by JL Bryan
Jenny is a high school student with a big secret - even bigger than most high school girls' secrets. Her touch can kill people. Her father has helped her adjust to life without touching anyone and even though she is lonely, she knows this is what she has to do. When she meets a boy who is immune to her poison, she sees hopes for her future for the first time. But there's one big problem: Seth is the boyfriend of Jenny's longtime nemesis, Ashleigh. Then Jenny discovers that Ashleigh has a big secret too, and Jenny must use her power to destroy Ashleigh.
This was a good read. Jenny, even with her pox, is relatable to any high school student who ever felt left out. But her discovery of Seth and Ashleigh's powers changes everything. I had thought this was a young adult book, but there are a couple of pretty intense sex scenes that lead me to believe otherwise. "Jenny Pox" ends in such a way that it could be over, or there could be a sequel. I'm hoping for a sequel.
I got this on Amazon for Kindle for $2.99.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Never Let Me Go
by Kazuo Ishiguro
The children who grow up at Hailsham, an elite school in the English countryside, are special. So special that they are kept isolated from the outside world and spend their days learning and creating art that is taken away to a gallery by a woman known only as Madame. Years later, Kathy recounts her days at Hailsham and the reason she and her fellow students are so special.
This was a very interesting book. It's hard for me to describe this book without spoiling it. Kathy and her friends grow up being "told but not told" what their future holds and what is expected of them. Is there any way to change the path of their lives? Maybe, but maybe not.
This is the kind of book that strikes you later. It has just enough in it to make you wonder if this could someday be a true story. Kathy and her friends, especially Tommy and Ruth, are teenagers like any others, with dreams and loves and conflicts. But they are not like other teenagers, and will not grow up to be like other adults.
I see that there's a movie about this book and I'm curious to see how this translated to the big screen. Almost all of this book is told from Kathy's point of view, and there's so much that she doesn't understand.
(Amazon Kindle, $5.00)
The children who grow up at Hailsham, an elite school in the English countryside, are special. So special that they are kept isolated from the outside world and spend their days learning and creating art that is taken away to a gallery by a woman known only as Madame. Years later, Kathy recounts her days at Hailsham and the reason she and her fellow students are so special.
This was a very interesting book. It's hard for me to describe this book without spoiling it. Kathy and her friends grow up being "told but not told" what their future holds and what is expected of them. Is there any way to change the path of their lives? Maybe, but maybe not.
This is the kind of book that strikes you later. It has just enough in it to make you wonder if this could someday be a true story. Kathy and her friends, especially Tommy and Ruth, are teenagers like any others, with dreams and loves and conflicts. But they are not like other teenagers, and will not grow up to be like other adults.
I see that there's a movie about this book and I'm curious to see how this translated to the big screen. Almost all of this book is told from Kathy's point of view, and there's so much that she doesn't understand.
(Amazon Kindle, $5.00)
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Leaving Home: Short Pieces
by Jodi Picoult
A collection of three short pieces by Jodi Picoult, two fictional and one a letter Picoult wrote to her own son as he was leaving for college. The pieces all fit together with the theme of leaving home.
The first story, "Weights and Measures", is a sad little piece about a couple coping with the loss of their daughter. The second is the letter to her son. The third piece, "Ritz", is a story of a mother who takes a vacation.
Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite writers and if you haven't read anything by her yet, you need to remedy that post haste. Her stories are always relate-able and honest and her characters are real people you can understand. These three short pieces are a nice dose of Picoult if you, like me, have read everything else she's written and are just waiting for her newest book to be released ("Sing You Home" on March 1).
Amazon has started this "Kindle Singles" series, a variety of short pieces all priced under $3. Check them all out.
A collection of three short pieces by Jodi Picoult, two fictional and one a letter Picoult wrote to her own son as he was leaving for college. The pieces all fit together with the theme of leaving home.
The first story, "Weights and Measures", is a sad little piece about a couple coping with the loss of their daughter. The second is the letter to her son. The third piece, "Ritz", is a story of a mother who takes a vacation.
Jodi Picoult is one of my favorite writers and if you haven't read anything by her yet, you need to remedy that post haste. Her stories are always relate-able and honest and her characters are real people you can understand. These three short pieces are a nice dose of Picoult if you, like me, have read everything else she's written and are just waiting for her newest book to be released ("Sing You Home" on March 1).
Amazon has started this "Kindle Singles" series, a variety of short pieces all priced under $3. Check them all out.
Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
by Jamie Ford
Henry is 12 years old in the early 1940s, being raised in Chinatown in Seattle. His father is obsessed with the war and having Henry grow up American. He attends a white school, where he is mostly ignored by the other kids there. Until Keiko arrives, a Japanese American girl who feels just as out of place as Henry. The two form a fast bond, and when Keiko and her family are evacuated to the internment camps. Henry manages to visit Keiko, but soon the two lose touch. Forty years later, Henry watches as the Panama Hotel, the gateway to Seattle's Japantown, discovers the belongings of all those evacuated Japanese families in its basement. And soon Henry is caught up in his memories of Keiko and his need to find her belongings in that basement.
