Review: Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray

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Defy the Stars by Claudia GrayDefy the Stars
Claudia Gray
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published April 4, 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About Defy the Stars
She’s a soldier.

Noemi Vidal is a seventeen years old and sworn to protect her planet, Genesis. She’s willing to risk anything—including her own life. To their enemies on Earth, she’s a rebel.

He’s a machine.

Abandoned in space for years, utterly alone, Abel has advanced programming that’s begun to evolve. He wants only to protect his creator, and to be free. To the people of Genesis, he’s an abomination.

Noemi and Abel are enemies in an interstellar war, forced by chance to work together as they embark on a daring journey through the stars. Their efforts would end the fighting for good, but they’re not without sacrifice. The stakes are even higher than either of them first realized, and the more time they spend together, the more they’re forced to question everything they’d been taught was true.

My Review
I started this book with pretty high hopes. Right away, I liked the third person present tense writing. It kept the story feeling immediate, and especially made sense to me in Abel’s scenes. I loved both Noemi and Abel straight from the start. Like Abel, I respected Noemi’s willingness to sacrifice herself to save others and her love for her best friend Esther. I felt a bit skeptical of whether Abel’s scenes would really seem like AI or whether they would feel too human. Actually, I really liked him a lot, and I think the internal experiences—rational breakdowns and examinations of emotions worked really well. I liked that over time he experienced character development, too.

The plot took me to some places I didn’t expect. I liked that unexpectedness. On the other hand, I really struggled with the ending. I don’t want to give anything away. But. The whole story had a certain goal and then by the end it felt like that goal sort of got dropped. I didn’t really understand a couple of the details that led up to the goal being abandoned. I mean, I feel like I understood some of the reasons, but I don’t know. It was weird. It felt like a really solid story that took a detour at the end to allow for setting up the rest of the series. Normally that doesn’t bother me—I liked the characters so I’m not sad at all that there may be other adventures, but it felt a little bit like a bait and switch or something.

Still, I’m not at all sorry that I read it. I loved getting to explore so much of the intricate story world Gray created and her masterful characters had me hooked from the first page to the last.

If you liked the recent movie adaptation of Ender’s Game or Ex Machina, you want to add this book to your list. I think fans of Hayley Stone’s Machinations would also find this book appealing.

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Cultural Elements
Noemi is Latina. Abel has the appearance of a white male.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between male and female. When it becomes clear Noemi and Abel will need money to carry out their plan, he offers to sell himself into prostitution, since he has been programmed with the ability to perform those activities. Noemi feels horrified by that idea and refuses to ask him to do such a thing, even though she still considers him a machine. At one point he offers to have sex with her, reasoning that since they are alone and have time to kill, and it would provide her with a form of release, it might be helpful. Noemi tells him her faith mandates that she not have casual sex.

Spiritual Content
On Noemi’s planet, Genesis, faith is of high value. People of all different faiths live together in harmony. Noemi herself is Catholic but has always struggled with her faith. Sometimes she knows she should pray and instead, she feels doubt. She keeps her faith through the story.

Violent Content
Noemi helps a fellow soldier with grave injuries. Abel and Noemi witness a terrorist attack at a celebration.

Drug Content
None.

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

 

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Review: Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Middle Grade 8-12, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, , , , ,

Three Times Lucky
Sheila Turnage
Dial Books
Published May 10, 2012

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Mo LoBeau, rising sixth grader in the tiny town of Tupelo Landing, turns detective when a local man turns up murdered. Mo and her best friend Dale figure they can locate the killer before that nosy outsider detective has time to finish his lunch at the café. After all, Mo already has experience searching for things, most particularly her “Upstream Mother” who set Mo on a raft and sent her down the river to the Colonel and Miss Lana as a baby. Mo and Dale follow clue after clue in the murder investigation, even as a hurricane barrels toward them. When Mo’s guardians disappear, she realizes she must find the killer before he adds the people she loves most to his body count.

