Review: The Land of 10,000 Madonnas

The Land of 10,000 Madonnas
By Kate Hattemer
Expected publication April 19, 2016 by Knopf
Reviewed from e-ARC

Jesse knew he wouldn't live forever, even if he lived in a house full of Madonnas - his heart condition assured a tragically young end. But, before he went, he made sure to arrange a mysterious trip to Europe for his cousins and friends - maybe a quest that he couldn't fulfill, maybe just a way to help them through their grief. They won't know until they get there.

I can certainly understand fixations and collections - I'm 99% sure I legitimately have bibliomania (and the hundreds of unread books in my house would surely agree) and that's not my only focus of intense fascination. So, the idea of someone fixating on collecting images of the Madonna - that appealed to the collector in me, even more so because it didn't seem to be a collection grown out of spiritual or religious underpinnings. Additionally, I always appreciate a story that explores grief and how differently it can manifest from one person to another.

One of the things I loved most about this book is that the first character we meet is Jesse - Jesse, the boy who is dead by the time the actual plot of the novel is taking place. Jesse was as much a main character here as any of the other living characters and I really felt like I knew him. Starting the book with Jesse made it easy for me to understand why the other characters felt as they did for him. I liked that we spent time with each character and understood how their grief was impacting their lives - it was different for each of them, just as it is in real life. They also all had different relationships with Jesse when he was alive, so I think that's important, too. I liked seeing the relationships between the five of them develop as well - though I would have preferred if the two females were not quite so antagonistic towards each other. I really enjoyed some of the finer details of the book - Plagueslist, Ben's preference for postcards, the focus on Michelangelo, etc. - but other parts of the book were not explored quite to my liking - Matt (the character as a whole), Cal's heel pain.

My main problem with the book, though, is the trip itself. It felt almost unnecessary for them to actually go - most of what they accomplished seemed like it could have been done just as easily if they had simply all gathered together and discussed things. Since Hattemer had them actually on the trip in Europe, I also expected a more definite end to their quest - once Jesse (in the journal he left behind) acknowledges that the reason for the trip is not what he believed, I expected the other characters to have a more meaningful moment with Arnold.

Overall, though, I enjoyed this book and think it will appeal to fans of contemporary realistic teen fiction. Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: I Woke Up Dead at the Mall

I Woke Up Dead at the Mall
By Judy Sheehan
Published March 22, 2016 by Delacorte Press
Reviewed from e-ARC

To add insult to injury, not only has Sarah woken up dead at the Mall of America, but she's still wearing the horrible mango chiffon bridesmaid dress she died in. It only gets worse from there as she realizes that she was murdered, her killer is still out there, and her father may be in danger. Even though it's totally against the rules, can Sarah figure out a way to get justice and protect her dad?

Quite often, I choose books by their titles. Having been an avid library user for most of my life, the books I browsed tended to be spine out, making their titles the first impression I got of them. Any title that sounded interesting, I'd pull of the shelf and read the synopsis before making a final decision. The practice of choosing books by titles has stayed with me, so, when I needed something to read before heading off on my vacation, the quirkiness of this title struck me. As a bonus, it was a comparatively short read to the other ARCs I had downloaded, so it was the winner.

For a book narrated by a murdered teen, this is an extremely lighthearted read. Nothing ever really felt too perilous and I never doubted that things would work out for all the characters. There are some funny bits and the friendships that develop between Sarah and the teens she meets at the mall are quite charming (if a bit unbelievable). The romance is sweet enough and definitely fits with the overall feel of the book. The mystery is solved in an interesting way and what Sarah is able to do to help people back on Earth is unique, giving the story something a bit different from a typical teenage ghost story.

If you take the book at face value, then I think it's a perfectly fine read that many readers will enjoy. The problems come when you think a bit more carefully about it - the romance feels unrealistic, the picture of the afterlife painted is a mishmash of many things (but carefully avoiding any religion by name), and the fact that these kids were all murdered is a little too glossed over. The book is mostly pretty chaste, though there is one scene of intimacy that might push this out of the younger YA range.

Overall, this is a fun, if forgettable, read for teens looking for a lighthearted supernatural romance. Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: A Drop of Night

A Drop of Night
By Stefan Bachmann
Published March 15, 2016 by Greenwillow Books
Review from e-ARC

Anouk has lucked into the opportunity of a lifetime - she's been selected to take part in the excavation of a hidden French palace with just a handful of other gifted teens. However, when they arrive, it becomes clear that nothing is what it seems. Is it possible that their lives are in danger?

Well, whatever I thought this book was going to be, it was something else. Glancing over other reviews when I started reading, I knew it was going to be a mix of many different genres and ideas, but I think I still underestimated exactly what I was getting into. There is so much stuff crammed into this book and, for me, it never really meshed all together. I'm generally a big fan of historical fantasy, but this also had elements of horror and the paranormal, plus action and mostly it just felt like a big old jumbled mess. I don't think the historical storyline was developed fully, and, because it had such a strong bearing on the present-day storyline, it made that weak as well.

I don't have to find characters likable to enjoy their stories, but Anouk was a very difficult character to care about. She behaves terribly to everyone and, yes, I understand that it's a defense mechanism because of how her parents treat her, but that didn't make her any easier to deal with. Additionally, none of the other characters are fleshed out at all, so I had a hard time getting invested in their survival throughout the ordeal.

