Etiquette & Espionage- Feb. 22

Grade: A-

We were so excited to learn that Gail Carriger, author of the Parasol Protectorate series, was jumping into the world of YA. This one has been on our watch list for months.

Sophronia would rather take apart the dumb-waiter instead of learning how to curtsy properly. And although she may provide hours of entertainment for the staff, her mother is beside herself with worry of ever finding Sophronia a suitable husband. For now, she is happy to send her daughter to finishing school. Luckily for Sophronia, The Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality is more about death, diversion, and espionage than how to properly take your tea.

We love that it is set in the world of Steampunk and that Carriger has a knack for creating feisty, adventurous heroines. Our only complaint is that if you are new to the Parasol Protectorate World, you won't have the background on some of the character relationships. In a way, this is more of a prequel series rather than a new story.

Next up: I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga, Mar. 2

Scarlet- Feb. 15

Grade: A

We were counting down the days on this one. Imagine our delight upon finding it sitting out a few days early in our local Barnes & Noble! We immediately rushed home with our newly obtained copy to devour the second book in The Lunar Chronicles.

When we last left Cinder, she was in the process of escaping prison (and certain death). Kai, having made a deal with the Lunar Queen to hand over Cinder and accept the proposal of marriage, is still trying to grapple with the revelation that Cinder is not completely human. The Lunar Queen begins to set in motion her plans for world domination now that she has Kai pinned-down and Princess Selene (Cinder) in the cross-hairs.

Enter Scarlet, a feisty French girl whose grandmother has been kidnapped by a pack of Lunar wolves. She pairs up with Wolf (who may or may not have recently resigned from the pack) in order to rescue her grandmother. On their way to Paris, they follow the news reports detailing the hunt for Cinder and the impending marriage of Prince Kai. Soon after their arrival, Wolf reveals his true interest in Scarlet and she discovers why her grandmother has been taken.

We really had no idea where this story line would take us and we are happy to report that it was a wonderful surprise. Although we think book one is a little bit better, we are still excited to see how book three will unfold. Let the waiting game begin...again.

Next Up: Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger- Feb. 22nd

Prodigy- Feb. 8th

Grade: A

Book two of Legend (we are lovin' the sequels lately). Before you read this one, you may want to re-visit Legend. There was a pretty big set-up in book one and you don't want to go running off to book two without refreshing your memory.

June and Day head off to Vegas in hopes of falling in with a group of Patriot rebels. Their plan is to rescue Day's brother and book passage to the Colonies. The Patriots are only too happy to help- on one condition- that they assassinate the new Elector. Although this would certainly change the current conditions of the people for the better, it is a much tougher assignment than previously thought. This new, younger Elector has a much better grasp of the rebel groups, their leaders and their tactics. Of course June and Day are constantly questioning their loyalty to the rebels and now, to each other. Despite their close relationship, a new character (Anden) may have come between the two, opening up the possibility for a Day-Tess situation.

Prodigy is all about conspiracy theories and may not seem as fast-paced as book one, but keep reading! The ending/ cliff-hanger will throw you. We can't wait for book three- and unfortunately, it's gonna be a long wait.

Next Up: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer- Feb. 16th

The Prey- Feb. 1

Grade: A

Book two of The Hunt- and just as action packed! The Prey picks up immediately where The Hunt left off, so if you haven't read book one, you may want to stop reading now. We still stand by our original claim that this would make a great vampire movie.

Gene, Sissy, and the rest of the human survivors have managed to procure a boat and are quickly travelling down river. With the few remaining Hunters still following along the banks, they are trapped with a dwindling food supply and a rapidly approaching waterfall. But after discovering yet another cryptic message from Scientist- over the falls they must go. Surviving the journey, they eventually find themselves in a thriving community known as The Mission. Unfortunately, the Elders of this village are hiding many secrets that will turn everything that Gene and Sissy know about their world, on it's head. With the fate of the group hanging in the balance, a Hunter army has found a way to cross the desert and is bearing down upon the settlement. It's out of the fire and into the frying pan- and not everyone will make it that far.

We are happy to report that the action packed ending is well worth the wait and we are looking forward to the final book in the trilogy. We are also glad that Mr. Fukuda did not feel the need to up the gross factor- it would have only detracted from the group tension and relentless pursuit by the Hunters. We still recommend this one to the non-sparkly vampire fans, but be prepared for a bit of a cliff-hanger at the end of each book.

Next Up: Prodigy by Marie Lu- Feb. 8th

The Lost Girl- Jan. 25th

Grade: A-

Every year we come across several YA novels that have an artificial life-form storyline. While many are heavily Sci-Fi based, a few will attempt to explore the possible by-product of a soul. Sangu Mandanna's The Lost Girl successfully manages to do just that.

A group of three, known as The Weavers, create copies of existing people. The purpose of these "echoes" is to replace the original person, should they die before their time. Raised by guardians, the echo grows up knowing that they are not the original and must be trained to dress, act, and think like them. Echoes also know that they are illegal in many countries and hunted by vigilantes who think they are abominations.

