Review: Fracture by Megan Miranda

Fracture
by Megan Miranda
January 17, 2012
Received from NetGalley
Goodreads Page
Amazon Page
Grade: A-

Eleven minutes passed before Delaney Maxwell was pulled from the icy waters of a Maine lake by her best friend Decker Phillips. By then her heart had stopped beating. Her brain had stopped working. She was dead. And yet she somehow defied medical precedent to come back seemingly fine-despite the scans that showed significant brain damage. Everyone wants Delaney to be all right, but she knows she's far from normal. Pulled by strange sensations she can't control or explain, Delaney finds herself drawn to the dying. Is her altered brain now predicting death, or causing it?

Then Delaney meets Troy Varga, who recently emerged from a coma with similar abilities. At first she's reassured to find someone who understands the strangeness of her new existence, but Delaney soon discovers that Troy's motives aren't quite what she thought. Is their gift a miracle, a freak of nature-or something much more frightening?

For fans of best-sellers like Before I Fall and If I Stay, this is a fascinating and heart-rending story about love and friendship and the fine line between life and death.

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Here’s a tip: when you’re reading Fracture make sure you have some fluffy blankets or a nice animal or two to curl up on you because between the descriptions of the icy lake and the Maine winter, you’re going to want to warm up!

Much of this book felt like an adaption of a Hitchcock movie - suspenseful and cinematic with an overall feeling of dread even when chocolate chip cookies are baking in the narrative.  The writing is incredibly evocative both of the cold of the winter and of the bleakness of Delaney’s situation, and the cinematic qualities had me picturing cold winter light dulling every color it touches - except for the bright red of Delaney’s parka. 

I tend to enjoy character-driven books more than plot-driven, but Fracture is definitely an exception to that rule.  Though I have to admit, it’s not entirely plot-driven either.  There’s a Major Event - which is referred to in the synopsis so this isn’t a spoiler! - and the rest of the book is how Delaney reacts to it.  All of that is a roundabout way of saying that in some ways, I found that watching the characters’ reactions to the situation more interesting than the characters themselves.

Which isn’t to say I didn’t find the characters enjoyable! I empathised so much with Delaney and her focus on grades and uncertainty about her standing with her best friend Dexter and the friends that are more his than hers.  She’s a smart girl, stuck in a situation where intelligence has to give way to feelings and intuition.  Learning that sometimes intelligence can’t fix things is a hard, hard lesson when for a girl who’s always gotten A’s (yeah, I’m totally speaking for myself here, but for Delaney too).  I liked her best friend Dexter and his easygoing approach to life which was nearly shattered when his best friend fell through the ice, and I felt so much for both Delaney’s parents as they struggled to come to terms with the fact that their daughter before her accident may not be the same girl who woke up from the coma.

I think there may be criticisms of this book for being too slow or uneven pacing, but I didn’t find it so.  When the book slowed down to examine the day-to-day minutia of Delaney’s post-accident life, I felt it served both to give greater insight into these characters and to build tension about what was happening and what might happen.  Certainly it allowed Delaney to slowly but fully comprehend everything occurring around her. 

I found the climax a bit confusing, and there were questions raised that we never really got answers to especially in regards to Troy.  What really was going on?  But the overall message really touched me and makes me rather think that sometimes questions don’t need answers even when we really want them.  I very much want to talk about the conclusion, but I don’t want to spoil everyone so I’m going to avoid it.  Suffice it to say...I liked it.

This is a tense, suspenseful book that I’d recommend to anyone looking for a cinematic read with touches of horror.  I really enjoyed it, and I’m looking forward to see what the author writes next.

Thanks to Walker Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read this eARC!

Review: If I Tell by Janet Gurtler

If I Tell
by Janet Gurtler
October 1, 2011
Received from NetGalley
Goodreads Page
Amazon Page
Grade: A

Jasmine Evans knows one thing for sure... people make mistakes. After all, she is one. Jaz is the result of a one-night stand between a black football player and a blonde princess. Having a young mother who didn't raise her, a father who wants nothing to do with her and living in a small-minded town where she's never fit in hasn't been easy. But she's been surviving. Until she sees her mom's new boyfriend making out with her own best friend. When do you forgive people for being human or give up on them forever?

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I read Gurtler’s I’m Not Her and enjoyed it, but I wasn’t blown away.  (And since it’s a cancer book, I didn’t review it.)  Still I was looking forward to If I Tell and was terribly excited when I received permission to read it through NetGalley.

Let me tell you, if Janet Gurtler improves upon If I Tell as much as she improved from I’m Not Her to If I Tell, that third book is going to be the best book ever written.  If I Tell absolutely blew me away in every sense.  The main character, Jaz, had an amazing, incredibly believable character arc, the supporting characters all read as real, fully-developed people in their own right, and the writing was searing and honest that a way we don’t often get to see.

Jaz is a good example of a character that I didn’t always like but I loved anyway.  The book begins as she’s possibly just witnessed the straw that may cause her to wall herself off from people forever - the utter betrayal of her mom’s boyfriend making out with Jaz’s best friend, and the rest of the story is her deciding how to react.  I can’t say I enjoyed watching her reactions because some of it was so very painful, but they were very realistic and just made my heart hurt. 

I also appreciated the examination of her race and the repercussions of both being biracial and the only biracial girl in her school.  Jaz’s feeling of never really belonging anywhere was clear, and her discomfort in her own identity came through in a sometimes uncomfortable reading experience.  I probably say this every time I get to read a book with a non-white protagonist, but young adult lit is so whitewashed, that I’m always happy to see someone addressing issue.  To have Gurtler really examine the issue in such a skillful way is an even bigger bonus.  Someday I’d like to read a book with a non-white protagonist and feel like it happens often enough that I don’t even need to comment!

In a less weighty issue, I adored adored the love interest in this book.  Jackson is both a great character and utterly wonderful.  He reminded me in the best ways of one of Sarah Dessen’s love interests.  And that’s a high compliment from me because I love me some Dessen boys.  He also is more than “just” the love interest.  He’s definitely a three-dimensional character who’s respectful, totally sweet to his mother, and someone trying to rebuild his life after his own mistakes.

So yes, this is seriously a great book.  It’s not always the easiest to read because of the emotions brought up, and Jaz probably will make you want to shake her as she works through her plot (seriously, Jaz, call your friends! That’s what they’re there for!), but it’s really, really good.  I’d recommend it to anyone looking for an excellent contemps read with very interesting and relevant themes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcefire Books for allowing me to read this book!

Review: Little Women and Me by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

Little Women and Me
by Lauren Baratz-Logsted
November 8, 2011
Received from NetGalley
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page
Grade: B-

Emily is sick and tired of being a middle sister. So when she gets an assignment to describe what she'd change about a classic novel, Emily pounces on Little Women. After all, if she can't change things in her own family, maybe she can bring a little justice to the March sisters. (Kill off Beth? Have cute Laurie wind up with Amy instead of Jo? What was Louisa May Alcott thinking?!) But when Emily gets mysteriously transported into the world of the book, she discovers that righting fictional wrongs won't be easy. And after being immersed in a time and place so different from her own, it may be Emily-not the four March sisters-who undergoes the most surprising change of all. Lauren Baratz-Logsted's winning confection will appeal to fans of Little Women as well as anyone who enjoys a modern twist on an old favorite.

