The Golden Day, Ursula Dubosarsky
“The golden day is a novel set in Sydney in 1967, ending in 1975, about a group of schoolgirls whose teacher bizarrely goes missing on a school excursion, apparently murdered.”–Author’s note.
The language in this was lovely, simple and well thought out. A little like Picnic at Hanging Rock.
~ Andrée
My Sister Lives on the Mantelpiece, by Annabel Pitcher
“Ten-year-old Jamie Matthews has just moved to the Lake District with his Dad and his teenage sister, Jasmine for a ‘Fresh New Start’. Five years ago his sister’s twin, Rose, was blown up by a terrorist bomb. His parents are wrecked by their grief, Jasmine turns to piercing, pink hair and stops eating. The family falls apart. But Jamie hasn’t cried in all that time. To him Rose is just a distant memory. Jamie is far more interested in his cat, Roger, his birthday Spiderman T-shirt, and in keeping his new friend Sunya a secret from his Dad. And in his deep longing and unshakeable belief that his Mum will come back to the family she walked out on months ago. When he sees a TV advert for a talent show, he feels certain that this will change everything and bring them all back together once and for all.” (Catalogue description)
Froi of the Exiles, Melina Marchetta
The second book in the Lumatere Chronicles (the first being Finnikin of the Rock). In Finnikin, Froi was a street urchin with no moral compass. In Froi he has become a model student and an efficient assassin in waiting, devoted to his code of conduct and to the Queen of Lumatere. When Froi is sent to Charyn to assassinate the king it seems like an opportunity to prove his worth, but he finds himself embroiled in a chaotic uprising reminiscent of the French Revolution (hangings instead of the guillotine), and in a mysterious curse whose repercussions reverberate around Charyn, and appear to be knocking on the door of Lumatere.
This book is wonderful and epic (600 pages, but you’ll hardly notice). At its heart are really real characters, great dialogue, keen observations of the way people are, and an awesome rag tag group of wanderers that reminded me rather a lot of Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca etc. from Star Wars. Plus: there’s a very twisty twist at the end (third book due next year).
Also great:
Blood Red Road, Moira Young. A fantastic futuristic journey through a wasteland world, with land yachts, cage fighting, an epic quest, and a cool bird. Made me think of the Mad Max movies. Good thing that it’s going to be a movie then, by Ridley Scott (Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator…).
The Floating Islands, Rachel Neumeier. A really successful, original fantasy world (with a mystical, Eastern element): had to try not to think of the movie Avatar with the floating islands idea, because it’s quite different. The potential romanceyness was well restrained, which is nice for a bit of a change.
~ Grimm
Beyond the dark journey: short stories and poems by young refugees in New Zealand
Eight young people from Burma, Aghanistan and the Sudan write about their journey to Aotearoa and coping with settling in. I especially liked the poetry and would like to share this verse with you:
I packed my bags throwing
My life into my suitcase
Not knowing where I was going.
Here I’m in windy wild Wellington.
Cold
Depressing
Alone
Quiet
Isolated
A neglected human ~ Sonia Azizi
I was priviliged to meet the young authors and after reading this book it has given me a better understanding about our courageous refugee community. A great read.
~ Ada
Read about the evolution of the book here.
Love is the Higher Law, David Levithan
“Three New York City teenagers struggle to come of age amid the chaos and aftermath of September 11. Peter’s, Claire’s, and Jasper’s lives weave together as they come to terms with a new reality. A welcome addition to any YA fiction collection where there are few examples on the topic.” (Library Journal)
Love is the Higher Law showed another side of the events of 9/11 – what teens actually went through in NY, where they were when the planes hit the world trade centre and the events that followed.
