinating. You grew to know Marina and we saw a lot more of Number Six as well. Number Six and Sam are my favorite characters. Sam is so dorky and he’s in pretty much the whole book this time. He grows stronger as a character and in the story, learning to fight and not just be the alien obsessed one. He’s so funny.

I felt kind of disconnected with Four this time around. I’m not sure if that’s a result of his not being the only perspective or his emotions in the book, actually. I know he missed Sarah but at times it would be like he’d think of Sarah at in-opportune moments and it could be kind of annoying. I was really surprised about what happened with Sarah--- that was probably one of the biggest shocks of the book. (What happened, you ask? I’m not telling. *evil laugh*)

The Power of Six has a breakneck pace. It’s around 400 pages, yet it’s a SUPER-fast read, reminiscent of the Maximum Ride series (in pace and action scenes!). If you liked I Am Number Four you should definitely read the sequel, The Power of Six is not a let-down.  
Thank you HarperTeen for giving me the opportunity to review it!

"Imaginary Enemy" by Julie Gonzalez

Dear Bubba,
Remember when I asked you to hook me up with some visibility cream? Well, forget that. I don't need it anymore. Send vanishing cream instead. I really need to disappear.
Insincerely,
Harriet Hairdresser
(Alias Gabriel)

Jane has always survived in the same way.
Being a slacker, being sarcastic, mouthing off, not doing her homework, and writing letters to Bubba.
Bubba?
Short for Beelzebub.

Bubba is her imaginary enemy, and Jane blames him for everything in her life that goes wrong. A milk spill? It's Bubba's fault. Something stupid she says? Bubba put the words in her mouth.
Let's face it. It's just easier to blame everything on someone who doesn't exist, than it is to face up to the things that are going wrong.

And when Jane's relationships with her next door neighbors, with herself, and with her life in general start going downhill, that's exactly who she blames.
Bubba.

But what if she gets a letter back?

"You two little spies really need a new hobby,"   I said, reaching for my math book. "Have you considered stamp collecting? Quilting? Drowning each other?"

This is probably one of the more imaginative books I've read this year. (Get it? Imaginative? heh.) I usually think about imaginary friends, and how they are awesome, but I don't usually consider how the opposite would work. But this author did, and it was very interesting.

I really liked the character of Jane, but I think my absolute favorite character would have to be her half brother, Luke. Luke is a pretty cool guy. (But like I said. I like Jane as well.)

The thing I really didn't like was the main character's reaction to homeschoolers. When her next door neighbors and her brother and sister become homeschooled, she's very negative about it. I also think that the author portrayed homeschoolers in a fairly negative light, but that might just be me and my biased position.

I don't really have much else to say on this book, except that it was very well written, and very, very funny. And witty. The main character's jabs and remarks were just so creative it was hard not for my mind to be boggled.

Oh. And it's a short read. ☺

"Becoming Chloe" by Catherine Ryan Hyde

"How do you spell 'beautiful', Jordy?"
"B-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l."
"Really? Are you sure?"
"Positive."
"Okay. If you're sure. I know how to spell 'ugly.'"
Too bad. I would've liked it better the other way around. But I guess she hasn't had much practice on "beautiful." I guess it's one of those things that just never came up.

Jordy is by himself.
He's okay with this.
He's living in New York City without a job or a family.
It's just a bad week in his life.

And maybe it'd actually work out for him.
But then comes Chloe.

Chloe- or Wanda Johnston- looks like she should have the perfect world.
But if she had a perfect life, why would she be living in a cellar?
Why would she be okay with all the bad things that happen to her?

As Jordy takes Chloe into his care, he starts to realize that everything isn't right with her.
She needs help.
But if she won't talk to her therapist....
And she won't take the antidepressents...
What is he going to do?
And if he himself doesn't quite believe that the world is a beautiful place...
How can he convince Chloe that it is?

She jumps up and grabs me. The way I'd expect her to grab on if she was about to fall off a twenty-story building. Then again, maybe she is, and I'm just too blind to know it.
"I'm scared, Jordy."

I absolutely adored this book. I ended up rewriting my synopsis of the book multiple times because I couldn't do it justice.
This book is amazing.

First of all, the writing is pretty epic. It definitely sounds like young adult is saying it, but at the same time it's so poetic that it's beautiful just to read it. The author deals with some themes that I sort of find myself dealing with sometimes in my life, so that was very, very nice.

