Tagged: young adult fiction
Book Review: Thousand Words by Jennifer Brown
Image Courtesy of Goodreads.com
From Goodreads
Ashleigh’s boyfriend, Kaleb, is about to leave for college, and Ashleigh is worried that he’ll forget about her while he’s away. So at a legendary end-of-summer pool party, Ashleigh’s friends suggest she text him a picture of herself — sans swimsuit — to take with him. Before she can talk herself out of it, Ashleigh strides off to the bathroom, snaps a photo in the full-length mirror, and hits “send.”
But when Kaleb and Ashleigh go through a bad breakup, Kaleb takes revenge by forwarding the text to his baseball team. Soon the photo has gone viral, attracting the attention of the school board, the local police, and the media. As her friends and family try to distance themselves from the scandal, Ashleigh feels completely alone — until she meets Mack while serving her court-ordered community service. Not only does Mack offer a fresh chance at friendship, but he’s the one person in town who received the text of Ashleigh’s photo — and didn’t look.
Unspoken (Book 1 in The Lynburn Legacy) by Sarah Rees Brennan
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Synopsis: Kami Glass has been friends with Jared her whole life. The catch is that he’s in her head. What if he turned out to be real? And what if he was a Lynburn?
Kami’s life becomes interesting as the mysterious Lynburns return to the sleepy town of Sorry-in-the-Vale. Owners of the dark Manor on the hill, the Lynburns seem to be hiding their own secrets; secrets Kami is determined to find out.
The return of the Lynburns have also marked the occurrence of some deeply disturbing events in the town. Who is disturbing the peace of the woods? What secrets are the residents of Sorry-in-the-Vale, including Kami’s own mother hiding?
As an investigative reporter and editor of the school Newspaper, Kami is not one to back down in the face of danger. Yet what is she going to do now that Jared is real? How will the two of them cope with this new reality ? Can they trust each other? Most of all can their friendship survive in the real world?
Deadville by Ron Koertge
Image Courtesy Of Goodreads
Synopsis: Ryan Glazier simply exists; he maintains a solid C-Average and smokes with his best friend Andy. Ryan was not always like this. He used to be an athletic teenager who enjoyed playing soccer. Things took a downward spiral when his younger sister Molly passed away two years ago. Now Charlotte Silano; a senior at school, not to mention one of the hottest girls lies in a coma after falling off her horse. Ryan is drawn to Charlotte for some reason and visits her in the hospital almost every day. Why does Ryan visit Charlotte and talk to her? Will it help her to regain consciousness? What’s in it for Ryan? Is he going to start coming out of his emotional detachment?
Cover Gushing Worthiness: I admit that it was the cover that drew me towards the book. There isn’t a lot going on in it. However the image of the hat and earphones makes sense as the story progresses. The cover reminded me of the Things Not Seen cover by Andrew Clements. That is another book that I would recommend as well!
Review: I haven’t read a lot of books that deal with life threatening illness and after reading A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness I wanted to read more. Cue discovery of Deadville. Now as I read Deadville I didn’t compare it to A Monster Calls, but I was reminded of it.
I like the premise of this story because it focuses on a sibling’s perspective. How family members deal with grief is a very personal experience and there is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to go about it. I enjoyed how Koertge explored the experience of grief among Ryan and his parents. He really looked at how life changes when a loved one experiences a life threatening illness and how the surviving members deal with a loss of a loved one. The setting of the school did remind me a lot of Conor’s experience in A Monster Calls because both characters experience isolation.
The subplots such as Ryan’s developing relationship with his classmate Betty and the young boy Thad at the hospital were clever additions because it gave the reader an opportunity to see Ryan’s character come out of his emotional detachment.
Although the premise of the book was good, I had some problems with the characters. My main issue was with Ryan. Unlike Conor from A Monster Calls I didn’t connect with Ryan emotionally. He just existed and I found it hard to believe him because I had no connection with him. Ryan’s sister Molly was also somewhat of a shell. Her character had much more potential and I wish she was more developed. And the resulting problem for me was that I didn’t quite believe the relationship between Ryan and Molly. I wish there were flashbacks of the two of them where we’d get a chance to hear Molly’s voice, not Ryan’s reflection of her.
Another relationship I had a problem was with Betty and Ryan’s. Personally I thought it came out of nowhere and I didn’t believe it either. I promise this review isn’t completely negative!!