~ Lauren
Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
If you loved the Vampire Academy series, then this is the book for you. Bloodlines is the first book in the spin-off series of the Vampire Academy series narrated by Sydney Sage, a teenage Alchemist, a human bound to protect other humans from vampires, whether they’re the comparatively normal Moroi or the pure-evil Strigoi vampires and who is in hot water with the other alchemists for helping Rose (the original narrator of the Vampire Academy series …). However Sydney is called back into service when Jill Dragomir, Queen Lissa Dragomir’s half-sister, is in danger of being killed and the best way to keep Jill safe is to put her in a human boarding school, with Sydney posing as her older sister, despite the objections of Keith, a slimy Alchemist with a personal vendetta against her.
Despite not having the original Vampire Academy series, I enjoyed it. Full of suspense, danger, drama, vampires being murdered, a little forbidden love thrown in… and even ‘illegal drug operations’… Can’t wait to read The Golden Lily.
~ Katie
Half Brother, by Kenneth Oppel
“On Ben’s thirteenth birthday, his parents introduce him to his new sibling: a hairy, swaddled baby chimp that will be raised as part of the family in an experiment run by Ben’s father, a behavioral psychologist. At first, Ben resists calling Zan his brother, but as he begins to communicate with Zan through sign language, he develops a true, loving connection with the little chimp, even as he realizes that his father views Zan as just a scientific specimen. What will happen to Zan when the experiment is over? … A moving, original novel that readers will want to ponder and discuss” (Booklist review)
Also great:
Cupcake, Rachel Cohn (310 pages) – if you’ve read Shrimp and Gingerbread then you need to read this! CC has moved to New York, leaving behind Shrimp. She’s on a mission to find the best job, the best coffee, the best cupcake (we hear you), and a new love. But then, oops, Shrimp shows up, and CC must decide whether to continue the New York dream, or follow the surf with Shrimp.
First sentence: A cappucino cost me my life.
Frost, Wendy Delsol (376 pages) – the sequel to Stork. Katla is adjusting to life being a Stork and her mystical abilities, and to snowy Minnesota. The attentions of Jack help, however when a snowstorm brings environmental scientist Brigid to town, Katla finds there’s competition for Jack’s attentions. Worse, on a trip with Brigid to Greenland, Jack goes missing, and Katla knows she’s the only one who can find him.
First sentence: There was one thing, and one thing only, that could coax me into striped red tights, a fur vest, and an elf cap: Jack Snjosson.
Dust & Decay, Jonathan Maberry (519 pages) – the sequel to Rot & Ruin. Benny and his friends are ready to leave in search of a better future (on a road trip!), but this is not so easy! Zombies, wild animals, murderers, and the rebuilt Gamelands are in their way, plus also possibly Charlie Pink-eye (who is supposed to be safely dead!).
First sentence: Benny Imura was appalled to learn that the Apocalypse came with homework.
My Life Undecided, Jessica Brody (299 pages) – Brooklyn can’t make decisions, so she blogs in the hopes that her readers will make up her mind for her. But things get messy when love gets involved.
First sentence: The sirens are louder than I anticipated.
Audition, Stasia Ward Kehoe (458 pages) – Sara moves to a new city and joins the prestigious Jersey Ballet. As she struggles to adapt she spends time with Remington, a choreographer on the rise, becoming his muse and creating gossip and scandal that may make it all seem not worth it. A novel in verse.
First sentence: When you are a dancer / you learn the beginning / is first position.
This Dark Endeavor, Kenneth Oppel (298 pages) – subtitled The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein and therefore the prequel to Mary Shelley’s classic Frankenstein. Sixteen year old Victor’s twin, Konrad, falls ill, and Victor is desperate to save him. He enlists the help of some friends in creating the Elixir of Life, but in the process pushes the boundaries of “nature, science and love”.
First sentence: We found the monster on a rocky ledge high above the lake.
Dead End in Norvelt, Jack Gantos (341 pages) – Over to the rather good catalogue description: “In the historic town of Norvelt, Pennsylvania, twelve-year-old Jack Gantos spends the summer of 1962 grounded for various offenses until he is assigned to help an elderly neighbor with a most unusual chore involving the newly dead, molten wax, twisted promises, Girl Scout cookies, underage driving, lessons from history, typewriting, and countless bloody noses.”