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I think I need to preface this review by saying Little Women and Me was not for me.  I definitely think there’ll be readers who’ll enjoy this romp through the classic nineteenth century novel, but I can’t count myself as one of them.

I try to take a book’s premise at face value – e.g. I don’t have a problem with the main character being sucked into a book, and I don’t feel the author needs to explain how this happened, but I greatly prefer the rules of the ‘magic’ stay consistent once they’re established.  While Emily’s within Little Women, at times she remembers what’s going to happen next and at times she has ‘story amnesia’ and which happened when never seemed to have a reason beyond increasing tension.  The original book characters also seem to have a difficult time remembering that Emily is there which was an intriguing idea but also frustrated me because again there didn’t seem to be any real consistency which happens when.

I’d have been able to overlook a lot of the above if I was more engaged with the main character.  Emily never really gelled into a real ‘person’ for me.  Instead - like some of the plot devices - I felt like Emily’s personality bent at the whim of the story.  She was definitely amusing, and I especially enjoyed her observations about the nineteenth century and the March family as a whole.  Her relationship with Beth was also incredibly sweet, but beyond that Emily seemed more inclined to chase boys (all the while declaring that she needed to change the book so Jo ended up with Laurie) than interact with either her real sisters or her March sisters in any meaningful way.  Being self-centered isn’t anything new for a YA heroine, but that coupled what seemed like a complete lack of empathy (other than towards Beth), Emily never seemed to develop beyond this until her sudden realisation at the end of the book.

Reading the author’s notes, I saw that she had written the book by reading one chapter of Little Women and then writing one chapter of her book, and suddenly much of the book made more sense to me.  Perhaps the author wished to have an episodic style, but while Little Women obviously has overarching themes and plot, Little Women and Me never seems to achieve that.  Even Emily’s realization at the end of the book seemed out of nowhere, and I think the novel as a whole would have benefited from a more consistent dramatic arc to aid in both gradual character development and thematic structure.

There was a twist towards the end that made me laugh out loud, but when looking back at it, I still can’t see more than one indication that it was coming.  I really love surprise twists where the framework is laid more consistently throughout the book.  As it is, I’m left feeling like the author simply wished to throw a plot twist in the ending pages.

I’m seriously disappointed that I didn’t enjoy this book more.  I’d been really excited to get the opportunity to read it – especially since Little Women is one of my favourite books.  (Though I have to admit that I’m possibly the only reader ever who thinks that Jo marrying Laurie would be a terrible, terrible idea.)  But unfortunately neither the book nor the characters lived up to my expectations.  It may be that my love for the source book is standing in the way of a love for this one, but I don’t think so.  I enjoyed the outsider’s perspective on the March family and their admittedly slightly insane way of life, and I enjoyed the idea that some of the family’s most charming traits for a reader would be incredibly annoying to a participant.  What kept me from enjoying the book as a whole was an uneven structure and a frustration that the main character was never developed fully enough to love or hate.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for allowing me to read this!

Review: Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel

Dearly, Departed
by Lia Habel
October 18, 2011

Received from NetGalley
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page
Grade: B+

Love can never die.

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead—or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria—a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible—until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead—and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.

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I’ve been struggling with this review forever!  Seriously, I read Dearly, Departed about two weeks ago, loved it, and then tried and failed, tried and failed at writing a review.  When I started the novel, I was skeptical that a post-apocalyptic steampunk, neo-Victorian zombie novel – cool as the description sounds! – could really work in any reasonable way, but I was proved completely wrong by Lia Habel’s writing.

We’re introduced to the society of New Victoria slowly as Nora leaves her girls’ school and returns to her aunt’s house for the first time since her father’s death a year prior.  The history of the society is explained in what can only be described as a well-written info dump, but I didn’t mind the flood of information at all because a) (like I said) it was very well done and b) the history and world-building involved was so intriguing!  We also get a nicely detailed explanation of both the zombies and how some manage to keep their personalities and other turn into ravaging monsters.  I also totally enjoyed the descriptions of the medical care needed to keep the ‘good’ zombies viable.  It was definitely macabre but also incredibly interesting.

The chapters switch points-of-view between Nora and Bram, the soldier with mysterious links to Nora’s father, plus three other characters.  Bram’s probably the most interesting character in the book at least partially because he’s revealed to be dead.  Seriously, this guy is the most sympathetic zombie character ever.  Which isn’t necessarily saying a lot since most zombies are anything but sympathetic, but even the fact that he could become both a character I’d root for is a huge achievement.  (Cause really, normally zombies cause me to get my baseball bat ready)

While I’m still not a big fan of swapping viewpoint characters, for Nora and Bram the technique really worked well.  The characters come from such different places that seeing their perspective filtered through their vastly different background knowledge helped both focus the book and provide the reader with a better understanding of the action.  However the other three points-of-view were weakly done and didn’t add much to the story.  I’d have been much happier if the only points-of-view we saw were the two main characters, and I think it would have helped to tighten and focus some of the rather sprawling story.

I’ve already admitted that Bram’s my favourite character, but Nora was nonetheless interesting.  She’s perhaps cast a little too much in the mold of a typical ‘tomboy heroine’ and the special quality she’s revealed to possess made me roll my eyes slightly.  Still her characterization never falls flat, and her determination, sense of humor, and devastation over her father’s death really made the character for me.  I also enjoyed how slowly the relationship between Nora and Bram developed, how the trust and enjoyment of each other came slowly over time, and how they both had to deal with their own issues about not only relationships but also the idea of a relationship between a living person and a freaking zombie.  Zombies aren’t lovable.  This is a tenant of my paranormal beliefs that was absolutely shattered by this novel.

So this lovable zombie, Bram.  He could almost be too perfect but it never felt like that. He was respectable and honourable and cared about his soldiers.  He knows he only has a few years of ‘unlife’ available, and he’s decided to use them to protect civilians and to be a good soldier.  That whole devotion to duty is a huge story kink of mine so it’s probably not surprising that I love the character so much. 

There are some points where the writing drags a little, and they mostly come in the POV chapters that aren’t Bram or Nora’s.  I think this may mostly be first-novel syndrome and hope that in the future the author will be able to edit her next books more deftly to avoid the tempo changes and slight loss of interest that occurs during them.  I was really amazed with how well Habel wrote the action scenes.  I never felt lost or wondering who was where during them, and they included awesome bits like stabbing a zombie in the face with a parasol.  In the FACE. With a parasol.

I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to blow their minds with such things as good guy zombies or just read a great action Steampunk tale.  There are some issues with the book, but nothing serious enough to significantly downgrade my enthusiasm over it.

