Seraphina

Seraphina

by Rachel Hartman

Synopsis:

A new vision of knights, dragons, and the fair maiden caught in between . . .
 
Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend court as ambassadors, and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty''s anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high.
 
Seraphina has reason to fear both sides. An unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered. While a sinister plot to destroy the peace is uncovered, Seraphina struggles to protect the secret behind her musical gift, one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life. Seraphina''s tortuous journey to self-acceptance will make a magical, indelible impression on its readers.

My Thoughts:

I actually didn't pick this book myself; it was recommended to me by a coworker.  It had dragons so I couldn't turn it down.  After looking at the cover and reading the little summary I thought this would be an interesting but rather short and simple story more suited for younger audience than a high school student.  I couldn't have been more wrong.  First of all this is just the first book there will be more coming (unfortunately I haven't seen anything indicating when the next book will be available).  Second the world that Hartman has created is far more intricate than I was expecting.  The character development was quite complex and very well done.  You can clear see how each character is developed and the best part is it is completely believable.  There are so many topics discussed in this book from philosophy and art to love and religion and then there are even heavier topics just as what is means to be human (or a dragon) and how to be accepting (of others and of oneself).  This book I found was a little tough to get into but by chapter 5 I was in love with pretty much all the characters especially Seraphina and I can't wait to see what happens next in this amazingly detailed world.

Everyday

Every Day

by David Levithan

Synopsis:

In his New York Times bestselling novel, David Levithan introduces readers to what Entertainment Weekly calls a "wise, wildly unique" love story about A, a teen who wakes up every morning in a different body, living a different life.

Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl.

There's never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.

It's all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin's girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with-day in, day out, day after day.

With his new novel, David Levithan, bestselling co-author of Will Grayson, Will Grayson, and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, has pushed himself to new creative heights. He has written a captivating story that will fascinate readers as they begin to comprehend the complexities of life and love in A's world, as A and Rhiannon seek to discover if you can truly love someone who is destined to change every day.

My Thoughts:

Imagine waking up everyday with absolutely no idea what to expect.  That is A.'s life. A. wakes up and has to figured out if he (and I use the term loosely) is a girl or a boy, if he is short or tall, where he is now living in the world, and so many more things.  This has been A.'s life and he has learned to adapt to it.  He tries to live a version of the person whose life he has for the day as close to normal as possible and most of all tries to not interfere because his biggest fears are that someone will find out about him or that he will ruin someone's live permanently.  That is until he meets Rhiannon and all the rules that he made no longer seem that important.  After a full day with Rhiannon, A. starts to really think about what he is missing out on and decides that what he wants more than anything is a relationship with Rhiannon and for her to know the truth about him.  Telling Rhiannon presents its own set of problems, mainly that it is a hard truth to believe and it takes a few days of A. in completely different bodies to finally convince her of the truth. As A. and Rhiannon grow closer they are faced with Rhiannon's difficult to see A. through the varies bodies that he inhabits.  David Levithan's Every Day makes you question so many things.  On one hand you want A. to have a real life and be able to fall in love and stay with that person but on the other hand you want A. to stick to his moral code and not take someone's life away from them.  You want Rhiannon and A. to connect and be a couple but at the same time you are right there with Rhiannon questioning how you can love a physically different person every single day.  This book doesn't try to figure out how to fix A.'s life; it's not about the how or even the why and frankly if the author had tried it would have been a very different book.  This book is about hope and the many versions of love that are out there.

Tiger Lily

Tiger Lily

by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Synopsis:

Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair. . . .

Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn't believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell.

Peter is unlike anyone she's ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland's inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she's always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter.

With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it's the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who's everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Peaches comes a magical and bewitching story of the romance between a fearless heroine and the boy who wouldn't grow up.

