A new student review of All About Daisy by O'Dell Hutchison

admin posted a new student review of All About Daisy by O'Dell Hutchison. See the full review.

Giveaway

A new student review of Revenge of a Not-So-Pretty Girl

Raphael posted a new student review of Revenge of a Not-So-Pretty Girl . See the full review.

Giveaway

A new student review of Off Side by M. G. Higgins

Phoebe posted a new student review of Off Side by M. G. Higgins. See the full review.

test test fdsfasdfadsfasdfadsfd

A new student review of Small as an Elephant

Christian Reader posted a new student review of Small as an Elephant . See the full review.

This is an excellent novel.  The plot is fast-paced and the story is gripping - I had a hard time putting down this book!

The characters are life-like and believable.  Jack, while being a child, seems more mature than his mother.  He understands what is acceptable in society, and also comprehends that when his mother goes off the deep end, he has a chance of being separated from her by the authorities.  He understands the implications of bad actions; he strives to always be good, and to help his mother with her mental problems.  He can’t completely control his mother, however, and she does get a little loopy at times.  This is the first time that she has left Jack anywhere, but he understands that it’s up to him to get back home and find his mother, before she says or does something stupid and gets them separated for good.  Jack has been separated from his mother before; the government found out about his mother taking him out of school for no reason at all, and other not-quite-normal things she’d done with him regarding school and care-taking.  When that happened, Jack was taken away from his mother and sent him to the only other family he had - his loving grandmother.  While Jack is eventually returned to his mother, it's clear that there's a huge rift between his mother and grandmother. 

It is because of all this that Jack is my favorite character - he understands that one must deal with what one is given. He is mature for his age, and he figures out very interesting ways of staying alive while he’s on his own.  His mother and grandmother, likewise, are very believable and life-like; their actions, while not always justified and good, were understandable and something I’d expect a real person to do.

The setting is excellent.  The author makes the state of Maine (along with some other various states in the USA) come to life; having never visited there myself, after reading this novel, I feel like I’ve been on vacation there for a week.  While descriptive, the author is not very wordy - he states what needs to be stated in an clear, clean, and concise way.

Overall, this is a fun and heartfelt story and an emotional journey with a young boy who only wants to find his mother, but is afraid of letting anyone know he’s alone.  This is a book I will cherish and keep in my collection for a long, long time.

A new student review of The Assault by Brian Falkner

JesusFreak posted a new student review of The Assault by Brian Falkner. See the full review.

This book was okay. It wasn't awesome and it wasn't horrible. There was action, but there was so much description that I got bored easily. I found it cool, though, how there was an index in the back so that if you didn't know what a word meant you could just look at the back of the book. The characters were well formed, but the book just didn't interest me that much. I like apocalyptic stories, and this had a good idea, it just wasn't executed well.

A new student review of The Geneva Project - Truth

engineerphilip18 posted a new student review of The Geneva Project - Truth . See the full review.

This book is very well-written. It’s very gripping and a fast book. The short chapters should encourage reluctant readers to keep going. Also, the intriguing beginning made me want to find out more. The characters were well-developed, especially Geneva and Jemma. When you read the book, you really empathize with Geneva and want to help her. I didn’t like the romance side of it, however. It seemed like an adventurous book and the romance took away from the feel of the book. I loved the cliffhangers! They wanted me to keep reading and not put the book away. I recommend this book to anybody who wants a fast-paced, adventurous book that will keep them thinking!

A new student review of Butterfly

seaotter77 posted a new student review of Butterfly . See the full review.

I found the writing style in Butterfly to be incomprehensible and annoying at times. I could barely understand what Sonya Hartnett was writing half the time. The words and sentence structure made no sense whatsoever, and there was no interesting plot at all! I found it extremely challenging to get through the book, as it was not only confusing, but also boring, and if I could, I would give this book no stars at all. The novel was even depressing at times; all Plum ever did was worry about herself, and constant worry does not make for a good read. I would never recommend this book to anyone, but if someone would want to read it, I would suggest ages 14 and up: the writing style is advanced and there is some mature content.

