Category: Young Adult

‘A Lesson in Vengeance’ – Victoria Lee

A Lesson in Vengeance is a twisted story, which will probably warrant a reread to appreciate fully.

Set in the Dalloway School, a remote academic establishment mired in rumour and stories of witchcraft. None of the staff talk of these rumours, but the girls do. Secret societies devoted to spells and the study of the dark arts thought to be responsible for the death of five students of Godwin House abound, and they draw the attention of students such as Felicity Morrow, our narrator.

Felicity was present on the night her girlfriend, Alex, disappeared and has now returned to the school to complete her studies. Certainly emotionally vulnerable, Felicity has a record of erratic behaviour and her conduct gives cause for concern. She is convinced she is haunted by the spirit of her ex-girlfriend, and we watch as strange events occur.

This year sees the arrival of new girl Ellis Haley, a published writer, and a character very keen to learn more of the hidden past of the school. She befriends Felicity in an attempt, she says, to debunk the older girl’s belief in magic and witches. But it’s clear that Ellis has other ideas in mind.

Initially rather slow, I found myself intrigued by the school and its depiction while also feeling rather disassociated from events. As the story develops and we start to see more of Ellis in action I found myself quite gripped. The relationship between Ellis and Felicity felt like something from Donna Tartt herself, and as events built to their climax I could not quite get my head around exactly which character I disliked more. To make you like and hate a character in equal measure is quite something, and Lee certainly toys with our perception of the two leads. My main issue with this – and the only reason I didn’t award 5 stars – was the sense of remove I felt at the beginning and the sense of the secondary characters/school environment being rather underdeveloped.

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this in advance of publication, and this is certainly one I’ll bookmark for a re-read at some point.

‘Death Spiral’ – Jane Codosh

Having raced through this in the course of one sitting, I have to say I’m surprised to have never heard of the book before now.

The main character, Faith Flores, is a truly terrifying sixteen year old. Living with her aunt after the death of her mother, Faith is something of a loner and desperate to keep people at a distance. Being known as a junkie’s daughter is enough to keep most people away, but there’s a vulnerability to Faith that you can’t help but warm to. Clearly smart, Faith is a victim of circumstance and it’s more than a little depressing that someone so bright and sparky would – in all probability – struggle through life due to the things she can’t access.

When Faith goes to visit her mother’s friend she’s given evidence to suggest that the details of her mother’s death are not quite what she’s been told. Her mother was involved in a clinical trial, and when her asking questions about the trial leads to threats and people linked to it dying it’s pretty obvious that Faith is onto something.

With the help of her friends – and a fair amount of luck – Faith digs into the scientists running the trial and learns some unpalatable truths. High-risk situations aplenty, this book is genuinely hard to put down.

 

‘You’ve Reached Sam’ – Dustin Thao

You’ve Reached Sam is a book that will impact some people hugely, and even if you don’t find yourself a blubbery mess once it’s over then you will at least recognise how valuable this is to get people thinking about death and how we deal with it.

Julie is our main character and we learn that she has become something of a recluse since the death of her boyfriend, Sam. It frustrated me that for a character who plays such a pivotal role we know so little about him, but it was clear that he’d left his mark on the world somehow.

For reasons we never have explained, Julie finds herself able to talk to Sam on her mobile. There appear to be strict rules to follow, but these conversations allow Julie to say the things to Sam that she never had the opportunity to in life.
Only she can’t tell anyone what she’s doing or it will break their connection.

Slowly, and with the help of her friends, Julie learns to live again. By the end, things are settling back to a new reality but Julie is showing signs of accepting what has happened, learning to value the time she had with Sam and recognising the influence he has had on her life.

I personally found Julie quite irritating at times. Many of Sam’s friends and family were grieving but they rarely factored into her thought process. This is, probably, quite realistic – but it was nice to see there was no hard and fast approach to how someone should be seen to grieve. However, the steps she took allowed her to move gradually closer to accepting her new reality.

 

‘BFF: A Story about Bullycide’ – Lindsey G.P. Bell

BFF is the kind of story that you read and weep over. The idea that children can be so cruel seems hard to believe if you’ve never experienced bullying, but it always amazes me how some people seem to know exactly which words will cause the most upset. That we can still have situations where children are made to feel so low by their peers that they commit suicide, shows that it’s painfully clear something is very very wrong.