My Thoughts:

First of all I am a huge Peter Pan fan always have been.  So when I saw this book I simply had to read it.  To me Tiger Lily always seemed very reserved, determined, and brave and it was always a little sad to see Tiger Lily replaced so easily in Peter's heart.  With Anderson's book I wasn't really sure what to expect since Tiger Lily is by no means a major character in Peter Pan.  I guess I though it would be a love triangle - Wendy, Peter, and Tiger Lily but it's not.  This book tells the story of Neverland before Wendy showed which is a much darker place than previously told.  You see how the lost boys came to be, why Captain Hook hates Peter so very much, and how Peter and Tiger Lily met. This story is told from Tinkerbell's point of view.  It was a surprise but a very effective and unique way to tell Tiger Lily's story. According to Tinkerbell fairies have no language and so she relies on emotions and actions to tell Tiger Lily's story.  She also tells us that fairies are fiercely loyal which is why Tinkerbell stays with Tiger Lily and also falls in love with Peter.  Tiger Lily is probably one of the loneliest characters that I have ever read and it is made worse by the fact that she has lived with it for so long that she doesn't even realize it. Tiger Lily is portrayed a smart, fearless, keen eyed character. She's the type of girl who doesn't believe in love stories or happy endings. Her tribe treats her like an outcast, believing that she is cursed but refuses to let her leave at the same time. Is it no wonder then that when she meets Peter in the woods, a soul as lost and broken as she is, that she is drawn to him and ultimately falls in love with him. Peter on the other hand is all too aware that he is broken and will do anything to fix it - including lie.  Tiger Lily and Peter are both searching desperately for something that they just can't name and think that they have found it in each other. But this is a story where good doesn't always win and love doesn't always triumph. This book is a love story but it is also a book about loss, loneliness, and a fear of change.  

Storm Front

Storm Front

Author: Jim Butcher

Synopsis: 

Harry Dresden is the best at what he does. Well, technically, he’s the only at what he does. So when the Chicago P.D. has a case that transcends mortal creativity or capability, they come to him for answers. For the “everyday” world is actually full of strange and magical things — and most of them don’t play well with humans. That’s where Harry comes in. Takes a wizard to catch a — well, whatever.

There’s just one problem. Business, to put it mildly, stinks. So when the police bring him in to consult on a grisly double murder committed with black magic, Harry’s seeing dollar signs. But where there’s black magic, there’s a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry’s name. And that’s when things start to get… interesting.

Magic. It can get a guy killed.

My Thoughts: 

A wizard named Harry who battles dark magic. I know where this story’s going, except I didn’t.

The Dresden files follow the personal accounts of the wizard Harry (after Houdini) Blackstone Copperfield Dresden as he attempts to practice his craft in the city of Chicago for the benefit of those the system can’t help. All for a nominal fee of course.

Magic is dark and gritty fueled by passion and blood described in rich and visceral detail, the lure to take it too far intoxicatingly tempting.

Harry Dresden walks the edge of a razor blade balanced above a glass of lemonade as he openly admits his talents, yet hides the actual application from those around him. All the dark things that go bump in the night know who he is, what he is, and where he is, the only things keeping him alive are his wits and his magic.

Storm Front is a hardboiled crime noir detective story with a generous helping of humor set against a paranormal background. It does not aspire to be life-changing or profound. All it does is take you on a fun and exciting ride.

Unwind

Unwind

By Neal Shusterman

Synopsis:

In America after the Second Civil War, the Pro-Choice and Pro-Life armies came to an agreement: The Bill of Life states that human life may not be touched from the moment of conception until a child reaches the age of thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, a parent may choose to retroactively get rid of a child through a process called "unwinding." Unwinding ensures that the child''s life doesn't "technically" end by transplanting all the organs in the child''s body to various recipients. Now a common and accepted practice in society, troublesome or unwanted teens are able to easily be unwound.

With breath-taking suspense, this book follows three teens who all become runaway Unwinds: Connor, a rebel whose parents have ordered his unwinding; Risa, a ward of the state who is to be unwound due to cost-cutting; and Lev, his parents'' tenth child whose unwinding has been planned since birth as a religious tithing. As their paths intersect and lives hang in the balance, Shusterman examines serious moral issues in a way that will keep readers turning the pages to see if Connor, Risa, and Lev avoid meeting their untimely ends.

