Category Archives: By Genre

Review: The Hunted by Matt de la Pena

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

The Hunted by Matt de la PenaThe Hunted
Matt de la Peña
Delacorte Press

When Shy and his friends reach the California shoreline, they find widespread devastation and panic. What seemed at first like an easy mission – transport precious vaccines to Arizona to stop the spread of a disease destroying humanity – suddenly becomes near impossible. With the border closed and vigilantes hunting down anyone on the road, the trip seems like a hopeless cause. But with more and more people dying, Shy can’t give up. He must find a way to deliver the medicine and the evidence damning its creator.

The rise of the ugly disease and the conspiracy behind its spread will likely remind readers of James Dashner’s Maze Runner series. The Hunted packs a high dose of suspense and a fast-paced plot that keeps the pages turning. At one point the story takes a bit of a sci-fi turn. Something really unreal happens, but Shy kind of scratches his head and moves on. Nothing further develops from that moment, and readers are left hanging.

At times Shy seems a little young for seventeen, especially in his relationship with Carmen, who often reads as much older. Their relationship progresses through the course of the story, but isn’t a strong central focus. Shy wants to track down his family members and first finds his dad, with whom he carries a lot of emotional baggage. The rebuilding of that relationship borders on being too easy or perfect, but like Shy and Carmen, it’s not in the spotlight very much. Readers looking for a suspenseful, post-apocalyptic tale will find no shortage of action in this high-energy story.

Language Content
Extreme profanity used often. More than one character pretty much uses profanity to refer to any general noun. Often.

Sexual Content
Shy makes a quick comment about how he hooked up with Carmen (in the first book.) Things heat up between them. They swim in underwear and have sex (not a lot of description there.) All this while Carmen is engaged to a man who may or may not still be alive.

Spiritual Content
There are some digs at religion/faith, at Christianity/Jesus in particular as being a useless pursuit. A priest helps Shy and his friends, but there’s no mention of what state the man’s faith remains in.

Violence
There are some pretty gross moments, mostly descriptions of bodies long dead. Some seemed unrealistic – if there’s an outbreak of contagious disease, why aren’t corpses burned? Instead they’re kind of just left sitting there getting nastier and nastier.

Vigilantes with guns shoot anyone who could be sick or who gets in their way.

Drug Content
Shy and his friends carry vaccines that they hope can be replicated to stop the spread of the disease.

The story contains an idea that a large medical company has basically scammed the public by creating a devastating illness and then withholding the vaccine, hoping to use it to get rich.

Review: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

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

Ready Player One
Ernest Cline
Random House/Random House Audio

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Orphaned and left to the care of his neglectful aunt, seventeen year-old Wade spends as much time as possible in the online virtual world of the OASIS. From virtual school to online chat rooms to video games, Wade lives most of his life and maintains his closest relationships over an internet connection. When the OASIS founder James Halliday dies, he leaves a challenge behind for the most faithful of his users: find three keys, unlock three gates, and locate the Easter egg within the OASIS. The prize: his fortune and control of the OASIS empire. Of course, everyone wants to win, but Wade, a devoted student of Halliday’s interests, knows for him, it’s the only way to survive. Once Wade uncovers the first clue, a dangerous rival threatens his life, and Wade must continue his online hunt on the run. The only way he’ll ever be free is to win the prize.

After coming across rave reviews, I listened to this novel as an audiobook, narrated by Wil Wheaton. We are a pretty pro-Wil Wheaton household: a little bit Trekkie, avid Tabletop followers, and yes, we’ve watched the recorded sessions of the Acquisitions, Inc Dungeons and Dragons games. So, needless to say, both my husband and I were excited to get into this video gamer story. We listened to it on the way to and from my cousin’s out-of-town wedding.

All the way through, I loved the narration. Wheaton’s delivery was entertaining and he seemed to really enjoy the story himself, which made it easy to enjoy hearing it. As a child of the 80s, I got a kick out of a lot of the references (some I missed… must have been too busy with My Little Pony or Jem & the Holograms.) The first quarter of the story itself really had me hooked. Here’s this kid with this big dream, and suddenly the cost of pursuing it skyrockets. Suddenly finding Halliday’s Easter egg could cost Wade his life.

