Category Archives: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller

Review: I am the Weapon by Allen Zadoff

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

I Am the Weapon by Allen ZadoffI Am the Weapon
Allen Zadoff
Little, Brown and Company
Published May 13, 2014

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You will think he’s your best friend. Then, when tragedy strikes someone close to you, he’ll disappear, fade into memory.

Since he was 12, he’s been in the Program. He moves from place to place, from one assignment to another, befriending someone close to his target and then quietly completing his mission: assassination.

But the latest mission is different. Memories swell to the surface of his mind and the daughter of his target sees him too clearly. Instead of honing in for the kill, he hangs back, hovering too close to the raw emotions of this family so recently touched by another loss.

If word of his hesitation reaches his superiors, he is as good as terminated. Despite that risk, he can’t help falling for the beautiful, tragic girl whose father he is supposed to kill. If he could understand why he was sent to destroy this man, perhaps he could still convince himself to follow orders. That’s the thing about information, though: once he starts asking questions, he can’t ignore the answers and what they mean may throw himself and the girl he loves directly in the line of fire.

Readers who like their plots fast and furious will fall face-first into the wild ride of this suspenseful story. Zadoff spools out clues about the protagonist’s traumatic past, his shockingly intense training and his history with the Program who trained him, expertly pacing the first novel of The Unknown Assassin series. Fans of Rick Yancey’s The 5th Wave may also enjoy this book.

Language Content
Extreme but infrequent.

Sexual Content
The boy who calls himself Benjamin finds himself caught between two aggressive girls, one of whom is not shy about offering sexual favors, including oral sex. Ben refuses her, but does briefly reference a previous sexual experience and engages in sex with another girl during the timeline of the story. Few details are given about either occurrence.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
The protagonist is a trained and deadly assassin. Though his usual method involves subtly injecting his victim with a powerful serum that causes near immediate death, occasionally he is forced to take on opponents in a much more active manner. The descriptions of these encounters are clinical and brief. Memories of his father’s capture and evident torture haunt him as well. He does not witness any ill treatment of his father, but is traumatized by the memory nonetheless.

Drug Content
A drug stored in a special pen incapacitates and kills quickly. Teens at a party enjoy alcoholic drinks.

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

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Review: Eve and Adam by Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant

Book Review and Content, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,

Eve and Adam (Eve & Adam #1)
Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant
Feiwel and Friends
Published October 2, 2012

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After a devastating accident, Evening is sent to an advanced medical facility called Spiker Biopharmaceuticals to recover. With her mother as the director, no expense is spared to get Eve back on her feet. To keep her busy and distracted, Eve’s mother offers to pay her to test simple simulation software. Eve agrees and begins to create a boy. The most perfect boy.

As Eve’s body rockets through recovery, Eve begins to suspect that there are things her mother isn’t telling her. Then Solo, the mysterious boy who seems to live at the medical facility, offers her a dangerous gift: the truth. What Solo tells Eve could shut down the whole company and land several prominent figures, her mother included, in prison and Eve must decide whether to warn her mother, beg Solo to maintain silence, or turn in the information herself. If anyone discovers Solo’s plan, he may not live long enough for Eve to decide what to do.

A fast-paced, clever exploration of genetics and morality, Eve and Adam balances light humor with dark issues. As Eve chooses traits for her perfect man, she wrestles with popular conventions about what’s most important in a potential mate. Physical beauty? Intelligence? Bravery? How much of what Eve programs in genetically would govern who her perfect man turned out to be? Solo’s careful cataloging of the evils perpetrated by the medical facility leaves readers in no doubt as to the importance of moral laws governing medical research. Beyond the science, the authors offer a thrilling journey filled with high drama and narrow escapes as well as tenderness and empathy.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Moderate word choice, mild frequency.

Sexual Content
Eve’s friend Ashlynn lives something of a promiscuous life. Eve doesn’t share many details, but Ashlynn makes several suggestive comments, especially about certain body parts of the boy Eve is creating using an advanced computer program.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
Ashlynn relates a story to Eve in which she and her bad-boy boyfriend Maddox are attacked by gang members. Three men beat Solo savagely. A man is stabbed in the skull with a large metal sculpture.

Drug Content
Eve’s mother runs a high-tech medical facility which performs research and experimentation on disease prevention and eradication as well as genetic manipulation. Ashlynn’s boyfriend sells marijuana and lands himself in a mess of trouble both with the law and with a local gang.

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Review: Tandem by Anna Jarzab

Book Review and Content, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Sci-Fi, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

Tandem (Many-Worlds Trilogy #1)
Anna Jarzab
Random House Children’s Books
Published October 8, 2013

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An ordinary teenage girl and a runaway princess from another universe have only one thing in common: They are identical, analogs of one another.

