The Radleys
The Radleys are a family of non-practicing vampires. In fact, children Rowan and Clara do not even know that they are vampires at first. Then Clara is hit with a horrible blood thirst and kills a fellow high school student. This causes the family to get the attention of the police. To help solve the situation, Clara's parents, Peter and Helen, contact Peter's older brother Will. Will is most definitely a practicing vampire and he kills and feeds with no worries. Things escalate upon his arrival and Will brings out the vampire in his extended family.
I enjoyed this book as it was not the typical vampire novel. These were vampires that were not practicing and wanted to live as civilized humans. It showed that vampires have souls--these vampires struggles to remain in the confines of abstaining from blood.
The publisher sent me this book to review. I enjoyed it and recommend it.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
Willow (YA)
Willow (YA)
Willow's parents were killed in a car accident and Willow just happened to be the driver. She feels incredibly guilty and to help handle that guilt, she has begun to cut herself. Willow now lives with her older brother, his wife and their young daughter. As she adjusts to her new school, she connects with Guy, a fellow student. She opens herself up to Guy and the two begin a relationship. Guy tries to help her stop her cutting. This is a good piece of realistic YA fiction.
Willow's parents were killed in a car accident and Willow just happened to be the driver. She feels incredibly guilty and to help handle that guilt, she has begun to cut herself. Willow now lives with her older brother, his wife and their young daughter. As she adjusts to her new school, she connects with Guy, a fellow student. She opens herself up to Guy and the two begin a relationship. Guy tries to help her stop her cutting. This is a good piece of realistic YA fiction.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Scars (YA)
Scars (YA)
Kendra is in therapy trying to deal with the sexual abuse she suffered as a young child. She has repressed the face of her abuser and her therapist is trying to draw that out of her. Kendra is feeling overwhelming pressure and begins to cut herself to release some of it. Kendra's mother does not understand why Kendra is withdrawn and Kendra does not understand why her mother cannot support her. Kendra makes a new friend in Megan and with the help of Carolyn, her therapist, she begins to make some breakthroughs. . . which apparently is making someone very worried as someone, whom Kendra believes to be her abuser, is following her and threatening her. This was a decent YA realistic fiction read.
Kendra is in therapy trying to deal with the sexual abuse she suffered as a young child. She has repressed the face of her abuser and her therapist is trying to draw that out of her. Kendra is feeling overwhelming pressure and begins to cut herself to release some of it. Kendra's mother does not understand why Kendra is withdrawn and Kendra does not understand why her mother cannot support her. Kendra makes a new friend in Megan and with the help of Carolyn, her therapist, she begins to make some breakthroughs. . . which apparently is making someone very worried as someone, whom Kendra believes to be her abuser, is following her and threatening her. This was a decent YA realistic fiction read.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Anything but Typical (YA)
Anything but Typical (YA)
Jason Blake has autism and has some issues fitting in socially with kids at school. Even some of his family do not really understand his condition. Jason finds some solace in his writing and begins to converse online with Rebecca, another young writer. He does not reveal everything about himself and panics when they are scheduled to attend the same writer's convention. Their meeting is less than satisfactory at first but Jason does move past that and is able to enjoy the convention.
Jason Blake has autism and has some issues fitting in socially with kids at school. Even some of his family do not really understand his condition. Jason finds some solace in his writing and begins to converse online with Rebecca, another young writer. He does not reveal everything about himself and panics when they are scheduled to attend the same writer's convention. Their meeting is less than satisfactory at first but Jason does move past that and is able to enjoy the convention.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
All Together Dead
All Together Dead
This is the 7th book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. I love this series; they're fun reads. In this one, Sookie has been hired by the vampire queen to attend a vampire convention and read the minds of the human companions. Eric and Bill are of course at the convention as well and Quinn is added to the mix to keep things very interesting. The Fellowship of the Sun reappears to take on the vampires and the results are not good. Great characters, great writing and a fun read makes this one of my favorite series.
This is the 7th book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. I love this series; they're fun reads. In this one, Sookie has been hired by the vampire queen to attend a vampire convention and read the minds of the human companions. Eric and Bill are of course at the convention as well and Quinn is added to the mix to keep things very interesting. The Fellowship of the Sun reappears to take on the vampires and the results are not good. Great characters, great writing and a fun read makes this one of my favorite series.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Buttercream Bump Off (Kindle)
Buttercream Bump Off (Kindle)
This is the second book in a cozy mystery series. Mel, Angie and Tate are childhood friends who open up a cupcake shop. Mel's mother goes on her first date in a long time and he ends up dead, strangled, face down in a pool. Since her mother is being viewed as a prime suspect, Mel begins to investigate the murder. I enjoyed this book--great characters, great setting--even though I guessed the murderer about halfway into the book. I will continue reading this series.
