An Artificial Night by Seanan McGuire

An Artificial Night is a fantasy novel about a changeling named October Daye (or Toby as she prefers to be called) She is a half human and half fairy. She has been through a lot, including having lost her child. She is trying to get her life back after being turned back into a human from being a fish for 10 years, when her best friend s children are kidnapped, as well as all the children from her old flames court. As she investigates, she discovers that many, many children, both human and fae have been kidnapped, leaving hot window panes, and bad smells in the air. This makes her think that the evil Blind Michael has snatched the children for his hunt, as he does every 100 years. The only way she can possibly save them all is striking up a bargain, which is dangerous in any case, but making a deal with a dastardly villain like Blind Michael cannot possibly end well. This fantasy, mystery novel is a fascinating read about finding yourself and discovering the hidden hero in you.

This book had a fantastic plot that had me flipping through the pages. I was engrossed from page one to the end. It has the nice quality of being able to stand alone, even though it is part of a series and also working in very well with the rest of the books in the set. However, it was slightly confusing. Other than Toby, there were an astonishingly large number of characters which made seemingly random appearances throughout the book, sometimes after entire chapters of absence. This meant that unless you were paying very close attention, it seemed like random people were being dropped into the plot. Two of the male characters were very similar and sometimes were almost interchangeable to the story line, making the book more confusing than it had to be. Luckily, the aforementioned fantastic plot saved the book and made it an interesting, thought provoking, and moving book that I would recommend to all of my avid fantasy fanatic friends.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Exeter, NH 03833

Secrets: You Tell Me Yours and I'll Tell You Mine.....Maybe by Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein

Filling the pages of her beloved journal, the main character, known as the Girl, chronicles her life as she begins to make the transition into becoming a teenager. Along the way, the Girl encounters numerous life altering events. For example, the Girl writes in her journal how after she moves to a new home in a new town she must cope with becoming the new kid again as she starts at a new school. The Girl also writes about how she learns that growing up means growing apart (both physically and mentally)from former friends as she finds herself missing her friends in her previous town less and less. The Girl also describes in her journal how she now finds herself to be a daughter of three as she learns to deal with having a new baby in the house. As the Girl continues to write in her journal she finds herself becoming older and wiser as she now must face the challenges of dealing with death, boys, and other teenage drama.

Personally, I didn't really enjoy reading this book. Supposedly being a similar age as the main character of this book, I didn't find it as relatable or realistic as I would have hoped. I was also a bit confused at the time period of this book, as the Girl talks about reading Nancy Drew books, goes to Junior High, and rubs oil on herself when going out in the sun all of which seem to have been common in years past and not necessarily now. I also found the repetitive ending of "and that's the truth" at the end of many of the journal entries to become tedious and boring. Although I have not read the first book of Dr. Holstein's Secrets series, it is likely that those who enjoyed reading the first book of this series may want to consider reading this sequel, that said, I did not enjoy this book.

Reviewer Age:14
Reviewer City, State and Country: Potomac, Maryland United States of America

The Year's Best Science Fiction by Gardner Dozois

The Years Best Science Fiction is a collection of short stories. They are all about new worlds, future lifestyles, and adventure. Each story has a different idea of the future, and they are all unique. Some stories are about different planets, some are about government, and there is many interesting inventions. The setting is very detailed and you will feel like you have traveled in time.

The Years Best Science Fiction was pretty slow reading. It has some good stories in it, but overall I was not very interested. There is some very good description though, and you can really feel like you are in the future at times. Unfortunately, the plots were pretty confusing, and the stories did not all make sense. I wish this book were a little more exciting or at least interesting enough to keep you turning the pages. I actually had trouble finishing the book, because it was just very dull. I would not recommend this book for teenagers, but some adults might like it.

Reviewer Age:13
Reviewer City, State and Country: Broken Arrow, Ok united states

Orphan! by John R. Weber

In the story, Homer, a small boy of the age of 13 is told my his parents that he was an orphan. Homer was adopted by them from an orphan train, which were popular during the Great Depression. After running away for the night feeling upset and worried that he wouldn't inherit his father's farm, Homer decides to go to New York City to find his real parents. His friend Jamie and he jump on a train but end up going west. There they get caught by Blackjack, a railroad watcher. Smiling jack, an educated hobo, saves Jamie and Homer from being killed by Blackjack. Smiling Jack accompanies them on thier trip to New York City, showing them the ways of being a hobo traveling the rails.


The book I read, Orphan! by John R. Weber, was an overall great story. It took me a while to get into the story, because the begining was sorta dull. Once you get into the real story, it all happens so fast. This story has a great theme to it, many of them involving family and friendship. I recommend it to any age group.
 
Reviewer Age:17
Reviewer City, State and Country: naugatuck, CT US

Milo: Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze by Alan Silberberg

Have you ever lost someone close to you like a family member. Milo has. Have you ever moved to at lest five diferent houses. Milo has. Have ever fallen in love with someone that was popular. Milo has. Have you ever felt so alone that you think that you have fog in your brain. Milo has. So who is Milo you say. Milo is a boy who has recently lost his mom due to a brain tumer. Also Milo has moved to a new house which means new friends, new school, and new problems. But Milo has some ups and downs like he meets two new freind named jack and heather. His dad is very lonly and keeps asking Milo the same questions. And ha has extrem problems in math like almost everybody has. So if you want to read a book you can realate to then I suggest reading Milo: sticky notes and brain freezes!

