Tag Archives: young adult novel

Mar29

The Quantum Door by Jonathan Ballagh

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Q_Door_Front_FInal_Flat_SMALLThe Quantum Door by Jonathan Ballagh, e-book, 288 pages, published in 2015.

A large swathe of woods stands on an abandoned property behind the house where teenage brothers Felix and Brady live. When a tall chain-link fence is erected along the boundary line the boys’ interest in the woods is piqued. They try to explore the woods using Felix’s remote control quadcopter, discovering something strange among the trees. An huge metal dog with glowing red eyes and a dark-haired girl appear through a fiery portal. The boys quickly remove themselves from the woods and its strange inhabitants, only to find themselves venturing back in in the middle of the night on a rescue mission that will lead them on an interdimensional adventure.

The Quantum Door is technological science fiction. The parallel world that Brady and Felix travel to shows what could happen if Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems evolved to become self-aware. In a world where humans have died out due to some mysterious illness, AI is all that is left as a pseudo life-form. Different types of robots have different jobs and communities in this world that is so similar to Earth, some even have social structures and families. This was fascinating and terrifying. We are so reliant on technology, it is everywhere, and this scenario is a plausible outcome of developing AI, though I hope we stop before the technology gets out of hand.

The plot was fast and exciting, with a lot of action. The description of the machines was particularly vivid, and I found myself thinking about the neurogeists late at night! Creepy, horrible things! It was interesting and engaging. There were a few things I didn’t see coming too. I quite liked the story, and the characters. The giant dog, Achilles, was a lovable sidekick for Nova, who was extremely self sufficient for a girl her age. I admired her efforts to keep Brady and Felix safe. Nova also had a little robotic bird called Thorn that was a wonderful companion and help. I enjoyed picturing her fluttering about the group and helping out, such a loyal little thing. Brady, as the older brother, was responsible and worried about Felix, while Felix was much more likely to take risks and be impulsive. Brady tended to follow whatever scheme Felix had thought up, partly to watch out for him, and partly because his ideas were often fun. I liked the brothers, and their relationship with eachother. The little bot Ajax was rather annoying, but helpful in his own way.

This book was different to a lot of the books I normally read, but it was very good. I highly recommend it to fans of Sci-fi. The Quantum Door is suitable for upper primary school and high school students.

 

*I received this book as a digital copy from the author, who asked me for an honest review of this book. I did not receive any other remuneration, and the review is composed entirely of my own opinions.

Mar23

Claire Daly: Reluctant Soul Saver by Michele Brouder

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Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000032_00027]Claire Daly: Reluctant Soul Saver by Michele Brouder, e-book, 180 pages, published in 2015.

Claire Daly has just finished school and has dreams of becoming a librarian. She is tall with flaming red hair and is in love with her best friend, Chas, who is completely clueless. She is just an average teenager, living with her Mam and her brother, getting dragged to Mass and Holy sites by her Gran. That is until an extraordinary thing happens when she spills holy water on her hands, and suddenly her whole life changes. She is an Illuminata, a soul saver, it is her destiny and now she is in danger. It’s a lot to cope with, but there are more family secrets waiting to emerge, and a handsome young man called Ari keeps appearing.

This is a captivating paranormal novel with a fast plot, and a number of twists. I enjoyed it greatly, reading it quickly and staying up late because I had to know how it ended! Given the subject matter, there are plenty of references to God, Hell, demons, holy sites and souls. However, there is no need to be religious to understand or enjoy this story, everything was explained and described well. It was easy to follow and quite exciting, with some good action sequences.

The setting in Ireland sounds lovely. It must be so beautiful out on the peninsula and along the coast. The description of the landscape made me want to visit there some day.

Claire is a wonderful character! She is extremely reluctant to take on the job of an Illuminata. She wants to choose her own life path, which is fair enough, but her destiny just won’t allow it for the time being. So she is stuck spending her summer learning to utilise and control her newfound powers with her severe aunt, a much more experienced Illuminata. This leaves Claire grumpy, sarcastic and difficult, just as I picture an adolescent when they are not getting their own way. I got to know Claire quite well through the story, and I liked her a lot. Julia is quite different to Claire, and though she was very strict and unyielding, I came to like and admire her. Claire’s interaction with Ari was intriguing and exciting too.

