Category Archives: Young Adult/Teen 12-18

Waterfire Saga Giveaway and Mini Reviews #Giveaway

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, News and Fun, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

One of the series I’ve been super excited about is the Waterfire Saga series. Today, I’m honored to work with Disney Hyperion to offer a Waterfire Saga prize pack as part of a giveaway celebrating the release of Dark Tide, the latest book in the series by the amazing and lovely Jennifer Donnelly.

Waterfire Saga Books 1-3Mini Review: Deep Blue

My favorite thing about this book is that it doesn’t take the traditional line of stories about mermaids. There’s no handsome human prince out there waiting for this Mer princess to rescue him. She’s got much bigger problems right here under the sea. I love that Donnelly creates this whole culture with  lore and customs but keeps it feeling fresh and accessible. Sera and her friends feel like hip teen girls even though they’re in a completely different world than ours. This is a great intro series for younger teen or preteen readers looking to get into fantasy or fairy tale retelling-type stories. (Read my full review of Deep Blue here.)

Mini Review: Rogue Wave

While Deep Blue spends a lot of time following Sera’s story, Rogue Wave branches out into her friend Neela’s story quite a bit. The Mer world has kingdoms of wildly different races and Sera’s journey to save her kingdom involves six girls with diverse backgrounds. I liked that the series brings some variations in race and ethnicity even at the ocean floor. Sera and Mahdi’s romance progresses but stays very PG and sweet. There are a couple of things that got a little bit repetitive for me – over and over we’re reminded that a ritual shared by five of the Mer girls transferred some of their special abilities to each other. It wasn’t a big deal, but it did seem to come up a lot. (Full review coming soon.)

Mini Review: Dark Tide

Read an excerpt of Dark Tide here.

In Dark Tide we get a view into Ling’s and Astrid’s roles in the plot to destroy the monster Abbadon. The stakes get higher as the bad guys close in on the mermaids and Mahdi’s cover could be blown at any minute. Sera and Neela have grown a lot since we first met them. Sera is now a seasoned warrior and leader. Neela has so much more confidence in herself. We get a little taste of romance with some of the other characters, which I really liked, too. Again, the love stories stay very clean. This might have been my favorite book of the series so far. The suspenseful ending definitely left me eager to read the final novel Sea Spell, which won’t be out until June 2016. (I received a copy of Dark Tide from Disney-Hyperion as part of my participation in the giveaway, but my opinions on the book and series are my own. Look for my full review on Dark Tide in November.)

About Jennifer Donnelly

Jennifer Donnelly is an award-winning author of both adult and young adult books, including Deep Blue, Rogue Wave, and Dark Tide, the first three books in the Waterfire Saga. For adults she has written a trilogy of best-selling books that includes The Tea Rose, The Winter Rose, and The Wild Rose. Her first young adult novel, A Northern Light, received many accolades, among them the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, a Carnegie Medal in the UK, and a Michael L. Printz Honor. Her second young adult novel, Revolution, was named a Best Book of 2010 by Kirkus Reviews and School Library Journal, and the audiobook received a 2011 American Library Association Odyssey Honor. She lives in New York’s Hudson Valley. For more information, visit www.jenniferdonnelly.com.

(She is also one of my favorite authors! If you haven’t read A Northern Light you definitely want to check it out.)

Waterfire Saga Books and Nail Polish Set Giveaway

One lucky winner will receive these awesome goodies provided by Disney Hyperion. (US addresses only, please.) Winner will be chosen when the contest ends on 11/3/15.

Leave a blog post comment about your favorite mermaid myth or story to enter the giveaway.

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Review: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance, Sci-Fi, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

Illuminae
Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Random House Children’s Books/Knopf Books for Young Readers

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

I’m going to pull the marketing copy from Goodreads because honestly, I won’t be able to come up with anything to the story better justice:

This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet’s AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it’s clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she’d never speak to again.

Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.

What I thought
This story is kind of like World War Z meets 2001: A Space Oddyssey. SO. MUCH. TENSION. An unpredictable AI who may or may not be trying to kill everyone, plus a highly contagious epidemic of people basically turning into paranoid, violent zombies. In a closed spaceship. In the middle of outer space. With an enemy ship closing in behind them. Are you on the edge of your seat? OMG, you should be.

The story is told through various “records” like emails, interviews, crew reports, and instant messages. At first I didn’t think I’d like this. I felt like it really limited how things unfolded, but once I got past the first couple of chapters, I felt like the pacing and the choice of which documents are included and the order in which they appear really adds to the feeling of tension building and building as the story progresses.

