A new student review of The Giant (Bareknuckle) by Jonathan Mary-Todd

wallace.madi posted a new student review of The Giant (Bareknuckle) by Jonathan Mary-Todd. See the full review.

The Giant  by Jonathan Mary-Todd was an inspiring book overall, with extremely lifelike settings and dialogue. Some of the events were a little bit unrealistic, but they added to the adventurous nature of the book. Luc's journey was full of relatable emotions and endearing struggles, It seemed unlikely that he could be below the radar of all authorites as the story portrays him, and his background information is rather vague. However, I was immediately transported into his world and fully absorbed in his situation. I would recommend this book for mature young readers looking for a fast-paced adventure story.

A new student review of Deadly Delicious by K. L. Kincy

sschu5 posted a new student review of Deadly Delicious by K. L. Kincy. See the full review.

Deadly Delicious is a great book about how Josephine grows up in a world of magic and conjure. The plot is great, but the prologue is not very detailed so it is confusing until you get to the part in the book about it. Although Josephine is powerful not a lot of people appreciate her except for Quentin. In this way this book is awesome because it shows how she is growing up to be the person she is suppose to be. So this is a pretty good book.

A new student review of The Crazy Things Girls Do For Love by Dyan Sheldon

tweety16 posted a new student review of The Crazy Things Girls Do For Love by Dyan Sheldon. See the full review.

In my opinion the book was really great. The only thing that confused me was when it kept going to a different person and back on the next chapter because I just keep reading instead of looking at the next chapter. I like it because at the end it has a little humor.

A new student review of Caught Between Two Curses by Margo Dill

AlexaS posted a new student review of Caught Between Two Curses by Margo Dill. See the full review.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Caught Between Two Curses. I found it to be a quick, albeit fun, read, and I could relate to the realistic characters. I especially liked Julie’s family: her aunt and uncle, her grandmother, and her little cousin, Stevie. I loved the development of Julie’s family throughout the novel, and how they grew closer and stronger as a result of curse. Additionally, my favorite character overall was Julie’s best friend, Matt. He was a great love interest, immediately likable as well as cute and caring. Julie and Matt’s friendship was also awesome; I loved how open they were with each other. Furthermore, although I’m not a huge baseball fan, I liked how the author incorporated the real-life “Curse of the Billy Goat” with Julie’s fictional curse.

However, my main problem with Caught Between Two Curses was probably the curse itself. Although information was given on the origin of the curse, I would have liked more details about the magic surrounding the curse. Additionally, I found the resolution of the curse to be slightly anti-climatic and predictable. I also thought that Julie was a bit too focused on boys. She wanted to have a boyfriend senior year no matter what, even if she was in an unhealthy relationship. However, Julie grows a lot throughout the book, and ends up making wise decisions.

In sum, Caught Between Two Curses is a well-written, engaging read—even if it’s a bit predictable. I would recommend Caught Between Two Curses to anyone fond of cute romances, contemporaries, paranormal mysteries, or baseball. As sex is mentioned fairly frequently, I would also recommend that only people ages thirteen and up should read it. 

A new student review of Task Force by Brian Falkner

Crazyman5 posted a new student review of Task Force by Brian Falkner. See the full review.

Task Force was an interesting book, especially if you want action in a sci-fi setting. Point of view helps the story develop a good bit, and switching between characters really helps the point of view be told. There are a few characters who have very straight forward personalities, and lack back stories. This doesn't seem to hurt the overall plot line, however the book is far less cerebral then it could have been. I would recommend this to someone looking for a quick action read, in the ages of 11-13, and give it 4/5 stars, only losing a star for character development.

A new student review of Backwards by Todd Mitchell

AudreyCFarrell posted a new student review of Backwards by Todd Mitchell. See the full review.

"Backwards" was not an easy book to read. Not to say that the language was advanced, or that I didn't like it, or that it was a particularly long book. In fact, it is written relatively plainly, and is not really long at all. It was hard to read because it begins at the end, and so the whole story has the weight of the inevitable pressing upon it. The unavoidable future, being treated as the past. Todd Mitchell speculates through the story about the answers to some of life's unanswerable questions, and that is not an easy thing to put forth, let alone in a young adult novel. I think he did a wonderful job of it, nonetheless, and seriously doubt I will be forgetting "Backwards" anytime soon.

A new student review of Secrets and Spies: Plague by Jo Macauley

underwood_bcl posted a new student review of Secrets and Spies: Plague by Jo Macauley. See the full review.

I really liked this book because of the way the mystery was brought up and that  Beth was an actress. The illness that was going around London gave the book a little more spice. When one of the suspects dies because of the illness, I was surprised.  I thought that the suspect would be alive healthy and wanting to know everything that Beth had discovered. I was disappointed that the author used what I thought was inappropriate language in the book.  

A new student review of Lick by Kylie Scott

Mayo_whoa posted a new student review of Lick by Kylie Scott. See the full review.

Lick was a fantastic read! Held my interest throughout the enter way. Will read the rest of the series!

A new student review of Take Me On by Katie McGarry

lunarwolf posted a new student review of Take Me On by Katie McGarry. See the full review.

Truthfully I loved the story. The thing I didn't like was that they never really go deep into what happened to Hailey that traumatized her so badly. What I loved most about this story is the trials the characters go through. It shows the mental, emotional, and physical capabilites that anyone can go through, whether it's teenagers or adults.

Also, I loved how every chapter was either Hailey's or West's point of view. It gave a complete understanding for me and didn't leave me confused on whether we missed something important in the characters thoughts. This is a great read for anyone looking for a sweet, sad tale of life, hardship, and love.

A new student review of Taking the Reins by Katrina Abbott

EmilyFredricks posted a new student review of Taking the Reins by Katrina Abbott. See the full review.

 I very much enjoyed this book. I started reading it Sunday afternoon and I did not want to put it down. I had it finished by the next afternoon. Out of all of the books that I have read in the past I have no read a book that I was like this before. The plot and characters were all new and interesting. It was funny and very enjoyable to read. The book managed  to keep my attention.

The characters had me laughing the whole way through. There were many things that happened in the plot that made me laugh and that kept me guessing as what was going to happen next. There were also many things that shocked me because I did not think that it was going to happen the way that it did.

When the book ended I was very sad because I could have kept reading. I am very happy that there is a second one to this series and I will happily read it when I get the chance.