First sentence: School was finally out and I was standing on a picnic table in our backyard getting ready for a great summer vacation when my mother walked up to me and ruined it.
A Need So Beautiful, Suzanne Young (267 pages) – Charlotte is a Forgotten, an earth-bound angel compelled to help someone. She’d rather spend her life with her boyfriend, so she must make the difficult, wrenching choice between her destiny and her love.
First sentence: I sit on the front steps of St. Vincent’s Cathedral and pick at the moss nestled in the cracks of the concrete.
Kill All Enemies, Melvin Burgess
“This tells the story of three teens with troubled backgrounds, one the daughter of an alcoholic, one who has an abusive stepdad, and one who is at odds with his middle-class upbringing. Here’s a review from the Guardian.” (teen blog!)
It’s a bit dark and gloomy but has really excellent inner monologues and the story is told very well from a variety of kids’ perspectives.
~ Nancy
I’ll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan
“Seventeen-year-old Sam’s and 10-year-old Riddle’s lives have never been normal. Because of their abusive father’s bad habit – stealing – they are always on the run. Sam stumbles into church wearing his cleanest dirty clothes on the day that Emily Bell sings ‘I’ll Be There’ by the Jackson Five. He can’t help but feel that she is singing directly to him, and the two make a connection that later will change both of their lives. Because of many coincidences, the two eventually meet again and the relationship blossoms, but not without some hindrances. Sam’s father commits a series of crimes, and he forces the boys to hit the road with him again. The brothers end up escaping their father’s grip and get separated, and readers will flip pages frantically to find out if they are reunited with one another and with Emily’s family. Sloan illustrates how we are all connected in big and small, positive and negative ways. Any reader who has ever questioned whether even the smallest gesture of kindness can make a difference will appreciate this book.” (School Library Journal)
Also excellent:
Island’s end by Padma Venkatraman
In the sea there are crocodiles by Fabio Goda
This week: two big future hits:
City of Lost Souls, Cassandra Clare – you might be waiting a while for this one, since it’s due in May next year. We’ve ordered it, which means you can reserve it! This is the fifth book in the Mortal Instruments series that began with City of Bones. The plot is a bit under wraps, as is the cover: all may be revealed in time!
Legend, Marie Lu – this one is getting a lot of publicity, and the film rights have already been purchased by the producers of Twilight. Legend is set in a dystopian future, where the United States is separated into several warring nations. Day, the country’s most wanted criminal, is on the run, and June, a fifteen year old military prodigy, is tasked with hunting him when her brother is murdered and Day become suspect #1. The legend of the title is revealed when their paths intersect.
Here’s the trailer (for the book!):
Thanks to Stephanie for the tips!
Annexed by Sharon Dogar
This is a fictionised account of Anne Frank’s diary told from the perspective of 16 year old Peter Van Pels, whose family shares a home in hiding with the Franks. Peter struggles endlessly through the loss of his sweetheart, friends and his freedom until finally finding an unlikely soulmate and potential girlfriend in Anne Frank, a happy ending that you hope is possible but is never to be. In reading this story, you learn of Peter and Anne’s hopes and dreams they have for the future and grieve for the possibilties they and all other Jews were robbed of. Have tissues on hand when reading.
~ Katie
Also really good:
Daughter of smoke & bone by Laini Taylor
This is a fantastic story about the eternal fight between seraphim and chimaera and the hope of change. Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorway, scorched there by winged strangers. In a dark and dusty shop in Prague, a sorcerer’s supply of teeth grows dangerously low and he sends his messenger through one of the marked doors to the other side of the world to collect more. There Karou meets and fights with a beautiful winged seraph before returning with the teeth she was sent to collect. Although she manages to escape, she cannot stop thinking about the angel and neither can he forget her! Karou = hope.