But once Wade went gaga over Art3mis, I felt like the tale lost some steam. Over and over I felt like there were opportunities for conflict or tension, and instead they became long passages about how awesome Wade is and how he knows everything he needs to know, and did we mention he’s awesome? To me, those parts read like a fantasy as opposed to a story. So that kind of dampened my enthusiasm a bit.

Still, the overall mechanism of the contest and the big inevitable showdown between the gunters and the black-hearted IOI guru made for an exciting climax. I liked that Wade’s friends are not who he thinks they are. A bit of that reveal may have bordered on being preachy, but the overall message – that the internet is sort of the new marketplace, and despite the fact that an avatar’s appearance bears no connection to the gamer’s real face, certain kinds of people get preferential treatment. I liked that Cline went there and respected that he took the opportunity to challenge stereotypes.

Despite the slow middle, Ready Player One was a really fun read. I highly recommend the audiobook version.

Language Content
Extreme profanity used throughout the story. More frequently in the first half than the second half.

Sexual Content
References to the main character being a virgin. There are places to visit within the Oasis in which players can purchase virtual companionship and use a doll to simulate sexual experiences. There aren’t really any details describing the process. The main character goes through a brief period in which he’s desperate enough to try this, but feels ashamed later.

Spiritual Content
Gunters sort of treat Halliday’s book as a holy text. Not in the sense of worshipping him per se, but more like the quest has that much importance.

Violence
Bad guys blow up a trailer park full of innocent people and toss a gamer off the balcony of his apartment building to his death. Virtual battles take place within the Oasis. Nothing is described in gory detail.

Drug Content
None.

Random Trivia
Spielberg (who is mentioned in the book) will be directing the film version of Ready Player One, which is set to be released in December 2017. Also, to celebrate the release of the paperback version of his book, Ernest Cline hosted a contest inspired by the story in which participants had to locate an Easter egg within the story and unlock gates to reach a final victory. The prize, a Delorean was awarded to the winner, Craig Queen.

Review: Nirvana by J R Stewart

Book Review and Content, Dystopian or Post-Apocalyptic, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, New Adult 18up, Sci-Fi, , ,

Nirvana
J R Stewart
Blue Moon Publisher

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Seventeen year-old punk rock star Larissa Kenders has a cause to fight for and a soul mate who understands her better than anyone. But when her lover, Andrew, a brilliant programmer for a powerful company, disappears, Kenders has to take all she’s learned in her quest to protect animal rights to a whole new kind of fight: one to find and save the man she loves. With corporate thugs closing in around her, she must decode clues Andrew left behind about why he may have been murdered. She’ll need help, but choosing the wrong ally could cost her life.

My number one issue with this novel is that I really don’t think it qualifies as YA. Though the narrator is seventeen, all of the issues she deals with are adult issues. There’s no sense of coming-of-age, or sort of graduating into the adult sphere. She begins the novel living independently with her adult boyfriend and then investigating his disappearance on her own.

I really liked that Stewart brought music into the story and used punk music in particular in the way he did. I loved that Kenders had a cause important to her and that the music was a big part of her platform for that cause, yet it lent itself to other parts of the story pretty seamlessly.

I loved her relationship with Andrew. They seemed to really get each other and have a relationship worth fighting for. I loved the scenes where Kenders goes into the virtual world and meets Andrew and it’s laced with the snippets of reality. I LOVED the layering of virtual and real overlapping so tightly that it was hard to tell where one began and the other ended. The theme is explored in discussions between characters a little bit as well – whether events experienced in the virtual world are at all real. Such a great thread. It felt very Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind to me, and I totally enjoyed that.

I felt like there was a really abrupt jump in the part where Andrew disappears. I don’t want to give too much away, but one chapter ends with Kenders saying she’s going to go find him and the next begins with a huge event that left me feeling like I missed a few pages. Over all it wasn’t a big deal. There were a couple of times where the boys are kind of like, hey we’re smart, so you (Kenders) sit tight and let us do the hard thinking. It made sense in terms of the plot, but sort of sidelined her as the protagonist and put her more in the damsel-in-distress position. I liked the story better in the scenes in which Kenders was playing a more active role in the story.