Thank you to NetGalley and DelRay for allowing me to read this e-ARC!

Review: dancergirl by Carol M Tanzman

dancergirl

 by Carol M Tanzman

November 15, 2011

Goodreads Page

Amazon Page

Received from NetGalley

Grade: B+

The videos went viral...

EVER FEEL LIKE SOMEONE’S WATCHING YOU?

ME TOO.

BUT LATELY IT’S BEEN HAPPENING IN MY ROOM.

WHEN I’M ALONE.

A friend posted a video of me dancing online, and now I’m no longer Alicia Ruffino. I’m dancergirl. And suddenly it’s like me against the world—everyone’s got opinions.

My admirers want more, the haters hate, my best friend Jacy—even he’s acting weird. And some stalker isn’t content to just watch anymore.

Ali. dancergirl. Whatever you know me as, however you’ve seen me online, I’ve trained my whole life to be the best dancer I can be. But if someone watching has their way, I could lose way more than just my love of dancing. I could lose my life.

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Y'all, it's killing me not to capitalize the title up there, but I'm trying to resist!

I really enjoyed this book!  While the synopsis focuses solely on the dancergirl online sensation, the plot transitions into a stalker story and how Ali reacts to suspected invasions of her privacy.  And that is really well done.  The tension in the writing is amazing.  I read the entire book in one sitting because I really didn’t want to put it down. 

As a main character, Ali’s a fairly normal teenage girl.  She's dedicated to dance, working at her dance studio to earn free classes and dreaming of Julliard.  She struggles with her classes but gets by with the help of her friends - especially the good-looking boy in the apartment below who’s suddenly started to pull away.  I have to say that I really appreciate that the author made her main character a person of character (even if the apparent cover decided to erase that).  YA books are so often so very, very white. 

Dance is the most important part of Ali’s life which makes the entire situation that much more horrifying.  As a sort of joke and sort of a way to help out but mostly just a chance to dance, she agrees to shoot a few videos with Charlie, a friend from school.  The videos nearly immediately go viral, leaving Ali uncertain what to do in the face of this new internet fame.  Charlie wants to shoot more installments, her friends think the whole situation is awesome, and Ali’s just trying to finish her choreography solo and get ready for auditions at the dance studio.  It was a really neat look at the power of the internet.  Something so little can so easily come to mean so much to thousands of people, each with their own opinions about a girl they’ve never met.  It’s a familiar story - especially for people like us who use the internet so much in our daily lives.

The suspense in the book is quickly increased through as Ali begins to wonder if she’s being stalked by one of her ‘fans.’  The ins and outs of the situation as her friends work together to try to figure out who’s behind it are fully explored,  This part becomes the weakest of the book as the pacing falters while the students suspect one person than another, but the highlight of this section is Ali questioning everything.  Did she bring this on herself?  Is she responsible for the invasions of privacy?  What does she need to do to protect herself?

It feels difficult to say that I ‘loved’ this part because it’s such a horrible topic, and I’d never want to see anyone go through such a situation, but I felt the way the author handled the entire question was really, really well done.  I don’t want to get into any type of spoilers, but I will say that I thought both the final culprit - and the reasoning behind it - relieved me.  I was a little worried at times that the book was going to veer into some victim blaming of Ali, and it was really excellent to see it go in a completely different direction.

The friendship of Jacy, the boy downstairs (and yes, I called him Jace for ¾ of the book) and Ali is another strong point of this book.  The two really feel like best friends since forever, and when Jacy starts to pull away from the friendship, Ali’s left unmoored and unsettled in the midst of this entire ordeal.  Jacy’s story is just as compelling as Ali’s and once some of his personal situation is revealed, we get two strong characters at the center of this tension-filled book.

I requested this book from NetGalley because of the dancing aspect, and while that part was definitely enjoyable, the realistic tension and questions about privacy and stalking, both on the internet and in person, were very well done.  Plus there’s a good story of boy/girl friendship that might just veer into more.  I’d recommend this book to anyone looking for a tense contemporary read.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarlequinTeen for the opportunity to read and review dancergirl.

Review: Prized by Caragh O'Brien

Prized
by Caragh O’Brien
November 8, 2011
Received Arc from NetGalley
Goodreads Page
Amazon Page
Grade: A-

Striking out into the wasteland with nothing but her baby sister, a handful of supplies, and a rumor to guide her, sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone survives only to be captured by the people of Sylum, a dystopian society where women rule the men who drastically outnumber them, and a kiss is a crime.  In order to see her sister again, Gaia must submit to their strict social code, but how can she deny her sense of justice, her curiosity, and everything in her heart that makes her whole?

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I reviewed the first book in this trilogy a week ago.  If you haven't read Birthmarked yet, this review contains spoilers for the outcome of that book but not for particulars.

My favourite thing about Caragh O’Brien’s dystopian societies is that they make so much sense.  Slyum, the main society in Prized is completely different from the Enclave that Gaia escaped in Birthmarked, but the reader can clearly see how both societies developed in reaction to their particular circumstances.  As I said at the end of my review of Birthmarked, O’Brien threw all the pieces up in the air at the end of that book, and as the sequel begins, those pieces are still falling back to the ground.

After a horrific journey and almost losing her baby sister to starvation, Gaia Stone is rescued by the people of Slyum and given an immediate choice.  If she chooses to stay, she must allow her sister to be raised by a ‘more fit’ mother, but she and her sister can stay in this veritable paradise of lakes and greenery unknown to the drought-stricken Enclave.  There are, however, two other conditions.  If they stay, they can never leave because everyone who leaves the area dies, and they must obey the Matrach.  On the other hand, Gaia and her sister are free to continue traveling into the wilderness, leaving the place her mother told her to find.

The repercussions of Gaia’s choice resonate through the rest of the book.  I really enjoy this type of catch-22 especially when the consequences are so dire.  Slyum has very few women, and the percentage of baby girls born has been falling every year so their society has developed to value being female above anything else.  Only women – and only women who agree to follow the Matrach’s dictates and bear at least ten children - are allowed a voice in society decisions.  Men compete to gain a woman’s attention and perhaps her hand in marriage, but touching a woman without being engaged to her is viewed as the crime attempted rape.

Gaia continues to be a fascinating character, and I appreciate how the author allows her to be flat out wrong at times and be judged by the other characters for it.  She never falls into that trap where the main character appears to be wrong, but at the end she’s shown to have been right all along and just misunderstood.  Gaia makes terrible choices, and she and her friends sometimes suffer from them.  She’s still the stubborn and intelligent girl that she was in Birthmarked, but it’s clear that Maya near brush with death as a result of Gaia’s actions along with the events of Birthmarked have changed her.  She’s almost grateful at first to accept the Matrach’s authority over her – anything to prevent all responsibility from falling on her shoulders.  It’s frustrating as a reader to watch her allow herself be led so obviously, and it’s an utter relief to see her finally accept the inherent injustice in Slyum’s society and start to rebel against it.