Eva knows that her life is not her own and someday she may have to replace a living girl named Amarra who lives in India. Going thorough her lessons and hoping that she will never have to step in, she secretly harbors desires to study art and fall in love. Unfortunately, Amarra dies in an accident and Eva is sent to India where she must act as the dutiful daughter and loyal friend. But the trouble really begins when she meet Amarra's boyfriend, Ray. Having seen Amarra's body at the accident and knowing that she had a secret, he becomes suspicious of Eva. Soon, her true identity is revealed and her life is at stake.

As we were reading The Lost Girl, we saw vestiges of Blade Runner and The Adoration of Jenna Fox. Frankenstein is often referenced and actually a book that the echoes are forbidden to read. There are some good discussion questions in this one so it would be a great pick for a book club. We only wish that the book had ended as strongly as it began. We think the runaway love story got a bit in the way toward the end, but it's still worth the read.

Next Up: The Prey (book 2 of The Hunt)- Feb. 1st

Shades of Earth- Jan. 18th

Grade: A

The wait for this one was AGONY!! Thankfully, it was well worth it (not that we ever doubted you Beth). We have re-read Across The Universe and A Million Suns several times in anticipation of the exciting conclusion. We have discussed dozens of theories and outcomes- even as we were reading this final installment. And now, we only have two questions:

      1. Is this really the end?
      2. When is the movie coming out?

Seriously, this would be a fantastic film! Maybe you could get Ripley Scott to direct- he likes space movies.

***SPOILER ALERT- HAVEN'T READ IT- STOP NOW!**

When we last left Eldest and Amy, they had discovered that the Godspeed had reached it's destination. With a mutiny brewing, the population divided between those that would stay on the ship, and those that would colonize the planet. After a rough landing, the frozens are defrosted and quickly assume control of the situation. With Orion having murdered several of the military leaders earlier in the trilogy, the chain of command turns to Amy's father. Unwilling to listen to Amy's explanation of their situation and reluctant to share leadership with Eldest, he tries to take over the ship-born and finish the mission. Eldest, fearing that Orion's warnings of slavery will come to pass, enlists Amy's help once more to unlock the planet's secrets and discover the ultimate goal of the mission.

We don't often find ourselves re-reading trilogies (we just don't have the time), but this one ranks right up there with The Hunger Games and The Chaos Walking trilogies. Trust us on this one- you don't want to miss out. Thank you Ms. Revis! We can't wait to see what you come up with next.

Up next: The Lost Girl by S. Mandanna- Jan. 25th

Splintered- Jan. 11th

Grade: A-

Welcome to a fantastic spin on the Wonderland storyline. If you are a Tim Burton fan and enjoyed his sequel to the original Alice in Wonderland, you should run to the shelf and check this one out!

Alyssa has always known that the women in her family have fallen victim to a curse that stretches back to the original Alice. Her own mother now resides in a mental institution and will soon be submitted to shock therapy unless Alyssa can begin to make sense of the puzzle. Guided by the sexy Morpheus and aided by her dashing friend, Jeb, Alyssa must fix what was damaged by the first Alice.The fate of both Wonderland and Alyssa's family are at stake and some of the creatures have other plans in mind.

This is a darker Wonderland full of rich detail. In fact, we're late posting our review because we really took our time with this one. Written by A.G. Howard- who is also a school librarian- we hope to read more from her in the near future. Until then, we may have to re-read this one just for fun.

Next Up- Shades of Earth by Beth Revis, Jan. 18th.

Carnival of Souls- Jan. 4th

Grade: D

GAAAA! We wanted to like it. We tried our best... and failed. The cover is cool. The plot sounded good. The execution was awful. We can't even bring ourselves to write our own summary, so here is what Amazon has to say:

In a city of daimons, rigid class lines separate the powerful from the power-hungry. And at the heart of The City is the Carnival of Souls, where both murder and pleasure are offered up for sale. Once in a generation, the carnival hosts a deadly competition that allows every daimon a chance to join the ruling elite. Without the competition, Aya and Kaleb would both face bleak futures—if for different reasons. For each of them, fighting to the death is the only way to try to live.

So here's our beef- If you are going to write a Sci-Fi/ Fantasy, you MUST build the world. We didn't know if we were in the future or the past, or even on the planet Earth. They mention cell phones, yet they fight in a gladiator type setting. There is a coffee house, but time travel? or alternate reality? And don't even try to figure out who is telling a portion of the story. For a book with only 306 pages, there were at least 6 POVs! We lost count and interest quickly. We've looked at several review sites on this one, just in case we are off the mark. Looks like die-hard fans of Marr, love it. The rest of us... not so much. Oh well, it's early in the year and we have plenty more to read.