A new student review of Maybe I Will by Laurie Gray

Tester4 posted a new student review of Maybe I Will by Laurie Gray. See the full review.

dsfadsfdsfsdfsdfds

safd

sfda

dfdsThe Houston Rockets were on a West Coast swing at the time. Their coach, the former Celtics star Kevin McHale, had more than a passing curiosity in Lin, and perhaps even a twinge of regret.

“I was fascinated like everybody else,” McHale said.

Two months earlier, for 12 days in December 2011, a still-obscure Lin had been a member of the Rockets. But he had a minimum contract and thus a maximum chance of not surviving a lockout-shortened training camp.

“Everything he did was full-bore,” McHale said. “I thought he’d be a great energy guy on our team.”

Before this season, Lin returned to the Rockets as a free agent with a better-known name and a three-year, $25.1 million contract that the Knicks declined to match. He also faced impossible expectations among Houston fans and a challenge that seems to confront artists more often than athletes.

A new student review of Pandas and Other Endangered Species by Natalie Pope Boyce Mary Pope Osborne

Tester5 posted a new student review of Pandas and Other Endangered Species by Natalie Pope Boyce Mary Pope Osborne. See the full review.

The Houston Rockets were on a West Coast swing at the time. Their coach, the former Celtics star Kevin McHale, had more than a passing curiosity in Lin, and perhaps even a twinge of regret.

“I was fascinated like everybody else,” McHale said.

Two months earlier, for 12 days in December 2011, a still-obscure Lin had been a member of the Rockets. But he had a minimum contract and thus a maximum chance of not surviving a lockout-shortened training camp.

“Everything he did was full-bore,” McHale said. “I thought he’d be a great energy guy on our team.”

Before this season, Lin returned to the Rockets as a free agent with a better-known name and a three-year, $25.1 million contract that the Knicks declined to match. He also faced impossible expectations among Houston fans and a challenge that seems to confront artists more often than athletes.

A new student review of The Grimalkin's Secret

McTower posted a new student review of The Grimalkin's Secret . See the full review.

     This is a very magical and gripping book.  If you like magic, dragons and a good Adventure or Mystery, this is the book for you.  Including lots of magic, with an unexpected twist, readers of all ages will love this.  This story is not only about Kya and her friends battling the Symbari, but also about true friendship, and paintings linked to missing people. This book is sure to leave readers not wanting to put it down.

A new student review of Dead Strange by Matt Lamy

Christian Reader posted a new student review of Dead Strange by Matt Lamy. See the full review.

In this book, Matt Lamy attempts to explain 50 of the world’s most famous mysteries.  This book includes information about the Bermuda Triangle, Bigfoot, zombies, voodoo dolls and magic, alien encounters, UFO sightings, real-life Men in Black, alchemy, Amityville, the Ark of the Covenant, and the Bible Code.  For each topic there are black and white photos and around two pages of facts about that particular mystery.

While this book does state the main facts about these mysteries, there are not enough facts given.  For me to give this book a five star rating would mean that this book had little to no problems.  This book only has one problem, yes.  But it’s a large enough issue that I do not feel I can justify giving this book a five star review.  The only problem this book has is a large one - there are not enough facts given to prove or disprove each mystery.  Yes, the main facts are given, and the author doesn’t try to state whether or not each mystery really happened - he simply suggests whether or not he personally thinks it might have happened, and at times states he’s not sure if it happened.  That part is good - it allows the reader to make up his or her mind about whether or not to believe these mysteries.  However, the author does not give enough information about each mystery for me to truly state whether or not I agree. With some mysteries, the author simply states suggestions, and doesn’t really state fact or truth.  And considering that the cover states that this book contains “the bizarre truths behind 50 world-famous mysteries”, it’s disappointing.  I was hoping the book would live up to its high standards, but alas, it did not.

This book is informative but not informative enough.  It is easy to read, and simple to understand.  However, not enough fact or truth is given for me to justify giving this book a five star review.

A new student review of My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book One)

sthom506 posted a new student review of My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book One) . See the full review.

