Category: Young Adult

‘Ringer’ – Lauren Oliver

Bestselling author Lauren Oliver digs deep into questions of how to be a human being in a world where humanity cannot be taken for granted.

In Ringer we catch up with Lyra after she has escaped from the Haven. She and Caelum are on the run, trying to work out who can help them.

Again, we have the flip book format. You can read alternate chapters or the stories in turn. For this one I read Lyra’s story before Gemma’s and, having got to the end of the story, I confess to feeling rather perplexed.

I loved the idea behind this story, and it was good to see a little more into the minds of those who have created the replicas. It posed interesting questions about mankind and what it means to be human.

While the idea is exciting, there were sections where I found my attention wandering. Splitting the focus between the characters meant I never felt fully engaged by either.

‘The Impossible Vastness of Us’ – Samantha Young

India Maxwell hasn’t just moved across the country—she’s plummeted to the bottom rung of the social ladder. It’s taken years to cover the mess of her home life with a veneer of popularity. Now she’s living in one of Boston’s wealthiest neighborhoods with her mom’s fiancé and his daughter, Eloise. Thanks to her soon-to-be stepsister’s clique of friends, including Eloise’s gorgeous, arrogant boyfriend Finn, India feels like the one thing she hoped never to be seen as again: trash.

But India’s not alone in struggling to control the secrets of her past. Eloise and Finn, the school’s golden couple, aren’t all they seem to be. In fact, everyone’s life is infinitely more complex than it first appears. And as India grows closer to Finn and befriends Eloise, threatening the facades that hold them together, what’s left are truths that are brutal, beautiful, and big enough to change them forever…

I love it when a book delivers more than you’re expecting.

When India’s mother drops her bombshell, she’s unsure how to feel. With one action she’s gone from being a popular girl to a nobody on the social rung of her new school. India’s new stepfather has money, lots of it, and lives in an environment where your name and reputation is everything.

India’s journey in this novel is an interesting one. She slowly learns there’s more to people than they always want to present to the public, and gradually learns to trust herself.

There’s a lot in here that you need to discover as you read. The characters India meets are not without their flaws, but combined it makes for a pretty explosive read. There are some views expressed here that are never going to be okay – and they are necessary for the credibility of the characters/plot but it doesn’t make them any easier to read.

‘Clean’ – Juno Dawson

Clean. To be clean involves removing dirt. And, in this, there’s A LOT of dirt.

Due for release in April 2018, I was fortunate enough to receive an ARC of this latest release from Juno Dawson. It brought back memories of the first time I read ‘Junk’ by Melvin Burgess, and I sincerely hope that this does not get ignored because people think teen readers can’t handle such topics.

We first meet our main character, Lexi, as she is passed out in her brother’s car on her way to a rehabilitation centre for heroin addiction. I’d read the opening some time ago, but it was just as disorientating and confusing this time around. Watching Lexi go through the first steps in her seventy day treatment is hard to read.

Dawson packs a serious punch here and we get a warts-and-all account of not just Lexi’s addiction but those with her in the centre. We relive some of the experiences that bring Lexi to this point and, though there were some alarming situations, there was no scare-mongering ‘just say no’ preaching.

What this novel conveyed so well was the deception that someone who is addicted might practise. Particularly on their sense of self. If you surround yourself with enablers, it’s easy to deny you have a problem.

Initially I did not think Lexi would be a character I felt much for. But, thankfully, she is not simply a shallow spoilt little rich girl. She, like a lot of the other characters we meet, is lost and needs help finding her place. As we learn more about Lexi it becomes easier to see beyond the persona she presents to the world.

There was a sense of knowingness to ‘Clean’. Sometimes the first attempt at rehabilitation is unsuccessful, but it doesn’t mean you should stop trying. There were moments of humour within this – which I wasn’t really expecting – and I found myself wanting to know more about some of the other characters Lexi meets. I also found myself really irritated by Lexi’s so-called friends and the ‘rich absent’ parents who seemed to be being held more than accountable for their childrens’ issues.

While it doesn’t give us all the answers, it certainly raises some interesting questions.