~ Raewyn
2011 is nearly over, so we thought we’d ask some library staff what their favourite books of the year were. Here are the first reviews of an interesting, ecclectic bunch!
Naked, Kevin Brooks
London 1976, during the height of IRA bombings and the emergence of the punk scene, teenagers Lili and Curtis are living their dream by playing in their punk band called ‘Naked’.
William Bonney, a Belfast boy joins the band as guitarist and Lili is immediately drawn to him. She finds herself caught up in his Irish past which inevitably follows him to London. This is a characteristically gripping novel from Kevin Brooks.
Out of Shadows, Jason Wallace
This is the story of Robert Jacklin a thirteen year old boy who arrives from England to Zimbabwe at the end of the civil war – Robert Mugabe has just taken over as president. Robert is sent to a very traditional boy’s boarding school where bullying is rife and he quickly learns that instead of remaining friends with one of the school’s few black students it is in his interests to be loyal to the white elite. Over his five years at the school he turns into a thug’s accessory and chooses to ignore his own morals.
The story turns into a fast paced thriller as Robert’s mentor becomes more and more focused on achieving what he think is right.
Author, Jason Wallace grew up in post revolutionary Zimbabwe so the portrayal of the boarding school and political climate is very real. While in many ways it left me feeling shocked it was a very powerful novel.
~ Julie
Here’s a sampling of what’s new to the library’s e-book collection:
Fantasy and Supernatural Fiction
General Fiction
Fiction With a Certain Amount of Action
There’s heaps more. Have a look at the e-book collection here.
Classic Novels
Not only are these available free, but they’re also effectively yours to keep! Read more here. Browse through the collection here.
Do you often find yourself juggling your ten reserves? If ten’s not enough to keep track of the things you want to read then My Discoveries on the Easyfind catalogue may be the way to go.
Once you’ve got a My Discoveries login (have a look at this tutorial to find out how to create one), you can create lists (“To Read”, or “For School” for example), and add things to those lists, referring back to them when you’re out of things to read. A list looks a little something like this:
Selecting an item from the list takes you to the catalogue record, and from there you can reserve it. Pretty easy!
To find out more, have a look a the Wish Lists tutorial here.
This week’s selection of new books kicks off with some alternating points of view:
Crossed, Ally Condie (367 pages) – sequel to Matched. Cassia finds that Ky has escaped into the canyons, where life is different and rebellion blooms. But it seems that Xander has some game-changing surprises up his sleeve. Told in alternating points of view by Cassia and Ky.
First sentence(s): I’m standing in a river. It’s blue.
Queen of the Dead, Stacey Kade (266 pages) – a Ghost and the Goth novel. Alona (ghost) is adjusting to her new job looking after the needs of lost spirits, for which she receives help from Will (goth). But her life becomes complicated, as her mother cleans out her room, and Will appears more interesting than loser-ish, and he, in turn, appears interested in someone else. Plus there’s a serious cliffhanging ending. Told in alternating chapters by the ghost and the goth.
First sentence: On television, ghost-talkers run antique stores, solve crimes, or stand on a stage in a nice suit giving the teary-eyed audience a toothy, yet sympathetic grin.
After Obsession, Carrie Jones & Steven E Wedel (305 pages) – told in alternating chapters by Alan and Aimee, who are drawn to each other by similarly supernatural secrets. Together they must help Alan’s cousin, Courtney, who has let herself be possessed by a demon/ghost in a desperate attempt to find her missing father. This proves not to be Courtney’s best move.
First sentence(s): You are mine. You all will be mine.
Sign Language, Amy Ackley (392 pages) – Abby North’s father has cancer, which changes her priorities, and her life perspective, as her family struggles to cope.
First sentence: The first thing Abby remembered about It was the scar.