My oppinion of Milo: sticky notes and brain freezes is the book was very interesting and a good book. I think I realate to Milo beacause we both have a least one teenage sibbling, we both have weird friends that are great to hang out with, and we both have moved alot in our lives. The ending in the end was VERY sad to me because Milo looks back to when his mom died and never said goodbye. If i learned something from this book it would be that its okay to miss someone you love. I would definately recomend this book to other readers.


Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Mineola, TX America

STORYTELLER by Patricia Reilly Giff

STORYTELLER, by Patricia Reilly Giff, was written with two alternate timelines.  In the first timeline, Elizabeth is in the 21^st century.  Her dad, hoping to sell more of his sculptures, goes on a trip to Australia.  Meanwhile, Elizabeth is sent to live with her Aunt Libby.  One day at Libby’s house, Elizabeth spots a picture of her great-aunt on the wall.  Curious, she pesters Aunt Libby for information concerning her Great-Aunt Eliza, who is also known as Zee.

In Zee’s timeline, during the 18^th century, she is forced to deal with family and friends going away to fight in the Revolutionary War.  Zee’s mother dies when her house burns down, and she is left with badly burned hands.  Will Elizabeth ever learn the whole truth about her great-aunt?  Will Zee ever see her father and brother again?

The main thing I really liked about this book was the fact that there were two stories that alternated.  However, I thought this book had a lot of weaknesses.  Some of these included: the characters’ emotions were not clearly expressed, there were more details in Zee’s story than in Elizabeth’s, Elizabeth’s story didn’t seem as developed as Zee’s story, and, although it was a cool concept, I couldn’t really understand how the two timelines fit together.  I am not a big fan of historical fiction, but people who like history would probably enjoy this book more than I did.

Reviewer Age:11
Reviewer City, State and Country: Lake City, IA USA  

Brain Jack by Brian Falkner

Sam Wilson could hack into just about anything and everything. And that's exactly what he does for fun. That is, until he pulls off a hack that shuts America down for three days. Although he gets the coveted "neurohead set," a device that allows people to browse the Web by detecting their brainwaves, Sam finds himself the target of the federal government. But then he discovers that there are bigger things to worry about than the government.

I love dystopian stories, so I think I would have liked this book just because of its genre, but this is a very well-written, fast-paced novel that reminds me of Ender's Game. I liked all the supporting characters and their quirks, but I think that the main character could have been more developed. Sam was a typical main character; he succeeds in everything he does, and he doesn't really have any glaring flaws. The message of this book is pretty powerful, especially today with all its technology. The plot was full of twists, and it was one of those plots that kept you on the edge of your seat. It was so jam-packed of action, though, I think the author could have easily made it into a trilogy, rather than cramming it all into one book. The only let-down of this book was the ending; it definitely needed to be more profound, especially with a message like this. Otherwise, this book has a plot that will suck you right in and keep you on the edge of your seat--a perfect read if you're looking for something post-Mockingjay.

Rating:  9

Content Rating:  1

Reviewer Age:16

Reviewer City, State and Country: Hinsdale, IL USA

Kiss Me Deadly by Trisha Telep

Kiss Me Deadly is a collection of love stories edited by Trisha Telep. There are thirteen short stories with in this book; all based on love. Each story deals with the classical love connecting two people but also the love of an idea, object, or state of mind. An example of this is in the first tale, "Assassin's Apprentice." Rose, our protagonist, is on a quest for vengeance for her family's murder. She stalks the demon for weeks, but she does not take the chances she is given to kill him. This is due to the fact that once he is dead she will have nothing to live for. Rose's love of her family and her love of revenge results in her being caught with a massive decision. In the end each story concludes with the protagonist having to make a decision between two or more loves.

I loved Kiss Me Deadly. The writers chosen to be included in this book amazed me. Each author had the wonderful ability to make me picture every little detail inside my head. The mood of each tale varied from one extreme to the other, which made me empathetic for the characters. The main problem I had was that a few of the tales had weak beginnings. I was completely turned off but as I read more the story became interesting. The basic fact that the authors made their protagonist love not only a person but also something else really kept me reading and helped me feel like I was part of the story. Overall I recommend this book not only to the romantics but those who get sucked into paranormal tales with plenty of conflict.


I rate this a 3 because there is reference to drugs, alcohol, and sex.
Reviewer Age:19
Reviewer City, State and Country: AZ City, Az USA

Solid by Shelley Workinger

Clio thought that she was a typical high school girl. She had been living a semi-normal life with her book-writing mom. That was before she learned that she was a victim of an experimental drug. Clio and many others had been gathered together in a special school to help them and the army learn more about their abilities. But Clio and her new friends find out that not everything was as it seemed. The group start a quest for the truth and learn a shocking secret.

Solid was a good book but it's not the best I've read. It had a great plot and some good scenes but I found
it hard to relate to since the main character was a girl.  It's a good girls book but not so much for guys. I did,
however, find that there was plenty of action and suspense to keep me from putting it down. I think girls would enjoy this book more than I did.

Reviewer Age:13
City, State and Country: Mineola, Texas America

Shadowland by Alyson Noel

Ever and Damen have been through a lot.  They've fought two evil Immortals defeating one and almost defeating the other.  But, Ever made a fatal mistake, literally.  She accidentally helped Roman curse Damen, bummer right?  Now Ever and Damen must travel into the Shadowland and beyond to find a cure, all without touching.

So Ever screwed up again.  She tends to do that a lot in this series.  Now she and Damen are separated by a new curse, this time physical.  I don't see their relationship growing or changing in anyway.  They are running through molasses, barely moving forward and then being thrust back yet again.  The book is written well enough and is entertaining enough but as for deep or complicated changes you're going to have to look somewhere else.

Reviewer Age:17

Reviewer City, State and Country: Greenwood Village, Co USA