Secondly, I really like Jordy. I mean, Chloe was alright, but I really liked Jordy.
First of all, he's gay. This is very helpful for this book specifically, because it means it doesn't fall into the "girl and boy take roadtrip, they fall in love" sort of book. (Which, I admit, I thought it was going to be.)
Secondly... He's very realistic. I like that, too.
And lastly... He gives up so much to help Chloe, and he doesn't complain. But even though he doesn't mind that he's helping her (because she ends up being his best friend), he doesn't not appreciate the good things that come to him. I liked that.

Also, this book is so emotional. Especially at the end, I found my self crying, because it was just so perfect. It ended perfectly, but right before the end I felt like... "It's over. It's over. Their trip. They've come to their end of the road. And that's sad. But it's okay."
(I was going to say something here, but I realized that it would be a spoiler. So you're just going to have to read the book to find out sort of what I was going to say. ;) )

"Shelf Life" by Robert Corbet

"Listen," she said, "to be fired from this job you'd have to run naked through the deli with a string of gourmet sausages round your neck. You'd have to cover yourself in cream cheese and dangle a smoked trout between your legs. Even then, they'd just move you to the dairy section. Nobody gets fired form this place. You leave when you're ready to, or else when you die."

Louisa is holding down two jobs, and works every moment. She also happens to be employee of the month.

Adam is a slacker who likes the idea of anarchy and who wants to get fired the moment he arrives at the supermarket.

Jared and Dylan are sharing a secret with a customer in the candy isle.

Chloe might be pregnant, but doesn't know who the father would be. She also quit what would have been her dream job, except for one detail.

Stephen is gone.

Tessa doesn't fit in with the girls, but can't hang out with the guys.

Abdi is finding out just what it feels like to be respected in America.

Rahel is marrying someone she doesn't even know.

Wyn is a human database, who doesn't tell her secrets.

Life working in the supermarket might not be the perfect job, but these teens know how to survive. Yes, that means surviving customers who can't understand why light bulbs keep breaking, or who don't get why long life milk still goes bad. And, yeah, that includes dealing with how to get a girl flowers.. when she works at the flower check out. And maybe it also includes the teens' crazy home lives, though the reasons for those being in the supermarket vary from teen to teen.
All in all, maybe the supermarket is actually giving the teens the "important life skills" they need.
Maybe.

Another worker stopped to see what was going on.
"Andy, this is Andy," said Jared, introducing them.
"I'm Adam."
"My name is Abdi."
Each glanced at the other's  name tag and nodded. Then, together, they all stood and stared at the old man.

I really liked this book. It was funny, witty, and just all around entertaining. After I finished the book, I still wanted to keep reading. Some of the situations in the book that the workers run into were just so completely outrageous, and yet, at the same time, completely plausible.

The only part of this book that I didn't especially like were some of the weird endings for people. Like the fact that you don't ever find out if Chloe is pregnant or not. It's just... kind of weird.

But besides that, I think this book is one of my favorites, and I'd definitely recommend it to most teens.

"Pay the Piper" by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple

Not watching some dumb TV show while Mars made spooky commentaries. 
Yet somehow Callie believed Alabas. Believed what he was saying. Believed him down in the urpy part of her stomach. And afraid she was going to be sick, she slipped away and ran out the nearest door marked EXIT.

Callie, a fourteen year old girl from Massachusetts, doesn't expect anything exciting to happen in her town. She lives in the sort of area where the biggest crime is a boy running away from home and hiding in the neighbor's tree for a night.
In fact, even the bands that play in her town are.. well... fairly unknown. None from her top 5 ever get there... Heck, none of her top 20 have ever played in her town.

When the announcement comes that Brass Rat- a band who plays somewhere between folk and rock- is having a show in her town... Callie is shocked. Sure, Brass Rat might not be on even her top 20 (maybe her top 25, though), and she might prefer either straight rock, or straight folk... But it's definitely more than she expects to happen.


But sometimes, things aren't always what they seem... And you should be careful what you wish for. Strange as it might sound... it just might be time to pay the piper.
But what if they can't?


"And one thing I am certain I did not mention..." Gringas spoke calmly as the creature popped the screaming horse into its mouth whole, "is that the guardian is immune to magic."
Sighing, Alabas pulled two long knives from twin sheaths at the small of his back. "You did indeed leave out a few details, my lord."