I complained a little in my review of Birthmarked that Gaia swung too quickly from accepting the Enclave’s system to rebelling against it, but after reading Prized, I feel quite a bit differently.  She almost takes too long to act against Slyum’s injustice, and the difference makes an interesting study of how power affects actions.  In Slyum, for the first time, Gaia is a highly valued and potentially powerful member of the society as midwife but more importantly as a potentially fertile woman.  Her acceptance of this position makes it more difficult for her to support reforms against the establishment even when she notices and knows that the society is far from just.

As I touched on earlier, the author’s worldbuilding is absolutely fantastic.  She obviously has a firm grounding (no pun intended) in the geographic reality of her story, but also the way her society is structured, the firm internal rules of the world and characters, and the effects of the environment on both personal and societal development.  That last is something that often seems negligible, but I believe it’s one of the most important factors in making a society feel real to the reader instead of just dreamed up and plopped anywhere convenient.

There’s much more romance in this book than in the first, and it’s here that O’Brien seems most uncertain.  The love quadrangle that develops makes sense within the society – when there are so few women, of course men are going to compete for a viable mate, but the reasons why two brothers choose to focus their attention on Gaia seem less clear.  William’s interest makes more sense to me – Gaia’s the only person in the society with the same insatiable curiosity for figuring out why their society is, but Peter’s seems tacked on.  Perhaps the societal impulse is all there needs to be, but I kept hoping for more.

Leon was a character I loved in Birthmarked, and I was so happy to see him reappear.  He rejected his privilege in the Enclave, but his adjustment to the true loss of it in Sylum was an interesting character arc.  Again, that theme of power affecting actions came into play, and in Prized, it’s Leon who instantly wants to rebel against the system and make changes to the way things are done.  The swap in roles between him and Gaia affect their relationship dramatically, and while I didn’t always agree with Leon’s handling of the situation, here too, I appreciated that the author let the character be absolutely wrong at times.

By completely changing the surroundings and forcing Gaia and Leon to adapt to a new society, O’Brien managed to avoid the typical second installment letdown.  Prized is built upon the reader’s previous knowledge of the characters, but it allows itself the freedom to tell a different though complementary story to the first book.  I enjoyed Prized even more than I did Birthmarked, and I absolutely look forward to seeing where the third book in this trilogy leads us.

Thank you to NetGalley and Roaring Book Press for allowing me to read this arc!

Review: Slayers by C.J. Hill

Slayers
by C.J. Hill
September 27, 2011
Received ARC from NetGalley
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page
Grade: B

Synopsis: Dragons exist. They’re ferocious. And they’re smart: Before they were killed off by slayer-knights, they rendered a select group of eggs dormant, so their offspring would survive. Only a handful of people know about this, let alone believe it – these “Slayers” are descended from the original knights, and are now a diverse group of teens that includes Tori, a smart but spoiled senator’s daughter who didn’t sign up to save the world.

The dragon eggs have fallen into the wrong hands. The Slayers must work together to stop the eggs from hatching. They will fight; they will fall in love. But will they survive?

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Review:  When I first saw the synopsis of this book, I thought ‘oh hey!  Rampant with dragons!’ But I was wrong.  Slayers is much more in the Percy Jackson line (without gods obviously) with a group of superheroes by birth reuniting every summer at camp and never able to talk about camp in their regular lives.

I seriously would have done anything to go to Dragon Camp when I was a preteen or teenager!  I loved the horse camp I went to, but a whole summer with riding, archery, medieval tactics, and dragon obsessions would’ve been magic.  Literally if I’d gotten to hang out at the advanced camp with the slayers. 

Tori provides our view into the group of slayers as the new member of a team that’s been training together for four years.  She is, as the synopsis says, a spoiled rich kid who spent the previous summer at a ‘finishing school’ in Cancun and is definitely the fish out of water in the rustic surroundings.  Her uncertainty about the purpose of the group at first reads true - because seriously? a bunch of teenagers claiming to fight dragons? But since the reader knows that dragons are real and the slayers are well-intentioned, it’s also played slightly for laughs and provides some nice levity.  I also enjoyed her reaction to the idea of dedicating her life to fighting the dragons.  As much as we all hope we’d step up valiantly if we were given the opportunity to save others, I think most of us - and Tori - would have more than a few qualms at the idea.  I liked that she wasn’t immediately gung ho about her heritage and purpose and the camp itself.

The rest of the slayers fade mostly into sketched in (likeable) archetypes - there’s the snobby girls, the prankster, the gentle healer, the two immensely hot team captains (who also function as two points of a somewhat forced love triangle with Tori).  As it is, only Jesse and Dirk - the team captains - get much development.  About halfway through the book, Dirk begins to assume more prominence and starts to have his own viewpoint chapters.  The point-of-view change is a little startling, and I think alternating viewpoints might have worked better if they occurred from the beginning.

I never felt uncertain about where Slayers was headed, and none of the plot twists were terribly surprising, but the training scenarios and team interactions at Dragon Camp were very engaging.  The plot was action-packed and well-paced, and I think most readers will find it enjoyable.  Some of the dragon mythology seemed awfully convenient, but I can accept it - like the underdeveloped supporting cast of slayers - in hopes that further books will develop the mythology and other teens more fully.

The writing of Slayers is snappy with short dramatic chapters that feel made for TV.  I could almost see fade to commercial each time there was a chapter break.  While the writing was cinematic, the reading experience was extremely choppy.  However though I wasn’t the biggest fan of the style, I can definitely see people - especially boys - who may not read a lot enjoying the easily consumed and action-packed chapters.

I’m definitely interested in reading further Slayers books to see what happens as the group of heroes continue to go up against the dragons and the dragon lords who control them.  Many thanks to NetGalley and Roaring Book Press for the opportunity to read the ARC!

Review: Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink by Stephanie Kate Strolm

Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink
by Stephanie Kate Strolm
May 8, 2012
Received copy from NetGalley
Amazon page
Goodreads page
Grade: B+ (but A for the history details that manage to be accurate without overwhelming)

Synopsis (this is the synopsis in the ARC instead of the one on Goodreads mainly because I like it a lot better):  “It’s not like I’ll actually be LIVING in the eighteenth century.  It just looks like the eighteenth century.  A sanitized, tourist-friendly eighteenth century.  I’ll be like an eighteenth-century Disney princess!  Colonial Cinderella!”

Oh, I could see it now.  I had the perfect shade of lip gloss to pull off that all-natural no-makeup makeup look.

It may not be your idea of the best summer before senior year ever, but to Libby Kelting - historical-romance-reading, Jane Austen-adaption-watching, all-around history nerd - working at Camden Harbor (“In here, it’s always 1791!”) is, like, a dream come true.  Supercute coastal Maine location, a fabulous wardrobe of eighteenth-century fashion, hearth cooking, needlepoint...what’s not to love?  Throw in a summer fling with Cam, the hottest sailor in the harbor, and you’ve got yourself an old-fashioned good time.