This book has been on my list for a long time. I am so glad I finally got around to reading it because - wow. It was amazing. The reader is caught up in two mysteries: What will happen to young Henry and Keiko? and Will older Henry find Keiko? I won't give anything away, because I'm not all spoilery like that, but you NEED to read this book. It's a great story of a young boy trying to find out where he belongs in his school, his neighborhood, even his own family. Even forty years later, Henry is still trying to find his place, determined to be a different type of father for his own son, but not really knowing how to do that. The opening of the Panama Hotel helps Henry to open up his own life.
This is really an amazing book. I got mine for Kindle on Amazon for $5.
Henry is 12 years old in the early 1940s, being raised in Chinatown in Seattle. His father is obsessed with the war and having Henry grow up American. He attends a white school, where he is mostly ignored by the other kids there. Until Keiko arrives, a Japanese American girl who feels just as out of place as Henry. The two form a fast bond, and when Keiko and her family are evacuated to the internment camps. Henry manages to visit Keiko, but soon the two lose touch. Forty years later, Henry watches as the Panama Hotel, the gateway to Seattle's Japantown, discovers the belongings of all those evacuated Japanese families in its basement. And soon Henry is caught up in his memories of Keiko and his need to find her belongings in that basement.
This book has been on my list for a long time. I am so glad I finally got around to reading it because - wow. It was amazing. The reader is caught up in two mysteries: What will happen to young Henry and Keiko? and Will older Henry find Keiko? I won't give anything away, because I'm not all spoilery like that, but you NEED to read this book. It's a great story of a young boy trying to find out where he belongs in his school, his neighborhood, even his own family. Even forty years later, Henry is still trying to find his place, determined to be a different type of father for his own son, but not really knowing how to do that. The opening of the Panama Hotel helps Henry to open up his own life.
This is really an amazing book. I got mine for Kindle on Amazon for $5.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Hollowland
by Amanda Hocking
So, once I started reading Amanda Hocking's books, I just couldn't stop. This book is a stand-alone (though I've seen on her website that there may be a sequel coming and I'd love to read that!) book about what happens when the world is infested with - wait for it - zombies.
19-year-old Remy is one of the few humans left. She was living in a government-run quarantine and her brother Max was in the medical unit. But the zombies are getting smarter and managing to work together in their attacks. When Remy learns her brother has been moved, she sets out across America to find him, with a young girl, a former rock star, an almost doctor and a lion.
But Remy has a secret about her brother that the others don't know. And that secret might apply to her too.
Again, Hocking creates a strong, kick butt girl character cast into a world full of mythology creatures who are out to destroy her. I really liked Remy and her ragtag gang of zombie fighters. They meet a few other groups of survivors on their journey, both those who help and those who try to harm them.
I didn't expect the story to end where it did, which is probably why Hocking is writing a sequel. But really, it could end right there and the reader would know that Remy did what she had to do.
Another good read by Hocking. This one is also available on Amazon for Kindle for 99 cents or paperback for $8.99. If you check out her website, http://amandahocking.blogspot.com, you can also find other outlets for purchasing her books.
So, once I started reading Amanda Hocking's books, I just couldn't stop. This book is a stand-alone (though I've seen on her website that there may be a sequel coming and I'd love to read that!) book about what happens when the world is infested with - wait for it - zombies.
19-year-old Remy is one of the few humans left. She was living in a government-run quarantine and her brother Max was in the medical unit. But the zombies are getting smarter and managing to work together in their attacks. When Remy learns her brother has been moved, she sets out across America to find him, with a young girl, a former rock star, an almost doctor and a lion.
But Remy has a secret about her brother that the others don't know. And that secret might apply to her too.
Again, Hocking creates a strong, kick butt girl character cast into a world full of mythology creatures who are out to destroy her. I really liked Remy and her ragtag gang of zombie fighters. They meet a few other groups of survivors on their journey, both those who help and those who try to harm them.
I didn't expect the story to end where it did, which is probably why Hocking is writing a sequel. But really, it could end right there and the reader would know that Remy did what she had to do.
Another good read by Hocking. This one is also available on Amazon for Kindle for 99 cents or paperback for $8.99. If you check out her website, http://amandahocking.blogspot.com, you can also find other outlets for purchasing her books.
Trylle Trilogy
by Amanda Hocking
Books: Switched, Torn, and Ascend
I'm going to cheat a little bit here and review all three at once. I read them all within 2 weeks, so it would hard for me to separate them anyway. And to be fair, I had to wait for "Ascend" to be released, so it took me a little longer than it normally would have to finish these.