As most of my friends know, I love retellings of fairy tales. I eat them up. Not quite literally.
So, when my mom gave me a stack of books, and I found out that one has to do with the Pied Piper, I knew I  had to read it. Even if it wasn't quite a retelling. (Not quite.)

So, I read it... And I really liked it!
The characters (particularly Gringas) were very interesting. I found Callie a bit flat, but she was still fairly fun to read about, anyway. Nicky was... Amazing. He acted just like a little brother, and Callie's annoyance at him was spot on.
I also thought the conflict about being the middle child was interesting, as well, if a little bit dramatized. (I know quite a few middle children... They do not seem scarred from life from their birth order.)

I have to say, also, the ending was amazing. At least the one about Gringas. The one with Callie was... a little forced, as was the bit before the ending, but the last few pages? Genius. I loved them. Well. I loved Gringas in general, which might not be good. Oh well.

Either way, I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone else who likes a good retelling of a fairy tale. I have another one of the "Rock 'N' Roll Fairy Tale" books on my book shelf, and thanks to this one, I'm definitely planning to read it.

"The Lost Crown" by Sarah Miller

"Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia--like the fingers on a hand, Tatiana the tallest, Anastasia the smallest, Maria the one most desperate for a ring. These are the daughters of the Tsar, the daughters of the last royal Russian family. Acclaimed author Sarah Miller writes with lyricism, criticism and true compassion as she tracks this loving cluster of sisters from the decks of their yacht to the prison walls of their final home. What do abdication and revolution mean to these young women? Told through each of their voices in alternating chapters, we see their day-to-day lives, in many ways, remain the same; they dote on their dogs, flirt with the soldiers, and are followed constantly by guards. But their desires for the future have all but disappeared. As conditions worsen and the provisional government loses power to the Bolsheviks, the girls huddle together to make sense of what is happening. At the same time hopeful and hopeless, naÏve and wise, their voices become a chorus singing the final song of Imperial Russia."-goodreads

The Lost Crown was a fascinating novel. I love historical fiction, especially when it's about a period that I might not have known much about before going into the novel. I didn't know THAT much about Imperial Russia, so this book was very interesting and fresh for me.

The settings were ornate and as the points of view alternated things became different. An interesting point about this novel is that for every chapter the point of view is from a different one of the daughters. I found this really good, and switching up the perspectives did freshen the story a bit each time. The only qualm that I have with that is at times, especially near the beginning, the story switched character's narratives without really changing, but after a while and getting used to it I didn't feel that way at all. 


The way this story was done is just interesting, deciding to do it from the daughter's points of view and showing their side of the story. Sarah Miller seems to have done fantastic job capturing what they would've been like and must have done an impeccable amount of research to pull of this book. Overall, it was a fascinating historical YA with very unique insight on the inside of a period of history that you might not have known much about before. A great read! 


Thank you to Simon&Schuster for giving me the opportunity to review this book. Reader's Note: As always, my reviews are unbiased. Thanks! :)

"Side Effects" by Amy Goldman Koss

I'd left my notebook and everything in the car, or I might have done a drawing of that weird wire thing with the colored beads, which exists only in doctor's waiting rooms. I wondered what was supposed to be fun about it. All I'd ever want4ed to do was get the beads off the damn thing so I could play with them.
Izzy can't find a single book where the person lives. The person with cancer. The patient. In every single one she finds, they all die at the end. The best she's found is one where the kid gets super powers from the cure.
This is a problem.
Because Izzy has cancer.
After waking up one morning to find that she still has swollen glands from her flu, her world turns upside down. She's rushed to the hospital, and stabbed with a bunch of needles. She's soon part of another world, with it's own slang, with it's own people.
This is her book. Her book about traveling down that path to hell, and then traveling back.

Ah! I thought, This must be the mental illness bonus for kids with chemo cards! Feeling the pain before the stab!

I really liked this book. It was funny, well written, and Izzy had her own voice. She seemed very human, and I could find myself believing that this could actually happen.

I don't have a lot to say on this book (don't hate! It's only 143 pages long!), but I'd definitely recommend it.