My Ex from Hell is a hilarious take on Greek mythology that borders on cheesy. The main character, Sophie, is witty and entertaining, and has two very realistic and interesting cohorts with whom she can witty-banter the day away. This book was different - the characters seemed realistic in their actions, yet the story had a good dose of mythology at the same time. I enjoyed this book, and it made me laugh quite a bit. 

A new student review of The Litigators by John Grisham

George posted a new student review of The Litigators by John Grisham. See the full review.

test test

eewqrqewrqwerq

A new student review of Regine's Book: a teen girl's last words by Regine Stokke

Kennick7 posted a new student review of Regine's Book: a teen girl's last words by Regine Stokke. See the full review.

I really enjoyed this book.  Her story really touched my heart.  There was never a time that i wanted to put the book down, a real page turner.  I felt like I was in the hospital with her, I could feel the anticipation for the test results, I could feel Regine's pain!  I can just imagine what all of the family is going through, what that family had to do now.  Although there was a slight bit of swearing, I felt that it was appropriate for what was happening.  This was one of the best biographies that I have ever read.  To tell you the truth, I have thought of most biographies as boring, but Regine's Story kept me guessing and hoping about what was going to happen next.  From parts that made me cry, to parts that made me laugh, this book was over all, GREAT!

 

 

 

A new student review of Girl The Reaper

EmilyFredricks posted a new student review of Girl The Reaper . See the full review.

 

I thought that this book was very interesting and was able to keep my interest. But it wasn't a book that made me want to just sit down and read until it was done. Some parts of this book got a little boring but the overall book was interesting.

A new student review of Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

dancechicka posted a new student review of Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. See the full review.

This novel was amazing.  Rowell has shaped an entirely new and groundbreaking novel that has taken a normal romance and bent it into such a totally messed-up and random love story that it makes Romeo and Juliet seem like amateurs.  And, wouldn’t you know, it worked.  While this story was raw and brutally honest, it had a poetic feel to it, it  flowed from one line to the next.  I felt a connection to each of the characters and truly felt like I was there in the story.  I felt the sadness and the pain and the hurt that accompanies young love and its consequences.  This book was such an emotional and gripping story that made me bawl and gasp and smile…….it just had the whole package.  Sometimes I felt a little bored with the plot and the whole star-crossed lover’s storyline.  Just let me speak to all the romance lovers out there—this was not your average love story, and I really believe that you’ll enjoy this book.

“Eleanor could swear she heard five hearts racing.  Every one of them was stifling a sob.  Crying inside out.”

I would recommend this book for ages fifteen and up, or for very mature readers, because this book did have extreme profanity and sexual references.

So, will the couple that never had a chance make their own destiny, or will they be influenced and let the world break them apart?  There is only one way to find out—the choice is yours.

A new student review of Who Is AC? by Hope Larson

Sally posted a new student review of Who Is AC? by Hope Larson. See the full review.

Worst Game: Not a whole lot of horrible games on this schedule, but I'm gonna go with the game against the Dolphins for my pick. (The Bills would be a reasonable choice, too.) Unlike a lot of people, I think Miami will disappoint in 2013 and, also unlike a lot of people, I don't think the Ravens are nearly as bad off as people want to act like. $$ testing

A new student review of Maybe I Will by Laurie Gray

mattstudent_101 posted a new student review of Maybe I Will by Laurie Gray. See the full review.

sfsfdfdssfsdfgsfgfgf

A new student review of Mystic by Alyson Noel

MickeyBeth posted a new student review of Mystic by Alyson Noel. See the full review.

Mystic is my favorite (so far) in the Soul Seeker series. Alyson Noel does a spectacular job of making the complicated journey of a Seeker easy to understand. (When I try to explain what the series is about.. Well, that's not so easy.)

Alyson Noel has a way of making mystical worlds become real in the reader’s mind, and while she does not disappoint in Mystic by “creating” the different dimensions (Middle, Upper, and Lower Worlds), she also makes less “enchanting” places seem quite real as well. She describes the land of Enchantment, New Mexico amazingly; so that you can picture the crumbling adobes and even how the town has been darkly influenced by the evil Richters.