Many parts of the story felt convenient and, at the same time, pointless. In fact, by the end, I'm not sure what the whole point of the story was. I can't give it away without spoiling things, but it seemed unlikely to me that this outcome would have occurred with this set of characters and no others.

Ultimately, I had high hopes for this but it did not live up to expectations. Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: The Eye of Midnight

The Eye of Midnight
By Andrew Brumbach
Published March 8, 2016 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Reviewed from e-ARC

William and Maxine are cousins sent to spend the summer with their grandfather. Only, he's nowhere to be found when they arrive. Instead, they find a mysterious symbol all over his house and a secret basement. This only marks the start of their adventures.

Well, every review on Goodreads of this is either four or five stars. I gave it only three. I am, apparently, the dissenting opinion on this title.

Don't get me wrong, this is an action-packed and exciting historical mystery for kids. It was by no means torturous to read and it moves along at a pretty quick pace, keeping you turning the pages. I can see a lot of kid appeal in the story - Maxine's desire to be taken seriously and perceived as older, William's stubborn and occasionally reckless sense of curiosity, a mysterious grandfather they barely know, cryptic symbols that hint at dark secrets, and lots of intrigue and adventure. In fact, this might be the kind of historical fiction that kids will pick up of their own accord (it's not a favorite genre at my library). It's also poised to be the first in a series, another big selling point to young readers.

So, with all that, why only three stars from me? Yes, I can see the appeal factors quite clearly and, yes, I love historical fiction. But, for me, it never really transcended into something unique. Additionally, a lot of the plot felt too convenient and the book suffers from the unfortunate trope of Middle Eastern villains. Will and Max do befriend a young Middle Eastern girl who continues with them on their quest and that provided at least one positive depiction of a person of color, but her appearance in the story also felt like one of those conveniences I mentioned. Finally, I'm not sure Brumbach really established enough background for my liking. He spends a lot of time recounting the formation and philosophies of the villains, but not as much time covering the secret society of good guys. It felt lacking.

Overall, this will be an easy book to sell to young readers, but not my personal cup of tea.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: The Goblin's Puzzle

The Goblin's Puzzle: Being the Adventures of a Boy with No Name and Two Girls Called Alice
By Andrew S. Chilton
Published January 19, 2016 by Knopf Books for Young Readers
Reviewed from e-ARC

Boy has only known life as a slave, but when he meets a goblin, he begins to question his Destiny. And Plain Alice has been mistakenly kidnapped by a dragon who thinks she's the Princess Alice. Their paths will cross and change them all forever.

I admit that the intriguingly long title is what caught my eye about this one. What I liked most about this one was the use of logic puzzles. I think books that include puzzles like that are endlessly appealing to kids - it's why I loved The Mysterious Benedict Society so many years ago. I liked that this one tackled logic instead of more traditional puzzles; it was a really intriguing way to look at the problem. I also appreciated the Alices - I liked them both quite a bit and I think they were given equal time as Boy.

What I liked less about this was the application of the logic to the existence of slaves. Something about the whole thing just didn't sit well with me. It felt like they were saying logically, owning slaves is wrong, but practically, maybe not. I'm sure that wasn't the intent, but it just felt off.

This has enough action to keep readers turning the pages, but it is at its heart a pretty standard fantasy quest novel.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

YA Reviews Part Four

These Shallow Graves
By Jennifer Donnelly
Published 2015 by Random House Delacorte
Reviewed from e-ARC
Jo wants to be a reporter, but that's simply not an option for well-to-do young women in the 1890s. But when her beloved father dies, Jo senses something suspicious - and she'll put her investigative skills to the test to uncover the truth.

I certainly love me some historical fiction and I generally enjoy headstrong female characters, but this book didn't really work for me. I mostly felt bored while reading this and I can remember several instances of rolling my eyes at the text also. The book is excessively long - nearly 500 pages - and I really felt every one of those pages. A lot of the action is quite tedious and repetitive. I didn't care terribly much for Jo and I absolutely did not believe in her romance with Eddie. The mysterious was never terribly mysterious and the historical setting felt like set dressing more than a fleshed out world. After my disappointing experience with Revolution and now this, it would take an awful lot to convince me to read the next Donnelly.

Belzhar
By Meg Wolitzer, read by Jorjeana Marie
Published 2014 by Listening Library
Jam wishes more than anything that she were back at home with her boyfriend Reeve, but instead, she's at a bizarro boarding school in rural Vermont and Reeve is dead. To top it off, she's enrolled in a mysterious class - Special Topics in English. When a journal-writing assignment leads Jam to Belzhar, she must decide which truth she wants to live.

I'd heard lots of good things about this one and had enjoyed another audiobook from Wolitzer, so it seemed natural to pick this up when I needed a new listen. It was mostly what I expected - almost ethereal writing with magical realism - and then, suddenly, it wasn't at all what I expected. I had no idea that Jam was an unreliable narrator and I definitely didn't see the truth coming at all. Once the secret was revealed, though, it changed my view of the book. The people that Jam befriends at the boarding school have real problems - not to minimize the trauma of rejection, but Jam's tragedy really didn't compare for me. I'm fully willing to accept Jam's depression over her perceived loss, but if she has created the reality for herself that readers have seen up until the twist is revealed, then she has significant mental issues that will require much more work for resolution than Wolitzer gives her in the end. Ultimately, I liked the book well enough, but would have enjoyed it more without the twist.