Claire Daly: Reluctant Soul Saver entertained me. There was a bit of romance and some violence, making it more suitable for middle high school students and up. This is only the start of the Soul Saver series, and I am very much looking forward to Claire’s next challenge.

 

*I received this book as a digital copy from the author, who asked me for an honest review of this book. I did not receive any other remuneration, and the review is composed entirely of my own opinions.

Mar7

The Selection by Kiera Cass

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theselectioncoverThe Selection by Kiera Cass, paperback, 336 pages, published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2012.

In a post-apocalyptic world, the land that was North America is now a Monarchy. The King and Queen rule over a rigid caste system, where ‘ones’ are royalty and ‘eights’ are the homeless and vagrants. Each caste has its own place in society, and moving between classes usually only occurs through marriage. America and her family are ‘fives’, making a paltry living through the arts. She is desperately in love with Aspen, who is a ‘six’. Meanwhile, Crown Prince Maxon comes of age and needs to find a wife, kicking off “The Selection”, where a girl from each province is selected to compete for the Prince’s hand. America is chosen, and moves to the palace with the other selected girls, leaving part of her heart behind. She may find refuge, friends, and even love in the palace, but she may also find friction and danger.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure this would be my sort of book. There had been a lot of hype over the series though, so I decided to see for myself. I was pleasantly surprised, and powered through the whole book over the weekend. And now I want to read the rest of the series.

The Selection is a light and entertaining read. I found it good bedtime reading. The plot is fairly simple, and easy to follow, without too many surprises. It made me think of a TV show I’ve seen advertised, The Bachelor. Finding love through reality television seems unlikely, and I have never felt the desire to watch shows like that, but I actually enjoyed reading Prince Maxon’s version. It probably had a lot to do with the characters, which I quite liked, despite being somewhat predictable.

America has character. She’s a bit fiery, had a desire to be non-conformist and frank; in fact she came across as rather rude sometimes, and doesn’t make friends easily. However, she’s still playing the game, no matter what she claims to feel about it. Aspen was harder to get my head around, he was more complex and darker than America. Handsome, of course, proud, and a little broken by his station in life. It will be interesting to see how his character develops in the next book.

Every time Prince Maxon said “My dear”, an image of a grey-haired, bespectacled man wearing a maroon cardigan with a rumpled dress shirt underneath, came to mind. I’m not sure that was the image the Prince was really going for! He is meant to be young, strong, handsome, but once that image popped into my head, it stayed there. He has been thrust into a position of power and must bear it the best he can, seeming brittle and strong on the outside, while really being rather shy and inexperienced at life. Since he doesn’t get out of the palace much, it’s not such a surprise.

The Selection is suitable for high school students. I will be reading the second book in the series, The Elite, to see how things progress.

Feb20

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

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illuminae coverIlluminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, paperback novel, 599 pages, published by Allen & Unwin in 2015.

It’s the year 2575 on an icy planet in the far reaches of the ‘verse where a large corporation has set up an illegal mining operation. Here, teenagers Kady Grant and Ezra Mason have just undergone a messy breakup. That doesn’t seem quite as important when their settlement is attacked by the mega warships of a rival corporation. A few ships manage to evacuate some of the population, Kady and Ezra among them. Unfortunately the ships are damaged in the battle, leaving them unable to leap through space, and the next way-point is six months away. The pursuing battleship may not be the worst to come though, with a serious viral outbreak, a command covering up important information and an artificial intelligence unit that may just be a little crazy.

Uniquely told through a compilation of interviews, emails, instant messaging logs, security camera transcripts, memorandums, and the artificial intelligence unit’s records, Illuminae is extremely creative. The contents are made to look as if they could be part of a file about the destruction of Kerenza and the pursuit if its three ships, the Alexander, Hypatia and Copernicus. This is supported by interesting graphics and different formats and text for different styles of documents. It is cleverly done and really suits the tone of the book.