I loved the quick, witty dialogue between characters, especially Ezra and Kady. What I didn’t love quite so much was that after a while, it seemed like that voice got used too often and too many characters sounded the same to me. I was definitely willing to overlook that, though. It hardly affected my ability to enjoy the story. It was just more something I happened to notice.

Also, the end was fantastic. There was a moment in which I worried that it was going to all wind down leaving me bitter and disappointed, and instead Kristoff and Kaufman totally kicked it up a notch. I would absolutely read a sequel.

Side note: I read an ARC acquired from Netgalley, so the formatting in my version may not match the final version, but I’d recommend ordering a hard copy of the book rather than an ebook. There were a few pages that, because of how they displayed, were a little bit difficult for me to read, and I felt like I was missing parts of words at the edges of the page. I think it might have been easier to read as a paperback, though I usually prefer an ebook version.

Language Content
Loads of profanity and some crude references.

Sexual Content
References to sexual acts.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
A biological warfare agent/virus causes those affected to become violent. Sufferers maim and decapitate others. Lots of descriptions are of the aftermath of the outbreak, but there are some really intense moments in which a point-of-view character faces someone with truly gory intent. I’m pretty sensitive to violence in literature, and it was definitely at my upper limits of what I can take.

Drug Content
See above.

Review: As White as Snow by Salla Simukka

Book Review and Content, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, New Adult 18up, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

As White as Snow by Salla Simukka
Translated from Finnish by Owen F. Witesman
Skyscape/Amazon

After risking her life to bring down a crime ring in Finland, seventeen year-old Lumikki retreats to the anonymous streets of Prague, hoping to find a little peace. Instead she finds a young woman claiming to be her long-lost sister whose life may be in danger. Even though she finds the girl’s story suspicious, Lumikki can’t turn her back on the girl and the mystery surrounding her.

Some elements – an investigative reporter working to uncover a far-reaching scandal aided by a brilliant but odd girl – may remind readers of Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Yet despite the drama and suspense, the story’s pace chokes on pointless flashbacks featuring a failed romance between Lumikki and her transgender partner. Perhaps Lumikki is too smart, for she often foils the plans of her enemies with seemingly little effort. To digest the ending requires a firm willing suspension of disbelief as Lumikki resolves one mystery only to abandon pressing charges or consequences on some guilty parties.

As White as Snow is the second book detailing Lumikki’s crime-fighting exploits. Perhaps reading the first book, As Red as Blood would have given me a better reference point for understanding how the relationship flashbacks related to the current story. Without having read that first book, it’s hard for me to say. As a fan of Larsson’s Dragon Tattoo books, I felt this story, which is advertised as a comparable tale, really couldn’t compare to the complexity and machine-tight plot found in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. But perhaps that comparison set the bar too high?

Language Content
Profanity used very infrequently.

Sexual Content
Lumikki has flashbacks to her relationship with Blaze, who is a transgender boy. Blaze ended his relationship with Lumikki due to worries that she couldn’t accept his transition. Lumikki feels she never judged Blaze and loved him regardless of any issues related to his transgender-ness. She remembers some sexual experiences rather vividly – PG-13 kind of stuff. These scenes don’t really connect to the present story at all. Blaze never enters the story in any way other than in the flashbacks, and they never add to the current tale.

Spiritual Content
Lenka is a member of a cult whose practices have some connection with Christianity. The cult members believe they are members of one family, and their practices reference Jesus and God. There are references to other cults in which members have committed suicide en masse.

Violence
An assassin tries to catch and kill Lumikki, but he’s a bit clumsy about it.

Drug Content
A girl takes sleeping pills on orders from her spiritual leader.

Review: The Lost Princess by Dani-Lyn Alexander

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , ,

The Lost Princess (The Kingdom of Cymmera #2)
Dani-Lyn Alexander
Lyrical Press
Published: 10/13/15

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Ryleigh’s boyfriend is from another dimension. Literally. Jackson, the newly crowned king of Cymmera wants her to leave the human world behind and join him in ruling his kingdom. Torn between what could be her destiny and her love for her younger sister still in the human world, Ryleigh isn’t sure what to do. Then an important Cymmeran relic disappears. Ryleigh sets out to find the missing stone and stumbles onto a treasonous plot that could destroy Jackson’s fragile kingdom. She must find a way to warn him before the betrayal can be carried out.

