A new student review of The Alchemist War (The Time-Tripping Faradays) by John Seven

Laurenjanice posted a new student review of The Alchemist War (The Time-Tripping Faradays) by John Seven. See the full review.

I thought this was a great book; I was always on the edge of my seat. I liked this book because it gave me a new perspective on history and alchemy. This book also gave me a chance to see what could happen if we could invent time travel. The book also gave me a perspective on how much little things can matter in history. The Time Tripping Faradays was an excellent book that was action packed and full of suspense.

A new student review of The Revelation of Gabriel Adam by S.L. Duncan

McTower posted a new student review of The Revelation of Gabriel Adam by S.L. Duncan. See the full review.

This book honestly wasn't one of my favorites. The author did make me feel like I was part of the setting; it just wasn't what I expected. The vocabulary was perfect for the recommended age. The book has many strengths, including a very large but age appropriate vocabulary & an interesting ending. However, it did have many weaknesses, including dead moments where you just want to put it down because there is much less action. Overall, it was an acceptable book.

A new student review of Promise Bound by Anne Greenwood Brown

ReesaOnFire posted a new student review of Promise Bound by Anne Greenwood Brown. See the full review.

Ms Greenwood Brown certainly does know how to spin a good story.  Mystifying, heart-wrenching, and enticing, Promise Bound is a book like no other.

Promise Bound being a finale to a trilogy, I expected to be at least moderately confused. I had not read any of the previous books of the series, and so had no prior knowledge of any of the characters.  However, it wasn’t a problem.  Ms. Brown beautifully spins the story where, if you never read the series, you could still understand nearly all the actions.  Truly independent story, it can stand on its own two feet—for that reason I was hooked from the beginning.

Brown’s characters kept my attention with their magic.  The leading characters—Lily, Calder and family—were especially well done, only with perhaps one instance or two of inconsistency.   But the depth at which the character’s work is truly noteworthy and realistic.   Putting Calder and Lily aside, out of Brown’s characters, Danny stands out for his ‘realness’.  Brown does mention some side characters, Lily’s best friend as example, but does not, in my opinion, finish them in this book. In other words, they are loose ends in this finale.  I wished they were more finely finished.

With that, I must mention that at times, the book seemed a bit too fast paced.  Particularly after Calder returns, I felt that the novel was picking up a dangerous speed until the end. 

 In total, Ms. Brown creates a stunning, stand alone plot, with vivid descriptions and a romance that will have the reader eating out of her hand.   I certainly was. Calder’s and Lily’s relationship is just so strong, it draws the reader in, her action and intrigue keeping the reader in the zone.  Promise bound is sure to draw you in from start to finish, even if you hadn’t any prior knowledge about the series.

  I recommend it for ages 15+.

 

 

A new student review of Ship of Dolls

underwood_bcl posted a new student review of Ship of Dolls . See the full review.

As soon as I picked up this book I could not put it down. It is wonderful and surprising. Every thing that I thought would happen never happened. There was always a twist I never saw coming. I want to read more  books by this author to see if her all her books are as magical as this one.

A new student review of The Fire Wish by Amber Lough

jotaf posted a new student review of The Fire Wish by Amber Lough. See the full review.

The Fire Wish was a really great book.  Before I requested The Fire Wish I hadn't realized it was a romance, but to me it didn't feel like a romance.  Instead, it felt like an action book.  The author, Amber Lough, did a really good job with the unique descriptions.  For example, she described one of the character’s voices as being like sandpaper on another‘s nerves.  It almost felt like the author was taking me on a journey, even though the descriptions got overly wordy at times.  The characters were so well developed that I couldn‘t choose just one favorite.  Something I didn’t like about the book, though, was at the beginning, it felt like I was thrown into the story and there was a little bit missing.  Granted, it did explain it eventually, but it took a while to clarify the background.  I would recommend this book to girls ages twelve through sixteen because there is some blood, death, a little bit of romance.  Boys willing to look past the little bit of romance that the book has, or don't mind it, would probably enjoy the action, also.  Be warned -- this is a series, and it will leave you hanging at the end!

A new student review of London Eye (Toxic City Book 1) by Tim Lebbon

EpicReviewer posted a new student review of London Eye (Toxic City Book 1) by Tim Lebbon. See the full review.

This book is overall a good book. I wish that it had a little bit more action. It also was slightly odd, but I still thought of it as good. I would think that people that like postapocalyptic and ficiton books would like this book.

A new student review of The Mountain's Depths by Snnaky Sword

Jane0915 posted a new student review of The Mountain's Depths by Snnaky Sword. See the full review.

I enjoyed the story of this book, but there are two things I did not like about it. For one, I found it hard to follow at many parts of the story, especially the beginning, as the author kept starting and restarting. I think this was more for effect, but the author went a little overboard. I think he could have toned it down a bit and it would have had a better effect. Also, I found that the author did not take the time to introduce the characters carefully to keep the reader straight on who is who. Despite this, I did enjoy reading this book; it had an intriguing storyline that kept me entertained. I would recommend this book to fans of adventure novels, or anyone who is looking to get into the action/adventure/fantasy genre.

A new student review of Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley

masha posted a new student review of Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley. See the full review.

I didn't like this book because it was boring and slow. The characters didn't have very developed personalities, and they failed to interest me. Throughout the book I always knew what was going to happen and I didn't think that there was an exciting climax. I would not recommend this book because it was not an interesting or fun read. 

A new student review of My Own Revolution by Carolyn Marsden

tkh2002 posted a new student review of My Own Revolution by Carolyn Marsden. See the full review.

I thought this book was wonderful. By the end of the first chapter, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it or not. But it started to pick up right away, and I instantly fell in love. The description was absoutely fantastic, and the characters were really well developed. And by the end I felt for Patrik and all the drama, confusion, and fear that he was experiencing. Although this is mainly a book about the revolution in Czechoslovakia, I also felt that it was a beautiful story about growing up and finding out who you want to be and what you want to do with your life. A round of appluase to Carolyn Marsden.

A new student review of Cameo by Tanille Edwards

snehayamsani posted a new student review of Cameo by Tanille Edwards. See the full review.

When I first picked this book up, I was excited to see chicklit cover the inner workings of high school. I definitely had high expectations for this book, but I was disappointed due to the following reasons below.

 

As I started to read, I was struck by how poorly written the novel was. Instead of enjoying the story, I was trying to keep up with all the mumbo jumbo the author had written. There was just so much slang like “dope” and “fly” that it made my head hurt. Don’t get me wrong, I know slang is used everyday, but I don’t think an excessive amount is necessary for a novel. The second thing I noticed was the very cheesy and confusing plot of the story. The novel takes has too many loops and turns that the plot almost surpasses itself. Almost. The characters, probably one of the only things that could save a book, were not even that interesting. They were underdeveloped and just as confusing as the plot.

I’m a very easy person to please, so when I tell you this book was not good, I mean it. There were so many times I wanted to just drop the book and pick up a different novel, yet I powered through. Maybe I didn’t like the book because it wasn’t young adult fiction, maybe not. I honestly have no idea; but if you do read this book, don’t say I didn’t warn you.