I found the story both intriguing and compelling, reading through it in just a couple of days. There was a lot going on within the book. First, Kady and Ezra have parted on less than amicable terms, but with everything different after the attack, they may have a chance to at least be friends again. Then there are the conditions on the ships, cramped quarters, jobs to do, and the command keeping secrets from the general population. Kady becomes increasingly interested in what it really happening, and begins hacking various parts of the ships’ records and communication channels. She’s searching for the truth, but what she finds isn’t good. The effects of the viral infection is quite disturbing. Within such a confined space, it was inevitable for such an infection to spread rapidly, but the way it distorts its victims is horrifying. And the way the artificial intelligence unit, AIDAN, reacts is even more horrifying! It makes some decisions that are difficult to comprehend, all for “the good of the fleet”. AIDAN has so much control over the ship Alexander, giving it power without any of the compassion and compromise that humans use to make decisions and draw conclusions. There is a lesson in there about dependency on artificial intelligence… might it ever be able to adapt to leave the restraints of its human creators behind? And what consequences would that bring about?

There were a lot of characters too, but Kady is the lead. She is unconventional, intelligent, courageous and loyal. I felt like I was riding the roller-coaster alongside her, feeling her triumphs and her defeats. A complex and well developed character whose story I enjoyed immensely. Ezra was also well developed, though I didn’t feel like I got to know him quite as well. The other main character was really AIDAN, despite it being man-made code and programming, AIDAN was very much alive during this book. At first I disliked it very much, and wondered how humans could get to the point of putting their lives so squarely in the hands of such a program. As the story progressed and I got to know AIDAN better, it became increasingly clear that this was a human creation beginning to form something akin to humanity within its programming. It was scheming, cunning and deceitful, but the way it came to care for and protect Kady made it seem so human, I couldn’t help but feel for it.

Illuminae is suitable for upper high school students and up. There is plenty of violence, some of it rather graphic, and adult themes. Any foul language has been blacked out, but I easily filled that in as I read.  The story had an air of space zombie apocalypse, with a dose of futuristic crazy for good measure. These are some of my favourite genres, and to have them all mashed together was awesome, it just worked in a way I couldn’t have forseen. An amazing, engaging, and sometimes scary or sad book told in a unique way that will be hard to forget, Illuminae is a must read for young adults and fans of science fiction.

 

 

Feb14

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

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daughter S&B coverDaughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, novel, 418 pages, published by Hodder Paperback in 2012.

In the city of Prague there lives an art student with a secret life. Karou is only seventeen, incredibly talented artistically, and sporting bright blue hair. She  lives in a flat on her own, but her family are not far away, just a knock and a step through a magical portal into Brimstone’s shop, part of Elsewhere, where he sells wishes in exchange for teeth. Karou runs errands for Brimstone, whilst also attending school. Beyond the shop is a whole other world at war, Angels pitted against Devils, and it has raged on for a century.

I raced through this enthralling fantasy novel. The plot was fast paced and gripping, at each chapter’s end, I just had to read the next one! It took most of the novel to explain Karou and Akiva, though I had an inkling of what had happened, it was more complicated and even better than I expected! I just loved it! The writing was excellent, the plot strong and the characters complex. It spoke to me, and I replied “wow”.

Karou is a unique girl. I’m envious of her blue hair and her ability to draw! How strange it must have been growing up with one foot in either world. Though Brimstone sounds scary and gruff, he obviously has a great deal of affection for Karou. The other Chimaera that raised her, whilst also looking a bit scary in their half-man half-beast bodies, love and protect Karou. Akiva is so dark and brooding, but powerful and beautiful too. His pain was palpable, likewise his passion. I also liked Zuzana, with her fierceness in such a tiny package. The characters came alive for me, I watched them fight, and love, and play.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is suitable for upper high school students and adults. Mature younger teenagers should also enjoy this engaging story, but there is some violence and sexual references. This really was an awesome read, and I am very excited about getting my hands on the next book in the trilogy, Days of Blood and Starlight.