The characters also seemed much more developed then when the Soul Seeker series first started. Daire has grown in her training with her grandmother, Paloma has become a better seeker and now understands the seriousness of the task at hand. Dace has also become a much deeper character. Instead of his world being purely shades of black and white as it used to be, he starts to see that sometimes there can be a shade of gray in between. Xotchl, Daire’s best friend, is a very interesting character. With Xotchl being blind, yet able to see energy, anything in her perspective was a little harder to picture but her character is definitely intriguing. Then, of course, there's the romance. Daire and Dace are perfect together. They're definitely my two favorite characters, and the "love padlock" is now on my list of things to do.

In short, all of the characters are believable, even the otherworldly ones.

Mystic is told mostly from Daire’s perspective, but there are certain chapters in Dace and Xotichl’s (Daire’s best friend) perspectives. I liked Daire’s perspective the most. As the main character, her thoughts are the ones that kept my attention the most. Since Xotichl is blind but sees the “energy” of things it was more difficult to imagine some of the things she sees, so I wasn’t as captivated by her perspective. It was also nice to have some in Dace’s perspective to see how deep his devotion for Daire goes.

I also like this series a lot more than Alyson Noel’s Evermore series. I started the series and fell in love with the first book but then the series had grown so sad and depressing by the second book that I never finished it. Mystic holds all of the happiness and romance that I loved in Evermore without being so depressing that I can’t stand it. (In other words, much better.)

It’s hard to say whether or not I liked the ending of Mystic due to the fact that it’s the third book in a series, and there’s going to be four. So Daire’s journey as a Seeker will continue in the next book called Horizon which comes out in November. The ending was sad, but still a good ending all the same.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good suspenseful romance. It is a great book with romance, action, & some Native American myths thrown in.

Mystic will be on sale in about a month! ;)

A new student review of Throne of the Crescent Moon (Crescent Moon Kingdoms)

alison_S posted a new student review of Throne of the Crescent Moon (Crescent Moon Kingdoms) . See the full review.

The prose was electric in its simplicity, monstrosities such as bone ghuls and the ominous Jackal Man illuminated through a writing-style which perfectly skirts the boundary between succinct and Spartan. Ahmed’s deft pacing seamlessly integrates developments in both character and plot, neither of which is marred by stereotyped science-fiction protagonists. On the contrary, Abdulla’s balding visage and corpulent physique, when presented alongside the ferocious self-discipline of his dervish Raseed bas Raseed, makes for a powerful juxtaposition. As our heroes traverse the Crescent Moon Kingdoms, their ensuing escapades- whether against demonic fiends or inner-demons of their own- evoke pity and awe, suspense and angst, glee and wonderment. Imaginative as it is vivid, Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed breaks your heart, only to send it racing back amongst the gleaming temples of Dhamsawwaat.

A new student review of Wednesdays in the Tower

avolzer posted a new student review of Wednesdays in the Tower . See the full review.

 

Wednesdays In The Tower is a sequel to Tuesdays At the Castle. It is not necessary to have read the first book, but it is very helpful. The development of the plot of this fantasy/mystery moved slowly, but it got more exciting as the book continued. The plot was interesting, and I found myself wondering what was going to happen. However, it was lacking an antagonist, or bad guy. There wasn’t really a problem or conflict. Be aware that it ends on a cliffhanger. This really disappointed me, as it was the most exciting part of the book. I’ll be looking for the next book!

 

A new student review of Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood by Abby McDonald

HannahScorsone posted a new student review of Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood by Abby McDonald. See the full review.

The book was okay. I usually have to find the perfect book to get into it. To me the book was kind of boring in the beginnning. Usually books bring me in on the first chapter, but this one didn't. The book got better towards the end. Hallie was my favorite character in the book. She is upbeat and loves to go for her dreams.

A new student review of Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood by Abby McDonald

HannahScorsone posted a new student review of Jane Austen Goes to Hollywood by Abby McDonald. See the full review.