These are young adult fantasy books. The basic storyline is this: At 16, Wendy discovers that she is actually a changeling, a child left in the place of another child. Who left her? Well, I won't ruin it, but believe me when I say it's not a world you're familiar with. :)
When Wendy returns to her rightful home, she finds that she is bestowed with many responsibilities and honors. And a bodyguard, of sorts, Finn. And then there's the "boy next door" Tove. Yep. But then another man comes into the picture. Who will she end up with? Who is strong enough to be with her? It's not the main story, but it does keep you wondering.
Through the series, Wendy learns more and more of who and what she really is. She learns that sometimes you have to do what is right for the world instead of what your heart wants. And then she learns what her heart really wants and who she wants to be.
These are NOT "Twilight" books. There are no vampires or werewolves or simpering female characters who need someone else to tell them what to do. Wendy is strong and smart and funny. She is what you had hoped you were in high school when you sometimes felt you didn't fit in, but couldn't figure out why. This is more "Lord of the Rings" (movie only since I never read the books) meets "The Hunger Games".
You can download these books on Amazon relatively inexpensively. The first one is 99 cents and the others are $2.99. They are also available in paperback from Amazon for about $9. Hocking also has another series, called "My Blood Approves" that I haven't read yet, but her fan base seems to really enjoy that one too.
If you're looking for a fast, entertaining read, check out the Trylle Trilogy.
Books: Switched, Torn, and Ascend
I'm going to cheat a little bit here and review all three at once. I read them all within 2 weeks, so it would hard for me to separate them anyway. And to be fair, I had to wait for "Ascend" to be released, so it took me a little longer than it normally would have to finish these.
These are young adult fantasy books. The basic storyline is this: At 16, Wendy discovers that she is actually a changeling, a child left in the place of another child. Who left her? Well, I won't ruin it, but believe me when I say it's not a world you're familiar with. :)
When Wendy returns to her rightful home, she finds that she is bestowed with many responsibilities and honors. And a bodyguard, of sorts, Finn. And then there's the "boy next door" Tove. Yep. But then another man comes into the picture. Who will she end up with? Who is strong enough to be with her? It's not the main story, but it does keep you wondering.
Through the series, Wendy learns more and more of who and what she really is. She learns that sometimes you have to do what is right for the world instead of what your heart wants. And then she learns what her heart really wants and who she wants to be.
These are NOT "Twilight" books. There are no vampires or werewolves or simpering female characters who need someone else to tell them what to do. Wendy is strong and smart and funny. She is what you had hoped you were in high school when you sometimes felt you didn't fit in, but couldn't figure out why. This is more "Lord of the Rings" (movie only since I never read the books) meets "The Hunger Games".
You can download these books on Amazon relatively inexpensively. The first one is 99 cents and the others are $2.99. They are also available in paperback from Amazon for about $9. Hocking also has another series, called "My Blood Approves" that I haven't read yet, but her fan base seems to really enjoy that one too.
If you're looking for a fast, entertaining read, check out the Trylle Trilogy.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
The Other Daughter
by Lisa Gardner
Twenty years ago, nine-year-old Melanie Stokes was found abandoned in a Boston hospital. She soon found a family with a wealthy couple who lost their own daughter years earlier to murder. Now Melanie and her family are receiving strange messages and Melanie is forced to re-examine the circumstances of her abandonment and the death of the Stokes' first daughter.
I had heard a lot about this author from my friend Maryann, who also reviews books over at her site Kickin It With My Kindle so I was excited to pick this one up. It's a stand-alone book, whereas Gardner also has two ongoing series. I really enjoyed this book. There were a lot of twists and turns that kept the reader on the edge of their seat.
One thing I especially liked was that early on in the book, Melanie gets a pretty good idea of what's going on. But does she? Ha ha, I won't ruin it for you, but I will say this: the second you think you have this book figured out, Gardner pulls a fast one and keeps you guessing. But don't worry, everything ties together in the end and makes sense.
I look forward to reading more by Lisa Gardner.
Twenty years ago, nine-year-old Melanie Stokes was found abandoned in a Boston hospital. She soon found a family with a wealthy couple who lost their own daughter years earlier to murder. Now Melanie and her family are receiving strange messages and Melanie is forced to re-examine the circumstances of her abandonment and the death of the Stokes' first daughter.
I had heard a lot about this author from my friend Maryann, who also reviews books over at her site Kickin It With My Kindle so I was excited to pick this one up. It's a stand-alone book, whereas Gardner also has two ongoing series. I really enjoyed this book. There were a lot of twists and turns that kept the reader on the edge of their seat.
One thing I especially liked was that early on in the book, Melanie gets a pretty good idea of what's going on. But does she? Ha ha, I won't ruin it for you, but I will say this: the second you think you have this book figured out, Gardner pulls a fast one and keeps you guessing. But don't worry, everything ties together in the end and makes sense.
I look forward to reading more by Lisa Gardner.
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