Jan30

Gone by Christine Kersey

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gonecoverGone by Christine Kersey, e-book, 230 pages, published by Sapphire Creek Press in 2013.

Morgan is a teenager that thinks she is being treated unfairly by her parents. She also perceives them to be biased towards her younger sister, Amy. So in a huff she runs away into the woods nearby her house. It starts getting cold and Morgan gets lost, finally taking shelter in a little hut she finds among the trees. After a large storm which damages the hut, Morgan must find another way out. She follows a tunnel, which leads her right into an alternate universe, where it is illegal to be overweight, and the government enforces this rule by locking people up in fat farms. Will Morgan ever find her way home?

This novel is set in a parallel universe, where things are the same, but not the same as we know them. The main difference that Morgan finds in her new world is that the government is monitoring everyone’s weight, and it is illegal to become overweight. If this occurs, the person is forcibly taken into a weight loss facility, where they must stay in prison like conditions until they drop the weight. And they have to pay for it themselves, which has created an abundance of very poor families struggling to survive after a family member has been committed for rehabilitation. As a premise, this held a lot of promise, and I quite enjoyed the plot. It was disturbing and intriguing how much everyone was focused on diet, exercise and weight.

One thing that bothered me was what happened to the Morgan that had been living in the alternate universe? She was on a camping trip, and just disappeared, but where to and how? I kept expecting her to turn up and claim Morgan as an imposter. Maybe she was forced into Morgan’s world, which then begs the question of what’s happening back there? I’m just curious…

I found Morgan a little whiny and immature. I’m a bit appalled that she would run away at sixteen because they moved to a new house and her mum said she couldn’t have a new phone, it’s selfish to say the least. And it’s somewhat stupid to wander into a forest during winter without proper supplies or protection, especially in a location with a high likelihood of snow at that time of year. I know she’s young, but a bit of commonsense would have gone a long way to preventing her trip through the time-space continuum! I think she improved as a person whilst in the alternate universe, but not enough to protect her family. She was too proud and self righteous to back down from the nasty girl at school, despite knowing that it wasn’t a good idea. The other characters didn’t make much of an impression on me.

I think this could have been a great book. It was let down by the irritating nature of the main character, and the lack of other interesting characters. It didn’t capture my attention enough for me to seek out the second book in the series.

Gone was an easy read suitable for upper primary school and high school students. The novel is very clean, with a little superficial romance, and no foul language. It is the first book in the Parallel Trilogy.

 

 

Jan23

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

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redqueen coverRed Queen by Victoria Aveyard, paperback novel, 383 pages, published by Orion Books in 2015.

Mare Barrow lives in a world divided by the colour of blood. The ruling class Silvers treat the Reds as lower life forms, forcing them to live as servants, menial workers and fodder for the front-line of an everlasting war. While the Silvers live luxurious and leisurely lives, the Reds mostly exist in poverty. The Silvers all possess some extra talent or ability that sets them apart, leading them to believe that they are superior to the Reds, who lack such superhuman powers. Then comes Mare, whose blood is red, but who has power within that may be even stronger than that of the Silvers. The Silvers hide her in plain sight, masquerading as a long lost noble within the palace itself. Despite her shackles, she will try to aid in the revolution that could free the Reds from servitude and drudgery.

A wonderful fantasy dystopia, Red Queen was a quick paced read that I enjoyed. There were some similar elements to other well regarded series, such as The Hunger Games and Divergent, with the abilities that the Silvers possess being very much like those of the X-Men. Throughout the book, the writing was good, the plot logical and the characters well developed.

I really liked the action sequences. The way the Silvers use their abilities was intriguing, though terrible when used against the Reds, who had no hope of defending themselves against such power and strength. I could have been sitting in the arena watching the last battle (or right in the thick of it!) it was so clearly written.