The book was okay. I usually have to find the perfect book to get into it. To me the book was kind of boring in the beginnning. Usually books bring me in on the first chapter, but this one didn't. The book got better towards the end. Hallie was my favorite character in the book. She is upbeat and loves to go for her dreams.

A new student review of All Our Pretty Songs

swimmer1430 posted a new student review of All Our Pretty Songs . See the full review.

I did not know what to expect when I started reading All Our Pretty Songs and I definitely did not expect it to be a retelling of the myth of Orpheus. That fact explains a lot of the plot, and I think fans of Greek mythology will really enjoy this story. The writing is beautiful, almost like poetry. However, there is a lot of narration and not much in the way of plot and dialogue. I would have liked to see more action instead of reading the author's flowery prose. I thought it was interesting that the narrator does not have a name, and I'm still surprised that it's possible to write a novel without revealing that fact. I loved reading about the bond between Aurora and the narrator and it was nice to see such supportive and caring friends. On the other hand, the relationship between the narrator and Jack wasn't as interesting to read about: I felt as though it could have been developed more. I'm not really into mythology, so that part of the plot didn't appeal to me. That's the reason for the 3-star rating. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of All Our Pretty Songs, I think people who like Greek mythology will get a lot out of this story.

A new student review of Sacred by Elana K. Arnold

admin posted a new student review of Sacred by Elana K. Arnold. See the full review.

giveaway

A new student review of 100 Cupboards by 99 Unknown Email

admin posted a new student review of 100 Cupboards by 99 Unknown Email. See the full review.

giveaway

A new student review of Ruby Redfort Look Into My Eyes

TaurielOfMirkwood posted a new student review of Ruby Redfort Look Into My Eyes . See the full review.

I loved this book! It is like a Nancy Drew, but more modern and at kid level, because Ruby is a kid of 13. It was a thrill to read, with cliffhangers and always the question: "What will happen next?" There was multiple views from multiple characters, which made it interesting. It was also funny at some parts! Overall, this was an AWESOME book!!

A new student review of Quicksilver

calicool123 posted a new student review of Quicksilver . See the full review.

Nothing could compare to Ultra violet but this came pretty close. I have owned it for about a week and have read it so many times already. The way R.J Anderson sets up the chapters is confusing at times. It adds to the dramatic affect of the story though. I would recommend this book to anyone.

A new student review of The Eternity Cure

alphatauri posted a new student review of The Eternity Cure . See the full review.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the series, The Immortal Rules, and was hungry for more, so I was delighted when this book popped up on LitPick! The Eternity Cure features mostly the same characters from book one, and is written in the same style, but builds upon the world and concepts in book one. I highly recommend reading book one before this. The strengths of book one are all mostly here. Allison was already likeable before, but she grows stronger and more independent here. Jackal is a great supporting character with personality. Zeke is still meh, but he's getting there. Sarren is a convincing villain that you love to hate. The descriptions of fights in this book are also worth a mention. Kagawa describes so eloquently that you never get tired of reading them, and believe me, there are a lot of them. However, there's a lot of filler as well. This occurred in book one too. The Eternity Cure is 400+ pages and has a relatively short climax. Much of the beginning is difficult to get into due to the lack of action, and when the action comes, it is all clustered together. If not for this, The Eternity Cure would've been a five-star read. As it stands though, The Eternity Cure was well worth my time and I will be reading the next book in the series as soon as I am able. 

A new student review of Ink by Amanda Sun

leonardo posted a new student review of Ink by Amanda Sun. See the full review.

fsgsdfgsdfg

A new student review of First Light (Project Five Fifteen) by Samantha Summers

LISH0985 posted a new student review of First Light (Project Five Fifteen) by Samantha Summers. See the full review.

This book was full of grammatical errors, lacking descriptive language at times, and also very dry at times. The first 200 pages were very hard to get through. There were so many things wrong that it's hard to think about how to review this critically. I would not recommend this book. The author needs to go back and revise: many sentences were either worded wrong, confusing, or could have been written better. The language was very babyish. I was disappointed.

A new student review of My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book One)

RavenWing posted a new student review of My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book One) . See the full review.

