Category: Young Adult

‘The Rules’ – Tracy Darnton

Amber has, for as long as she remembers, been prepared by her father to expect the unexpected. As a survivalist he insisted on teaching her how to prepare for the worst. Her key rule was to ensure she followed his rules.

We’re not sure what happened, but we see Amber is in foster care. She is in the UK, and we learn her mother has died. A letter from Amber’s father has arrived from America and it immediately puts Amber on alert. She realises she will have to leave.

We follow Amber on her journey to try and learn more about her father’s plans. She doesn’t trust him, and journeys to familiar places in her attempt to learn what she needs.

For someone who is meant to be so well-trained she seems to make some silly mistakes. She places her trust in another person who used to be in foster care with her, and this results in some crazy decisions being made. Before too long, Amber’s father catches up with her and we start to glimpse for ourselves the extent to which one man’s delusions can impact on the lives of those around him.

Throughout the story I got a sense that things weren’t quite what we thought. Amber made some strange decisions, and the details of her past indicated there may be more to the story that she was telling us.

When we get to the rather explosive finale it seems to justify what Amber had told us, but it also suggested that perhaps Amber was better prepared than she wanted to let on!

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this, and I’m curious to see how this goes down (particularly in light of recent events that may have led people to question the extent to which they are reliant on others).

 

‘Date Me, Bryson Keller’ – Kevin van Whye

I can’t begin to imagine what it must be like to have to think so much about your sexuality, or to be so cautious about your thoughts/feelings. Whatever your views, however, nobody should be forced to come out unless they choose to. Some of the actions in this made me unbelievably cross, and I hate the fact that this will be something people even have to consider.

I’ve read a couple of views criticising this novel for being so similar to some other stories. I can’t comment on that, but I can certainly say how much I enjoyed this story.

Our main character, whose point of view we’re predominantly focused on, is Kai. He knows he’s gay, but hasn’t said anything to either his friends or family. He seems fairly happy in himself, but we learn he’s desperate to head to college so he can be himself. Kai is a character on the periphery of his high school experience, but he finds himself in a rather unusual situation.

This situation involves the school golden boy, Bryson Keller, who’s got himself caught up in what could be a pretty crass scenario. Whoever asks him out on a date each Monday he has to accept, and date them for the week. For reasons I’m still not totally sure about – but it stems from a chance detention and a drama task – Kai ends up asking Bryson on a date. And he agrees.

We follow Kai and Bryson through their somewhat unexpected week. They keep it quiet, and at points I feared this might be because Bryson was going to do something awful. That wasn’t the case, though, and this quickly becomes a tale of two boys finding a mutual love. Almost insufferably cute, it would take a fairly hard-hearted person not to warm to these two.

There’s hints that this will not be plain sailing. I know some might have a worse experience, but when it matters people are generally seen to do the right thing. Kai’s little sister was wise beyond her years and the kind of cheer squad anyone would be proud to have. Plenty to like in this, and I’m grateful to NetGalley for allowing me to read this prior to publication.

 

‘The Kingdom of Back’ – Marie Lu

In some ways I think this is a story that could have been told many times over, that of a talented young woman denied the chance to share her talent purely because of her gender.

Our focus is Nannerl, the older sister of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. A girl I had never heard of, yet the author’s note suggests her talent was comparable – if not, in some ways, more than that of her lauded younger brother.

We follow Nannerl as she recounts her forays into composition, and her growing frustration at the way her talent is ignored by her father as he touts his young children around the world in an attempt to ensure the name of Mozart is never forgotten.

While the historical element of the story is interesting, I was more entranced by the fantasy elements Lu employs to examine Nannerl’s feelings about the events she lives. We watch as she conjures up The Kingdom of Back, a mystical place, and is persuaded to undertake a number of quests in order to achieve her heart’s desire.

This was, evidently, a story that had captivated Lu and one that seems to have taken her years to finish/share with the world. It will certainly introduce someone overlooked to readers, but it also offers us the opportunity to see an imaginative exploration of two very talented children and how their relationships develops over time.

 

‘Clap When You Land’ – Elizabeth Acevedo

Elizabeth Acevedo has created another story to shine a light on an experience, and to paint a picture that celebrates a certain place/culture. This is the kind of book you’ll pick up and find yourself reading…then look up to realise time has passed, you have finished and the images in your head are as vivid as the moment you read them.