Overall the Silvers were cruel and arrogant, and difficult to like as characters. I have a soft spot for Cal though, he was my favourite character. He too is proud and believes himself and his people to be the rightful leaders and superiors to the Reds, but he is not cruel or dismissive in the same way as the other Silver nobles. He is in line for the throne, but he wants to be a just and kind king, serving all of his people, including those with red blood. This is reflected in the way he meets and treats Mare. The other Silver that I liked was Julian, Mare’s teacher. He was kind and curious, prepared to accept a different social order.

Cal’s brother, Maven, on the other hand, I didn’t like at all. Perhaps it was just the instant dislike I took to his wicked and manipulative mother, the Queen Elara, that had me in mind that he shouldn’t be trusted, or his overly sweet treatment of Mare. I wanted to shout at Mare to keep herself guarded around him! Evangeline, Cal’s betrothed, was a right cow, but very well described. I hoped Mare would overcome Evangeline at some point.

I generally felt sorry for the Reds, and incensed that they should be treated so badly due to the accident of their birth and genetics. I cheered on the Scarlet Guard for taking a stand against their oppressors. I often found myself shaking my head at Mare though. She made some very poor decisions. However, I still liked her, and I really wanted her to realise how she felt about Cal before it was too late.

There was some violence, not much swearing, and only a little romance. Red Queen is a great young adult novel suitable for high school students. There is a sequel coming out soon called Glass Sword, which I am looking forward to. I think this could be another great young adult series.

 

Jan15

Weeping Willows by S. B. Rose

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28333619Weeping Willows by S. B. Rose, e-book, novella, 50 pages, published in 2015.

Suzie Edwards is an English major at college, living with her best friend, Melly. When Melly disappears, her boyfriend Craig is the prime suspect. Suzie is still waiting for news of her friend when her parents die suddenly. Are the two incidents related?

Weeping Willows is a quick read with a nice premise. The story has potential, however, the writing requires a lot of polishing. It was riddled with errors, and for some reason my copy was missing quite a number of ‘l’s, especially the second ‘l’ in words like Melly or chilling. This is probably to do with the conversion of the file, but I found it very annoying. There were some grammatical errors as well, but many of the mistakes were one word misplaced for another, such as ‘winching’ instead of ‘wincing’. It interrupted the flow of the story, and is evidence of a lack of editing. Spell-check is simply not enough. I think an extra draft or two could really make a difference here.

I usually like mysteries, but I found myself drowsing whilst reading this. The blurb sounded exciting, but it didn’t reach my expectations, it was only something to pass the time. I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and therefore had no investment in what happened to them. There wasn’t any suspense, and I was disappointed that Suzie didn’t even try to escape her fate. She was a weak and annoyingly boring character. I’m also a little confused about the start of the story, as Suzie remembers something from her childhood that seems to have no bearing on the rest of the story. There was no explanation as to how her family went from poverty apartments to a wealthy neighourhood, perhaps I missed the importance of that.

Weeping Willows is suitable for middle high school students and up.

 

*I received this book as a digital copy from the author, who asked me for an honest review of this book. I did not receive any other remuneration, and the review is composed entirely of my own opinions.

 

 

Jan15

Four Days to Fusion by Lira Brannon

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4days2fusioncoverFour Days to Fusion by Lira Brannon, e-book, 242 pages, published by White Bird Publications in 2015.

At fifteen all Seren wants to do is fit in. It’s kind of hard when her hair is screaming red and she constantly looks sunburnt, but things are looking up when the cute boy that she’s been mooning over invites her to the homecoming dance. She’s just getting to experience some normality, when her life is blown apart. Seren has forgotten she is a star, and that her mum and dad are actually her bodyguards, and she’s a little older than fifteen… Seren must return to the skies to claim her rightful place as a queen, but King Palomar wants to prevent that at all costs, and killing a few billion life forms, planets and solar bodies along the way doesn’t bother him at all.