But it’s not all sonnets and primroses.  Libby has a majorly annoying roommate situation to deal with, and bunking with rookie newspaper reporter Garrett McCaffrey aboard the Lettie Mae Howell is only a tiny step up.  What could be more awkward than sharing a fo’c’sle with a Star Trek-loving geek?

Oh, right.  Sharing a fo’c’sle with a Star Trek-loving geek and the ghost of a drowned sea captain.

It’s not quite the summer she bargained for, but Libby Kelting is going to make it work.

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Oh this book!  It’s probably not a shock by now that I love history, and as a previous interpreter at living history museums, I so totally had to leap at the chance to read the ARC of this book.

First things first, Libby is a fun main character - so longing for a Jane Austen-ified version of the past that she has a hard time both seeing history for all its dirty parts and also living in the present.  She’s more than a little grossed out by the reality of cooking over the open fire (and using lard!), but she dives headfirst into her role as Education and Interpretation Intern (or “just a camp counselor” as the hilariously bitchy fellow intern Ashling points out).  Her utter excitement at getting to live in the 18th century and spend a summer teaching little girls about colonial crafts and cooking is slowly tempered by the realisation that nowhere - not even the oldest living history museum in Maine - is perfect.  Instead of living in a historical romance, Camden Harbor (and maybe even the past itself) is full of other people’s opinions, dirt, politics, and the need for more money.  And maybe, just maybe, there’s a ghost of a ship Captain.

Libby's a little too perfect at times almost the epitome of an accomplished eighteenth century girl - she can sing excellently, cook amazingly, sew, read, and be ever-patient with her group of demanding (but adorable) preteen campers.  However I really enjoyed watching her slowly grow over the course of the summer from a girl who escapes into the romance of history to someone who starts to realise that nothing is perfect and sometimes that even is better.

Her crush is one of the ‘Squaddies,’ the boys who do the demonstrations on the museum’s ships.  Cameron’s basically made for any historical romance loving girl - he quotes Shakespeare, brings flowers, and looks really, really good in a pair of breeches.  He’s also pretty much a complete ass, and it frustratingly takes Libby all summer to figure this out.  I would have liked her to catch onto his lady-killing ways earlier - she seems to miss every obvious clue, and the fact that she doesn’t makes her seem stupider than she really is.

There’s a bit of a ghost story as the plot unfolds which forces Libby to spend much of the summer sharing bunks on one of the ships with boy reporter, Garrett - he who wears Stargate t-shirts and flabbergasts Libby by paying absolutely no attention to fashion and who won my heart by reading Northanger Abbey after Libby said it was her favourite Austen.  It’s a slightly contrived plot point, but it’s hard to argue with something that allows one to read about the fo’c’sle (definition: living quarters consisting of a superstructure in the bow of a merchant ship where the crew is housed) over and over.  Best word ever.

Libby’s best friend from home, Dev, makes appearances both by phone and in person during the course of the novel, and while I enjoyed his character, it would have been nice if the character was slightly less of a stereotypically sassy gay best friend.  I love seeing LGTBQ representation in YA lit, but we need to move on from the stereotypes into real characterizations.  In contrast, the other interns at Camden Harbor have much more well-rounded characters, and while they admittedly have more 'screen time,' given how well Libby knows Dev, I think he could have been developed beyond the stereotype without much trouble.

In tone (other than a small scene with teen drinking), Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink reads more like a middle grade novel than young adult - Libby’s journey is one of self-discovery and the romance, while present, is mostly very sweet.  The history details and realities of a living history museum are consistently right on the mark.  Much more so than I’d ever expected and that part especially brought me great glee. 

I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants a charmingly light read about sweet summer romance and self-discovery.  If one’s not terribly interested in history, I’d still recommend it - the history details, as I said, are accurate but not overwhelming and other than a knowledge of the fact that Jane Austen is a 19th century novelist, I don’t think any specific historical knowledge would be required to enjoy the novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Graphia/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for allowing me to read and review this ARC!

Review: The Juliet Spell by Douglas Rees

The Juliet Spell
by Douglas Rees
September 27, 2011
Received ARC for review from NetGalley
Amazon Link
Goodreads Page
Grade: A-


Synopsis from Publisher: I’m Juliet.

At least, I wanted to be.

So I did something stupid to make it happen.

Well, stupid and wonderful.

I wanted the role of Juliet more than anything. I studied hard. I gave a great reading for it—even with Bobby checking me out the whole time. I deserved the part.

I didn’t get it. So I decided to level the playing field, though I actually might have leveled the whole play. You see, since there aren’t any Success in Getting to Be Juliet in Your High School Play spells, I thought I’d cast the next best—a Fame spell. Good idea, right?

Yeah. Instead of bringing me a little fame, it brought me someone a little famous. Shakespeare. Well, Edmund Shakespeare. William’s younger brother.

Good thing he’s sweet and enthusiastic about helping me with the play...and—ahem—maybe a little bit hot. But he’s from the past. Way past. Cars amaze him—cars! And cell phones? Ugh.

Still, there’s something about him that’s making my eyes go star-crossed....

Will Romeo steal her heart before time steals him away?

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Review:
I didn't really expect a lot from this book. The synopsis intrigued me, but I'm such a Shakespeare nerd that I wasn't sure it would be possible to make me happy.

Apparently it was possible.

Well, okay, I totally disagreed with a few of the characters' assessments of Romeo and Juliet's qualities as a play, but that's what people who like to talk about Shakespeare do – they disagree on everything. Noel Streafeild (author of the wonderful Ballet Shoes and rest of the Shoes books) once wrote something along the lines of 'a fan of Shakespeare will only be happy when he gets to disagree completely with the production.' I'm a little embarrassed to admit how true that is.

As a last ditch attempt after her audition for Juliet didn't go as well as Miranda (Miri) Hoberman wished, she digs out the spell kit she'd discarded the year before after the spells to make her dad come home didn't work. This time, she tries to cast a spell to make her Juliet – and somehow transports a strange boy into her kitchen instead.

The boy is Edmund Shakeshaft, and he's convinced that if Miri isn't Helen of Troy, she must be an angel or a demon or maybe even a fairy. Edmund's entrance is an impressive one, and it leads to confusion, hijinks, and even the possible dissolution of the universe itself. Because Edmund's come from Elizabethan London, and he's an actor with the Lord Chamberlain's Men who just graduated from playing female roles. And he's William Shakespeare's little brother.

I seriously loved how the entire introduction of Edmund played out. I loved watching his utter horror at the 21st century turn into fascination and curiosity about everything from the showers to television to the huge leather bound folio of the work of the man he considers his jackass older brother. From the first, Edmund's a charming and complex character, struggling to fit into and understand a society 500 years in his future.