My first piece of advice would be - read a few pages first. This author has a particular writing style which may be difficult for some readers. There’s a ton of detail and lots of analogies. If you aren’t an experienced reader, or don’t read a lot, this might not be the easiest read for you.

When I read the summary for this book I thought “Yeah, some Greek mythology laced with romance!” That is not what this book is. Basically, it is a comedy with a dash of Greek background. The stories mentioned are not the main part, but it does deal with Zeus and Hades. Also, most of the time is spent with Sophie doing stupid stuff to get herself almost killed.

Despite what I’ve said, I did enjoy this book. It was a laugh-out-loud comedy that had an easy story line. The author cracks jokes often in a way that’s reasonable. As a comedy, I would recommend this book. Whatever you do, though, DO NOT pick up this book for the romance. It sounds good, but it is not. After a few passionate kisses that are more about Kai’s missing Persephone, Sophie’s god form, he won’t even give her the time of day. Not to mention he’s an ass that does not get better with time.

Lastly, just to warn you, the ending is horrible. I, personally, will not be reading the sequel because everything I was hoping would happen was brutally mutilated. The ending did not leave me laughing, crying, or open-mouthed. It was an “ok?” ending where you ask yourself “did the last chapter just get cut off? Because this doesn’t sound like the end.”

A new student review of The Worst-Case Scenario: Deadly Seas by Alexander Lurie David Borgenicht

nowhereman posted a new student review of The Worst-Case Scenario: Deadly Seas by Alexander Lurie David Borgenicht. See the full review.

I thought this book was really good. It has a lot of action and adventure that keeps you on your toes as to what choices you make. I thought that it was also cool how it actually tells you how to survive certain situations, like for instance shark attacks, what to eat and what not to eat when adrift at sea, and how to make a flotation device. If you like this book then you might like the other books in the series. One example of the questions in the book is “If you abandon ship, turn to page 157”or”if you stay on the boat, Turn to page 104”(54). I recommend this book for all ages.

 

A new student review of Life: An Exploded Diagram

ReesaOnFire posted a new student review of Life: An Exploded Diagram . See the full review.

This book had started out fantastic. Clem’s ancestry, and indirectly Frankie’s, was captivating. Their, Clem’s Grandparents and parents, story alone could have made an excellent book. I found that their story was better than Clem's and Frankie’s.  Then again, Clem and Frankie’s story had more passion.

 Overall, the writing was great. Pleet’s vocabulary and descriptions are in great detail and place you into the scene or the characters minds. You feel the anxiety, the fear, the happiness and the lust.

 I’m afraid that once I got towards middle-end of the book, when Frankie appeared, I was disappointed. The book had been so great, so interesting—mostly historical but great.  Once Frankie appeared however, I felt as though the whole story had changed. It was now about Frankie and Clem’s relationship; which seemed purely emotional and hormonal. When I said that Pleet described everything in great detail I meant it—and towards the center end of the book I disliked it. I had to skip over huge chunk of the book as it became less historical and interesting but hormonal and over all inappropriate. The character seemed more focused on lust rather than love. But this does give a different look on the world, a view that, to some, is a little risky.

Thinking back, to have that level of realism in the book was a good thing.

I loved the familial story—the parents and the grandparents were great – they gave a sense of the time frame they lived in. But as Clem and Frankie gave a look into the rebellious side—a different view, which was good but they were just too crass for me to stand. 

A new student review of The Moon Coin (The Moon Realm Series, Book 1) by Richard Due

worms123 posted a new student review of The Moon Coin (The Moon Realm Series, Book 1) by Richard Due. See the full review.

One thing that I liked about this book are the descriptions. For example page 86 paints a picture of Niminn and Lilly. “Nimlinn stared long at Lilly and narrowed her ernormous eyes.” The top thing I liked about this book was chapter 13 because this part just made me shiver. The part was “ Bathed in moonlight, Travin stood alone under the shrinking hole burned into the clouds by the dragon’s breath.” The thing I didn’t like was in chapter one, I didn’t understand what a flocskool was. Chapter 19 was creepy because it was a scary chapter. I didn’t know if anyone was killed or not. I also found some of the words were too complicated. If you like fairytales and have an open mind this would be a good book for you.