When a special forces soldier kidnaps Sasha from her senior prom on planet earth and drags her across time and space to Aurora where she will replace his missing princess, her only choice is to cooperate. Only Thomas, the solder who kidnapped her, has the power to return her to home and family on earth.

As Sasha desperately tries to impersonate the princess, she uncovers a truth Thomas can’t stomach. A truth that changes everything.

Worse still, Sasha begins to empathize with Thomas and value his sense of honor and his devotion to her. If she were forced to remain in Aurora, impersonating the princess forever, would it be so truly terrible?

The first book in the Many Worlds series introduces readers to a world divided into many parallel universes. Many contain analogs, or alternate versions of a person. It’s a fascinating premise and the idea is carried consistently throughout the story. At times, Sasha’s emotions and reactions are relayed with less consistence. For instance, in a scene in which she is nearly choking to death, she pauses in her panic to analyze a conversation she’s overhearing which indicates Thomas has lied to her. The romantic thread between Thomas and Sasha follows a wobbly course, not nearly so well-crafted as the layers of politics and intrigue Jarzab weaves between the rival nations of Aurora and Farnham. The plot resolves neatly and yet leaves plenty of room for anticipation of a second novel to come. Tether, book two in the Many Worlds trilogy is expected to release in the spring of 2015.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Moderate frequency of moderate profanity.

Sexual Content
A few moments of intense kissing.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
Sasha is kidnapped and dragged to another universe and later imprisoned. Thomas injures his hand when he punches through a security door lock.

Drug Content
Sasha receives an antidote to an allergic reaction. A Farnum boy is poisoned.

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Review: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Book Review and Content, Dystopian or Post-Apocalyptic, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , ,

The Maze Runner
James Dashner
Delacorte Press
Published October 6, 2009

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With limited memories of his previous life, Thomas arrives in a frightening world, trapped in a hostile maze with fifty other boys. Before he is fully acclimated to his new home, an unprecedented event occurs: a girl arrives, claiming she will be the last person to join them before collapsing into a coma. Thomas reels,feeling that this girl is familiar to him. He can’t stop thinking about her or feeling an intense desire to become a Runner, a member of the elite group of boys who set out into the maze daily, attempting to create a map to the exit.

When the group’s leader, and the leader of the Runners become trapped in the maze, Thomas rushes in to rescue them without considering the consequences: a night surrounded by fierce monsters called Grievers. As he struggles to survive the night, Thomas begins to understand what the boys must do in order to escape the maze. When the girl confesses that she has triggered the ending of the way of life the boys endure, Thomas realizes they must make their move now.

Though the opening is clouded with the intense confusion of the protagonist, the story and its world eventually becomes more clear, and readers are able to invest in Thomas and his friends. In addition to the unique dystopian setting, Dashner creates language used by the boys in place of profanity. While cleverly conceived, the words are overused to the point of obnoxiousness. The Maze Runner contains some dark elements. For instance, a Griever’s sting causes its victim to have a mental breakdown and to experience horrible memories from the past. Grievers attack the boys, and sometimes each other. However, the relationships between the characters are touching and the story’s tension builds steadily. The twist ending makes it difficult for readers not to immediately begin the second installment of the series.

The movie based on the book The Maze Runner is expected to hit the big screen in September 2014.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
No profanity. Characters use alternate words in place of swearing.

Sexual Content
When the girl arrives, a few of the boys make comments claiming her. Before anyone can lay a hand on her, the leader makes it clear that harming her in any way will not be tolerated.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
Half-machine, half-animal creatures called Grievers roam the maze at night, attacking and stinging any boys in their paths. Stings cause a reaction referred to as the Changing, which can cause some mad or violent outbursts.

Drug Content
A serum must be taken to save anyone stung by a Griever.

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Review: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

Book Review and Content, Dystopian or Post-Apocalyptic, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

The 5th Wave
Rick Yancey
G. P. Putnam’s Sons
Published May 7, 2013

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Most of the human population has been decimated by the first four waves of a highly intelligent alien attack. Though no one has learned to identify the enemy, the ominous shape of the mother ship hovering in the sky above the earth strikes fear in the hearts of the few who survive.

Sixteen year-old Cassie trusts no one. She survives by moving from place to place, reliving the past, when the most terrible conflict she faced was her unrequieted affection for Ben, fellow student and popular athlete. Now Cassie simply bides her time until she can no longer run from the last promise she made. A promise to rescue the last person alive whom she loves. When something sinister begins tracking Cassie, she knows she can’t hide for long. Her best option is to find cover and prepare a counter-attack, one that will hopefully end her pursuer before he can end her. But when Cassie finally faces her enemy, she discovers that things are much more complicated than she could have imagined.