Miranda is no less charming a character as she introduces Edmund to her house and world, tries to convince him that doing the dishes is definitely not just women's work, reassures him that he won't die in a car going 25 miles an hour, and not-so-slowly falls for him, accent, strange clothes and all. It's odd that Miranda seems to have no female friends at all, but her relationship with her mother (yay, parental involvement! Her mother is even asked for help!) is a strong and loving one.

But the play's the thing in this company of actors, and Miri introduces Ed to her dramatic society where he auditions for and is cast as Romeo – with Miri as Juliet.

I so enjoyed the author's obvious familiarity with the theatre as the characters go through the drama of putting together a production. As difficulties and tragedies mount, the action slides near the plot of a Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney musical – “gee, guys! Let's put on a show!” But the similarities stay this side of overly corny, and it's a pleasure watching Edmund's experience in the Elizabethan theatre clash with modern acting and directing styles.

One of my chief pleasures in any novel or movie (or tv show, thank you, Doctor Who) about Shakespeare's theatre is playing the 'spot the Shakespeare quote!' game, and the author clearly enjoys that too as he scatters quotes from the plays before and after 1597 (the year Edmund's from) throughout Ed's dialogue. In the author's note, he mentions this is on purpose, and his reasoning (which I won't spoil for you because it's a bit of a plot point) makes me laugh.

The Juliet Spell is structured a bit like the play its characters are producing and while the first few acts are filled with lightness, comedy, and typical theatrical disputes (he took my part AND my girl!), the book gets more serious in the later chapters. Happily both tones are handled well, and the conclusion was very sad but ultimately satisfying. During the 'comedy' section, things seem to fall into place too easily at times – Miri's mother easily accepts Edmund into their life and home without really questioning why this strange kid is in their living room. No one really doesn't believe Edmund's story, and while he struggles to fit into the modern United States, he, Miri, and Miri's friend Drew are easily able to get Edmund a copy of a birth certificate as proof of identity.

I've seen some critiques that the time travel in this book in unrealistic – I'm not entirely sure what realistic time travel is - but for me, as long as magic, time travel, paranormal activity is internally consistent within the book, I'm happy. And so it is with this book.

I seriously enjoyed reading The Juliet Spell and thank Netgalley and HarlequinTEEN for allowing me to read a galley for review! The book appealed to both the theatre and Shakespeare nerd within me and also the person who reads for intriguing, well-developed characters and situations.

Review: Ambitious by Monica MacKayhan

Ambitious
by Monica MacKayhan
September 1, 2011 
Received ARC from NetGalley
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page
Grade: D

Synopsis (from Publisher): There's only one thing tougher than getting in to Premiere High: Staying in…

At Premiere School of the Performing Arts, nicknamed Premiere High, talent is a must and competition is fierce. But the payoff is worth it. Some of the biggest stars in music, movies and dance are on the alumni list. New student Marisol Garcia dreams of taking her place among them one day. And being chosen to take part in a local dance contest where a film role is the prize could possibly be her first step into the spotlight.

Almost as big a challenge: getting Drew Bishop to see her as more than a friend. But Drew is preoccupied with his own dilemma of either playing basketball, which could be a free ticket to college, or pursuing the stage where he really comes alive. But every dream comes with a price. And as Marisol becomes consumed with winning, the once straight–A student risks losing everything. Starting with her parents' approval, her friends and her place at Premiere High…

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Girl gets accepted to a massively competitive performing arts high school and soon proves herself one of the best dancers in the school...and gets the hottest and most talented guy in her class.

Wait...that's not how it works, is it?

In Ambitious, it definitely works that way. Marisol is accepted both to Premiere High School of Performing Arts AND the top dance class in the school despite any formal dance training. A free class the previous summer seems to be Marisol's only actual dance instruction. People can be naturally talented, but from the first page, Ambitious flirts with snapping my suspension of disbelief.

Her love interest, Drew, also is far better than seems reasonable. With echoes of High School Musical dancing and singing through the head, Drew's not only a standout basketball star who's approached by a Georgetown scout in his sophomore year (after he's stopped playing ball in order to attend Premiere), but he's also apparently an amazingly talented actor who lands the starring role of Walter Lee Younger in the school production of A Raisin in the Sun. This is despite any acting experience beyond a Christmas pageant in sixth grade and an Easter play at his grandmother's church.

Marisol and Drew alternate point-of-view chapters as they experience the first months of attending Premiere High. They both have to handle family issues – Marisol's little brother is being pressured to join a gang and Drew's dad doesn't like his son giving up basketball. Marisol also has difficulties combining her neighbourhood friends with the girls and guys she meets at school in Manhattan.

Marisol is a likeable enough character as she deals with leaving her close-knit Brooklyn neighbourhood and expanding her horizons into Manhattan – and hopefully future stardom. But while the character is sweet, she never seems to have to actually struggle to achieve anything. She competes in a Dance America! Contest – referred in the book as the most competitive dance competition in the country, but Marisol breezes through to the finals in California while seeming to only train for the competition at lunch. Her old best friend is jealous over Mari's new school friends, but the issue is smoothed over when said old friend gets sick of the girl she befriended to replace Marisol and tries to make amends. She worries about boys, but they compete with each other to ask her to the formal dance. Without much adversity to define her character, the likable qualities seem mostly one-note and the character lacks needed complexity.

I wasn't nearly as fond of Drew even on a superficial level. His chapters failed to provide a level of character development expected from a main character, and they mostly detail his name brand possessions and trips to see Knicks' games or golf outings. I kept expecting some quality of self-reflection from him, especially given his interest in acting, but I was disappointed. The only scene where his character seemed like a human and a teenage boy instead of the author's conception of the ideal teenage boy was when his grandmother visited and talked with him about acting and girls. But even then, I was glaring at the page, annoyed that his grandmother is portrayed almost as maid – she comes by every week or so to clean Drew and his father's apartment, do their laundry, and cook for them. I wanted to shake the boy and ask if he really was sitting there letting his elderly grandma scrub his toilet.

I had high hopes for Ambitious. I've such a soft spot for stories a) about boarding schools/exclusive schools and b) about theatre or dance, and this one seemed to hit all those points. The synopsis and promise of a future series set at a Manhattan performing arts high school sounded like it could be really interesting and full of the backstabbing drama that only really shows up in the arts. Also YA lit can be so saturated with solely white heroes and heroines, and a series that was explicitly multicultural was really appealing too me. But until the characters actually have to work to succeed in such a high pressure environment, I'll be passing on any future Premiere books.

Many thank yous to Netgalley and KimaniTRU for the ecopy of this book for review

Review: Reel Life Starring Us by Lisa Greenwald

Reel Life Starring Us
by Lisa Greenwald
September 1, 2011 
Received ARC from NetGalley
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page
Grade: B-

Synopsis (from publisher): Rockwood Hills Junior High is known for the close-knit cliques that rule the school. When arty new girl Dina gets the opportunity to do a video project with queen bee Chelsea, she thinks this is her ticket to a great new social life. But Chelsea has bigger problems than Dina can imagine: her father has lost his job, and her family is teetering on the brink. Without knowing it, Dina might just get caught in Chelsea’s free fall.