The story focuses on two characters, both girls. One lives in the Dominican Republic and the other in America. Neither knows about the other. But when their father – on his way to stay with his second family – is killed in a plane crash their lives become intertwined in ways they’re not prepared for.

The verse is quite sparse, yet it conveys precisely the mood and experiences of these two girls. The depiction of grief was sensitive, yet there was a positivity to this with regard to how the girls change that I wasn’t expecting.

This was a genuine pleasure to read, and thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read it prior to publication.

 

‘The Small Crimes of Tiffany Templeton’ – Richard Fifield

The Serpent King meets Girl in Pieces in this moving and darkly funny story about a teenage girl coming of age and learning how to grieve in small-town Montana.

Initially, I found this hard to warm to. I couldn’t work out why Tiffany was regarded so negatively, and I found it difficult to really develop much interest in events following on from her release from juvenile detention. Slowly, however, as we peeled back the layers of this small town and learned more about Tiffany I came to have a healthy respect for her.

I think the first thing I have to say is that the town of Gabardine really does – on first impressions – seem like the kind of place you’d want to leave and never return to. It’s dying on its feet and the characters who’ve found themselves living there are rather small in their outlook. Nobody seems to have anything marking them out in any way, but that small-town closed mentality actually came to make sense. As we learn more about the people around Tiffany it almost feels like we’re being encouraged to pay homage to the fighting spirit of people who know there’s little point to what they’re doing, but do it anyway.

Tiffany is a girl who you warm to. There’s a softness under this brash exterior, and she has a curiosity about her that suggests she’s smart enough to escape this place – but if she stays it’ll be out of love for those around her. Finding out about her ‘small crimes’ and what each actually represents was a fascinating process. While her brother and mother had a certain grotesque element to them, by the end there was a definite shift in Tiffany’s thoughts about them.

In some ways this reminded me of something by Steinbeck, but with more modern issues. It might not be to everyone’s tastes but I found myself quite charmed by it.

‘Supernova (Renegades 3)’ – Marissa Meyer

A fitting end to this superhero series, where we get a lot of what we expected but not everything is as straightforward as it seems.

Picking up after the events of book two, Nova is all too aware that it is only a matter of time before her double identity is revealed. While she is in love with Adrian and has come to respect the Renegades, the years preparing her have ensured she is hard to sway from her intended course of action. Determined to rescue Ace, Nova takes greater chances and there were times where I wondered if this was really the same girl we’d seen through the previous two books.

Regardless of our views on Nova’s behaviour, she is plunged into the thick of the action here. Some are determined to make her pay for her actions, but there are others prepared to look beyond what they’ve been told – who think there’s a chance of a different approach.

Nova is placed in some difficult circumstances here. Not everyone behaves honourably, and yet there’s support for Nova where we might not have foreseen it. If you’re in this for the action you won’t be disappointed, and there was a clear attempt to answer some of the questions we’ve had about these characters and their lives.

You need to know that not everyone survives. Everyone is changed, in some way. And there’s a wonderful reveal at the end – which we had been given little clues about – that hints there could be more to come.

 

‘Girls with Razor Hearts’ – Suzanne Young

Girls with Razor Hearts focuses on our group, led by Mena, after they leave their elite school, determined to bring down Innovations. We know they’re capable of extreme violence, but get the impression it’s something that happens as a consequence of the way they’re treated rather than an innate character trait.

The girls find an old student, and they are given help to enrol in a new high school as they attempt to bring down the company that made them by going after the investors.

The story focuses on their experiences in this everyday high school, and their reaction to the commonplace misogyny in evidence. We see boys being trained for their powerful roles, and the girls being primed for their role on the sidelines.

Things don’t quite go to plan. There’s always a sense of someone being just that one step ahead – which I presume sets us up well for part three. The girls are great in their love for and support of one another. They mean well, but it seems the odds are stacked against them which is a rather cynical message to convey.

 

‘Nightshade’ – Anthony Horowitz

With Alex Rider you come to expect the unexpected. Nightshade, the twelfth in the series, is a fast-paced explosive read that delivers in so many ways.