I’ve had this book on my bookshelf for a ridiculously long time, and I’m only sorry I didn’t read it sooner. I absolutely loved it. Three Times Lucky is all the things you want in a Southern Story: interesting food, quirky characters, an adorable small town, and an unforgettable narrator. I loved the entire cast of characters. The mystery unraveled at a perfect pace. The story was equal parts humor and heart. The setting felt like a place you would recognize the minute you stepped out of your car.

This is a perfect read for middle or late elementary-aged readers. It would make a great story to read aloud or listen to on a family vacation. Definitely a must-read and one of my favorites this year.

Recommended for Ages 8 up.

Cultural Elements
Tupelo Landing, the setting of the story, is a small very Southern town peppered with quirky Southern people. The cast reminded me a little bit of the townspeople in To Kill a Mockingbird or Lucky Strikes.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None. Mo does note that Dale swears, and comments that the way things are going, she might start anytime, but no curse words are printed in the story.

Romance/Sexual Content
Mo adores Dale’s older brother Lavender and teases him about marrying her someday. He and his buddy spend some time with twin girls, but Dale and Mo seem pretty oblivious to anything that really happens between them.

Spiritual Content
The local pastor agrees to hold a funeral at the church for a man even though he never attended services there. Brief references to prayer.

Mo writes letters to her Upstream Mother—the woman she believes gave birth to her and then set her on a raft and placed her in the river, where the Colonel later found her.

Violent Content
When Dale’s father gets drunk, he gets violent, and hits Dale and his mother. Mo knows about it because she sees the fallout, but she doesn’t witness it happen. At one point she does witness Dale’s dad threatening to hurt him.

Mo stumbles onto a murder weapon (the victim died of blunt force trauma.) Later, as they search for a kidnapping victim, Mo and Dale discover a bloody handprint.

Drug Content
Dale’s dad gets drunk on multiple occasions. At one point Mo and Dale see him driving and worry that he may be driving drunk.

Review: Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

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Letters to the Lost
Brigid Kemmerer
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published April 4, 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About Letters to the Lost
Juliet Young always writes letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother’s death, she leaves letters at her grave. It’s the only way Juliet can cope.

Declan Murphy isn’t the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he’s trying to escape the demons of his past.

When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can’t resist writing back. Soon, he’s opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they’re not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart.

My Review
Letters to the Lost totally blew me away. I loved it. It was all the things I loved about You’ve Got Mail but with all of these deep emotions, unresolved grief, family issues, and loneliness. I felt immediately hooked by the idea of this blind exchange between two people who both feel completely isolated from everyone around them which gives them a sense of connection. I loved the way the relationship plays out as they meet each other in real life (without knowing it’s the person they’ve been writing to.) Also, I absolutely adored Rev. He may have been my favorite. It’s hard to say because I loved so much about the story, but if I had a book boyfriend list, Rev would probably be at the top.

At its surface, I’d say this is a romance. It’s about a girl and a boy who meet through letters and fall in love, but they have to figure out who that other person is and face the idea that it may be someone they’ve judged harshly or even don’t like in real life. Beneath that, though, Letters to the Lost deals with some pretty intense grief. Juliet’s mom died in a hit and run car accident. Declan’s dad is responsible for his sister’s death. Both Juliet and Declan have difficult relationships with their parents. Declan’s mom remarried a guy who Declan can’t stand. Juliet’s dad has been distant since her mom’s death.

I loved the way the story began to unravel the truth about Juliet and Declan’s pasts. Some things took me by surprise—in a good way. Each of them have a steadfast friend who sticks with them through their grief, and I loved those friendships, too, and the way Juliet and Declan began to realize how their grief affected others through those relationships. It all felt very organic.

If you’re looking for a romance packed with emotion, you want to read this one. It’s heavy, yes, but has so much hope and love in it. This is one of my favorite books I’ve read this year.

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Cultural Elements
Major characters are white. Juliet competes with and later befriends an Asian boy in her photography class. Black parents adopt Declan’s best friend Rev.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used with moderate frequency. One instance of stronger profanity.