Young adult science fiction at its best! Four Days to Fusion was entertaining, exciting and fast paced. I haven’t read much science fiction lately, but I am very glad I read this one. I was hooked from the first chapter, with Seren’s parents odd behaviour, and the action that followed. Lots of action in this story! It is told from a few different perspectives, but not difficult to follow at all. It’s a really great read.

Seren is a lovely lead character, full of self-doubt and clueless as to what she’s meant to do, but striving to do the right thing anyway. Although she has been often ostracised, she retains enough humanity and compassion to want to help others. I really liked Hy and O, their attitude reminded me of the fire demon in Howl’s Moving Castle, except they are water. It was interesting picturing this blob of water forming heads and limbs, and even moving about independently.

Trey and Emmett were the main male characters. Both were well written. Trey is somewhat dark and enigmatic, making him ever so more alluring. Emmett had his horrible sister around his neck like a chain, poor guy. There’s a little romance with Seren here, but it’s pretty tame.

Four Days to Fusion is suitable for high school students, but adults will also enjoy this wonderful ride into the galaxy. There is a preview of the next book in the series at the end, which left me quite excited for its release!

 

*I received this book as a digital copy from the author, who asked me for an honest review of this book. I did not receive any other remuneration, and the review is composed entirely of my own opinions.

Jan14

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

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courtcoverA Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, paperback novel, 416 pages, published by Bloomsbury in 2015.

At nineteen, Feyre has been the sole provider for her father and two sisters for the past five years. The family lives in abject poverty, nearly succumbing to starvation every winter, despite Feyre’s efforts to hunt in the forest. The land in which they dwell is not far from the border that separates the mortals from the realms of the faeries. Feyre has grown up hearing stories of the faeries’ cruelty and destruction of humans, and knows that it is dangerous to enter the forest near the wall, yet they must eat. She encounters a large wolf whilst hunting, suspecting by its size that it may be a faery, but kills it anyway. In exchange for the life she took, Feyre is whisked away to live out her life a captive of Tamlin and Lucien, High Fae in the Spring Court. She has freedom to move about the house and grounds, but is forbidden to leave their lands. While it is always beautiful in the Spring Court, a darkness has been building in the north which will change the land of the Faeries for ever. Feyre must find a way to break the curse or lose everything she has come to love.

Wow, what an incredible book. I enjoyed it immensely! It was fantasy with action and romance. The plot was fast, and enthralling. I was flying alongside Feyre with every twist. I had a serious book hangover after finishing this book! If the second book in the series was available already, I would have gone straight to the store for it.

It is much racier than many other young adult novels I have read over the last few years, with some sex scenes. It echoes the base elements of Beauty and the Beast, but it is so much more than that. This is not just about falling in love, it is about giving up everything for that love, sacrificing one’s entire self, displaying courage and loyalty no matter the cost.

The setting and landscapes came alive beautifully, and all of the characters were well written. I easily conjured up the images of the various faeries, which were described in excellent detail. I could have done with a little less mental imagery of the Attor though! The evil Queen, Amarantha, was quite scary. Bent on revenge and the acquisition of absolute power, she was not a faery one should cross. She was just full of hate, which made her a very nasty character, one which inspired fear, but also one which I fervently hoped would be overthrown.

Feyre was a great leading lady. I admired her bravery, strength and perseverance, but Lucien was actually my favourite character. He was gruff and rude towards Feyre at the start, but he was also cheeky and playful. He showed unending loyalty to Tamlin, though he also spent a lot of time making snide remarks and laughing at Tamlin, in a way that only best friends can treat one another. I often found myself smiling at his antics. Lucien and Feyre made for good verbal combatants. I liked Rhysand for similar reasons to Lucien. He was arrogant and cunning, but I enjoyed his verbal sparring with Feyre. Though he is very self-interested, and not at all trustworthy, I saw glimpses of a better soul within him. Tamlin I also liked, but he was more serious than Lucien, and so powerful he was almost frightening.

A Court of Thorns and Roses is suitable for upper high school students and contains violence, sex scenes and swearing. It is the first book in a new fantasy trilogy, with the second installment due out in May 2016. I am very excited about the next book!