The story begins with Abby moving from California to live in the home her mother grew up in. Though her mother left years earlier, and has since died, Abby knows that her father couldn’t afford to turn down the opportunity to live in a home that is paid for.

Their arrival at their new home immediately emphasises their sense of isolation and discomfort at their new environment. But Abby makes the acquaintance of Hollis on that first day and the girls quickly become friends. Hollis is inventive, caring, thoughtful and incredibly mature. But she is seen as weird by her peers, and as the summer draws to a close and the girls prepare to return to school, it becomes clear that things are going to change.

Abby and Hollis try to weather the storm. They acknowledge their friendship and try their hardest to seek help. Sadly, to no avail. When Hollis’s mum bans her daughter from seeing Abby, the bullying becomes more vicious. Abby tries to seek help. Those involved seem to suffer no consequences. Eventually, things reach a deeply tragic end.

This book spent so much time showing how wonderful Hollis was, and how she touched the lives of those she met, that it seemed all the more brutal to have her life snuffed out so quickly. It made me angry. It made me sad. It made me want to ensure nobody is made to feel so worthless. I can only hope that this book gets in the hands of the right people.

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this in advance of publication in exchange for my honest review.

‘Be Not Far From Me’ – Mindy McGinnis

Mindy McGinnis doesn’t shy away from the topics that many would rather not address. In Be Not Far From Me the mood quickly shifts and it was a lot more graphic than I was expecting. I wouldn’t say that I enjoyed this exactly, but it certainly was a story I was keen to finish as soon as I could and work out what would happen.

Our main character is Ashley Hawkins. Resourceful and more than a little intimidating if I’m being honest, and the qualities that made her so irritating at the beginning stand her in good stead as the book progresses. When she sets off for a party in the woods with her friends, it should be a welcome start to the summer holidays.

Of course, things have a habit of going wrong when groups of teens assemble in the woods for drunken fun…and this couldn’t have gone more wrong if they were trying!

Ashley definitely sees herself as slightly better than her friends in respect of her ability to navigate in the woods. The party starts well, but Ashley is on edge because her boyfriend’s ex has turned up. She looks amazing, and Ashley is feeling uncomfortable. She drinks more than she might otherwise be tempted to. When she wakes in the middle of the night to relieve herself, she is stunned to stumble across her boyfriend and his ex having sex!

Now, this scenario is not going to be one that many will ever have to face. Heaven only knows what someone would do. Certainly, the urge to flee would be high. However, Ashley runs and doesn’t stop…until she falls and passes out.

What follows is the grimmest fourteen days anyone could hope to experience.

While Ashley is trying to survive and find her way back to humanity, we learn a little more about her and her past. This allowed us to gain a little more understanding of her character, and while I admired her resilience and ability to cope in adversity there was a part of me that wished the details were a little less graphic.

By the time we get to the end of the book, things have developed considerably. Ashley certainly grows as a character and while I don’t begrudge her the relatively happy ending I can’t help think it’s highly improbable.

 

‘The Grimrose Girls’ – Laura Pohl

The Grimrose Girls makes for an interesting story…death, secrets and a boarding school with a history tinged with odd events. When the book begins we learn that Ari, a student at the school, has recently died. The general consensus is that she committed suicide, but her best friends – Yuki, Rory and Ella – are convinced that she would not have done this and there is more to the story.

Upon their return to school the girls decide to try and investigate. They have to broach some dark secrets and try to address some of the things about themselves they would prefer to keep hidden. It’s unclear who can help them and who might have something to gain from keeping them in the dark.

New girl Nani is given Ari’s place in the school and it’s no surprise that she finds it hard to settle. She has her own secrets and is reluctant to trust others. Determined to find out exactly what caused her father to leave before he got her the place at the famed school, Nani offers to help the girls try to discover what happened to Ari.

Once Nani finds a mysterious book the girls start to realise that there are some disturbing links between Ari’s death and other strange deaths of students that have taken place in the last few years.

I enjoyed the natural way in which we learned about each of the girls and the details of the mystery of the school. Some of the finer points of the story weren’t always explained, but I wonder whether this might be because there’s more details to come in the next book.

 

‘If This Gets Out’ – Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich

If This Gets Out takes on what I’m fairly sure is an age-old issue (the manipulation of young singers by their management) and turns it on its head while delivering a sweet romance.