Vivian Apple Needs a Miracle (Vivian Apple, book two)
By Katie Coyle
Published 2015 by HMH Books for Young Readers
Probably spoilers for book one ahead.
Vivian and her friend Harp have uncovered what they believe to be the truth about the Church of America and now, they'll stop at nothing to make the public see what they do.

I enjoyed the first book in this duology well enough that I put the second on hold as soon as it showed up in our library catalog. I was a bit more hesitant this time around - the ending of the first book had been a bit of a hot mess, so it was difficult for me to see where it would go from there. Fortunately, I enjoyed this book much more - perhaps because I already knew some of it would be difficult to swallow? I thought the characters really fleshed out in this one, and the relationship between Viv and Harp is quite delightful to explore. I also really enjoyed getting to know Winnie and seeing that relationship grow. In the end, I'm quite pleased that this is just a duology - I thought the ending here was perfect for the two books.

March, Book One
By John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell
Published 2013 by Top Shelf Productions
John Lewis is a name all Americans should know - a powerhouse in the civil rights movement and later a Congressman. Now, he recounts his story, beginning with his youth and his early entry into the fight for civil rights.

I'm classing this a YA book because I think it will have most appeal for that audience, but I loved it as an adult and I don't think there's anything that would prevent me from handing it to a capable middle-grader. Perhaps the only thing I didn't enjoy about this is the frame story - Lewis is recounting his youthful experiences to a young boy he meets just prior to attending an important event. It felt unnecessary to frame the story this way, though I understand that one of Lewis's goals is to reach a young audience and make it accessible. As a grown person, it just felt a bit hokey. However, that's really my only complaint about this otherwise captivating graphic novel. The art is a perfect match for the story and the story is gripping, heartwrenching, and eye-opening. I am very, very much looking forward to picking up volumes two and three.

Light (Gone, book six)
By Michael Grant
Published 2013 by Katherine Tegen Books
It's time for the final battle. Can the kids of the FAYZ defeat the gaiaphage once and for all?

HOLY CATS, Y'ALL - I FINALLY FINISHED THIS SERIES! I am so thrilled to be able to cross this series off my list and, wow, this final volume really held nothing back. As I've said in my various reviews for the series (here's the last one I did), what I enjoy most about this series is how much I actually care about the characters. This final volume is no different - and with the stakes so high, I really cared about what happened to each of them. Yes, some do not survive, particularly in this last battle. And yes, you will care one way or the other about everyone's fate. Even though I was decidedly not surprised about who made the ultimate sacrifice, I still think Grant did a wonderful job with this series. I enjoyed the "aftermath" section - I always loved movies with little epilogue-type bits that tell you where all the characters ended up later - though with such a large cast, not every character was included in this section. An extremely satisfying conclusion to an excellent YA series.

Middle Grade Reviews Part One

Nightborn (Thrones and Bones, book two)
By Lou Anders
Published 2015 by Crown Books for Young Readers
Karn is ready to get back to what he's good at - gaming. Yeah, the adventures he had with his new best friend (and half giant) Thianna were pretty cool, but he could use some peace for a bit. Unfortunately, that's not in the cards, and now Karn is off on a rescue mission, using all his resources to find Thianna. Little does he know that someone is on his trail - and with much darker intentions.

I read book one of this series prior to its release and, as I'm trying to be a bit better about keeping current with series, I read book two shortly after it came out. Much of what I enjoyed about book one was repeated in book two - the characters are immensely relatable, the action is non-stop, and the pacing is excellent. In my review of the first one, I expressed some hesitancy about it becoming a series - I think Anders believably drew both of the original characters into a new journey. I was pleased with the introduction of new characters as well - I thought they added to the story. The continuation of the story still seems to have an obvious direction, so we'll see what the next volume brings.

Will Sparrow's Road
By Karen Cushman, read by Katherine Kellgren
Published 2012 by Listening Library
Will Sparrow is running away, in search of a better life. On his journey, he meets a cast of colorful characters, but will he find someplace to settle in for good?

I remember having a passing interest in this when it was released, as I do with most historical fiction. This focused on a time and place I knew very little about. So, when looking for something new to listen to, I stumbled on this one - and narrator Kellgren sealed it for me (she's AMAZING). I found this rather unremarkable, though, and, as I write this review, months later, I'm hard-pressed to remember anything of significance about the book. I do remember being mildly impressed about early appearing characters reappearing later in the book and I thought Will was quite realistic (though he felt a little young at times, particularly for his time period). I can definitely see this having more appeal to younger readers, for whom a lot of the historical information will be new and surprising (though I wasn't familiar with this PARTICULAR time period, it felt quite similar to others I know a bit more about). Overall, though, a mostly forgettable read.

A Pocket Full of Murder (Uncommon Magic, book one)
By R.J. Anderson
Published 2015 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Reviewed from e-ARC
Isaveth's father has just been arrested for murder and she'll do everything in her power to prove his innocence. Luckily, she befriends street-wise Quiz, and together they investigate the murder, which may be more complex than it initially appeared. But does Quiz have his own secrets that may put Isaveth in danger?

I want to read pretty much every middle grade speculative fiction book that I discover, which is a near impossible task. But I do make time for as many of them as I can. This had a lot of complexity to it that I wasn't expecting - dealing with issues of poverty and classism, religious intolerance, sexism, and murder. Oh, and fan-fiction. Yes, it's a bit all over the place, but it's mostly an intriguing ride. Some of the weightier issues slow down the action of the plot a bit, which might be frustrating for readers in the target audience - then again, they open the book up for some excellent discussion. I did not see the twist with a character's identity coming, but it certainly added a new depth to the plot. I'm not sure how I feel about this being first in a series - we'll see when book two is released how compelled I feel to pick it up.