Romance/Sexual Content
Brief kissing. At one point one girl jokes with her friend about whether or not her boyfriend has sent a picture of his “manhood” to her.

Someone finds nude pictures of a man and woman together.

Spiritual Content
Rev is a Christian and sometimes shares Bible verses with Declan. It’s clear his faith means a great deal to him.

Violent Content
References to physical abuse in one character’s past. One character talks about a fear he has that he will become violent and be unable to stop.

Drug Content
A girl accuses a boy of trying to spike the punch at a school dance. (He’s not.)

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

 

Review: The Star Thief by Lindsey Becker

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The Star Thief
Lindsey Becker
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Available April 11, 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About The Star Thief
Honorine’s life as as maid at the Vidalia mansion is rather dull, dusting treasures from faraway places and daydreaming in front of maps of the world. But everything changes when she catches two brutish sailors ransacking Lord Vidalia’s study, and then follows a mysterious girl with wings out into the night….

Suddenly, Honorine is whisked into the middle of a battle between the crew of a spectacular steamship and a band of mythical constellations. The stars in the sky have come to life to defend themselves against those who want to harness their powers. Much to her surprise, Honorine is the crux of it all, the center of an epic clash between magic and science, the old ways and the new. But can this spirited young girl bring both sides of a larger-than-life fight together before they unleash an evil power even older than the stars?

My Review
From the very first pages, I was totally hooked on this book. I loved Honorine right from those first few lines. She’s smart but so compassionate. Her interest and talent at mechanics not only made her an interesting character but contributed to several key points in the story. At first I found the concept of the Mordant a little bit confusing. I felt like I missed something, but I read the first few chapters really late at night, so it could have been entirely my slow brain not processing them very well.

One of the interesting things about The Star Thief is the fact that Honorine finds herself caught between two men: a sea captain determined to capture the Mordant and the Mapmaker, a powerful Mordant who vows to stop the captain at any cost. Honorine loves them both, though she trusts neither, and wants desperately to find a way to save them both.

Sometimes stories where all the adults turn out to be disappointing or untrustworthy really bother me. I think that’s because my experience was so the opposite and I want so much for other kids to have good adults in their lives and value them. Someone very close to me did not have the same experience, though. Stories where the hero emerges from difficult situations despite a lack of trustworthy adults really resonate with him, and I wonder if it’s because it’s closer to what he went through.

Either way, this book is a win. Totally imaginative and full of heart. If your reader isn’t quite ready for Percy Jackson, The Star Thief would make a great alternative read. If you’re already a PJ fan, you’ll want to add this book to your reading list. Either way, don’t miss it!

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Two instances of “hell.”

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
In The Star Thief, each constellation corresponds with a living creature called a Mordant. They inspire specific types of knowledge, invention, or creativity. For instance, spending time with one inspires advances in medicine. Fearsome creatures called Bellua inspire war and chaos and will try to kill the Mordant. While they’re not gods and goddesses exactly, it’s clear they have an elevated role compared to humanity.

Violent Content
Battles between a group of pirates and the Mordant and the Mordant and Bellua.

Drug Content
None.

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

 

Review: Perfect by Cecelia Ahern

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

Perfect
Cecelia Ahern
Feiwel & Friends
Available April 4, 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Summary from Goodreads
Celestine North lives in a society that demands perfection. After she was branded Flawed by a morality court, Celestine’s life has completely fractured–all her freedoms gone.

Since Judge Crevan has declared her the number one threat to the public, she has been a ghost, on the run with Carrick–the only person she can trust.

But Celestine has a secret–one that could bring the entire Flawed system crumbling to the ground. A secret that has already caused countless people to go missing.

Judge Crevan is gaining the upper hand, and time is running out for Celestine. With tensions building, Celestine must make a choice: save just herself or to risk her life to save all Flawed people.

And, most important of all, can she prove that to be human in itself is to be Flawed?

My Review
Perfect was the first book by Cecelia Ahern that I’ve read. Even though I haven’t read the first book in the series, I found it fairly easy to follow the story. I think reading the first book would have helped me understand her relationship with Carrick better and made their reunion more meaningful.

