Split by Swati Avasthi

For nearly all his life, Jace Witherspoon has lived with secrets, most of them not entirely his own. In fact, his whole family has too. It’s because of these secrets that Jace finally goes to find Christian, his brother who left years ago. Living with his estranged brother, Jace tries to make a new start, but the memories are so raw; he can’t forget all that he’s left behind: his mother who is still suffering under the violent anger of his father, and his ex-girlfriend and what he regretfully did to her. The last thing Jace wants is to turn out like his father, to responsible for domestic abuse, but the odds, statistics, and his past are stacked against him. In order for him to begin a new life cleanly, Jack may have to do what he fears most—go back.

Split is a raw and honest depiction of domestic violence and its horrific effects both physically and mentally. The topic of this story is what really defines the novel. This is a serious topic and a serious story; there will be more tears shed from reading Split that quite chuckles heard. This novel is a twisted emotional roller coaster, exposing much more negative emotions of the darker side of life, like fury, regret, and unbridled fear. Thankfully, there are some moments of slight comic relief spaced throughout the story; otherwise, this subject matter may have been too intense for many readers to handle. The characters, especially Jace, Christian, and their mother, are for the most part vividly defined by their circumstances and extremely realistic, almost scarily so, which may be the point. Split is a must read in the sense that it raises awareness about domestic violence while also ending in hope.

Because of the nature of this topic, I recommend that Split be read only by those mature enough to handle it. Readers who have been interested in novels like Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott may also want to check this one out.

Rating: 4.5

Review copy from Amazon Vine

Smart Pop Giveaway

CONTEST CLOSED

Do you ever wonder what other people, especially well known, possibly famous, very successful writers think about the books that you've read? Well, here's your big chance to find out because I'm giving away three books that are just that.

So which books are up for grabs?

Demigods and Monsters: Your Favorite Authors on Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series (edited by Rick Riordan)

Mind Rain: Your Favorite Authors on Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series (edited by Scott Westerfeld)
A New Dawn: Your Favorite Authors on Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight Series: Completely Unauthorized (edited by Ellen Hopkins)

There will be (1) winner for each book
courtesy of Smart Pop Books



Other details:

• US/Canada mailing addresses only.
• Contest ends 4/20/10, at 9 p.m. PST.

Remember, you can only be entered for one book and you must complete the form to be entered. If you have any questions about this contest, see my contest policy, or contact me and ask away.

Accomplice by Eireann Corrigan is Munch-Worthy

Would you fake your own kidnapping to get into a good school?

Finn and Chloe have it all figured out. Their school guidance counselor has told everyone that it's not enough to get good grades or do community service anymore—kids like that are everywhere, and colleges are bored of them. So what do you do? Chloe decides they should get attention another way. She and Finn will stage her own disappearance—and then Finn will be the only who finds and saves her. What college wouldn't want them after that kind of attention? It seems like a good plan—until things start going very wrong.

This one sounds interesting to me primarily because I can relate. I don't mean this in the sense that I have staged a kidnapping and subsequent rescue in order to secure my place in college, of course. However, as someone who applied to colleges this year (technically the end of last year, but who's checking), I understand the stress involved in the application process. So this novel sounds like it's something that I, as well as all other high school seniors (and super over achieving juniors), would enjoy.

Releases August 1, 2010 from Scholastic Press.

Bite Me: A Love Story by Christopher Moore

Welcome to the crazy city of San Francisco as told by Moore. All kinds of dangers abound, (mostly) in the form of vampires. There’s the Countess Jody and the Dark Lord Flood, but they’re not much of a threat considering their human minion Abby Normal, emergency back-up mistress of the greater Bay Area night, wannabe vamp but settling for Goth, has bronzed them in a reproduction of Rodin’s The Kiss. Then there’s the Safeway night crew, but they’re not really a problem unless they get in the way of Abby trying to combat all things that go bump in the night (except for her vamp friends of course). Speaking of which, the new bad boy in town is Chet, the shaved vampire cat, who is recklessly killing or turning San Francisco’s street life will growing disturbingly larger. It might be more than Abby can handle, so she’ll have to call in reinforcements from Steve (better known as the manga-haired love monkey Foo Dog), her gay Goth buddy Jared, and Emperor of San Francisco (protector of Alcatraz, Sausalito, and Treasure Island) and his “men,” and a pretty awesome ninja guy. Then three old vampires show up, and life (and undeath) get a lot more interesting.