I’ll Be There, Holly Goldberg Sloan (392 pages) – Sam and his younger brother Riddle were kidnapped by their father ten years ago, and now lead a life on the run. One day Sam hears Emily performing in a church, and they meet (in slightly awkward circumstances) only for him to vanish again. Emily, determined, tracks him down again, and things go from there, until Sam’s father discovers what he’s been up to… Great reviews!
First sentence(s): The days of the week meant nothing to him. Except Sunday.
Tiger’s Quest, Colleen Houck (479 pages) – a weighty tome. The second in the Tiger’s Curse series. Kelsey finds herself on another Indian quest with Ren’s black-sheep brother, Kishan, questioning her destiny.
First sentence: I clung to the leather seat and felt my heart fall as the private plane rose into the sky, streaking away from India.
Ashes, Ashes, Jo Treggiari (344 pages) – Things are bad bad bad for Lucy! Basically, the world as she knew it has ended (epidemics, floods, droughts), and she finds herself in the New York wasteland, alone, and fending off a pack of vicious dogs. Lucky for her, she is rescued by Aidan, who invites her to join a group of survivors; unlucky for them all, they are terrorised by the Sweepers, who threaten to infect them with the plague. Lucy and Aidan must save their friends from the Sweepers, but what if it’s actually Lucy the Sweepers are after?
First sentence: Lucy hunched over the corpse and felt a tiny bubble of hysterical laughter gurgle up.
Something Deadly This Way Comes, Kim Harrison (245 pages) – Madison died on the night of her prom, and now she’s in charge of Heaven’s hit squad. This has pros and cons, and when she has the opportunity to return to her body and be a real girl she’s torn: heaven or earth? Cool supernatural powers, or Josh?
First sentence: I’m Madison Avery, dark timekeeper in charge of heaven’s hit squad… and fighting it all the way.
Populazzi, Elise Allen (394 pages) – When Cara moves to a new school she has the opportunity to become one of the Populazzi – one of the girls at the top of the popularity ladder. The way up the ladder, her friend’s theory goes, is to form relationships with guys on further up rungs. So Cara tests the theory out, with some complicated results she doesn’t bargain on.
First sentence(s): “Don’t you see, Cara? This will be the year everything changes!”
Here are a couple of titles we’ve recently ordered which might take your fancy:
The Fire, James Patterson (Witch & Wizard number 3, due soon). Being further adventures of Whit and Wisty Allgood, in which The One has executed the final member of their family, and Wisty realises it is time for her to confront The One. But in doing so, is she only going to lend more power to The One, or can she and Whit somehow overcome the seemingly all-conquering evil?
This is, I think, the conclusion to the trilogy (famous last words!).
How to save a life, Sara Zarr (soon also). Mandy is pregnant and looking for someone to adopt her baby. Jill lost her dad a year ago, and now her mother is seemingly trying to replace him by looking to adopt a baby. Needless to say, she is unimpressed with her mother’s actions, and suspicious of Mandy’s motives. Another thought-provoking offering from the author of Sweethearts, and Once Was Lost.
Could ghosts be the new vampires? Here at the teen blog we’ve recently noticed a whole bunch of interesting ghost stories are being published, some of them with Victorian, 19th-century sensibilities. Could this be the new black? we wonder. We will keep an eye out for more.
The Scorpio Races, Maggie Stiefvater (409 pages) – The Scorpio Races happen each year in November, where riders race waterhorses (presumably underwater). They’re a dangerous sport, and some riders don’t survive. Sean Kendrick has, he’s the current champion, back to defend his title. Then there’s Puck, who is going to be the first female rider ever, not fully aware of what she’s got herself in for. We’re thinking everyone’s going to get more than they bargained for.
First sentence: It is the first day of November and so, today, someone will die.
Human.4, Mike A. Lancaster (231 pages) – When Kyle volunteers to be hypnotised at a talent show, he doesn’t expect the world to be completely changed when he wakes up. Now everyone behaves like he doesn’t exist, and TVs and computers just display a weird language. So, is this a new real world, or is Kyle still lost in a nightmare?