Review: Lair of Dreams

Lair of Dreams (Diviners, book two)
By Libba Bray
Expected publication August 25, 2015 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

WARNING: There may be spoilers for book one ahead. Read my review of that title here.

After a showdown with a real-life creepy-crawly, Evie's secret talent is not so secret anymore. Now, she's the "Sweetheart Seer," making a living off of her supernatural gift. But is all of America ready for the Diviners to reveal themselves? At the same time, a mysterious sleeping sickness has hit the city, claiming more and more victims every day. Are the Diviners ready for another showdown?

I don't think I can explain to you how excited I was when I was approved for the e-galley of this. It took all my willpower not to drop everything and start reading it immediately. I've been looking forward to this book for more than two years, after all!

So, perhaps it comes as no surprise that this book failed to live up to my expectations. After completely loving book number one and then waiting (rather impatiently) as the publication date for this was pushed back and pushed back, I was ready to be blown away by book two. And I wasn't. It makes me sad to say it but, for me, this didn't live up to the promise of the first.

While I still love the cast of characters, Evie lost a bit of her charm for me with this one. I think it was all the dithering about Jericho and the flutters she begins to feel for Sam - does there have to be a love triangle? Particularly with a character I view as no-nonsense. It just irked me. Additionally, the stories with each of the characters felt a bit more disjointed in this one - I had a hard time trying to see how they were all going to tie together. I assume that Bray still has some master endgame in which the Diviners must all unite to battle the biggest supernatural baddie of all and save life as we know it, but it was difficult at times to keep that notion in mind while reading this book.

And, speaking of supernatural baddies, after the amazingly creepy Naughty John and the story of the end of the world cult, the villain in this entry fell extremely short. I was not at all creeped out while reading this one and that was a great disappointment to me. I mean, I guess they can't all be mind-numbingly terrifying, but I expected much more horror than I got. Perhaps because of my lack of interest in the villain, this book also seemed to move much more slowly than the first book and I really felt the 600 pages I read to finish it. Bits of this actually felt like filler, which just boggles my mind, but I suppose if I believe in the endgame bit, it'll probably all turn out to be relevant in the end. Despite my disappointment in this entry, I adored book one so much that I will definitely be back for the next installment (which I imagine will take another two years to arrive).

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via NetGalley.

Review: The Creeping

The Creeping
By Alexandra Sirowy
Expected publication August 18, 2015 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

When Stella was a young girl, she disappeared with her best friend. She came back. Her best friend never did. But Stella has tried to move on with her life. Then, a body is discovered - the body of a little red-headed girl, a body that reminds Stella all too much of her disappeared best friend. When Stella learns that other red-headed girls have vanished over the years, she knows she must solve the mystery.

The promise of a creepy mystery drew me into downloading this e-galley when I discovered it. I love reading horror novels but I haven't had a ton of luck with YA horror. Nevertheless, I'm determined to keep trying them.

Here is my main problem with this book: any creepiness that may be generated by the possibly-uncovering-a-spooky-monster-in-the-woods-that-eats-little-red-headed-girls-and-anyone-who-comes-close-to-discovering-it is completely nullified every single gosh darn time Stella worries that her image might be tarnished by trying to solve the mystery with her former best friend and current high school loser, Sam. And, lo, my friends, those times are many. I literally could not believe how much of her headspace and time Stella devotes to worrying about being seen with Sam or concerned that her terribly abusive new best friend, Zoey, will be pissed when she finds out that Stella has been seeing Sam behind her back. I mean, there may be a scary monster that eats people out there and you may be next on its list (or maybe it's a creepy multi-generational cult), but let's go ahead and worry more about drama surrounding the boy you like. Just, excuse me while I try to stop my eyerolling.

That being said, I thought the book did a decent job of walking the line between a supernatural monster and a human one, keeping readers guessing until the very end which kind it will turn out to be. Personally, I worried that the monster was going to be the one I didn't want (no, I will not tell you which of those options I mean), but I was happy when the ending resolved things in a way that felt believable to me. So, though I struggled with the atmosphere of the book and the characters, the mystery itself was well done and I'd be interested in reading what Sirowy does next.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Release Day Review: Chasing Secrets

Chasing Secrets
By Gennifer Choldenko
Expected publication August 4, 2015 by Wendy Lamb Books

Lizzie isn't interested in the things befitting a typical young lady of 1900 San Francisco. She lives for the times she gets to accompany her physician father on his house calls. It's on one of these visits that Lizzie discovers a side of the city she never knew about - a side that might be infected with the plague. Now, Lizzie must do everything she can to help the people she loves - before it's too late.

I was pretty excited to see a new book from Choldenko - I enjoyed her Alcatraz series and was interested in seeing what she could do with a new set of characters.

I haven't felt terribly excited about most of what I've read lately, but I did like this book quite a bit. I mean, there isn't much in it that I wouldn't like - historical fiction, inquisitive female character, deadly plague. Those are all things I enjoy in stories. It isn't my favorite book of the year, but I enjoyed it, and I'll definitely be happy to recommend it to readers looking for historical fiction.