Our focus is a boyband called Saturday, formed after a summer camp and at a high point in their careers. Two years after they formed, the boys are starting to find the relentless grind and excessive management stifling. Relationships are strained and all four feel they are struggling to be true to themselves when their every public moment is monitored and choreographed.

Ruben, Zach, Jon and Angel were great friends and things began well. Somewhere along the way things have started to feel less fun, and as their success grows they are under increasing pressure to toe the line.

The book focuses on the relationship that develops between Ruben and Zach, but it also explores attitudes to sexuality, the mental health issues such a high-pressure existence creates, the way friends and family can sometimes be part of the problem and the role the media/fans play in such situations.

Perhaps this is a reflection of my age, but I found the romance element of the story the least engaging as I was more fascinated by the behind-the-scenes look at this fictional boyband. I can only imagine this story may have been influenced by events surrounding some of the highly successful boybands over the last few years, but the issues it explores are probably age-old. The lack of resolution may have been an attempt to show the growing empowerment these boys felt they had, but it also left it a little too open-ended for my liking.

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest thoughts.

 

‘Iron Widow’ – Xiran Jay Zhao

Iron Widow did take a little time to get going, and the world-building was not as developed as I’d have liked. However, once we get underway this is a compelling narrative and definitely a series I’d like to continue reading.

Our main character, Zetian, is determined to become a co-pilot and use this as her opportunity to avenge her sister’s death. She wants nothing more than to fly, and to show her capabilities. But few want her to, and her plan is not without consequences.

We follow Zetian as she finds herself fighting for her people, and showing her worth. Those in power are reluctant to let her show her capabilities, but this was a great idea.

There’s plenty of action, a cracking focus on the role of women and a love triangle that didn’t have me shouting in anger at the book.

While I don’t really feel I gleaned a lot of info about how things came to be, the ending suggests that this lack of world-building might be quite deliberate. It certainly wasn’t anything I saw coming.

 

‘Bad Girls Never Say Die’ – Jennifer Mathieu

Bad Girls Never Say Die is a book being touted as a feminist reworking of The Outsiders. While it focuses on a group of female characters, the book remains set in the 1960s and – for me – this led to the whole thing having a rather dated premise. If you’re going to rework something seen as such a pivotal text, I wonder why the decision wasn’t taken to set it in modern times and explore modern attitudes.

Nothing much has changed, and perhaps that is part of the point being made.

Our story is told from the viewpoint of Evie, a girl from the wrong side of town who many believe will not amount to much and whose choices are limited not just by money but also by her gender.

Evie experiences a traumatic event. She is rescued by a ‘good’ girl. Scratch the surface though and we see that they are pretty similar. Money does not hide everything.

Though only 15 and always feeling less than her ‘brave’ counterparts, Evie is a character with plenty of spunk. She learns the hard way how this can impact on you and others. Forced to decide just what she wants and how far she’s prepared to go to get it, this is a book that encourages you to think about the mark you want to make on the world.

Interesting idea, and I’m sure it will be loved by many younger female readers.

 

‘The Trial’ – Laura Bates

A solid read, which will serve its purpose if it gets just one person to think about the way they treat others. Once again, Laura Bates brings her social commentary to a story that you find yourself drawn into.

I don’t usually comment on covers, but this was one I felt drawn to. It shows the power girls could have, in the right circumstances, and it emphasises just how small this little world that the group of characters inhabit is.

Seven teens survive a planet crash as they are travelling back from a baseball tournament. They are, initially, excited by the break from routine but it doesn’t take long for the gaps and issues between them to bubble up.

Very different personalities; each thinks they know the other but their time on the island soon shows they don’t know as much as they think.

Strange events start to take place and some of these events are serious in their potential for harm. A sense of mistrust soon develops and all we know is that it has something to do with a party that was held before the night of their crash. Who is behind this? Can they find out what is going on before someone is seriously hurt?

We learn fairly early on that the tension is real, and that it links to their life before the island. Of course we want to know exactly what led to this point, though it felt quite obvious fairly early on what we’d focus on.

The crash came from now where but as a means to an end it works well. The group don’t seem to know each other very well, and though we could see the developing issues, it was good to see how they all slowly came to realise the significance of their actions/inaction. Unfortunately, it felt as if the latter part of the story was rushed which was a shame as it certainly is a story that has resonance.

This is a book that you feel you ought to recommend though, and I’m grateful to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read the book before publication.