Overall I think this is a cool sci-fi story. It definitely reminded me of some of the recent VR movies that I wanted to like, such as Surrogate with Bruce Willis (I liked this better, actually.) I think it will have more appeal outside the YA audience. Not that I didn’t enjoy it, but I feel like it’s more of an adult sci-fi novel with a young narrator.

Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Sexual Content
Descriptions of kissing and a lead-in to sex, but no description of the actual exchange.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
Brief descriptions of torture tactics used to pressure a man to give up information. A man is killed in an explosion that leaves his body badly burned.

Drug Content
None.

Review: Dead Ringer by Jessie Rosen

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

Dead Ringer
Jessie Rosen
Full Fathom Five

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

When Laura Rivers arrives at her new school in a small East Coast town, she’s not prepared for the fear-stricken looks from the other students. A little searching reveals the reason: Laura looks just like a girl who died last year. Though the death was reported as a suicide, a mysterious hacker keeps sending notes reminding Laura’s boyfriend of the fateful night. Notes that indicate Charlie and his friends keep a secret between them, one they tried to bury the night Sarah died. As the hacker closes in on revealing the truth, Laura struggles to determine who Charlie really is: the monster Sarah believed him to be, or a reformed boy trying to put the past behind him.

I had sort of a love-hate relationship with this novel. I really enjoyed several things about it. The plot was unpredictable. I felt like going in I knew where the story was going, and I was confused about how quickly some of the details unfolded. Long before reaching the halfway point, I felt like the course I expected the story to take had already been taken. From there, I had no idea what to expect, and I enjoyed that sense of freefalling as each new event occurred. I really liked the character Sasha. I felt like she was one of the only characters that I could really empathize with and really get behind. I wanted to like Charlie and Laura, but there were some really ugly moments that just kept me from really investing in them.

I felt like the story ended in a really weird place, too. I guess I kept waiting for this moment where justice would be served, and instead the story focused a lot on vengeance, which I didn’t find very satisfying. There’s a definite cliff-hanger at the end, so maybe book two will further explore the issues and deliver some well-earned justice.

Despite my issues, Dead Ringer may appeal to readers who like a dark mystery with a strong hand of vengeance and some unexpected twists.

Language Content
Moderate profanity used infrequently.

Sexual Content
Some description of kissing/making out. Reference to sex, but no description of the exchange. A girl briefly describes her first relationship with another girl (references kissing.)

Spiritual Content
There’s not a lot of discussion about God or the universe in the story, but one thing that stood out to me was the emphasis on vengeance rather than justice.

Violence
Brief description of a boy taking advantage of a girl. She reports that he raped her, but doesn’t describe the incident.

Drug Content
References to underage drinking.

Review: The Last Faerie Queen by Chelsea Pitcher

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

The Last Faerie Queen
Chelsea Pitcher
Flux

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

After a brutal battle left her without wings, dark faerie princess Elora begs the queen of light to heal her. Elora and the queen share an uneasy alliance, promising to work together to stop Elora’s mother from harming humans and end the monarchy of faeries forever. But the light queen may have bigger plans than she’s sharing with Elora. Elora’s boyfriend Taylor may have made a promise to the queen, as mortals do, without understanding the ramifications. His word may place him and his friends in peril from which not even Elora can protect them. The Light and Dark Queens move their pawns toward war, but only one can be victorious. One will enslave humanity. The other, free it.

The romance is probably the strongest thread in the story. It’s tempered by the looming war between the faerie groups, but it definitely felt like the focus of the story. I liked the human characters and the unfolding of their stories. I felt at times like I just didn’t get Elora. There were some references to the fact that she’s a dark faerie, and therefore evil, but other than one specific instance, the inner battle that she supposedly should have been having wasn’t really apparent. I think more of that inner conflict would have added more depth to the story. (In fairness, it may be that the first book had a LOT to do with this conflict, and maybe would have scratched that itch for me, had I read it.)

