Book Review ~ A Great and Terrible Beauty

A Great and Terrible Beauty (Gemma Doyle, book 1) by Libba Bray
Published: Sept. 2007
Genre: Fantasy/Historical Fiction

Description:
A Victorian boarding school story, a Gothic mansion mystery, a gossipy romp about a clique of girlfriends, and a dark other-worldly fantasy--jumble them all together and you have this complicated and unusual first novel.

Gemma, 16, has had an unconventional upbringing in India, until the day she foresees her mother's death in a black, swirling vision that turns out to be true. Sent back to England, she is enrolled at Spence, a girls' academy with a mysterious burned-out East Wing. There Gemma is snubbed by powerful Felicity, beautiful Pippa, and even her own dumpy roommate Ann, until she blackmails herself and Ann into the treacherous clique. Gemma is distressed to find that she has been followed from India by Kartik, a beautiful young man who warns her to fight off the visions. Nevertheless, they continue, and one night she is led by a child-spirit to find a diary that reveals the secrets of a mystical Order. The clique soon finds a way to accompany Gemma to the other-world realms of her visions "for a bit of fun" and to taste the power they will never have as Victorian wives, but they discover that the delights of the realms are overwhelmed by a menace they cannot control. Gemma is left with the knowledge that her role as the link between worlds leaves her with a mission to seek out the "others" and rebuild the Order. A Great and Terrible Beauty is an impressive first book in what should prove to be a fascinating trilogy. (Ages 12 up) -Patty Campbell

YA Staff Review:
I really enjoyed this book. There are parts that make me think of Harry Potter (discovering you’re something more than you thought you were), Mean Girls (new girl dislikes the main clique of girls and the way they treat others but joins them to try), and Ghost Whisperer but is enough different to not be annoyingly copycat.

Book Review ~ Immortal Rules

Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden, book 1) by Julie Kagawa
Published: April 2012
Genre: Fantasy/Horror

Description:
My vampire creator told me this: "Sometime in your life, Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. Accidentally or as a conscious, deliberate act, it is unavoidable. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?"

I didn't then, not really.

I do now.

YA Staff Review:
Human’s have become cattle to the vampires and they know it. Registered humans are required to give blood to the vampires in exchange for food, shelter and protection from the rabids, mindless monsters that will attack and devour any living thing. The unregistered humans refuse to be the vampire’s cattle and must beg, trade and steal to survive. Allison hates all vampires for killing her mother. She is an unregistered human and she refuses to support the vampire prince of her territory. On a scavenging run finds her life turned upside down. She has only seconds to decide…Die as a human or live forever as the thing she most despises.

Book Review ~ Wicked Lovely

Cover Courtesy of
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Published: December 2007
Genre: Urban Fantasy

Description from Fantastic Fiction:
The clash of ancient rules and modern expectations swirl together in this cool, urban 21st century faery tale. Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries. Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in the mortal world, and would blind her if they knew of her Sight. Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries. Now faeries are stalking her. One of them, Keenan, who is equal parts terrifying and alluring, is trying to talk to her, asking questions Aislinn is afraid to answer. Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention. But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King and has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost! Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe are working any more, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

YA Staff Review:
This isn’t your Tinkerbell fairytale. Based on Irish fairy lore this book explains some of the history of faery and one modern girls destiny to collide with it. Aislinn (Ash) is raised to dispise and fear the fae. Raised by her grandmother, Ash has learned important rules to keep her faery Sight unknown to the fae for her own protection. She has seen how faeries love to play tricks on humans whom can’t see them. If you like this book it is only the first in the series. Melissa Marr has finished this series so you don’t have to wait for the final book to be published to see how this series wraps up.

Series Order:

1. 1.       Wicked Lovely (2007)
2. 2.       Ink Exchange (2008)
3. 3.       Fragile Eternity (2009)
4. 4.       Radiant Shadows (2010)
5. 5.       Darkest Mercy (2011)

Book Review ~ My Boyfriend Is a Monster Series

My Boyfriend Is a Monster: I Love Him to Pieces by  Evonne Tsang

Cover Courtesy of
www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/

Published: April 2011
Genre: Graphic Novel/Fantasy

Description from Fantastic Fiction:

Can love survive the zombie apocalypse? Maybe Dicey's first chance at a real relationship was dead from the start. She's the star of her high school baseball team, and Jack's the star of the science program. Her idea of a study session includes sleeping in the sun, and his idea of a good game involves dungeons and dice. But opposites start attracting when they're assigned to be partners in a class project. Now an outbreak of a weird infection--it eats your brains and leaves you hungry for more--might not mean just the end of their first date. It might mean the end of everything. Will their relationship fall apart faster than zombies in the Florida sun, or can Dicey and Jack beat the odds and find a happy ending?

YA Staff Review:
This was a cute quick read. I liked how Dicey never gave up on Jack or their relationship. The first time you see Dicey talk to Jack is quite entertaining. I actually was shocked when I got to the last page. I thought the story could have continued for a while longer. If you are in the mood for a quick romance give this a try. No need for long descriptions of characters or locations with this fully illustrated graphic novel. I find this gives my brain a rest from imagining these things so I can concentrate more on the dialog and story line.

Book Review ~ Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side

Cover Art Courtesy of  http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/. 

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
Published: February 2009
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance

Description from Fantastic Fiction:

The undead can really screw up your senior year . . .

Marrying a vampire definitely doesn't fit into Jessica Packwood's senior year "get-a-life' plan. But then a bizarre (and incredibly hot) new exchange student named Lucius Vladescu shows up, claiming that Jessica is a Romanian vampire princess by birth--and he's her long-lost fiancé. Armed with newfound confidence and a copy of Growing Up Undead: A Teen Vampire's Guide to Dating, Health, and Emotions, Jessica makes a dramatic transition from average American teenager to glam European vampire princess. But when a devious cheerleader sets her sights on Lucius, Jess finds herself fighting to win back her wayward prince, stop a global vampire war--and save Lucius's soul from eternal destruction.

YA Staff Review:
Why do we fight the hardest when we are told we are required to do something? Our choices and free will taken away? To me this has a bit of a "Country Mouse; City Mouse" feel as Lucius grew up around strict decorum and Jessica is comparatively a country bumpkin. She learns to enjoy the regal things in life and Lucius finds denim and basketball quite enjoyable. I found if funny the letters Lucius writes describing his "Americanization."

Frankly, I don't know how I missed this book when it first came out? You shouldn't judge a book by it's publication date either, LOL! Currently there are just two books in this series along with an "online only" segue book filling you in on some things that happened between book 1 and 2. "Jessica 1.5" can be read on the author's site here.