Once again, the attention to details is excellent - it's obvious that Choldenko does her research before she sets down to write a story. She hasn't strayed terribly far from the Alcatraz setting of her most-famous books, but she does a great job setting the scene, so I don't really see the need for it. Choldenko has picked a little-known but extremely fascinating bit of history and built her story around it and it's definitely a success. The story is compelling (the deadly plague bit helps) and, like most good historical fiction, will get readers interested in learning the facts behind the fiction. There are some sad parts of the story - much of it revolves around the blatant racism common of the times, and there is also a character death - but they're handled well and feel natural to the story.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: Murder is Bad Manners

Murder is Bad Manners (Wells and Wong, book one)
By Robin Stevens
Published 2015 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Hazel and Daisy love a good mystery - that's why they started their own detective agency. But, they never expected they'd actually be investigating a murder! It's true, though - a murderer has struck at their boarding school and they know they must solve the murder before the killer strikes again. Will their attempts to uncover the mystery put their own lives in danger?

I'm pretty sure I first heard about this one over at The Book Smugglers and thought it sounded great - I love historical fiction (this one takes place in 1934) and I enjoy a good mystery. Plus, it features a diverse main character! I was definitely looking forward to reading this one and was very excited to get access to the e-galley. I didn't manage to read it before the release date, but once I started, I spend through it.

I quite enjoyed this one. I thought the setting was well-done and interesting - apparently, I really enjoy boarding school stories (though I think I would have hated attending a boarding school). I liked the historical aspect; I'm not sure how necessary it was. It explains a lot of the prejudice Hazel faces initially and it figures for some fun slang, but I'm not sure if I think the story couldn't have been set in modern times just as easily. I thought the mystery was pretty well-executed as well. There were a number of red herrings thrown in and I didn't figure it out ahead of time (though that's not really saying much). I appreciated how logically the girls went about trying to solve the mystery - I thought it was a very accurate representation of how kids these age think and act.

I truly enjoyed the characters as well - I really loved reading the story through Hazel's voice and she felt pretty authentic (if a bit frustrating in her self-doubt). But this was my main stumbling block with the story: the relationship between Hazel and Daisy. Really, Daisy doesn't really seem much more than a mostly stereotypical mean girl - she knows she's the queen bee and she uses it to her advantage. She uses people as she sees fit with no regard for their feelings and Hazel is no exception. I understand Hazel's loyalty to Daisy - she was the one to first accept Hazel (though, troublingly, not until after a pretty terrible hazing incident) and, because of Daisy, the other girls grew to accept her as well. But, Daisy doesn't treat Hazel very well and, though occasionally Hazel gets tired of this treatment, she continues to stand by Daisy. Perhaps I'm just tired of the antagonistic girl friendship in novels for kids, particularly when there really isn't a whole lot of character growth by novel's end. It really dampened my enthusiasm for this novel, though.

On the whole, I liked it well enough to anticipate the sequel, but I hope Daisy will grow more in future volumes and be less of a terrible friend.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: The Devil You Know

The Devil You Know
By Trish Doller
Expected publication June 2, 2015 by Bloomsbury USA Children's Books

Arcadia craves adventure. Since her mother died, it's been her, her father and her younger brother and guess who's been the one doing most of the parenting? So, when she meets a pair of good-looking cousins at a party, she sees the opportunity to let loose a little. And when they invite her and a friend on a spontaneous road trip, Cadie decides to seize the moment. Unfortunately, one of the guys is not who he seems - he might, in fact, be a killer.

This book has been getting quite a bit of buzz and I'd heard good things about Doller's previous novels so when I saw I was auto-approved for this on NetGalley, I downloaded and dived in right away.

I'm pretty conflicted about this one. On the positive side, I really liked Cadie and it was incredibly easy to relate to her struggles, even though I didn't go through anything quite like she did. I think a lot of teens these days will understand her desire to please everyone and the frustration that comes along with trying so hard to be perfect all the time. Cadie's mom has also instilled some great values in her and Cadie is not afraid to voice her opinions. This means, as a whole, the book is pretty feminist and sex-positive, which I think is absolutely what teens need to hear. Additionally, this book screams summer in the best way - campfire parties, a little misbehaving, steamy weather, refreshing water, spontaneous road trips. It made me miss my teenage summers. Another bonus is the awesome chemistry between Cadie and her mysterious men - this book is swoon-inducing and will definitely make you want to curl up with someone.

But, on the not so positive, this book is completely predictable. I mean, I am notoriously bad at guessing twists but I saw this one coming almost from the first instant the boys are introduced. Additionally, the thriller aspect of the story doesn't really kick into gear until the last 50 pages or thereabouts, so for readers looking forward to this aspect of the novel, they'll have to spend quite some time waiting on it. The good news is that this book is fast-paced and easy to devour, so it shouldn't take interested readers too long to get to the thriller part.

Ultimately, I enjoyed it, though I wish the twist had been a bit less obvious. I'm definitely interested in reading Doller's other books, particularly since I think the most successful parts of this one were in the first part of the book (the more contemporary realistic part).

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via NetGalley.

Review: All Unquiet Things

All Unquiet Things
By Anna Jarzab, read by Mike Chamberlain and Allyson Ryan
Published 2010 by Listening Library

Carly was one of the brightest stars at Brighton Day school. And then she was murdered. Now, her cousin Audrey - whose father is in prison for the murder - wants to find the truth of what happened to Carly. And the only one who can help her is Neily - Carly's ex-boyfriend, a boy who was under a great deal of suspicion himself. Can the two uncover whether the right man is in prison for the crime?