 

‘Zeroes’ – Scott Westerfeld

Having a superpower must have been high on everyone’s wish-list as a kid. But what do you do if you actually have a superpower…and don’t really know how to control it?

In Zeroes – the first in a new trilogy – we meet a group of teens who each have their own power. They’re not always in control of their power, and the after effects of them using their power can be catastrophic.

We open meeting Ethan, Scam, a boy who has two voices; one of which always knows just what to say. Unfortunately this voice doesn’t always think about the consequences that come into play. When he is caught up in a bank robbery and becomes an internet sensation, he has little choice but to contact the friends he hasn’t really seen for the last year. The Zeroes.

There’s nothing particularly new here, but this story of a group learning to use their powers is a thrilling story. It introduces us to a very varied cast and makes us intrigued by all of them, which is no mean feat. Of course, you’ll have a favourite but it’s fascinating to watch them go about their business. There’s also some explosive action, some serious villains and a real need to see what happens next.

‘They Both Die at the End’ – Adam Silvera

In this world we have Death-Cast. On the day you are going to die you receive a call letting you know. No details are shared, but this call gives you the chance to spend your last day as you see fit.

On September 5th, a little after midnight, both Rufus and Mateo, our protagonists, receive the call. Very different characters, but through the Last Friends app they end up meeting. Their last day together is a poignant set of experiences as each confronts things that scare them/takes steps to make their last day one to be remembered.

Starting the novel knowing that we will lose our main characters at the end gave everything a rather melancholic feel. Yet the things they spend their time doing – and the bond they forge – was pretty inspiring. As Rufus says towards the end ‘Maybe it’s better to have gotten it right and been happy for one day instead of living a lifetime of wrongs’.

Silvera gets it so right here…

‘The Last Samsara’ – Kristen Ciccarelli

In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laughter wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be darkness—and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death-bringer.

From its opening lines where Asha lures the dragon by telling it a story, we are in fantasy territory and it is compelling stuff.

From childhood Asha has lived with the old tales about the Namsara and the Iskari. They cost her mother her life, and Asha knows she cannot ever let anyone know she continues to tell them in spite of her father’s edict banning them. Yet, as her country’s Iskari, Asha is forced to hunt dragons and do what she can to prove herself good.

As the opening in a series we know there’s a much grander scope to this tale. However, for the first instalment we are given plenty to entertain us.

We watch Asha struggle with her sense of duty; we have the background of the country’s turmoil; there’s the callous Jarek, to whom Asha has been pledged; we have a developing romance, some truly inspiring relationships and…dragons.

I wasn’t totally convinced when I saw the cover that I would like this. Thankfully, it entranced me from the start and I cannot wait to see how Ciccarelli continues this tale.

‘The Taste of Blue Light’ – Lydia Ruffles

 

Since I blacked out, the slightest thing seems to aggravate my brain and fill it with fire’

These are the things Lux knows:
She is an Artist.
She is lucky.
She is broken.

These are the things she doesn’t know:
What happened over the summer.
Why she ended up in hospital.
Why her memories are etched in red.

‘The nightmares tend to linger long after your screams have woken you up …’

Desperate to uncover the truth, Lux’s time is running out. If she cannot piece together the events of the summer and regain control of her fractured mind, she will be taken away from everything and everyone she holds dear.

If her dreams don’t swallow her first.

There’s no doubt about it that this contemporary YA read – due to be published in early February 2018 – packs a powerful punch.

Initially, Lux was not a character to feel empathy with. Her unwillingness to engage with things and people made her hard to care about. The environment in which she cloisters herself is alien to many of us.

Yet as the story progressed I found myself falling under a spell. Desperate to know what happened, we do get answers, and they are far more topical than we might expect. All along I had an idea in which way the book was heading (which wouldn’t have been awful), but Ruffles goes for something much bolder and braver…and it pays off.

This is one book I feel it’s best to know little about before reading. It is not immediately seeking to attract your attention, but it sneaks up on you. Once I’d closed the pages I was desperate to read it again.

‘The Wren Hunt’ – Mary Watson

The hunt for the wren is a traditional Irish event, taking place in late December, which is thought to symbolise the sacrifice of the old year in readiness to welcome in the new.