There’s an old writing saying about beginning a story in the middle. Alexander was paying attention. The very first chapter of The Lost Princess is jam-packed with action and conflict. I haven’t read the first book in the Kingdom of Cymmera series, so I was a little nervous about being able to follow the story. For the most part, though, it was easy to figure out what was going on and why it was significant.

Once the story shifts into the Cymmeran realm, the action stays high but the conflict becomes more organized. Jackson’s motivations are clear and powerful. And though Ryleigh gets herself into a bit of trouble, she’s far from a helpless maiden. Most of the story centers around these two characters. I found myself wishing for more information about Dakota, Jackson’s best friend, and Mia, Ryleigh’s little sister.

One thing that did slow the story down for me was the sheer number of adjectives in each sentence. Sometimes the descriptions heightened the emotional impact of a scene, but at other times it almost made moments seem cheesy or melodramatic. I think the story would have been stronger by tightening things up, especially in those intense moments.

Over all, this wasn’t my favorite. The things I liked about it – the strong heroine, worthy hero, fantasy landscape – can be found in other stories where the narrative is better executed. Readers looking for high action and fierce romantic tension may find this story to be a good fit, though, as Alexander delivers on both counts.

Language Content
No profanity.

Sexual Content
Jackson tries his best to keep the smooching to a minimum. Prolonged kissing begins a ritual that will bind Ryleigh to him forever, and he wants to wait until she’s ready to make that choice. However, there’s a lot of sexual tension between the two. A lot of references to their feelings for each other via physical experiences – an aching need to be together, that sort of thing.

At one point, though, the kissing does get a bit carried away, and while the two are still clothed, they are lying down together and the imagery is pretty sexual.

Spiritual Content
Jackson and his people live in an alternate realm to the human world. Some of his people are part of a league called Death Dealers, who venture into the human world to kill certain targets and bring them back to their own kingdom to live. They use portals to travel from one place or dimension to another.

Elijah, a prophet has visions that he reveals to the Cymmeran leadership. They follow his directions. It’s unclear if this is supposed to be a supernatural gift or a religious experience for the prophet. The evil king has a prophet/sorcerer of his own as well. Ryleigh finds a spirit animal who remains at her side as a protector throughout the story.

Violence
Battle imagery. References to torture. A prisoner is pretty severely brutalized. A prince exacts revenge on an old enemy by stabbing him in the temple.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Review: Never Said by Carol Lynch Williams

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Never Said
Carol Lynch Williams
Zondervan

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

In the midst of her devastation over a break-up, Sarah realizes something isn’t right with her twin. Annie has been withdrawing from the family for some time, but her behavior seems to be escalating. She chops off her hair, gains weight, and gives up the beauty pageants she once lived for. Though shy and socially anxious Sarah has always been jealous of the way her parents favor Annie, she begins to worry about her sister. Sarah pushes toward her sister, and finds that in return, Annie reluctantly opens up to her.

The writing style was the first thing that captured me in this story. The voice is strong, conveying Sarah’s inner agony and Annie’s mounting frustration with aching clarity. There was one moment at the beginning where I felt like the story was a bit repetitive in describing Sarah’s reaction to her family’s interactions. Other than that, things moved forward at a great pace, and I tore through the story in one sitting of just a few hours.

Annie’s weight gain dramatically changes the way the other students interact with her. While Annie feels that her new look is a shield against unwanted male attention, she also endures some hateful behavior from other kids. The exploration of body image and how weight affects the way others perceive us is important. Williams doesn’t shy away from the sad reality there. Annie eventually decides to return to her old look, and while I get it, I found myself wishing somehow that there had been a bigger pause, a bigger moment to say that it really doesn’t/shouldn’t matter what her weight is. Returning to her slimmer figure doesn’t increase her actual value, though it functioned as an indicator of Annie’s rising sense of her own value – she’d been hiding behind those extra pounds and shedding them would be like facing an enemy head-on. It showed real courage.

The resolution was a bit quick. All the way through the story Annie hints that she has a secret. It smells like sexual abuse, but we don’t find out what it is until the big reveal maybe three-quarters of the way through the story. Once this comes out, Sarah takes some action to protect her sister. Following this, we get kind of a summary of how everyone responded and what happened after that (visit spoiler section if you want to know more.) I felt like some of that was a bit rushed and didn’t allow me a chance to soak in the characters’ emotions in what was a really big moment.