First sentence (Kyle Straker’s First Tape): … Is this thing on?
Drink Slay Love, Sarah Beth Durst (386 pages) – (The title is an Eat, Pray, Love reference, if you hadn’t already noticed.) Pearl is your average run of the mill vampire until one day she is stabbed through the heart by a unicorn. Now she can be out in daylight, which is kind of useful for vampires, and her vampire family agrees, and puts Pearl to use, enrolling her in high school with the intention of luring innocent humans to the vampire King’s feast (as, you know, the feast). But Pearl starts having second thoughts – especially about one particular cute guy – and finds herself torn between having her friends killed and being killed herself.
First sentence: “One hour until dawn,” Pearl said.
The Summer I Learned to Fly, Dana Reinhardt (216 pages) – Drew is a loner who hangs out in her mother’s cheese shop and owns a pet rat. One day she meets Emmett, a boy with an endless amount of mysteries surrounding him, and begins her first real friendship. The cover says “[it’s] about a cautious girl swept up by new feelings. It’s about a charismatic boy in search of a miracle. It’s about what happens when they find each other”, which is quite nice.
First sentence: For some people it’s the smell of sunblock.
He’s So Not Worth It, Kieran Scott (360 pages) – the sequel to She’s So Dead to Us. “Told in two voices, Allie and Jake continue to be bombarded by family issues and pressures from the “Cresties” and their poorer counterparts as they spend a summer dealing with the fallout of their breakup.” (Catalogue)
First sentence: I had imagined my reunion with my father so many times over the past two years, I had every last detail down.
Anna Dressed in Blood, Kendare Blake (316 pages) – Cas Lowood is a ghost-killer who travels the country with his mother and cat, following legends and stories to hunt down harmful ghosts and, well, kill them. They arrive in a new town on the trail of the ghost known as Anna Dressed in Blood, who has killed every person who has entered the house she haunts – except, mysteriously, she decides to spare Cas.
First sentence: The grease-slicked hair is a dead giveaway – no pun intended.
Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Laini Taylor (418 pages) – newly arrived, and featuring in our Most Wanted list: this one is “a sweeping and gorgeously written modern fantasy about a forbidden love, an ancient and epic battle, and hope for a world remade” (cover), which makes it sound fabulous!
First sentence: Walking to school over the snow-muffled cobbles, Karou had no sinister premonitions about the day.
A Long Long Sleep, Anna Sheehan (342 pages) – This is a kind of fairytale-meets-futuristic-semi-dystopian-tale, which sounds really interesting. Rosalinda Fitzroy’s mega rich parents organised for her to “sleep” for sixty years in a stasis tube. When she is kissed awake by a strange boy she discovers the world quite changed, and must reestablish herself. But when an assassin threatens her life, things are turned up a notch, and Rose is forced to uncover some past truths and face the deadly threat head on.
First sentence: I’d try to hold on to my stass dreams as long as I could.
Haunting Violet, Alyxandra Harvey (344 pages) – Set in the 19th century. Violet’s mother is a fake medium, who holds séances to relieve various willing members of society of their cash. But at one particular session Violet is confronted by the ghost of a murder victim, who won’t rest until the killer is brought to justice.
First sentence: I was nine years old when my mother decided it was time I took part in the family business.
VIII, H. M. Castor (399 pages) – Before he was Henry VIII he was Hal; young, dashing and handsome, and destined to become one of the most famous kings of England (not necessarily for all the right reasons). VIII tells the story of young Hal, tormented by his family’s ghosts and convinced of his path to lead his country. This has good reviews!
First sentence: I’m still half asleep when I feel strong hands grabbing me.