I would apologize for the rather lengthy summary, but I just couldn’t help myself; Bite Me is just such a riot, as I’ve tried to convey. Moore tells this story from a wide variety of perspectives, giving the reader hilarious insight into each character’s thoughts and motivations. Despite the frequently rotating points of view, often multiple times within each chapter, the story remains easy to follow and understand. There isn’t really much else I can say besides that this novel is one twisted adventure of vampire and human misdeeds and sloppy solutions that manages to succeed in being both interesting and wickedly funny. I thoroughly enjoyed this laugh out loud amusing tale despite not having read its two prequels, Bloodsucking Fiends and You Suck; if anything, reading Bite Me only makes me want to read them more. Believe it or not, Moore was first recommended to me by my dad, who generally has bad if not horrendous literary taste, and this is one of the few things I’m glad I listened to him on. So, take if from my dad if not me, Bite Me is not one you’ll want to miss.

This novel is marketed for the adult audience but will also be enjoyed by more mature young adult readers. Bite Me also appeals to fans of the Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz and The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott who can enjoy a comic element to adventure.

Rating: 4.25

Review copy from Amazon Vine

Possessed by Kate Cann

Rayne feels like London is closing in on her. It’s the heat, the nagging of her mother, her controlling boyfriend, and the incessant noise that makes her feel trapped and drives her crazy. So when she’s offered a position at a secluded estate in the countryside, she almost immediately accepts. Out here, there’s space, trees, and blessed silence. But Rayne’s transition to this new atmosphere isn’t quite so smooth. Morton’s Keep, her new home, is spooky to say the least and surrounded by rumors of horrors past. Rayne tries to ignore these scary stories and focus on just doing her job, but it soon becomes apparent that the horrors of Morton’s Keep aren’t all just hearsay and only from the past. Something evil is afoot, threatening to unleash itself upon the world once again.

Let me just say to begin that Cann sure knows how to tell a good story. Rayne’s tale starts out innocently enough; at first, she appears a teen just craving a bit of freedom. But when she moves out to Morton’s Keep and time passes, the reader realizes there’s something larger and more sinister at work in Rayne’s life. Cann mixes the duties of Rayne’s everyday life with strange and unnatural occurrences well, easily transitioning the focus of the tale from all of Rayne’s frustrations with her life to the evilness attached to Morton’s Keep. Characters in this story aren’t all that strong, particularly protagonist Rayne. Her personality is a bit all over the place for the majority of the book, making her difficult to relate to. However, the thrill of the actual story makes up for this. In addition, the story cuts off at the perfect place, leaving readers in suspense of the next probably catastrophe.

Possessed is sure to be enjoyed by fans of Dark Visions by L.J. Smith, Wicked: Witch & Curse by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguié, and The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong. I eagerly look forward to the continuation of Rayne’s exciting story.

Rating: 4.25

Review copy from Amazon Vine

Ice by Sarah Beth Durst

As a little girl, Cassie grew up with the story of the Polar Bear King. Her grandmother told he of how her mother had been promised to the Polar Bear King by the North Wind, how for love of a human she made a deal with him to exchange a life with her love for her daughter as his future wife, and how the North Wind swept her away to the ends of the earth when he found her. Now almost eighteen, Cassie no longer believes in fairy tales. She knows the story was just a nice way for her grandmother to express her mother’s death. That is, until Cassie comes face to face with her own fairy tale, when she finds out the truth. Outside the Arctic research station where she lives with her father, Cassie meets none other than the Polar Bear King himself and learns that her mother is indeed alive after all. In order to free the mother she never knew, Cassie makes a bargain of her own. The ensuing adventure is one that will test the limits of Cassie’s endurance, change the way she sees the world, and alter her irrevocably.