Filled with honest truths about status and self-confidence, as well as the bubbly, infectious voice Lisa Greenwald mastered in her breakout, My Life in Pink & Green, this book is sure to charm tween readers everywhere.

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I’ll be upfront here. I hated middle school. High school (once I got over the “holy crap, I just moved to a new school in the sticks”) was fun, but middle school for me was the worst of all the high school cliches. I’m sure it didn’t help that I carried books like Leon Uris’ Exodus around with me everywhere. So maybe I’m slightly amused about the idea of a tale about people in middle school recognising each other’s individuality and learning to respect it.

Given that situation, I was actually impressed by how much I enjoyed Reel Life Starring Us. The setup up is that the new girl in town, Dina, gets paired up with Chelsea, the most popular girl in the eighth grade for a video project. Greenwald alternates between the girls’ perspectives to portray them both trying to handle fitting in, friendships, their family, clothes, and all the drama of a middle schooler’s life. It’s a nice device to show both girls having their own insecurities, that even the most admired person isn’t perfect, and that no one’s life is as great as it might look from the outside.

My favorite thread was the underlying theme of judgment - Dina desperately wants to be friends with Chelsea because she and her friends are the cool group, and so she judges the girls she sits with at lunch as ‘Acceptables’ - good enough until she can drop them to sit with Chelsea. Chelsea is intrigued by Dina and wants to be friends, but her friends can’t see the point of hanging out with the weird ‘new girl’ and pour scorn on the idea of any public overture. Both girls and by extension, all their classmates are missing out on possible friendships for fear of crossing those invisible social lines. Which...I think we can admit happens all the time.

The action leads up to an heavily messaged ending where the eighth grade class comes together to realise everyone is valuable, the girl gets the guy, and Dina and Chelsea become great friends. But for all the heavy handedness on the message, the writing is engaging and Dina and Chelsea are fun heroines who really do illustrate the pressures and worries tween girls from every clique deal with every day.

I think this might be a book that older elementary readers might enjoy more than preteens. Most preteens are going to be too sophisticated to be taken in by a message this obvious - even when it is a good one. But for an older elementary reader who might be worried about moving on to middle school and is confused about why her friends are suddenly starting to change on her, it’s a good reassuring read.

Many, many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, Amulet Books, for allowing me to read a galley for review!

Review: The Legacy by Katherine Webb

The Legacy
Katherine Webb
September 1, 2011
Received ARC from NetGalley
Amazon Page
Goodreads Page
Grade: B-

Synopsis (from publisher): Following the death of their grandmother, Erica Calcott and her sister Beth return to Storton Manor, a grand and imposing house in Wiltshire, England, where they spent their summer holidays as children. When Erica begins to sort through her grandmother’s belongings, she is flooded with memories of her childhood—and of her cousin, Henry, whose disappearance from the manor tore the family apart.

Erica sets out to discover what happened to Henry—so that the past can be laid to rest, and her sister, Beth, might finally find some peace. Gradually, as Erica begins to sift through remnants of the past, a secret family history emerges: one that stretches all the way back to Oklahoma in the 1900s, to a beautiful society heiress and a haunting, savage land. As past and present converge, Erica and Beth must come to terms with two terrible acts of betrayal—and the heartbreaking legacy left behind.

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Review: I requested this book from NetGalley because I have a serious weakness for Kate Morton, and after reading comparisons between Katherine Webb and Ms. Morton, I was excited to see something else along the same lines. The general structure was the same - a large, slightly ruined ancestral home, the modern scions of the family attempting to come to terms with their family’s past, flashbacks to an earlier time, but where Ms. Morton’s novels leave me wishing - hoping - for more about these characters, I finished Ms. Webb’s Legacy curiously unmoved. I think the major reason for this was that while I enjoy dual narratives in books, I find them most interesting when each narrative touches on similar themes and reveals truths hidden in its counterpart.

In The Legacy, the modern narrative follows Erica’s desire to help her big sister, Beth, with her continuing depression while deciding what to do about their inherited estate, Storton Manor and solving the mystery of their childhood connected with it. Both this narrative and the characters - especially Erica - are compelling, and the childhood mysteries are sufficiently twisty to make a good read. I completely enjoyed Erica’s intuition, her determination to help her older sister and nephew, and her dogged insistence to find answers

The downfall is mostly in the historical narrative as it follows the girls’ great-grandmother Caroline during her first marriage on an Oklahoma ranch in the very early 20th century. It’s so very different from the modern that they never seem truly related, and little of what we discover while reading about Caroline is truly necessary to understanding the modern characters. While the historical narrative is truly tragic, I found myself less able to relate and empathize to Caroline and her compatriots.

While Ms. Webb’s book left me mostly cool, I’d recommend it to a friend looking for a beach read or some light vacation reading. I’ll also keep a lookout for the author’s new book and future volumes. I’d love to see if the problems I had with The Legacy are merely first book issues which will be resolved as she grows as a writer.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the ARC.

Review: Four Kitchens: My Life Behind the Burner by Lauren Shockey

Four Kitchens: My Life Behind the Burner in New York, Hanoi, Tel Aviv, and Parisby Lauren Shockey

Received ARC from NetGalley

Goodreads Page

Amazon Page

Grade: B-

Summary: At the French Culinary Institute, Lauren Shockey learned to salt food properly, cook fearlessly over high heat, and knock back beers like a pro. But she also discovered that her real culinary education wouldn't begin until she actually worked in a restaurant. After a somewhat disappointing apprenticeship in the French provinces, Shockey hatched a plan for her dream year: to apprentice in four high-end restaurants around the world. She started in her hometown of New York City under the famed chef Wylie Dufresne at the molecular gastronomy hotspot wd-50, then traveled to Vietnam, Israel, and back to France. From the ribald kitchen humor to fiery-tempered workers to tasks ranging from the mundane (mincing cases of shallots) to the extraordinary (cooking seafood on the line), Shockey shows us what really happens behind the scenes in haute cuisine, and includes original recipes integrating the techniques and flavors she learned along the way. With the dramatic backdrop of restaurant life, readers will be delighted by the adventures of a bright and restless young woman looking for her place in the world.

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Review: A well-written and engaging book, but unfortunately, the writing doesn’t do much to make the writer terribly likable. Ms. Shockey portrays herself as nearly faultless - every restaurant seems to think her the best stage ever to work there, all offer her a job - or comment that she’s obviously going far better places than staying in the kitchen with them. The book would have benefited greatly from a degree of humility about things more than inexperience and a dimming down of the self-satisfaction that fills the writing. It seems apparent that the author is used to writing blog posts and articles - what can pass in a short piece grows grating over the length of a memoir.

However the different cultures - restaurant and country - portrayed are very interesting. I definitely enjoyed seeing how the different kitchens were run and how the different chefs approached their work. As a Top Chef fan, I especially enjoyed the look into Wylie Dufresne’s restaurant.