A new student review of The Subway by Christopher Taylor

jackyboy889 posted a new student review of The Subway by Christopher Taylor. See the full review.

I think that the subway is definitely not for anyone under 14, unless you are an advanced reader, as it can get extremely confusing at times. My favorite part of the book is when Stacy is in the paradox, and tries to figure out what is happening to her, as you don’t know what is going on either. Overall I would definitely recommend this book, but only to advanced readers.

A new student review of Super-Scary: Mochimochi by Anna Hrachovec

Gwendolyn posted a new student review of Super-Scary: Mochimochi by Anna Hrachovec. See the full review.

 

As one who doesn’t always like to follow patterns and gets highly frustrated when I don’t understand something, I found the author’s notes to be helpful. By breaking down the patterns into sections, she made knitting less difficult and stress free. The patterns go by somewhat quickly, which I liked, and I think is quite good for all the impatient knitters out there. In my opinion, a few of the creature designs are not entirely cute, so this is one of the reasons why I enjoyed the “mix and match monsters” section, where I was able to practice certain techniques and design the toy specifically how I wanted. Anna Hrachovec makes knitting simple and easy to comprehend.

 

A new student review of The Geneva Project - Truth

LaRayne posted a new student review of The Geneva Project - Truth . See the full review.

This is an amazing story of how Jane #65 discovers she has powers that may be too much as they put her friendships to the test. This is a fast paced adventure about friendship, family, and not pushing things too far. I love this book because it has adventure in it but the real point is for her to find out who she really is. I would recommend this book to young teens that like adventure and don’t mind a bit of drama in it as well.

 

 

A new student review of The Serpent In The Glass by D.M. Andrews

link posted a new student review of The Serpent In The Glass by D.M. Andrews. See the full review.

The author did a good job of describing the characters. I could picture them in my head easily. I think the idea of the marble with a serpent in it was cool. The story itself was very original. I've never read anything like it before.

However, the pace of the book was very slow and could have benefitted from more action, especially in the middle. The mystery was easy to figure out and not a surprise at the end. There were a few dream sequences that were strange and sometimes hard to follow because some were italicized and others were not. 

A new student review of The Girl With The Iron Touch

kfc1997 posted a new student review of The Girl With The Iron Touch . See the full review.

Kady Cross has written another amazing book in The Steampunk Chronicles, and I sincerely hope that she has another one coming. The characters felt realistic; I could connect to their emotions, which were well written. The storyline was amazing, and it connected well to the two previous books in the series. I recommend this book to girls aged 15 and up.  

A new student review of Neferet's Curse: A House of Night Novella (House of Night)

Bookreader587 posted a new student review of Neferet's Curse: A House of Night Novella (House of Night) . See the full review.

This book has an extremely mature theme. The entire book hints to the end, and the events leading up to it. This book does explain the antagonist's reasons for being the way she is in the House of Night novels. The authors did a great job of setting a tone to the novella such as some instances when they would use the words "burning gaze" to describe the way her father looked at her. You can tell that the character is almost constantly threatened or scared, very rarely happy. The book was written very well, other books written in the same time setting as this one I found rather boring. This book had a very mature theme and I would not recommend it for people under 15 due to the graphic violence.  

A new student review of Weather Witch

R. Mae posted a new student review of Weather Witch . See the full review.

 

 

When I started Weather Witch I had trouble following the plot. The character view changed so often, I couldn't figure out who to vote for and it was very confusing. After reading it for a while, I kind of 'fell into' the plot. It all clicked together and I realized that the multiple points of view taught me a great moral. Jordan hates Bran for trying to make her, and I would have too if I didn't know the truth about him since I had been in his mind. Rowan was snotty, and seemed that way to everyone including me, but in his own head he was perfectly fine. All these different viewpoints gave Weather Witch a unique edge. Once the plot came into focus I really enjoyed the book. One thing I didn't like was that everyone except me knew what the witches were and could do. When everyone else seemed to know what was happening, I didn't and that was annoying.  Even though there were some problems, I really liked the book. Weather Witch is creative and fresh.