So Silver Bright, Lisa Mantchev (356 pages) – the concluding Act in the quirky, effervescent trilogy that began with Eyes Like Stars, So Silver Bright sees Bertie on the up and up, having rescued Nate from Sedna, and having discovered the identity of her father, the Scrimshander. Now she must try and reunite him with her mother, Ophelia, so they can be a family. But of course, things can’t go to plan: her father has disappeared, Sedna’s on the loose, and the Theatre Illuminata and her mother are on the verge of collapse. Plus: Nate, or Ariel?
First sentence: It is a nipping and an eager air.
Dark Parties, Sara Grant (313 pages) – Neva has lived in Homeland her whole life, told that the rest of the earth is just wasteland. But this is a lie! Neva is aware of The Missing, people who vanish without warning. She and her friend Sanna decide to start an underground rebellion, to uncover the truths the government has been hiding, but is Neva in danger of becoming one of The Missing?
First sentence: I’m standing in the dark, not the gentle gray of dusk or the soft black of a moonlit night but pitch-black.
Compuls1on, Heidi Ayarbe (297 pages) – Jake is obsessed with prime numbers, and this obsession lends him some sort of magic – it’s what keeps his family safe, and makes him so brilliant at football, and it’s what’s going to make his team state soccer champions for the third year in a row (3 = a prime number). He is sure that this final game of the season will set the magic free from the numbers, and he won’t be a freak – but what if this doesn’t happen? A story about obsessive compulsive disorder, obvs.
First sentence: Tanya Reese’s Tinker Bell taattoo flits on her pale shoulder, blowing on a dandelion, its fluff spiraling down on her back.
Following Christopher Creed, Carol Plum-Ucci (405 pages) – sequel to The Body of Christopher Creed. A body is found in Steepleton (could it be Christopher Creed?), so college reporter Mike Mavic ups stakes and moves there to follow the story, convinced this is his big break. What he finds, however, is a suffering town (unexplained sickness, accidents), and Justin Creed, Christopher’s brother, who is also obsessed with uncovering the truth of his disappearance.
First sentence: It happened on a dark and stormy night.
(we do love dark and stormy nights in first sentences)
Lola and the Boy Next Door, Stephanie Perkins (338 pages) – Lola’s life seems perfect. She’s a designer with an outrageous sense of style, and she has a hot boyfriend. But then (there’s always a but then) the Bell twins move back to the house next door, one of the twins being Cricket (yes, Cricket), a gifted inventor, and the boy Lola has unacknowledged feelings for.
First sentence: I have three simple wishes.
Cold Kiss, Amy Garvey (292 pages) – When Wren’s boyfriend Danny dies, she’s determined to bring him back… and so she does. Trouble is, new Danny is nothing like old Danny: “his touch is icy; his skin, smooth and stiff as marble; his chest, cruelly silent when Wren rests her head against it” (salute to Edward?). Wren tries to keep him a secret, but Gabriel DeMarnes arrives in town. He can sense her power and somehow knows what she’s done, and wants to help her, but only Wren can undo what she’s done.
First sentence: I wasn’t thinking about falling in love the day I met Danny Greer.
And finally for this week, two retellings:
Falling for Hamlet, Michelle Ray (348 pages) – Hamlet updated! Ophelia is a high school senior and girlfriend of Prince Hamlet, son of the Danish king. Her life seems glamorous, but there’s the paparazzi, and the controlling royals, and then the suspicious death of the king. Hamlet starts acting oddly – madly – and Ophelia finds herself isolated, and wishing for a normal life (preferably not in a nunnery).
First sentence: Hamlet’s father had the kind of laugh that made wineglasses vibrate and clink of the staff set them too close together, and Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, loved to hear it so much that she went to great lengths to provoke it.
Dark of the Moon, Tracy Barrett (310 pages) – “Retells the story of the minotaur through the eyes of his fifteen-year-old sister, Ariadne, a lonely girl destined to become a goddess of the moon, and her new friend, Theseus, the son of Athens’ king who was sent to Crete as a sacrifice to her misshapen brother.” (catalogue!)
First sentence: It isn’t true what they say about my brother – that he ate those children.