As I mentioned recently, I've gone back to the beginnings of my TBR whenever I need to download a new audiobook, so you'll be seeing quite a few older titles appearing on the blog (particularly as I get back into my long runs). This is one such title.

I really wanted to like this book. I enjoy a good mystery and, like most people, I have a bit of a fascination with private schools and the lives of the kids who attend them. But really, I didn't like this book very much. It's very slow to develop and this is basically a death knell for an audiobook. I actually feel like the entire first section of this book could be cut out and it would be a much more interesting story. I think the first section - part one of Neily's story - is meant to establish some background on the characters and Carly's murder before Neily and Audrey begin their amateur investigation. Unfortunately, it's really just kinda boring and annoying. It didn't put me in the right frame of mind when it came to Neily - I found him off-putting. I think it was supposed to show me how much he loved Carly, but I got more of an uncomfortable vibe about their relationship. Whatever this first section of the book was supposed to do, it didn't get me started on the right foot with this novel.

On the whole, I didn't much care about the characters here. Where I think this book succeeds is the mystery - I definitely didn't see the revelations surrounding the murder coming. As pieces were revealed, it was clear that Jarzab had really taken her time constructing this aspect of her novel (a fact made abundantly clear in the interview that followed the story) and I'm glad she did.

While I didn't particularly care for this book, I'd be interested in reading another of Jarzab's titles, this time in print and seeing how I feel about her writing then.

Review: Anyone but Ivy Pocket

Anyone but Ivy Pocket
By Caleb Krisp
Expected publication April 21, 2015 by Greenwillow Books

Ivy is a young maid who find herself in need of a new position. Luckily, she is summoned by a wealthy and dying Duchess, who enlists her help in carrying out her final wishes. Unfortunately, doing so puts Ivy in unimaginable danger. It's a good thing Ivy has such a plucky spirit - otherwise, she'd never survive.

I'm pretty sure this was a title I downloaded simply because it was middle-grade and it sounded like it might be fun. I'm not really sure what to make of this book in the end.

I had a really hard time getting into this. First, Ivy is a bit of a pill. It was never entirely clear to me if she was meant to satirical or serious, so I struggled with her as character. Her personality doesn't really change throughout the story and her inability to think any way other than her way leads to some frustrating moments. Additionally, I had a hard time believing Ivy as a 12-year-old. Well, perhaps that statement isn't exactly true. I had a hard time believing she was a 12-year-old with a full-time job that no one seemed all that concerned about. Partly because of Ivy's character, I also struggled with the tone of this one. Is the whole thing meant to be a satire, poking fun at characters like Amelia Bedelia? Or are we meant to take Ivy and her situation seriously? I don't know and the tone doesn't make it any clearer. Additionally, Ivy's inability to think outside her own little box seems to be the only thing that really drives the plot forward. This makes for a somewhat tiring sequence of events.

However, the plot does pick up a bit eventually. Readers are introduced to the complicated history of the artifact Ivy has been tasked with delivering and it's pretty interesting. There seem to be hints of more books in the future; certainly there is a very complex secret society kind of thing going on that could be further explored in future volumes. If there are to be more books about Ivy, I don't think I'll be coming back for them. Overall, there wasn't enough in this to capture my interest. Other reviews seem to generally be more favorable, and there is certainly a history of characters like Ivy in successful children's literature, so your mileage may vary.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: Jackaby

Jackaby (Jackaby, book one)
By William Ritter
Published 2014 by Algonquin Young Readers

Abigail Rook finds herself in need of employment. With not much initial luck, she finds herself taking on a most unusual assignment - assistant to one Mr. R.F. Jackaby, a very peculiar individual. Jackaby confesses that he can see the supernatural and, as they begin investigating a truly bizarre series of murders, Abigail starts to think that it may actually be true.

I remember hearing about this book prior to its release last year. I thought it sounded interesting, so of course I added it to my giant TBR list, knowing that it would likely be some time before I actually got around to reading it. I once again decided to participate in YALSA's Hub Challenge, prompting me to pick up this title much more quickly than I might have otherwise.

This book is billed as a cross between Doctor Who and BBC's Sherlock - neither is a show I watch. However, it's pretty easy to see where this billing comes from. Jackaby is quite clearly inspired by (if not a direct derivative of) the very idiosyncratic and no-nonsense Sherlock Holmes. Throw in a bit of the unexplainable (though, in this first volume, no aliens or time travel) and that's basically what you've got. It's quite entertaining, actually, and I'm glad I read it, but I'm not sure it'll stay with me forever.

I liked the characters, though I don't think they were as deeply developed as they could be. They really mostly seemed to exist as an excuse for the story - i.e. we're reading about these characters solely because Ritter needed a reason to put forth this paranormal mystery. There are glimpses of deeper characterization for Abigail and Jackaby (as well as several of the secondary characters) but, in this first volume, they feel pretty basic.

The story itself is fairly interesting - it actually kind of reminded me of an old episode of Supernatural. I thought the mystery was complex enough to keep me guessing and I liked that Ritter incorporated both well-known and lesser-known mythological/paranormal creatures. I'll be interested to see what other kinds of legends show up in future books.

So, I suppose that makes it clear that I'm interested in checking out more books in the series as they come. I thought it was a fun, quick read that kept me guessing.

