Tag Archives: Young Adult

Hate List by Jennifer Brown

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Synopsis:
Her boyfriend shot up the school then shot himself, and now Val has to make it through senior year.

Review:
Wow. I am so impressed with the execution in Hate List, a book that could’ve gone wrong in so many ways, but ended up getting everything right. Val’s predicament as the girlfriend of a school shooter tore me to pieces. I could see her point of view and wished I could send her in a better direction, even though I knew she had to learn her lessons the hard way. And I cried at the end!

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Leftovers by Laura Wiess

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Synopsis:
The daughter of an aspiring judge and her best friend, a loner whose parents and brother party all the time, find themselves contemplating a devastating and dangerous course of action when confronted with a very personal injustice.

Review:
The friendship between Ardith and Blair in Leftovers is somewhat reminiscent of the movie Heavenly Creatures, one of my all-time favorites. Alienated from their parents and desperate for a connection, the relationship between the girls blurs boundaries and takes on life-saving properties for both of them. And when rupture occurs, violence follows.

I loved these girls even as they scared me to death. I really impressed with the layered, complicated story that Laura Wiess created for them. I think this book is heads and shoulders above most issue-driven YA and I think it’s a must-read for any fan of the genre.

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Willow by Julia Hoban

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Synopsis:
After accidentally killing her parents, a teen turns to cutting and attracts the attention of a guy who desperately wants to save her.

Review:
Creepiest love story I’ve read in a long time. Ick.

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Ascent by Amy Kinzer (The Party Series, Book 1)

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Synopsis:
Three teens are recruited for an elite leadership training program that will allow them to go back in time and change the moments they regret the most.

Review:
Wow, Ascent is a fantastic deal–only 99 cents for Kindle! You’d think that such a low price would indicate low quality, but that’s hardly the case. Amy Kinzer‘s writing can certainly compete with traditionally published authors of YA dystopian fiction. I hope she’s working on the next book, because I am a big fan!

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Girl Over the Edge by Amy Kinzer

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Synopsis:
When two best friends take topless pictures at themselves at a party, they become social pariahs at school, their friendship fractures, and both of them begin to self-destruct.

Review:
Girl Over the Edge is a great bargain at only 99 cents for the Kindle. The writing is accomplished, though a tad bit vague in a few places. I was sucked into Beckett and Chloe’s dilemma. I did wonder why it was easier for Beckett than for Chloe, and that was never fully explained to me. But overall this was a great YA read.

Many thanks to Amazon for the review copy.

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The Luxe by Anna Godberson

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Synopsis:
The death of a society girl in 1899 New York City isn’t quite what it seems, thanks to an impossibly complex snarl of love triangles.

Review:
I guess you would call The Luxe “Gossip Girl” set in Edith Wharton territory, but that makes it sound dreadful when in fact it’s pretty enjoyable. I don’t think I’ll continue on in the series but it was a fun read.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

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Synopsis:
When the eccentric creator of the virtual reality world that has become more real than the real world dies without an heir, the nerds of the world race to discover a hidden easter egg that will unlock his fortune.

Review:
So. Fun. Ready Player One was an absolute treat of a book–compulsively readable and fabulously geeky. The hero is Wade, known in the virtual world called OASIS as “Parzival,” a high school student who has dedicated his whole life to hunting for the hidden easter egg within OASIS that will unlock creator James Halliday’s fortune. He wants the fame, the glory, and the money, but he also wants to save OASIS from the “Sixers,” egg hunters controlled by an evil conglomerate that wants to monetize OASIS thereby destroying all that is good about it.

It gets even better. Halliday was an 80s freak, so in order to find the egg everyone has to become experts on all the pop culture from that misbegotten decade. We’re talking WarGames, Adventure, Zork!, D&D, and so much more. I loved all the references, both big (Pac Man) and obscure (The Plimsoulls) and how they were integrated into the world and into the plot. Yum!

Wade is basically living the dream–what if you could actually become a gazillionaire by playing video games all day long? What if you got to step inside and live the game itself? I don’t just mean that your life becomes a game. I mean, instead of typing in the text commands for Zork you’re actually doing them in a virtual reality that is more real than real. That’s what this book gives you, from the POV of a character who isn’t just a gamer.

Wade has all kinds of conflicts to deal with that distract him from the task at hand, and he has to decide which is more important, the real world or OASIS. He’s in love with a girl who insists he can’t love her because they’ve only ever met online. But it seems like the real thing, too, and he spends the book trying to get her to see it his way. All this, and Mechagodzilla, too!

Lest you think this is just a lark, the book also offers some pretty keen commentary on technology today. It’s not for nothing he name checks Cory Doctorow. I was also reminded of Scott Westerfeld’s Extras, another book that seems quite prescient to me.

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Dark Parties by Sara Grant

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Synopsis:
In a dystopia under a sealed dome where inbreeding has left everyone looking very similar, one girl looks for the truth about the world outside.

Review:
Dark Parties has a decent enough concept, and is executed well enough, but Neva’s plight didn’t strike a chord with me. Perhaps it was the world-building which felt thin and undercooked.

I love dystopian YA, but am growing fearful that the genre has played out. It’s not enough to have an idea and be able to write. When done well, the results can be spectacular, and I’m pretty much done with giving allowances for an effort that’s good but not great. That said, this book is better than average, and not to be dismissed outright.

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Cold Light by Jenn Ashworth

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Synopsis:
When a body is uncovered near a memorial site for a dead teen, her former best friend reflects on the events of a decade ago that culminated in tragedy.

Review:
Cold Light was tremendously depressing. Lola, the narrator was mopey, passive, and largely unappealing. Her best friend Chloe is described as having a charisma that draws people to her, but she just seemed angry and petulant to me. I think that was the point, though, and that I’m just in a place where these kinds of stories no longer appeal to me. I used to love films and books like Morvern Callar and the like, but I just need more of a range of emotions in the stories I love now. I found no joy in this book and that kept me from appreciating the story.

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Another Pan by Daniel and Dina Nayeri

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Synopsis:
When Peter Pan and his Lost Boys descend on a chic Manhattan boarding school, a brother and sister become embroiled in his plan to reclaim 5 ancient mummies who hold the secret to eternal life.

Review:
In the interest of full disclosure, I sometimes work with Daniel Nayeri, and have even had him and his lovely wife over to my house for dinner. So please don’t expect anything resembling objectivity. I’m a big fan of Daniel and his sister Dina’s unique brand of classic retellings, and I’d love for everyone to buy Another Pan.

Another Pan is an intriguing mash up of Peter Pan and ancient Egyptian mythology, all set in a deliciously snooty boarding school. It’s not as tidy as some other YA retellings I’ve read, and I like that about it. The Nayeri siblings are ambitious storytellers with a high regard for the intelligence of their readers. They’re also damn good writers. (Yes, I’m a bit jealous.)

Many thanks to Candlewick for the review copy.