Review: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Beautiful CreaturesBeautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Little, Brown and Company

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Nothing ever changes in Ethan’s small hometown. That is, nothing until the day the girl who’s been haunting his nightmares walks into the halls of his high school. Lena Duchannes is every bit as beautiful and tragic as she is in his dreams. As the two fall in love, the weight of the curse hanging over Lena threatens to tear their worlds apart. On the sixteenth moon of her sixteenth year, Lena will be chosen by light or darkness as payment for the sins of her ancestors. Nothing can stand in the way of her fate, not even Ethan’s love for … Continue reading

Review: Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth WeinRose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein
Disney Hyperion

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Eighteen year old Rose Justice volunteers as a civilian pilot in England during World War II. She works alongside Maddie and other young female pilots transporting planes and personnel to assist military forces. When an enemy aircraft draws Rose off course during one of her transport flights, Rose finds herself captured in enemy territory. Her troubles have only begun. Soon after German forces arrest her, she is sent to Ravensbruck, a German concentration camp. Rose faces brutal treatment at the hands of her captors. Her love for poetry and bonds with other prisoners challenge her to survive.

Readers of Wein’s novel Code Name Verity Continue reading

Review: All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin TerrillAll Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill
Disney Hyperion

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The walls of her tiny prison cell and the soothing voice of the boy in the cell next to hers make up Em’s world. She waits, dreading the moment the doctor will come again, because she knows he’ll use whatever means necessary to force her to reveal the location of coveted documents. When Em finds a message hidden in the cell’s drain, she knows following the instructions are the only way she can be free. She must find a way to kill the doctor and prevent the creation of the time machine that will destroy the world as she knows it.

As Marina prepares … Continue reading

Poetry and Friendship: Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone

Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland StoneEvery Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone
Disney-Hyperion

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She might look just like another one of the popular girls, but Samantha has a secret not even her best friends can know: she suffers from OCD. She needs weekly visits to a psychiatrist and prescription meds to keep her anxieties at bay.

As her friendships with the top girls becomes more and more toxic, Samantha desperately wants an outlet. Her search leads her to Caroline, a carefree, fashion-less girl whose frankness and kindness may be just the right rescue. She introduces Sam to Poet’s Corner, a place where students gather to share poems about anything from chicken nuggets to the loss of … Continue reading

Review: Storm Siren by Mary Weber

Storm Siren by Mary Weber

Storm Siren (Storm Siren #1)
Mary Weber
Thomas Nelson
Published August 19, 2014

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About Storm Siren

Since her parents’ deaths, Nym has lived as a slave with one unusual problem. An inexplicable ability erupts from her when she’s terrified or furious. Storms and lightning explode from the sky and take out her oppressors as well as any innocent bystanders. Nym carries memories of their deaths marked into her arms: the owners as rings on one arm, the innocent as an intricate mural on the other.

When a new owner purchases Nym and reveals that she’ll be trained to use her ability as a weapon to save her kingdom, Nym … Continue reading

Review: Draven’s Light by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Draven's Light by Anne Elisabeth StenglDraven’s Light by Anne Elisabeth Stengl
Rooglewood Press

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When the chief’s son comes of age, the tribe presents him with a prisoner. He is to kill this man and take up a new name as a man. He refuses and instead earns the name Draven, or “fainthearted.” Draven lives as a recluse, a shadow among his people with only his fierce sister Ita as a companion. The drums of war take the men of the tribe to battle, but Draven stays behind. A strange plague follows the warriors home, and when it strikes the one Draven loves most, he vows he will find a way to save her.

This short (less than … Continue reading