Sick

Sick

by Tom Leveen

Plot:

The story takes place in a small town that is overrun with a disease that make the infected hostile against those that are not. When things go bad at the town’s fenced in high school and the protagonist Brian gets trapped in the drama room he realizes that he has to save his sister and ex girlfriend from the infected students before they get them.

My thoughts:

While the book has all the things a zombie book should have, namely suspense, horror, and gore, it does not do too much to expand on it. While the author does make it so that the infected are not undead but sick with a disease, this makes it difficult morally for the survivors to kill them even when they directly threaten their lives and they have seen what they do to people they catch, the suspense and horror go away towards the middle of the book, even the gore starts to go away, though it comes back every once and a while. I liked the characters though sometimes you just wonder why they say or do some things and the setting was quite interesting. You can feel bad for the characters and understand their fears and worries but the protagonist Brian and his friend Chad can do or say things that don’t make much sense.

I recommend this book as it is still a good read and you may enjoy it more than I did though I don’t recommend it for those that can’t take very descriptive gore in books. For its few flaws I can still recommend Sick by Tom Leveen to lovers of zombie horror stories.

reviewed by A.K., Grade 10 Scona student

The Calling

The Calling (Endgame #1)

by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton  

Plot:  

Imagine that you could be called upon to fight for you and your family line at any moment, but you didn’t know when. That your whole life you were trained to kill with flawless efficiency, and dispatch your enemies with ease. That there were eleven others just like you with different skills, mindsets and personalities. This is no ordinary competition. This is Endgame. Conditions, the players must be between the ages of 13 and 20 to play. To win, the players must collect three keys hidden around Earth. The rules, none. The winner spares his or hers family line from extinction. The losers die. Who will win? Will strength beat intelligence? Ruthlessness over kindness? Strong over weak? There can only be one. This is Endgame.     

My Thoughts:   

I got this book on my 16th birthday, which wasn’t long ago (March 26th) and I really liked this book. After reading the back of the book I thought it was gonna be another Hunger Games type of book, but after reading the first few chapters I was instantly drawn to it. The introduction and backstory of the characters was short yet informative, giving me ideas of what type of person he or she was. As you read on you get an idea of everyone’s perspective on the Endgame which really intrigued me to keep on reading. As I mentioned earlier this book reminded me of the Hunger Games novel but with a cool, sci-fi twist with it which I think makes it more appealing. Some of the character are really well rounded but I would of liked to know more of some the other characters backstory or history.    

I would recommend this book to people who like action, suspense, and some parts of romance. the second book to this series, Sky Key (Endgame #2) is out if you want to continue with the story I suggest you pick it up when you have the chance. But the first book, The Calling by James Frey and Nils Johnson-Shelton, is definitely worth the read.

Reviewed by B.C., Grade 10 Scona student

The Naturals

The Naturals

by Michael Buckley

Plot: 

17 year old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Pulling details from all directions, solving puzzles, she can tell who you are and what you are up to.  She has never officially acknowledged her talent, that is, until the FBI show up at her doorstep. In seek of teenagers to make up a program that uses them to break cases, they need Cassie. When Cassie arrives everything is not as it seems, she realizes more is at stake than she ever thought. Living with people with talents just as unusual as hers, and that can lead to consequences. A new killer comes about and all the naturals have to bond together and combine their strengths in order to remain alive.

My thoughts:

Right from the book talk this book was one that caught my attention. And I must say, it did not fail to impress. I love the show criminal minds and this is much like it. Unsolved mysteries in every direction and each page left you hanging. The author did a great job of creating images which allowed you to engage yourself in the book on a level that kept you reading. I believe this book is a hit or miss because either you like it and understand it from the start, but if not it would be pointless to read on. There was rarely any parts that i did not enjoy each section led to a different unsolved problem/ mystery. I would highly recommend this book to all the criminal minds lovers.

reviewed by B.S., Grade 10 Scona student