Review: Catch You Later, Traitor

Catch You Later, Traitor
By Avi
Published 2015 by Algonquin Young Readers

Pete Collison loves Sam Spade and detective stories but he never expects his life to turn into one. But that's just what happens when an FBI agent shows up on his doorstep, asking questions about his father's involvement in the Communist party. It can't be true - can it? Soon, Pete is playing Spade himself, trying to uncover the truth about his father's past, but what he finds might not be what he expected.

This is one of the ARCs that showed up at my library. We get a handful every few months and the middle-grade titles get passed along to me for review. Usually, I'm already aware of the titles, but I'll still set aside the ones that interest me and try to make time to read them. This book happened to be one of those kinds of titles, considering my love of historical fiction.

I haven't read a lot of books set during the Red Scare, so I thought it was definitely a unique time period, but one that works really well for a children's book - the atmosphere of fear and paranoia make the stakes for everything seem especially high. I thought the characters and setting were realistically done - it felt like a very accurate portrayal of life in Brooklyn in 1951, where kids were a lot like Pete. I did start to get a bit frustrated with Pete - he really goes into all-out spy mode on his dad and begins to suspect pretty much everyone. However, I think my frustration mostly stems from not remembering what it's like to be a kid when you discover that your parents had this whole other life before you - that they had parents and maybe brothers and sisters that they did or didn't get along with and that they maybe made choices that turned out to be not so great after all. So, what maybe came off sometimes as a little lack of compassion from Pete to his father is not really what it was - it was more a reshuffling of Pete's entire worldview to accommodate the new information about his dad.

The mystery turned out to be more complex than I initially anticipated, so that was a nice surprise. I liked the ending fair enough - mostly with regards to the Kat storyline. Overall, I think this is a nice book to recommend to kids looking for a historical story with a gripping storyline - they'll be easily drawn into the mystery of Mr. Collison's past and searching for the answers alongside Pete.

Thanks to the publisher for an advance reader's copy.

Review: Across the Universe

Across the Universe (Across the Universe, book one)
By Beth Revis, read by Lauren Ambrose and Carlos Santos
Published 2011 by Penguin Audio

Amy was supposed to awake 300 years after she was put to sleep. She was supposed to awake alongside her parents, scientists essential to settling a new planet. She was supposed to awake on that new planet. But she doesn't. Instead, Amy is awoken 50 years early, aboard the spaceship Godspeed, where nothing is as it seems. Together with Elder (the future leader of the ship), she must discover who woke her - especially once other are unplugged and left to die.

When my fiance and I travel by car (which we prefer to air travel), we like to listen to audiobooks to pass the time. It's always my responsibility to choose the audiobook partly because I'm the librarian but also partly because my fiance can be pretty indecisive. It's pretty easy for me to pick something because our tastes are not all that different, but I tend to go for speculative fiction when we're listening together. We can get engrossed in the worldbuilding, and usually the plots move along quickly, so we stay interested the whole ride.

This book is one of the audiobooks we listened to together - well, we started it together (actually, quite some time ago) and then, after my iPod's recent demise, we both decided to download and finish it separately (though we finished within 24 hours of each other). I tend to lean more toward the fantasy side of speculative fiction than the science fiction side, but I knew my fiance would be into this one, so I decided to give it a chance.

I think it was a good choice on audio. Generally, I enjoy audio productions that feature multiple voices, and it was, of course, a natural choice to have two narrators for this book. I liked Santos' narration slightly better, but that's mainly because Ambrose had a tendency to get whispery, something which really irritates me in audio productions. I know they were simply reading it as written, but I did find it a bit tediously unnecessary that they stated the character's names at the start of each chapter.

As to the book itself, I found it enjoyable enough, but nothing to really write home about. I thought Revis did a decent job of creating the world on board the ship, though, mostly, it's nothing you haven't seen before. The suspense is well-done; I enjoyed learning about the ship and its inhabitants alongside Amy and trying to pinpoint who would want to kill innocent people. There is a twist at the end that I hadn't seen coming, so that was nice, too.

Character-wise, I liked Elder more than Amy. I found Amy's habit of referring to her father as "Daddy" just particularly annoying, to the point where I couldn't ignore it. However, I think they're both complex characters and Revis did well giving them rich, multilayered stories.

I'm a bit disappointed in this as a series starter; the story is completely self-contained in this volume. There are about a million directions that could be explored in other volumes, so I would have liked, perhaps, a bit more explicit set-up for book two. I'll still probably check out the rest of the series (and I know my fiance wants to, as well), but this was a pretty middle of the road opener in my eyes.

Review: Liars, Inc.

Liars, Inc.
By Paula Stokes
Expected publication March 24, 2015 by HarperTeen

Max and his friends have no problem profiting from their classmates' desire to lie. But when Max's best friend disappears, will all the lies catch up to him? Did Max have something to do with it? Or are there lies that even Max didn't know about?

Liars are kind of a big deal in teen fiction right now - they're popping up everywhere. While I don't have a particular fondness for them, I thought the blurb for this sounded suspenseful enough to give it a try. I didn't know beforehand that I'd read this author before, though under a different name and a different genre.

I'm not sure how much I have to say about this one. It was an interesting enough read and I was invested enough to want to know the truth behind Preston's disappearance, but it's probably not a book I'll remember for a long time. What I enjoyed most was the actual mystery. I though Stokes did a great job making it complicated but not convoluted, with twists that were surprising and mostly believable. My predictions about the truth were close but not exact, and I was pleased with Stokes' explanation of things.