The premise was the most interesting part to me. Celestine lives in a society in which good behavior is vital to survival. One mistake can leave a person literally branded as imperfect and make them outcasts. When Celestine ignores her society’s rules about shunning those outcasts marked Flawed, she earns her own branding.

The story made me think a lot of the beginning of I Corinthians chapter 13. It starts with this list of really impressive abilities—being able to perform miracles, helping the poor, speaking in the tongues of angels, etc—but warns, “if I have not love, I am nothing.”

In Perfect, Celestine’s society has become obsessed with living this outwardly perfect life. What Celestine discovers, though, is the price to live such a “perfect” life demands giving up compassion, mercy, and empathy. She rallies others around her to stop living these cold, rule-bound lives and instead forgive each other, show mercy. She wants everyone to realize that no one is without flaw, and therefore the system is based on a lie anyway.

I liked that message a lot. Readers who enjoyed Lauren Oliver’s Delirium or Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies will probably enjoy this book.

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between a boy and girl. They have sex. The scene describes some lead-in, but not the actual event. Guard corral a group of women into a barn and force them to change into skimpy outfits to shame them.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Celestine remembers a terrible incident in which Judge Crevan brands her without anesthesia. Soldiers believe Celestine hides underneath a pile of kindling and demand that her family light it.

Drug Content
None.

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

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March 2017 Monthly Wrap-Up

Lists, News and Fun, ,

This month’s big to-do was ApollyCon, which I had the pleasure of attending for the first time as a volunteer. If you’re unfamiliar with the event, ApollyCon is sponsored by Jennifer Armentrout and 1001 Dark Nights and is a huge, two day book-signing extravaganza.

Out of the over 70 authors, there were really only a handful that I’ve read before, since many write new adult, which I don’t get much chance to read. (I’ve got my hands full with young adult and middle grade as it is!) This might sound like I had fewer reasons to attend ApollyCon, but actually, I have to say two things. First, it was about an hour from my house, so not much expense there! And second, y’all, I got to spend a lot of time chatting with YA authors, who are some of my favorite people. You just about can’t beat that! I even won an ARC for a Here Lies Daniel Tate by Cristin Terrill (who unfortunately wasn’t able to make it to the event). Here’s a pic of the book and my nifty ApollyCon Tote:

The final night featured an after-party with optional costumes, so I was able to show off the gorgeous Steampunk Book Fairy costume my mom made me for my birthday last year, with updated author cameos to match the authors I connected with during the weekend. You can see them in the image below.

Top: Beth Revis (who told me a great story about her dad, who is a lumberjack, sitting down at work reading a copy of her debut novel with a girly cover of pink silhouettes about to kiss. She was so fun!)

Upper Middle: Jessica Khoury (whose doodles are fantastic. Also her Twitter is hilarious. If you’re not following her, you’re missing some very funny stuff.)

Lower Left: Kami Garcia (who made it so easy to talk to her and recommended a bunch of other authors. She talked about book bloggers and told some funny stories. I also got to share with her how much it meant to me to be at YallFest, where I’d first seen her on a panel that really encouraged me at a difficult time. So that was great!)

Lower Middle: Mary Lindsey/Marissa Clarke (Even though I hadn’t read any of her books– yet– she was happy to chat and asked me a lot about what I’m writing and how that process was going. She had a lot of really encouraging things to say to me, which meant a lot.)

Lower Right: Trish Doller (I probably spent the most time talking with her. I’m sure I was ridiculously chatty from being nervous and kind of overwhelmed by the size of the event, but she was really great and shared some things about the project she’s working on and her upcoming release, In a Perfect World, which sounds right up my alley. She also listened to and encouraged me with my own writing, which means so much to me. She’s a fellow Floridian, so I hope to catch her at another signing or bookish event or something again.)

In terms of reviews, here’s what you missed.