Ben has lost everyone dear to him. Then he is rescued by a special forces group and trained to fight the alien invaders. Revenge seems just within his grasp, but something isn’t right. And the more Ben thinks about it, the less certain he is about who he is really working for.

One might think a story which begins with a girl wandering the woods remembering the recent past would be uneventful, but Yancey’s novel is anything but. Though the flashback sequences can be lengthy, they paint a picture of a world totally unprepared for the cunning enemy it faces, a world which quickly falls into destruction. As Cassie and Ben pursue survival and revenge, they learn values of self-sacrifice and trust. The plot is packed with plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader eager for just one more chapter all the way through the end.

Cassie and Ben’s story will continue in The Infinite Sea. The sequel is scheduled for release September 16, 2014.

Language Content
Extreme usage, mild frequency.

Sexual Content
As Cassie and her peers gather in the high school gym and rumors of the end of the world circulate, a friend suggests that Cassie approach her long-time crush and ask him to have sex with her, because, well, the world is about to end, so what does she have to lose? Cassie doesn’t follow this suggestion, but as survival becomes less of a guarantee, many people experience a shift in moral values. Cassie does spend some time kissing a boy and sleeping next to him.

Spiritual Content
The events of Cassie’s life cause her to ponder whether or not God exists. More questions than conclusions.

Violence
Alien attacks become more direct and devastating as the story progresses. One wave consists of a deadly disease which in late stages causes bleeding from all orifices. Yuck. Some battle scenes and weaponry are described in graphic detail. Children are recruited as soldiers and are both treated brutally as well as commit some brutal acts in the course of training.

Drug Content
No recreational drug content.

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Review: Primetime Charity Anthology by Curiosity Quills Authors

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

Primetime
Curiosity Quills
Published October 7, 2013

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A crow with a taste for blood, a computer playing a deadly game, a terrifying Mothman, and a killer refrigerator, among many other bizarre and frightening villains feature in these dark, suspenseful short stories. An unlikely team of heroes includes a zombie and son of a witch. On a devastated planet, a young princess fights for her life, seeking hope for her people. A man whose bodily functions elicit a broad range of powerful emotions begs for death before his anger-inciting burps cause the world to destroy itself. A struggling “ghost-relocation expert” makes a deal with a murder victim only to discover he’s made a deal with something else entirely.

Some of the stories are simple suspenseful fun, while others flirt with a deeper darkness, exploring the minds of murderers and sexual predators. A few feature characters from full-length novels, no doubt hoping to pique the reader’s interest. Most compelling in this vein is the story of the Beggar Princess and her desperate resistance against powerful enemies who would destroy her people and home by titled “The Last Carnivale” by Vicki Keire. “Trevor,” the story of a bored spaceship computer who wreaks havoc on its crew was another highly enjoyable tale, though a little dark.

It should also be noted that 10% of the proceeds from this collection and its sister collection titled After Dark, will be donated to selected No-Kill shelters across the USA.

Language Content
Severe; moderate frequency.

Sexual Content
In one story a man briefly confesses to abuse committed on him by his mother. He makes love to a woman he has just met. The scene is brief and includes some sensual descriptions. A woman discusses falling in love with and sharing an intimate relationship with another young woman. In another story, a terminally ill prostitute recounts his life, beginning with abuse at the hands of a church leader. Details are brief. Other stories reference sex or characters off-scene who are having sex, but do not describe the events in detail.

Spiritual Content
In one story a group of unlikely heroes must recover a stolen religious symbol which contains power of both Heaven and Hell before forces of either side can get their hands on it. A demon and angel emerge as characters but without the context of much Christian doctrine, and neither side is seen as good. Another story features characters who sense ghosts and ghostly presences. In still another story the protagonist finds himself surrounded by friends and acquaintances who’ve departed before him. He wonders, as the crowd contains those who’ve helped and who’ve hurt him, whether he is in Heaven or Hell.

Violence
Several stories feature fierce attacks against protagonists, though most are brief with regard to details and only some are deadly. One story features a computer as its mass killer. Two stories reveal the identities of serial killers and describes the death of the latest victims. In one story, the victims are mutilated (details are brief, and bodies are discovered by police, so there is no little description of what happened to the victims at the hands of the killer.) Two stories feature characters who commit suicide.

Drug Content
At least one story delves into cocaine addiction, and a character overdoses on illegal drugs in a suicide attempt.

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

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