I loved watching the sisters’ relationship develop. As a girl with two sisters, one close enough in age that we were often mistaken for twins, the tug-of-war Annie and Sarah experienced in terms of establishing their own identities and finding ways to connect despite their differences and pressure from parents or friends felt extremely real.

As I read, I found myself looking for the spiritual tie-in. Though this is a Zondervan book, there was not really any link that I could see to pursuing a Christian faith or even searching out questions about whether God is real or anything like that. I found it a bit puzzling, to be honest.

Language Content
None.

Sexual Content
Sarah recalls time spent with her boyfriend snuggling in his bed (clothed), kissing, and sneaking in/out of each other’s rooms. (see below for additional content which includes spoilers.)

Spiritual Content
None.

Shocked? Me too. Despite the fact that Zondervan is a Christian publisher… I can’t remember faith really playing any sort of role whatsoever in the story.

Violence
None.

Drug Content
None.

SPOILER (select the text below to read…)
Sexual content continued… Annie reveals that she’s no longer a virgin and that she’s had sex with a married man, even after she told him no. It’s a quick conversation and there’s not a lot of follow-up information.

While I appreciate that we weren’t dragged through the gory details of Annie’s relationship, I kind of felt like the resolution of this information, which the whole story has been building up to, was too quick and too many things were left unsaid. We have enough infer that it’s a bad relationship from the brief information Annie reveals, and there’s a brief wrap-up letting us know that this guy isn’t going to get off scot-free. I just felt like it needed to be a bigger moment. I wanted to really feel Annie’s parents realize what’s been happening and see them respond to her with all the shock, horror, and protection, rather than just have Sarah tell us that was so.

 

Review: Shades of Doon by Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon

Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Clean Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

Shades of Doon
Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon
Blink YA/Zondervan
Published: September 1, 2015

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

As Vee embraces her role as Doon’s Queen, she looks forward to the day she and Jamie will be able to rule together. Her best friend Kenna still searches for her own place in the kingdom. Just as Kenna begins to feel she’s found her niche, a dark force boots both girls from their beloved land and drops them back in the real world. As if facing the shock of their old, broken lives wasn’t enough, all signs indicate that this is just the beginning of a new threat. Together with the MacCrae boys, they’ll have to face an old enemy once again, one who’s determined to have the rule of Doon for herself.

Vee and Kenna are very different, but their friendship makes them each stronger. I liked the dynamics between them, where Kenna kept Vee from taking herself too seriously and Vee kept Kenna from losing faith in herself. The circle of friends and advisers added interest, too. I definitely wanted to know more about each of them. I haven’t read either of the earlier books in this series, so I may have to do that in the hopes that some of these other characters get a little more stage time.

I also really enjoyed the references to musicals and theater that were sprinkled throughout the story. Though I’m far from a theater buff, I picked up on several of them, and it felt like being in on a joke or something. I thought it was a nice touch.

While I found myself captured by the idyllic landscape of the story, I felt like it lost tension in a couple of places. One is after the girls are booted out of Doon, which is resolved in a snap once the boys arrive. The other is following an attack by an unknown enemy. The attack ends and everyone kind of dusts themselves off and moves on. I was like, wait, what?! Is the enemy still out there? What’s going on?? But… no one else really seemed too worried. So that was a little confusing.

There was also quite a bit of kissing in this story. Don’t get me wrong – I’m all for a bit of smooching, especially when I’ve been rooting for the romance to finally blossom for the entire story. This was more like, the couple has already fallen in love and it’s kind of just happily ever after on rinse and repeat. I would have liked to see more tension or conflict between the couples to keep me guessing and hoping. However, if I’d been a reader from the very beginning of the series, I might still be happy-sighing every time a well-earned lip-smack happens. So it could just be me. And the authors take things up a notch toward the end, definitely creating some anticipation for the next book.

Language Content
No profanity.

Sexual Content
Lots of scenes that include kissing. There’s one moment where it gets pretty intense and the characters stop themselves from taking things further, wanting to respect the boundaries they’ve set for their relationship which include waiting to have sex until marriage.

Spiritual Content
The Protector seems to be the name the Doonians use to refer to God. They believe that some have a calling to live out their lives in the kingdom of Doon, and that calling involves being joined with a soul mate.

Violence
A witch threatens the Doonian people. No graphic details beyond an admiring description of Duncan or Jamie’s rippling muscles.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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