March 2017 Reviews

The Lost Girl of Astor Street by Stephanie Morrill

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

I’d been especially excited about this book because I LOVE Stephanie Morrill’s writing. And this one is no exception! I loved the story, the characters totally hooked me, and the setting (1920s Chicago) was a blast. A must-read for historical fiction and mystery fans.

See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

I love seeing kids interested in science portrayed in books, so I was eager to check this book out. The story took a whole different turn than I expected. It’s more about the possibility of alien life rather than engineering or rockets, but the characters, their relationships and the unusual format of the story made this one a great read for me. Definitely one for middle grade lovers.

The Giant Smugglers by Chris Pauls and Matt Solomon

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

I don’t read a lot of adventure stories in middle grade, but this book proved it’s not because I don’t enjoy them. This reminded me a little bit of the 90s movie Iron Giant. Great read for middle grade-lovers looking for straight-up adventure.

A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

Oh. My. Goodness. I know I didn’t forget how much I loved Chokshi’s debut but I MUST have forgotten how much I loved her debut. I’m always nervous to read a second book by an author whose first book I loved, but this one was truly amazing. I loved the characters. The story world was totally engrossing, and the quest kept me biting my nails all the way through! If you love fantasy with a classic fairytale feel, you absolutely need to read this book.

Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

This was a lucky find for me. I loved the gentle, sweet girl at the heart of this story. I rooted for her every step of her journey as she tries to figure out her place in her family, her spiritual community, and her school community. Fantastic. Shy kids need this book. (Okay, not *just* shy kids, but I definitely found that element especially resonated with me.)

Where Futures End by Parker Peevyhouse

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

I loved this book. It’s probably one of the most unique stories I’ve ever read. It’s really five stories that connect to form one larger whole. Every time I switched to a new story, I was sure I wasn’t going to like the characters, and every time, the author proved me wrong and made me fall in love all over again. I am a huge fan and I want Parker Peevyhouse on my auto-buy list. If you love books that explore a moral question, get yourself a copy of this one.

Goodbye Days by Jeff Zentner

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

I was worried that this would be a tough read for me. I’ve been in kind of a raw place, and I’d seen so many reviewers talk about how they wept through this whole book. It was definitely an emotional read, but I loved the relationships the characters had with one another. I loved the honor paid to the grief process. So important and so often not acknowledged. Keep the tissues handy when you start this one.

A Week of Mondays by Jessica Brody

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

This was a fun read. Sort of Groundhog Day meets Mean Girls? I’m not sure that’s exactly right, but it hit a lot of great notes for me. If you’re in need of a more lighthearted contemporary read with some romance, this is the book for you.

Dawn on the Road by Lea Waterhouse

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

My favorite thing about this book was the way the author described the trip on the motorcycle so you actually felt like you were riding along with the characters. I liked Dawn’s interest in photography and the way the author used that to drive the story forward. It’s also got a strong Christian message, which makes it a bit of a rarity these days. A good pick for readers interested in a story about a road trip with a strong spiritual component.

The Methuselah Project by Rick Barry

Review | Amazon | Goodreads

I cheated and reviewed this one because I wanted to. It’s not YA, but it’s a really fun read. I’m a huge sucker for anything to do with World War II. If you’re familiar with the story and you know me, you probably could have predicted that I’d love Roger Greene, a war prisoner who sticks to what he believes is right no matter what. If you’re a fan of Bodie and Brock Thoene’s The Zion Covenant, you definitely want to check this book out.

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Coming next month, I’ll be participating in the ARC Reading Challenge with Bookshelves and Paperbacks! It’s kinda self-explanatory. You make an effort to get through some of the ARCs (Advance Release Copies) you have stacked in low-traffic areas of your house. Not that I do this. Nope.

I’m hoping this challenge will help me get back on track so I’m not scrambling to get reviews done the day or two before I’ve got them in my schedule. I used to be weeks ahead, back in the glorious past, and I want to be there again. So bring it, ARC Reading Challenge!

Here is my list for the challenge…


What about you?

Read anything interesting during the month of March that you want to recommend? Looking forward to anything special from your reading this this month? Leave a comment below and tell me all about it!