Although he’s trying to get back to normal life, nothing is ever going to be straightforward for Alex. He is, once again, contacted by the new head of MI6 when one of their agents is attacked. The person responsible for the attack was a fifteen year old boy…and Alex may well be the best hope they have of learning more about the boy known as Freddy who killed five of Brazil’s most dangerous police force.

Having already been mistaken for Julius Grief, Alex is shipped out to the facility from which he is thought to have escaped. The psychologist there is the only one who knows the truth about Alex, and it’s up to Alex himself to find a way in to befriend Freddy.

What follows is an adventure beyond your wildest imaginings.

Once again Alex finds himself relying on his wits and his very special set of skills. This time round he’s up against the mysterious Nightshade group who are planning a lethal attack on London. Alex has to learn the truth and find a way to stop what could, potentially, be the most dangerous event in British history. Business as usual – except this time MI6 have been shut down, Alex is on his own and there’s a leak from within.

An audacious scheme, plenty of opportunities for it to go wrong and – at its heart – young Alex being pushed to his limits. There’s a depth to this that hasn’t always been in the Alex Rider novels with the personal revelation about Mrs Jones…and the most ominous ending suggesting that things are not over.

 

‘Tweet Cute’ – Emma Lord

I’m perhaps in a minority here, but I wasn’t totally won over by this in the way other readers seem to have been.

It’s a fairly stereotypical romance, with Jack and Pepper seemingly very different then spending time together and realising they quite get on. At the same time they’re developing a close relationship via an anonymous app, so it’s fairly standard that we’d expect them to get together eventually.

What’s being touted as the thing that sets this apart is the Twitter background. To cut a long story short, Pepper’s mum is behind a highly successful burger chain that has gone big after humble beginnings. Jack’s parents run a deli in New York that’s been in the family for years. Both serve a grilled cheese sandwich and it sparks a Twitter war. The whole scenario is preposterous, and it was so unrealistic that it frustrated me beyond belief.

It’s a shame I got sidetracked by this part of the story because the characters themselves and the way they were presented was appealing. I liked them and hoped things would work out, but the attempt to make it more than it was (as a way of tying up some loose ends regarding their parents later) just made it all too much.

 

‘The Best Laid Plans’ – Cameron Lund

The Best Laid Plans is packaged as a frothy feel-good read, and there are definitely elements of the novel that fulfil that label. However, one thing this book is definitely trying to show you is that labels can be deceptive, and that not everything is easy to define.

Our story focuses on a group of seniors in a relatively small town who seem to have been together as a class for years, feel they know everything about each other and have to come to terms with the fact they’re growing up and will move on. Our main character, Keely, is fixated with the fact that she is the only virgin left in their class. She is obsessed by the fact that everyone around her seems to be so adult and in control of their lives, and is convinced that if she can lose her virginity she’ll suddenly receive the magic key to knowing how adulthood works.

The main impetus for her being so fixated by her status is the attitude of those around her to sex. Her best friend, Andrew, has a reputation as a ‘player’ and her female friends all seem to use sex and their sexuality as the way to define who they are. When Andrew hosts the party for Keely at the start of the book – the party that causes so much of the problem – and someone leaves a condom wrapper by Andrew’s parents’ bed, they jump with glee at the thought their offspring have finally got together. Everything about the attitude to sex in this book seems a little weird to me, and I felt it gave rather mixed messages to the target audience.

That aside, the novel focuses on Keely having a huge crush on an older boy, Dean. In an attempt to look more experienced, she hides the fact she’s a virgin. However, this then means she becomes preoccupied with the physical aspect of their relationship. So far, perhaps so normal – but then someone comes up with the bright idea that Keely should ask her friend, Andrew, to help…what could be weirder, eh?

For me, the entire book is focused on Andrew and Keely coming to terms with who they are, what each means to them and and how this growing awareness might impact on their current relationship. Along the way there are casualties, and characters who are clearly just used to help illustrate the point the author is trying to make.

Reading back through my thoughts, it seems quite negative. That’s not the case. This was such a quick read, and there were some genuinely funny moments. I liked the majority of the characters, and even felt they were genuinely developing as we progressed through the story. I had a feeling which way this would go, and the author definitely didn’t make this quite as easy as it might have been. It’s only afterwards that I start to consider exactly what message is being presented that I feel this isn’t quite as good as it could have been.