What I didn't like were the characters. I thought they were all pretty selfish, making many poor choices. I was consistently frustrated with Max - he does not make a lot of rational decisions during the course of the story (though maybe I wouldn't either if the FBI suspected me of murdering my best friend). I also didn't love the dynamics between Max and his family - it seemed like something terrible had to happen for him to remember that he actually cared about them. I get that he's had a rough life, but he's been with the Cantrells for quite some time so I would have hoped he'd treat them better. However, I relate very little to Max's story, so maybe it's accurate and I just don't know. I really despised Parvati and I did not understand Max's attachment to her. He's pretty sure he's in love with her but most of their interactions don't seem to go much beyond some playful banter in between the sexy times. I just didn't buy their relationship.

Overall, this was a decent enough mystery/thriller to keep me engaged, but not memorable enough to sit on my keeper shelf.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: The Memory Key

The Memory Key
By Liana Liu
Expected publication March 3, 2015 by HarperTeen

A heroic incident causes damage to Lora's memory key and she starts remembering things she never has before. These new memories seem to suggest that something other than a car accident happened to her mother, that perhaps it wasn't an accident after all. Now, Lora will stop at nothing to uncover the truth, no matter how dangerous it may be.

Sometimes I think I read too much speculative fiction. Sometimes I wonder if that makes me too picky about my speculative fiction particularly for middle-grade or teen audiences. And sometimes I wonder if that makes me dislike books that I might not otherwise have problems with or if the books just sometimes aren't that good.

Obviously, I know that not all books are winners. But let's take this book. This is a book that I wonder if I might have enjoyed more if I didn't read quite so much speculative fiction. It's got an interesting premise: set in a future version of our world overrun with an Alzheimer's-like disease, people are implanted with memory keys which help them retain all their memories. Science such as this leads to interesting questions about privacy - where are those memories being stored? Who has access to them? Who decides if and when a memory should be altered? Would we really want to allow the government or a private corporation access to our brains like this?

Aside from these interesting questions, though, this book doesn't have much going for it, at least not to my speculative fiction-addled brain. Though it's clear this book is set in the future, there is very minimal world-building. Readers are given the basics of the Vergets epidemic and the history of the scientists working to combat it. But the setting is very vague otherwise - how far in the future are we looking? I'm pretty sure it takes place in the United States, but I'm not sure of anything more specific than that.

And then there's Lora. For much of the book, I found her unbelievable and flat. Her reactions to the incredible situations she keeps finding herself in don't seem reasonable. She seems to have very little emotional affect - even when describing a previous crush or an embarrassing moment, she seems distanced from any actual emotions that would be connected to these memories. Worse, even her descriptions of the grief she feels at losing her mother felt flat for me. In addition, her reactions don't seem normal. When her memory key begins to malfunction, she doesn't seem overly concerned. Liu tells me that she's so happy to have memories of her mother that she ignores the urge to fix her key, but she doesn't show me in ways that make me believe her. Lora also seems to have very little sense of logic; her investigations into her new memories and her mother's accident seem haphazard at best, if not just plain lucky.

Because of Lora's flat affect, the romance completely bombed for me. It felt both unnecessary and disingenuous. The twist also wasn't as compelling for me for the same reason. All of these bits add up to a book that I found flawed and uninteresting. I wonder, though, if I didn't read so much excellent speculative fiction if I would have noticed some of these things as much. There are some good action sequences in the book, and it moves along relatively well. Other readers might not see the twists coming, either. Ultimately, this one just didn't really work for me.

Thanks to the publisher for a digital advance reader's copy, provided via Edelweiss.

Review: Blood of My Blood

Blood of My Blood (Jasper Dent, book three)
By Barry Lyga
Published 2014 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

WARNING: Spoilers are likely ahead. Read my reviews of books one and two.

Jazz, Connie, and Howie are all in extremely unfortunate positions. Will they be able to rise above their current circumstances and stop the monster that is Billy Dent from destroying everything they love? Or will Jazz cross over to the dark side once and for all?

This was one of the books I was saddest about missing during my year of no library books. Book two ended with a huge cliffhanger, so I was full of anticipation for book three. It's the first library book (outside of Cybils reading and audiobooks) that I picked up in 2015, though actually finding time for its nearly 500 pages was another task altogether. But, it did not disappoint.

I'm not sure what I can say about this series or about Lyga that I haven't said before. He is completely unafraid to push the envelope, to take a book in a direction you don't really want it to go, to make his readers feel uncomfortable. I liked the twists and complications that arose. I liked that this book did make me quite uncomfortable at times - I think it's important to push boundaries. I liked that this book didn't back down from the level that Lyga had reached in the first two.

However, this book was probably my least favorite of the trilogy. At times, it felt a bit long and repetitive. Yes, Jazz is still questioning who he is and how far he will go, but it starts to feel a bit much as some point. The same could be said of Howie - while I thoroughly enjoyed him in the previous volumes, I was a bit sick of his schtick about midway through this one. I also don't think this book made me ask as many questions as the first two. The previous entries had me thinking big thoughts about identity and genetics and nature vs. nurture. This one still touches upon those ideas, but seems to focus more on horrifying the reader than on actually asking those questions.

Overall, though, I was still quite pleased with this conclusion to the trilogy. I still think Lyga is a daring author who I'll happily read whenever he publishes something new. I can't wait to see what he does next.