Review: Spellbound by Cara Lynn Schultz

Spellbound
Cara Lynn Schultz
June 28, 2011
Received ARC from NetGalley
Goodreads Page
Amazon Page
Grade: B

Summary (from publisher): What's a girl to do when meeting The One means she's cursed to die a horrible death?

Life hasn't been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Conner, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But the posh Upper East Side prep school she has to attend? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she's irresistibly drawn to—Brendan Salinger, the guy with the rock-star good looks and the richest kid in school, who might just be her very own white knight.

But even when Brendan inexplicably turns cold, Emma can't stop staring. Ever since she laid eyes on him, strange things have been happening. Streetlamps go out wherever she walks, and Emma's been having the oddest dreams: visions of herself in past lives—visions that warn her to stay away from Brendan. Or else.

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Review: I don’t have terribly strong feelings one way or another on Spellbound. It has all the hallmarks of current paranormal - and even contemps - YA, and they aren’t arranged in a particularly new way, but even when bits of it made me think of Fallen or Beautiful Darkness or even Twilight, Spellbound felt fresher than it probably should have.

Emma’s an intriguing and well-written character who thankfully doesn’t fall into the traps of typical paranormal heroines - at first. She’s a strong, sarcastic, and thoughtful teenager who actually questions the odd set of circumstances that fate (or whatever) is handing her. There’s love at first sight, yes, but I enjoyed the fact that Emma started as simply curious about Brendan, wanting to know more about him and actually get to know him before falling in love. Sadly the later part of the part erases this thoughtfulness and makes Emma simply another girl who only focuses on her love interest.

The mythos of the reincarnation of the main characters is actually very interesting, and I enjoyed the fact that it was research that revealed it instead of a handed down letter or papers that just happened to be stumbled over in the crannies of a wall. It’s an old Buffy trick, sure, but research does hold all the answers.

Brendan’s possibly the weakest point of the book. He’s certainly described well, but his characterisation is very fragile. While Emma is developed beyond the typical paranormal heroine, Brendan doesn’t get the same treatment. He’s simply “the love interest” who appears to only exist to fulfill that role. Sadly the charaterisation of the original incarnation of the love interest is better than the 21st century one.

In conclusion, Spellbound’s a fluffy little book with engaging characters and better writing than I expected. If there’s a sequel - the galley contains what looks like a chapter or two of a sequel featuring Angelique - I’ll be reading it in hopes that some of the paranormal tropes are avoided as the author develops.

Copy provided by NetGalley for review.

Review: The Poisoned House by Michael Ford

The Poisoned House
by Michael Ford
Published August 1, 2011
Received ARC from NetGalley
Goodreads Page
Amazon Page
Grade: B

Summary:
The year is 1856, and orphan Abigail Tamper lives below stairs in Greave Hall, a crumbling manor house in London. Lord Greave is plagued by madness, and with his son Samuel away fighting in the Crimea, the running of Greave Hall is left to Mrs Cotton, the tyrannical housekeeper. The only solace for the beleaguered staff is to frighten Mrs Cotton by pretending the house is haunted.

So when a real ghost makes an appearance - that of her beloved mother - no one is more surprised than Abi. But the spirit has a revelation that threatens to destroy Abi’s already fragile existence: she was murdered, and by someone under their very own roof. With Samuel returned to England badly wounded, it’s up to Abi to nurse him back to health, while trying to discover the identity of the killer in their midst. As the chilling truth dawns, Abi’s world is turned upside down.

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Review: I love books with footnotes and when The Poisoned House started with a ‘note’ from the curator telling how the following papers had been found in an attic, I was instantly intrigued. After an initial burst of action, the story slowed down a little to spend some time establishing the atmosphere not only of the eponymous House but also of the inhabitants. Abigail Tamper is dealing not only with the recent death of her mother but also the ill-tempered and vindictive housekeeper, insane Master of the House, and the shy attentions of one of the delivery boys. The Gothic atmosphere is established quickly as supernatural events start happening - events beyond the pranks she and the other servants play on the housekeeper. Soon a spiritualist is consulted, the young Master, the boy Abi grew up with, comes home injured from Crimea, and the stage is set for ghostly maneuverings.

I’ve read quite a few Gothic novels - both modern ones and historical - and was able to easily predict the villain of the piece, but the ride of discovery that Abi is taken on is both engaging and a lot of fun. I read the book in one sunny afternoon as I was unwilling to put the book down to go outside. Mr. Ford does an excellent job of staying true to the era in language and decorum without the overwrought writing that can be a hallmark of older Gothic novels. For those who haven’t read older novels or are turned off by the elaborate descriptions and language of those of the 18th and 19th centuries may very much enjoy the more modern writing of The Poisoned House.

My copy was provided for review by NetGalley.

Review: The Girl In the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

The Girl in the Steel Corset

by Kady Cross

Received ARC from NetGalley

Goodreads Page

Amazon Page

Grade: B

Synopsis (from publisher): In 1897 England, sixteen-year-old Finley Jayne has no one except the "thing" inside her.

When a young lord tries to take advantage of Finley, she fights back. And wins. But no normal Victorian girl has a darker side that makes her capable of knocking out a full-grown man with one punch...

Only Griffin King sees the magical darkness inside her that says she's special, says she's one of them. The orphaned duke takes her in from the gaslit streets against the wishes of his band of misfits. Emily, who has her own special abilities and an unrequited love for Sam, who is part robot; and Jasper, an American cowboy with a shadowy secret.

Griffin's investigating a criminal called The Machinist, the mastermind behind several recent crimes by automatons. Finley thinks she can help-and finally be a part of something, finally fit in.

But The Machinist wants to tear Griff's little company of strays apart, and it isn't long before trust is tested on all sides. At least Finley knows whose side she's on, even if it seems no one believes her.

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Review: The Girl in the Steel Corset is a book that started out slowly and then stormed to a rip-roaring finish. Set in a Steampunky London, Finley Jayne escapes the advances of the son of her employer and ends up part of a group of friends with odd special abilities led by Griffin King, Duke of Greythorne. The author describes the book as League of Extraordinary Gentlemen meets teen X-Men, and I couldn't agree more. Each of the characters is well-defined with a distinct voice - which is helpful since the narration bounces from one character to another with little to no warning.

For some reason, the level of detail in the narration reminds me more of H.G. Wells than any modern steampunk writer which is totally not a bad thing. But it is an older style that may be less than engaging to a modern reader who simply wants action. Have faith, modern reader, the action will come and when it does, you'll be happy there was so much description so that you can follow it!

As a fan of historical costuming, I really enjoyed Ms. Cross' attention to detail regarding this and her thoughtful adaption of Victorian styles to her steampunk world.

I'll be looking forward to catching up with Finley, Griffin, Emily, Sam, and Jasper in the next book!

I received a galley of this book from NetGalley.