The friendship between Ryan and Andy which was one of the more important ones also ended quite abruptly. I felt like there was no closure between the two of them and Andy sort of faded away as the story progressed. But it also may have shown Ryan’s character development.
The most important relationship in the book is between Ryan and Charlotte. It is a one-sided friendship, but it is one that offers Ryan redemption and ultimately that is what he is looking for.
If I had so many problems with the characters, you’re probably asking why I even bothered to finish this boo. It’s definitely a valid question and the only answer that I have is that the book just gripped me. Sometimes you do come across books that have a hold on you even though you have problems with it. I just wanted to find out what happens in the end.
Overall despite my issues with the characters, Deadville was an enjoyable read. The premise of the book was and the writing was good, good to the point where I finished it in a night. If you’re looking for a young adult/teenage book that deals with Cancer and it’s life changing affects this is a book you may want to consider reading.
My Rating: 3/5
Would I recommend it? Yes.
A Spy in the House (The Agency # 1) by Y.S. Lee
[Guest post by ForTheLoveOfBooks. –CS]
From Goodreads
Rescued from the gallows in 1850s London, young orphan (and thief) Mary Quinn is surprised to be offered a singular education, instruction on fine manners- and an unusual vocation. Miss. Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls is a cover for an all-female investigative unit called The Agency, and at seventeen Mary is about to put her training to the test. Assuming the guise of a lady’s companion, she must infiltrate a rich man’s home in hope of tracing his missing cargo ships. But the household is filled with dangerous deceptions, and there’s no one to trust- or is there?
Packed with action and suspense, banter and romance, and evoking the gritty backstreets of Victorian London, this breezy mystery debuts a young detective who lives by her wits while uncovering secrets including those of her own past.
I first came across A Spy In The House after watching Priscilla’s Review for the book and I thought it would be a great read. I’m happy to say that it didn’t disappoint me at all! I don’t think my reviews would be complete without dedicating some attention to the cover of course. I like the cover of this book, especially Mary’s gaze towards the side. There’s something mysterious about it and it suits the plot. Also the house pictured on the cover reminds me of “The Noble House of Black” from the Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix movie. The verdict is: I approve of the cover and now it’s time to move onto more fascinating aspects of the book!
As goodreads has explained, the story follows the life of Mary Quinn from being an orphaned thief to novice detective as she has started to work on her first case. The story centers mainly in London, while places like Brighton and India are mentioned briefly. The importance of these locations become evident as the story progresses.
The plot is enjoyable and fast paced. By fast paced I mean, the story begins in 1853 and by pg.11 we have already time traveled to 1858 where Mary is seventeen years old and is working as an instructor for Miss.Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls, only to be introduced later to The Agency; an elite female detective organization headed by Anne Treleaven and Felicity Frame. These two women are also Mary’s mentors, especially Anne. Still focusing on the pace of the book, I think what I found strange, yet good was the pace moved steadily as the story progressed. I didn’t feel as if any of the chapters acted as fillers for the entire story. All aspects were relevant, even in a minor way. However my only disappointment was that the fast pace let the story down a bit. The aspect here I’m referring to is the training Mary undergoes prior to setting off on her assignment. I would have liked to know more about her training and the interactions between Mary and the instructors. To see the protagonist pushed to her limits would have been an element worth exploring. The plot twists were surprising and enjoyable. Mary’s heritage was one that came as a surprise and I would like to see how that story arc is developed in the next book. Continue reading
My Favourite Heroes
While there is no shortage of heroes in history and adult fiction, strong male leads are increasingly difficult to find in the YA genre. Most young adult fiction is written by women for women, but there seems to be a growing trend in YA novels geared toward teenage boys. With writers like Rick Riordan, Eoin Colfer and Anthony Horowitz topping bestseller lists, one can only hope that soon boys will get the representation they deserve. Here is a list of my favourite YA heroes, in descending order.
1. Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling.
You probably knew Harry Potter would feature somewhere on this list, didn’t you? Well, there are many reasons the most famous character in YA literature is my favourite hero, not the least of which is the fact that the Harry Potter series was one of the first YA series I read. Perhaps I am biased, but I can also justify my choice. No matter how many horrible things happen to him, no matter how awful things get, Harry perseveres. He does things 99% of teenagers would not be capable of doing; he shows courage he never knew he had. But he is not perfect and his friends are usually there to help him through the tough times. Harry is a flawed hero, which makes him my favourite. Continue reading