Ice is a beautiful tale combining science, fantasy, and romance into something I can only call brilliant. Durst has proved an imaginative writer in her first two novels, Into the Wild and Out of the Wild, and I am thrilled to say that Durst has outdone herself in Ice. From the first few pages, the reader is drawn into a wild and fascinating fairy tale and Cassie’s unusual life in the Arctic. The backdrop of this story, virtually a frozen wasteland, helps make this story so interesting. I’m willing to bet most readers have encountered few novels in similar settings, and this unfamiliarity makes the placement of incredible fantasy elements so easy to believe. The combination of this with Cassie’s stubborn and determined nature sets the tale up perfectly. The result is a truly magical journey. There is nothing in this novel that I can complain about. Durst’s amazing creativity and skill at structuring this story make Ice one of the most unique and original fairy tales out there.

Durst’s fantastic storytelling in Ice will be appreciated by fans of her first two novels as well as by those who enjoyed Princess Ben by Catherine Murdock and Beastly by Alex Flinn.

Rating: 4.5

Review copies from author Sarah Beth Durst and publisher Simon & Schuster

Hold Still by Nina LaCour

One day, Caitlin is cruising through life, hanging out with her best friend Ingrid, and the next, Ingrid is gone for good, leaving Caitlin shocked and devastated. Ingrid’s suicide and absence from Caitlin’s life causes Caitlin to be lost. She hardly knows how to function without her best friend and finds herself unable to enjoy the simplest things she used to, like photography. When Caitlin finds Ingrid’s last personal journal, a final set of letters explaining the events and Ingrid’s state of mind that led to her death, Caitlin feels she’s never stop grieving. But reading her friend’s most private thoughts and fears just might be what gives Caitlin the courage to move on and take back control of her own life.

Hold Still is the most recent of a long list of novels dealing with grief and other repercussions from the loss of a loved one that I have read. I can’t say this debut novel from LaCour distinguishes itself in any major way from among that list. If anything, it’s really not even one of the better ones. I’m already quite familiar with the storyline, having read many similar books, so I would’ve appreciated a unique protagonist. I, however, was not at all enamored with main character Caitlin. Half the time she didn’t feel realistic, and the other, I wasn’t entirely sure what was going on with her. The development of her character in conjunction with the progression of her grief over Ingrid wasn’t very smooth, and I guess I just didn’t like her that much. On the other hand, I found Ingrid’s character fascinating even if her character development, similar to Caitlin’s, was a little stunted. I would’ve liked to know more about her and Caitlin’s close relationship. On the surface, Hold Still may still be an interesting book to read, but it’s nothing special compared to others like it.

Hold Still may be enjoyed by fans of The Secret Year by Jennifer Hubbard, Love You Hate You Miss You by Elizabeth Scott, and Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers.

Rating: 3.5

Review copy from publisher Penguin

Remote Control by Jack Heath

It’s official. Since Agent Six of Hearts’ last mission, everyone knows exactly who or what he is—superhuman. Somehow Six is able to tolerate this unwanted attention, maybe because he gets to work with his brother Kyntak. But when Kyntak is kidnapped while on a mission and everyone at the Deck, especially the Queen of Spades, starts to think Six is a double agent, Six realizes that he must go solo if he’s to have any chance of survival and rescuing Kyntak. With an unknown and the most cunning adversary Six has yet faced, few available allies, and danger lurking around every corner, will Six be able to beat the odds and bring his brother back?