This is the second book in a cozy mystery series. Mel, Angie and Tate are childhood friends who open up a cupcake shop. Mel's mother goes on her first date in a long time and he ends up dead, strangled, face down in a pool. Since her mother is being viewed as a prime suspect, Mel begins to investigate the murder. I enjoyed this book--great characters, great setting--even though I guessed the murderer about halfway into the book. I will continue reading this series.
Mockingbird (YA)
Mockingbird (YA)
Caitlin has Asperger's. This can make dealing with the death of her older brother even more difficult than it could be for other people. Caitlin is trying to understand how her father is feeling and how to deal with things like making friends and finding closure. Caitlin is off the charts with reading and drawing but does not really understand things like sadness and finesse. This book is well-written and Caitlin is given a great voice. A good, quick read, I borrowed this book from the library.
Caitlin has Asperger's. This can make dealing with the death of her older brother even more difficult than it could be for other people. Caitlin is trying to understand how her father is feeling and how to deal with things like making friends and finding closure. Caitlin is off the charts with reading and drawing but does not really understand things like sadness and finesse. This book is well-written and Caitlin is given a great voice. A good, quick read, I borrowed this book from the library.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Medals in the Attic
Medals in the Attic
This is the second book in a cozy mystery series. In this book, Annie finds two military medals in her grandmother's attic, and they do not seem to have belonged to her grandfather. Annie decides to try to find out to whom the medals belong. She begins an investigation and the medals end up being stolen out of her car. Eventually the mystery is solved. Good read and well-written characters, I enjoy this series.
This is the second book in a cozy mystery series. In this book, Annie finds two military medals in her grandmother's attic, and they do not seem to have belonged to her grandfather. Annie decides to try to find out to whom the medals belong. She begins an investigation and the medals end up being stolen out of her car. Eventually the mystery is solved. Good read and well-written characters, I enjoy this series.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
The Orange Houses (YA)
The Orange Houses (YA)
YA realistic fiction, this book is told in alternating chapters from the point of view of three characters, Mik, Fatima and Jimmy. Mik is a teenage girl trying to deal with her deafness. Fatima is an illegal immigrant who befriends Mik. Jimmy is a young veteran dealing with post-traumatic stress. All three live in the same apartment project--the orange houses. Their lives interconnect in ways that will shock the reader. This book is gritty at times but is a good, quick read. I think both boy and girl readers would enjoy it. I borrowed this book from the public library. It was on the book list for a Young Adult Literature class I am taking.
YA realistic fiction, this book is told in alternating chapters from the point of view of three characters, Mik, Fatima and Jimmy. Mik is a teenage girl trying to deal with her deafness. Fatima is an illegal immigrant who befriends Mik. Jimmy is a young veteran dealing with post-traumatic stress. All three live in the same apartment project--the orange houses. Their lives interconnect in ways that will shock the reader. This book is gritty at times but is a good, quick read. I think both boy and girl readers would enjoy it. I borrowed this book from the public library. It was on the book list for a Young Adult Literature class I am taking.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
All That's True (review book)
All That's True
Andi's had a lot of change in the past year. Her older brother Alex was killed in a hazing incident at college. Andi and her best friend, Bridget, learn that Andi's father and Bridget's stepmother are having an affair. Andi wants to tell her mother this, but is afraid of making her problem with alcohol worse. That is a lot for a teenager to handle. This book is not a YA book though and the writing style is mature. This was my first book by this author and I enjoyed it. She wrote good characters, had an interesting plot and was a style of almost Southern fiction that I enjoyed. I received this book from Sourcebooks for review.
Andi's had a lot of change in the past year. Her older brother Alex was killed in a hazing incident at college. Andi and her best friend, Bridget, learn that Andi's father and Bridget's stepmother are having an affair. Andi wants to tell her mother this, but is afraid of making her problem with alcohol worse. That is a lot for a teenager to handle. This book is not a YA book though and the writing style is mature. This was my first book by this author and I enjoyed it. She wrote good characters, had an interesting plot and was a style of almost Southern fiction that I enjoyed. I received this book from Sourcebooks for review.
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