"The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks" by E. Lockhart

"Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:Debate Club.
Her father's "bunny rabbit."
A mildly geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school.
Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15:A knockout figure.
A sharp tongue.
A chip on her shoulder.
And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston.
Frankie Landau-Banks. No longer the kind of girl to take "no" for an answer.
Especially when "no" means she's excluded from her boyfriend's all-male secret society.
Not when her ex-boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places.
Not when she knows she's smarter than any of them.
When she knows Matthew's lying to her.
And when there are so many, many pranks to be done.
Frankie Landau-Banks, at age 16:Possibly a criminal mastermind.
This is the story of how she got that way."-goodreads

I mean, READ THE DESCRIPTION. Read it. Doesn't that sound witty/epic/amazing? This book is just plain LEGIT. I couldn’t think of a better word for it. I loved pretty much everything about it, and wish I had read it before-- if only because by now I would’ve been on my billionth or so re-read. The characters, the story, and the voice… Just amazing!

The voice. This has to be my favorite thing about the book. It was different than anything else I’ve ever read, so extremely unique. Words! There were word-plays, grammar geeking out, a copy-editor boyfriend, and even out of the story, just the narration, WORDS were used. When I say words I mean peculiar words that you don’t use often, advanced words, whatever you like but the way they were used was awesome. The book was just plain intelligent, without being overly so like it was unrealistic or you have to look up words or something.

The characters. Frankie is awesome. She’s probably my new favorite female protagonist in YA, as well as one I could really identify it. She was sarcastic, intelligent, and ambitious. There are lots of sarcastic/smart/whatever characters in the world but Frankie’s character development was pretty much flawless and I think it was also very realistic. She was very smart but she also seemed like a normal teenager. The other characters were fabulous too, Trisha, Frankie’s roommate was likeable and had a personality although we didn’t see that much of her. When she was around in the story she was really epic because her mom was a psychologist, so whenever she was giving Frankie advice and such she always did everything with psychological stuff and it was fascinating. The boys, the bassets, the dogs, whatever you’d like to call them were great too, all in their own ways.

The story of the bassets and the secret societies and the story of the school was great as well. The school being designed the way it was with its traditions and suitably its secrets or ‘secret organizations’ were good too. All very interesting.

Anyway. Sorry for the huge review but I just didn’t know how else to do this book justice. It was so legitimate. Intelligent, humorous, fascinating, very quirky, just all around a great book!

"Peak" by Roland Smith

"You messed up, Pete."
"Peak," I said.
"Like in 'mountain peak'?"
"Right."
"Weird name."
"Weird parents."

Peak Marcello, as his name suggests, is a climber. His mom and dad, both mountain climbers, started him climbing at an early age, and his mom has encouraged him his whole life.
Climbing is about to get him in trouble though.
Peak has climbers itch- the climbing wall at the gym isn't big enough anymore- so he finds bigger things.
Like skyscrapers.
When Peak is busted climbing the Woolworth Building, he knows he's in trouble. But how much? The court wants to sentence him to three years in jail, but his mom and stepfather, Rolf, aren't about to let that happen.
When Peak's long lost father, Joshua, shows up unexpectedly, Peak is offered a deal by the court. He can disappear off radar for several years, or he could go to jail.
Peak chooses to disappear.
His father takes him to Tibet, where he springs a surprise on fourteen-year-old Peak: Peak is going to try to be the youngest person to ever climb Everest.
With the help of Sun-jo, Peak's new friend; Zopa, a mysterious monk from Joshua's past; Joshua himself; and a whole bunch of other characters, Peak attempts the climb.
But is he willing to put everyone's safety at risk to reach the top?

Yash helped Sun-jo set his rig, and when he got it on we looked at each other and started laughing.
We were going to live.

I liked this book. No. I really really liked this book. I found myself wanting to just read the book, no matter what. My copy got returned to the library in much worse condition than when I checked it out, and I can confidentially say that this is one of the best books I've read in the past two or three months.

The thing that I really liked about this book were the characters. They were well developed, and interesting. I found myself sympathizing with Peak during his experiences... I think the author did a very good job of making Peak human, so you could really get inside his head. On the other hand, he also definitely had his very own voice and personality. I can't think of too many fourteen-year-olds who would be happy to share their birthday with their twin half-sisters.
Besides Peak, the characters I liked the most were Rolf, Peak's stepfather, and the characters who make up the film crew.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books with tough moral decisions, but who don't mind having adventure in there as well.