The moment where she does something really evil, the other characters kind of glossed over it. There’s a brief moment where it looks like she might be called to account, but then it passes with little to-do about it. The ending of the book was a little bit disappointing, too. One really complex character (one of those that you love to hate) kind of just shrugs and instantly resolves an issue. I don’t know, I felt like it was a bit of a letdown. I had really liked that she was such a complex character whose loyalties I could never really pin down. I wanted her to have one final political twist or something before just fading out.

Readers who like Julie Kagawa’s Iron Fey series will probably enjoy Pitcher’s take on the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. Fans of The Lost Princess by Dani-Lyn Alexander may want to give this series a try.

Language Content
Extreme profanity used frequently. Also some crude language.

Sexual Content
There are several really steamy suggestive scenes. There’s not a lot of specific description of each event, but some very detailed moments leading up to them are included. While erotic language isn’t used, the effect is pretty erotic. Elora and Taylor’s love-making appears to have a sort of superpower that strengthens them. Two girls also engage in some heavy kissing.

Spiritual Content
Faeries exist to protect the earth and nature. Light faeries believe in not harming humans. Dark faeries have no qualms about enslaving humans and causing direct harm to them.

Violence
Brief battle violence.

Drug Content
None.

Review: The Sister Pact by Stacie Ramey

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

The Sister Pact
Stacie Ramey
Sourcebooks FIRE

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They were supposed to do it together. Allie and Leah had made a pact that if their parents’ failing marriage destroys their home life, they’ll escape into death together. Only, Leah makes the jump without Allie. And Allie is left behind to pick up the pieces.

So many things happen to this poor girl. Her best friend Max, who she’s in love with, totally doesn’t deserve her. But she can’t seem to get into the sweet boy who treats her well. Her painting massively suffers in the wake of her sister’s death. It’s like the colors have gone out of her world. No pressure. Just that whole art school portfolio deadline. On top of it all, her parents have split, her mom is nursing her Xanax addiction and Dad is shacked up with his new young girlfriend. It’s a pretty big mess, and understandably, Allie’s pretty much drowning.

I liked how the story unfolded in ways that challenged how I felt about each character. Often I would learn something that maybe didn’t reverse my feelings on a character, but showed some new insight that changed how I felt and also altered the course of events in the story. For the most part, I thought the characters themselves were fantastic. The one exception for me was John. I felt like he was too benevolent or something? I mean, he’s basically a drug pusher and something of a bully from the sound of things, but somehow he’s also the good guy? It just felt off for me. Like the balance was missing from his character.

The drug content and sexual content make this a pretty intense read. I liked that Ramey showed consequences to the drug abuse and that Allie really wrestles with how she feels about having had sex. I get tired of the portrayal of teen sex as this problem-free, everyone-is-doing-it-and-it-always-goes-well-unless-it’s-rape experience. I know not all teen books are like that, but it’s definitely a pet peeve of mine when they are. While I’m not a huge fan of sex in YA, I appreciated that Ramey related the experiences briefly and focused on the emotional fallout surrounding Allie’s decisions.

Language Content
Extreme profanity used frequently.

Sexual Content
Allie worries that being a virgin is preventing her from having a relationship with the boy she loves. She decides to have sex with a random boy to get it over with (the event is only briefly described) and afterward wonders if now sex is what boys will expect to get from her. There is another brief scene in which she has sex.

I loved that Ramey didn’t shy away from the pressure that Allie felt. She wanted to please everyone and be pleasing. She thought she could be desirable by having sex with a boy. It didn’t really work out that way, though. She had a lot of confusing feelings to work through. She does a lot of soul-searching through the story and definitely has more self-respect and confidence by the end. I thought the whole experience was very relate-able.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violence
None.

Drug Content
Allie’s mom is addicted to Xanax. Her sister Leah overdosed on meds when she killed herself. Allie drinks alcohol at a party. Her friend and Leah smoke pot together. Leah bears some heavy consequences for this behavior. After Leah’s death, Allie begins experimenting with pills. One of Leah’s friends offers to supply her with whatever she wants for free. There are consequences condemning Allie’s behavior, and eventually she does promise to quit.