In this novel, an assured debut, we focus on the fight for survival of two ancient groups – augurs and judges – and the young girl born of both groups who is to decide their fate.

Initially, I have to say this was a puzzling start. I was not sure who Wren was, how she was connected to events or even what kind of book this was. However, the writing style totally drew me in and I felt that we learned of some of the key events through the eyes of our main character which allowed us to truly empathise with her.

The story drew heavily on folklore and the fantasy elements of this entranced me. The development of our main character will surely be enough to captivate most people and I was more than a little surprised by the themes and ideas that ran through this.

Though I have read that there is a second book due – and it should provide us with a satisfying link to what we see here – this is one of those rare books that you would not feel hard-done by if it remained a stand-alone. It’s also a story that I think would be one I could read again and still delight in.

A huge thank you to the publishers Bloomsbury, the author Mary Watson and a NetGalley for allowing me the chance to read this prior to publication.

‘The Nowhere Girls’ – Amy Reed

At a time when we can easily see some of the awful comments attributed to one of the most powerful men in the United States revealing his derogatory attitude to women and when the #MeToo campaign is sharing more and more disturbing stories of how women are treated, there’s no doubt in my mind that this is one of those books that everyone should be encouraged to engage with.

The Nowhere Girls. A group of young women, from all spheres of life, who come together to try to combat the toxic culture in their hometown.

New girl Grace is unsure how to fit in. As the only child of devout Christians their life has been in upheaval as their old church community was resistant to having Grace’s mum as a pastor. She wants to stand for something, but is so unsure of herself at the start of the novel. Grace finds herself making a rather unusual choice of friends at her new school, and when she learns that the girl who used to live in her home was forced to leave school after accusing three star footballers of rape she is determined to make a stand.

Along with Grace we are told the story from the points of view of Rosina and Erin. Each have their own concerns that impact on their lives, but their voices were pretty authentic. I was particularly fond of Erin who was a character you couldn’t help but root for.

As the Nowhere Girls movement gathers force we see the impact it has on some of the key players in perpetuating this slut-shaming culture. Small steps initially, but there is a hint of light at the end of the tunnel.

There’s no doubt in my mind that this relatively happy ending would not happen in real-life. I was repulsed by some of the characters (intentionally I think) and really irritated by the complacent and, at times, combative attitudes of those who have the power to tackle such institutional sexism.

With explicit scenes featuring sexual violence this will not be an easy read, but it’s a sadly necessary one. My biggest gripe with this was the relentlessly happy ending that, for me, belies the battle that many in such a situation will face. However, that doesn’t detract from the need for novels such as this to encourage young men and women to consider how they can truly make a difference.

‘Brightly Burning’ – Alexa Donne

The gravity stabilizers were failing again. I glanced up from my sketchpad to see globules of liquid dancing up from my drinking glass. They shimmered red, like droplets of blood, though I knew it was just cherry-flavored nutri-drink. Dammit, that’s my protein ration for the day wasted.

A sigh escaped me, and resignedly I stowed my drawing tablet and stylus in the drawer under my mattress. They would be calling me any minute.

A moment later, right on time: “Stella Ainsley, please report to Area Twelve.” The speaker crackled and popped, as it had done for years. I’d tried to fix it, but on a ship as old as the Stalwart, there was only so much you could do.

With this extract from the opening chapter of Donne’s debut, due for publication in May 2018, we can see this is no ordinary retelling of Jane Eyre.

From the moment I saw this on NetGalley I have to say I was curious about how it would work. There’s a few differences in order to fit the futuristic space setting, but it’s quite faithful to the original text.

Seventeen year old Stella is determined to not end up an engineer the rest of her life. With her space home looking close to the end, her choices are limited. When she gets a post as governess on board the much better-equipped Rochester we know exactly where this is going.

Many of the expected events are there. It was good fun to spot the links (while not being too precious about the adaptations made to fit the new setting) and I could see this appealing to teens with no sense of the source material, as well as being a bit of fun for those who know what’s coming.

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this prior to publication.