To no one’s surprise, Remote Control is just as fast paced as its prequel The Lab. Readers are immediately immersed in a sea of nonstop action that keeps things interesting. It is very difficult to write a satisfying sequel to a novel so heavily reliant on action plot because readers look for new and exciting action sequences as well as some character development, and unfortunately, the variety of different types of action for novels such as this one is limited and smooth characterization in the midst of all this is very rare. So although the plot of this story is certainly exciting and suspenseful, it’s not entirely original. As in The Lab, Heath attempts to develop Six’s character, but it still feels very awkward. Here there’s Six pondering humanity and what it means to be human—or superhuman—but at the same time, there are a bunch of people trying to kill him over there. Perhaps it’s because of how Six was initially portrayed, but it doesn’t seem like there is any natural way to make Six really be more, well, human. Remote Control isn’t a terrible sequel, but I will be looking for much more in any future installments, if any, in this series to come.

Fans of The Lab by Jack Heath will want to check out its sequel. Remote Control will also be enjoyed by fans of Skinned by Robin Wasserman and the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz.

Rating: 3.75

Review copy from publisher Scholastic

The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

Since the death of her older sister Bailey, Lennie hasn’t known what to do about her life. Everything just seems to blah now. Lennie barely enjoys the things she used to, like reading and playing her clarinet. She just feels like no one understands what she’s going through. But when she reconnects with Toby and meets Joe. Toby was Bailey’s boyfriend and is the only person Lennie feels she can completely relate to. Joe, a gorgeous and musically talented boy, has just moved into town, and his warm and infectious smile, when beaming on Lennie, always makes her feel better. But one thing leads to the next and Lennie finds herself struggling to balance the two boys in her life. Sooner or later, she’ll have to choose between the one who comforts her in her grief or the other who makes her see all the goodness in the world.

There are a handful of words that could describe The Sky Is Everywhere, such as sweet, quirky, and uplifting, but unique is definitely not one of them. I don’t think I could count how many times I’ve seen the storyline of sibling and/or best friend dies and the one left behind is stuck juggling a world full of grief and boys or any variation of that. It takes spectacular writing to make and overused storyline appealing at all, and I’m sorry to say debut author Nelson just doesn’t have it. It seemed that Nelson was trying too hard at times to add flowery and unnecessary metaphors and language to make the lackluster story perhaps deeper, but it was never really tied in all that well. The only thing that really shone for me in this novel were the unusual characters, particularly the more minor ones like Big and Gram. Their funny strangeness almost made up for the unoriginal and sometimes just awkward plot in the rest of the book. Overall, I think The Sky Is Everywhere is a mildly instersting tale to read, but it’s not one that really stands out in any significant way.

This novel may be enjoyed by fans of Saving Zoë by Alyson Noël, A Map of the Known World by Lisa Ann Sandell, Wish by Alexandra Bullen, and Lipstick Apology by Jennifer Jabaley.

Rating: 3.25

Review copy from publisher Penguin

Win a Hex Hall t-shirt

CONTEST CLOSED

In celebration of the release of Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins, I will be giving away a super cool t-shirt. You can wear it when you go buy the book, or read it, or, well, you get the point.

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It’s gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie’s estranged father—an elusive European warlock—only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it’s her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hecate Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, shapeshifters and faeries. Known to the students as "Hex Hall."

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

(1) lucky winner will receive a limited edition Hex Hall t-shirt
courtesy of publisher Disney-Hyperion

Other details:

• US/Canada mailing addresses only.
• Contest ends 4/05/10, at 9 p.m. PST.

Remember, you must complete the form to be entered. If you have any questions about this contest, see my contest policy, or contact me and ask away.

Mini-interview with Rachel Hawkins

(This was also supposed to be a part of RAD, but I didn't get Rachel's guest blog in time, so all you guys get are the interview questions. Not that this is a bad thing.)

If you were stranded on an island, what 3 things would you take with you? (Assume you already have the bare necessities).
A velveteen rabbit my dad gave me when I was 6, my iPod touch (seriously, my addiction to that thing is a SICKNESS!), and a yellow legal pad/pen so I could write! ;-)

What is your favorite word and why?
Weirdly, all my favorite words are in French! My ultimate, most favoritest word ever is the French word for grapefruit, "Pamplemousse." Love everything about that word!