My thoughts:

"What if your parents could unwind you?" with that one question I was hooked.   I was intrigued by the idea of this book and figured I'd give it a shot and all I can say is "wow".  I now know why Neal Shusterman has such a huge fan base; he is brilliant! I have since read a few other books by him and loved them all but Unwind will always be by far my favorite. The world Shusterman has created is a disturbing one where abortion has been made illegal but it is completely acceptable "to retroactively "abort " a child between the ages of 13 and 18 on the condition that the child's life doesn't "technically" end". Connor is a troubled teen whose parents decide to unwind him rather than deal with him but before the Juvie cops can collect him Connor runs away.  Risa is a state ward and according to the state her body parts and organs are more important than she is as a whole.  Lev is a tithe, told since birth that it is his privilege and religious duty to be unwound at the age of thirteen.  Due to chance happenings Connor, Risa, and Lev's paths cross and lives are forever changed. I liked how events unfolded and seeing how they affected and changed the characters especially Lev; the character development was never rushed or over the top and always believable. This book is fast paced with so many twists that you will be glued to this book.  However it does contain one of the most disturbing scenes I have ever read not because it was graphic or even remotely violent, more because the event taking place is left almost completely to the reader's imagination.  This story is amazing but also disturbing and rather sad.  With this book Shusterman questions abortion, organ donation, parental control and responsibilty, the power of propaganda and so much more.

Between The Lines

Between The Lines

by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer

Synopsis:

What happens when happily ever after…isn't?

Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book-one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.

And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He's a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He's sure there's more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.

Delilah and Oliver work together to attempt to get Oliver out of his book, a challenging task that forces them to examine their perceptions of fate, the world, and their places in it. And as their attraction to each other grows along the way, a romance blossoms that is anything but a fairy tale.

My thoughts:

After reading the summary of this book I felt I just had to read it.  It was a book about a book!  The premise of this book reminded me of being little and thinking that toys come to live when you leave the room. To me this book was a more grown up version of that toy idea. It was a good book and I really liked it but Between The Lines is without a doubt at it's heart a fairy tale.  This story is about princes, love, dragons, friends and overcoming impossible odds to get your happily-ever-after.  Delilah is a loner, socially awkward, and prefers losing herself in a good book.  This takes on a whole new meaning when one of the characters - the charming Prince Oliver -  from her beloved children's book starts talking to her! Suddenly Delilah has someone who she can really talk to and Oliver might have a way out of his story. This book is told from three different perspectives.  We have Delilah,  we have Oliver and then we also have Oliver's fairy tale which I think makes this book rather unique.  I liked getting to know Delilah and Oliver separately.  Delilah is in the 'real world' and dealing with everyday teen issues.  Oliver, however, has only ever know his book world and I found it fascinating to see how all the characters are so very different and have their own personalities. They aren't just what the author wrote them to be; they have their own hopes and fears.  I loved this book but that is probably because I loved fairy tales growing up.  This book is a nice light read and I would recommend it to anyone who still has that little kid in them that wants that warm glow that you get when you hear about a happily-ever-after.

You Against Me

You Against Me

by Jenny Downham

Synopsis:

If someone hurts your sister and you're any kind of man, you seek revenge, right? If your brother's been accused of a terrible crime and you're the main witness, then you banish all doubt and defend him. Isn't that what families do? When Mikey's sister claims a boy assaulted her at a party, his world of work and girls begins to fall apart. When Ellie's brother is charged with the crime, but says he didn't do it, her world of revision, exams and fitting in at a new school begins to unravel. When Mikey and Ellie meet, two worlds collide. Brave and unflinching, this is a novel of extraordinary skillfulness and almost unbearable tension. It's a book about loyalty and the choices that come with it. But above all it's a book about love - for one's family and for another.

My thoughts:

I'm not really sure where to start with this book.  I thought it would be amazing; a book that made you think about family, love, loyalty, and how far you would go to protect them.  Downham's You Against Me does make you think about all those things but not to the depth that I would have expected.  I felt that while the author did explore the characters it was not a smooth development but rather it seemed sudden and abrupt. It also seemed to me that the relationship between Mikey and Ellie moved at a surprising pace,  I would think it would have taken longer and that there would have been a lot more anger to deal with.  What I did like is that this book isn't about the victim; in fact Karen doesn't get a lot of page time.  This book is about what happens to everyone else in the family after such a devastating act and that is a side that you rarely get to see. I did liked that this book check you questioning who was telling the truth and who was lying.  I liked that you don't find out the truth till the very end; it really helped to build the tension but honestly it doesn't matter what the truth is because the damage  has already been done to both sides. Overall You Against Me was okay but once finished I didn't think about it again and given the difficult subject material that is dealt with in this book  I felt that it should have stayed with me long after the last page.