A new student review of Feral Nights

lagoonablue444 posted a new student review of Feral Nights . See the full review.

            I give this book 3.5 stars.  I would have liked it better, if they didn’t have so much talk about sex and drinking.

            I didn’t really have a favorite character in this book.  I liked the mystery and that they were all were-animals.

A new student review of Belonging (A Temptation Novel)

Peace8747 posted a new student review of Belonging (A Temptation Novel) . See the full review.

I thought Beolnging was a very good book. I loved a bunch of the elements in the book. I have read a lot of book and Belonging was one of the best. The thing that I loved the most was the real life element of the story. The thing that I hated the most was all the talking about sex. Overall it was an amazing book.

A new student review of Fitz

nowhereman posted a new student review of Fitz . See the full review.

 

This book sounded interesting when I read the overview but after reading it I had mixed feelings about it. I mean how could a boy justify holding his father at gunpoint? I thought that the author needed to add more stuff to justify Fitz’s actions because the boy didn’t think about his actions at all. Overall though it just needed something to make it stand out more. I recommend this book to ages 12 and up.

 

A new student review of The Sin Eater's Confession (Carolrhoda Ya)

sabol posted a new student review of The Sin Eater's Confession (Carolrhoda Ya) . See the full review.

I found this book to be one of the most gripping and suspenseful thriller novels I have ever read. Ilsa J. Bick took great care in weaving each thread into the complexity of the plot that keeps you holding your breath. I found myself becoming so attached to the tragic hero; at one moment feeling sympathy, and other times screaming at him in frustration. At times I had to force myself to stop reading at night. And when the story was over, there were even more unanswered questions than before.  The Sin-Eater’s Confessions is not only an engrossing novel, it is also a social statement that questions sexuality, the role of parents, and the struggle that teens undergo when trying to define who they are among society,      

A new student review of Life: An Exploded Diagram

VBat posted a new student review of Life: An Exploded Diagram . See the full review.

In Life: An Exploded Diagram, Mal Peet masterfully knits storylines from different times and places into one seamless plot. The character development reminded me of Khalid Hosseini's A Thousand Splendid Suns, in that the story followed the characters for their entire lives, not just focusing in on the 
"important" part of their existence. This allows for the reader to relate to each of the characters, especially Clem and Frankie, and for the reader to pick up on the clever ways in which the past, present and future intertwine over the course of the story. 

The mix of storytelling and narration of political events worked in a unique, interesting way. The important political happenings that affected the story were narrated by an older Clem. His interpretations of key political figures are though provoking, and spark an interest in the Cold War era.  

I would recommend Life: An Exploded Diagram to teens and young adults who enjoy romance, history, and realistic fiction. Fans of Peet's Tamar or works by Khalid Hosseini will enjoy this book immensely. 

A new student review of A Monster Calls

JesusFreak posted a new student review of A Monster Calls . See the full review.

When I first got this book, my first thought was, this book is really small. And it was really short.  I finished it within three days. But, excluding the shortness, it was a very good book! I loved how it really got deep into your thought process and made you think. The only other things I didn’t like about it was that they never fully explained the whole concept of the Monster. Was the Monster just a figment of the main character’s imagination, or was it real? The other thing that I didn’t like about it was that the ending didn’t really feel like an ending. It just sort of stopped suddenly without further explanation. Other than that, a pretty good book.

A new student review of Butterfly

nlsings posted a new student review of Butterfly . See the full review.

I liked this book.  The writing was pleasant and poetic.  The story was decent.  It was a pretty typical tale of an awkward kid growing up, and learning to appreciate who she really is.  It has a good message, but it is one that often surfaces in teen literature.  Some of the parts about her friends and boys were cliche and overdone, but it was a sweet and nostolgic read overall.  If you have a soft spot for adorable and well written books about teenage girls growing up, then this is for you.  Especially if you have read and enjoyed the book Scarlet by Cathy Cassidy, then I would highly recommend this to you.