Next Up: Splintered by A.G. Howard- Jan. 11th

Mystic City- Dec. 28th

Grade: B+

We knew we could not pass up Mystic City even before we read the plot description. Just look at that fantastic cover! Publishers, if you're reading this, DON'T CHANGE THIS ONE!

Aria Rose is the daughter of one of the most powerful families in a futuristic (and flooded) city of Manhattan. But life is not perfect for Aria. After waking up in a hospital bed, where she has been told that she is recovering from a drug overdose, she finds that she is to be married to Thomas Foster. He is handsome, charming, rich, and Aria cannot remember ever having fallen in love with him. Setting out to gain some answers from Thomas, Aria encounters a young man named Hunter.  He is a rebel mystic who seems to know Aria quite well. Although Hunter answers many of her questions, he is holding something back and Aria soon realizes that she is at the center of a rebellion that will topple the powers that be.

We think Mystic City is a solid beginning to a promising story. We wanted to give it a better grade, but after awhile Aria's amnesia becomes painful and we questioned her ability to reason. We caution you to disregard those promos that describe it as a cross between The Hunger Games and X-Men. It's really more of a dystopian Romeo & Juliet with magic powers. Book two will be out sometime in early July 2013. 

Next Up: Carnival of Souls, Melissa Marr- Jan. 4th

Dearly, Beloved- Dec. 21st

Grade: B

Dearly, Beloved picks up quite soon after the last chapter of book one (Dearly, Departed). Readers will find Nora and Bram still deeply in love with each other while trying to ferret out the source of a new virus. Still without a cure for the original strain of  "the Laz," this new mutation is moving rapidly throughout the population.

As the plot progresses, Nora notices even more changes with her Laz infected father and begins to realize that without a cure, Bram will eventually succumb to the final stages of zombie-hood. We are introduced to two new zombie factions: The Murder- a group of masked vigilantes and The Changed- a group fighting for zombie survival.

With a dizzying number of sub-plots and six different narrators, it's easy to get lost- and not necessarily in a good way. Perhaps the author is intending to have a culmination of all side stories into a grand finale for book three. We hope so, because the introduction of yet more narrators may make the final installment difficult to finish.

If you are a fan of Dearly, Departed, we suggest you re-read it and move directly on to book two, while all of those characters are fresh in your mind. Although we didn't enjoy this one as much as the first, it's still worth your time.

Next Up: Mystic City by Theo Lawrence- Dec. 28th

Black City- Dec. 14th

Grade: D

We had such high hopes for this one. An embattled city, a vampire infestation, star-crossed lovers... We should have realized that nothing in that list is a new combination of ideas and that it could possibly be put together in the most unimaginative way. Unfortunately, after only a few chapters, we were knee-deep in the muck of a sloppy story.

In a city where tensions run high between the humans and the Darklings, two teens find each other and their twin, beating hearts. Of course there are numerous reasons why they cannot be together: human/vampire, daughter of ruling class/son of possible rebel sympathizer, and looming war between the classes. Despite the odds, Natalie and Ash will be together, even if it kills... one of them.

We found ourselves liking one chapter, then hating the next. Natalie and Ash switched their opinions of each other so quickly, we had whip-lash. Characters were difficult to track, transitions between story lines were hastily slapped together, and we wondered if this was a fan-fic at one point. But it STEALS scenes from so many other stories, that it would have to be a mash-up of Harry Potter, 1984, Twilight, Romeo & Juliet, and stories from WWII. Yes, we know, that is a crazy sentence!

Other online reviews are running hot and cold on this one. If you're curious, check it out and let us know what you think. The second book (Phoenix) is due out in June... we won't be reading it, but we'll add it to the collection anyway.

Next up: Dearly, Beloved- Dec. 21st

The Raven Boys- December 7

Grade: A

We know that many of you have enjoyed Stiefvater's Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy. And The Scorpio Races has landed on several book award lists, but we think The Raven Boys is her best yet! In fact, the only negative thing we have to say about this one, is that book two doesn't come out until September 2013.

Blue Sargent comes from a gifted family of clairvoyants and fortune-tellers. As far as Blue can tell, the powers have skipped her. She still helps out though. For instance, every year, Blue accompanies her mother to the graveyard to count the newly dead as they pass by. She never sees them... at least not until this year. His name is Gansey and even though Blue sees him in spirit form, he is still alive. Gansey, knows nothing of this as he is too busy trying to track down the burial site of a Welsh king. Historical documents place it somewhere in Virginia and legend says that finding the site will bring great gifts to the discoverer. But Gansey and his friends are not the only people racing to find the grave, and Blue may be the key to their hunt.

We love the fact that both the male and female characters in this book are strong and equally important to the plot. And although there is a touch of romance, it doesn't overwhelm the story. We've had it in our library for several months now, but it is rarely on the shelf. Put this one on hold and prepare to spend a few hours digging in to the adventure.

Next up: Black City by Elizabeth Richards- Dec. 14th