If you won one million bucks, how would you spend it?Travel! My husband and I both love going to new places and seeing new things, although he prefers to do that all rugged style with backpacks. *Shudder* So we'd probably have to take SEPARATE vacays.

If you had a t-shirt that could say anything (as in printed on it), what would it say?
"Lady Hawkins." For one thing, it's my Twitter-handle. For another, it makes me feel fancy. ;-) But it was also what my students used to call me (my husband taught at the same school, and was referred to as "Dude Hawkins.) I always thought it was a fun nickname!

What’s the best life advice you could give or have given anyone?
I actually have two! My dad always used to say, "Sit back until you know who the jerks are." Okay, so he used a much naughtier word than jerks, but the sentiment is solid! The other one is "Be gentle with yourself." I have a bad tendency to beat myself up about little things ("I said I'd write 2000 words today, and I only did half that! I bought cupcakes for my kid's party instead of making them! Bad Mommy!"), so I’m trying to take that one to heart!

__________________________________________________________________

Thanks Rachel for those awesome answers. I have to say that I agree with you about the iPod touch and the pamplemousse. :)

This mini-interview was brought to you as part of Rachel's blog tour in celebration of the release of Hex Hall. Don't forget to visit her on her own blog: http://readingwritingrachel.blogspot.com/.

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

It always happens like this. There’s always someone at Sophie Mercer’s new school that she feels the need to help. Ever since she came into her powers three years ago, she’s been able to. Of course, that doesn’t mean she should, because Sophie’s spells have a habit of working—too well. When Sophie’s love spell causes a minor catastrophe at the school prom, her estranged warlock father is the one who decides her punishment. Now Sophie has to move again, this time to Hecate Hall, an isolated reform school for the wayward Prodigium, the witches, faeries, and shapeshifters who’ve broken the rules. Sophie is told she needs to be at Hex Hall for her own protection, but the longer she stays, the less she thinks that’s worth. After all, how safe could the school be from age old threats like societies determined to exterminate all Prodigium? And when students start being attacked by a mysterious predator, it becomes clear that Hex Hall is in need of a little extra protection. Sophie finds herself working feverishly to solve this mystery, to save potential victims and her only friend’s reputation, in spite of the threat it poses to her.

Hex Hall, though not especially original or amazing, is nonetheless a fun and enjoyable novel. There’s no doubt that this book has supernatural elements, but Hawkins keeps things interesting by intermingling different magical species and giving them personality. To me, it seems just a shame that Hex Hall wasn’t publishing earlier; I perhaps would’ve praised it more. However, because I’ve read so many similar storylines, the brilliance of this one is a little dimmed. One thing that I can praise for sure regardless of my literary background is Hawkins’ pacing of this novel. The reader is immediately brought into the story, which is evenly spread throughout the book instead of having the main action crammed into the last few pages. Of course, I don’t mind that Hawkins saved a few secrets and betrayals for the end, because she did it in a way that flows and it’s part of what makes this story so interesting. Overall, Hex Hall is an entertaining and solid debut novel sure to please readers.

Hex Hall will be enjoyed by fans of Firespell by Chloe Neill, Fallen by Lauren Kate, Revealers by Amanda Marrone, and the Blue Bloods series by Melissa de la Cruz. I greatly look forward to the continuation of this story.

Rating: 4.25

Review copy from publisher Disney-Hyperion

Win Tagged by Mara Purnhagen

CONTEST CLOSED

Kate Morgan is just as confused as the rest of her classmates when she arrives at Cleary High to find six life-size gorillas spray painted on the side of a building. Could the culprit be one of her friends or classmates? And is the kind-of-amazing creation really vandalism, or a work of art? She's tempted to stay out of it, mostly because, as the police chief’s daughter, she's always accused of being a snitch. But when gorillas start appearing throughout the state, her investigative instincts kick in.

Now Eli, Kate’s favorite co-worker at the local coffee shop, is MIA. With her best friend, Lan, preoccupied with her own boy troubles, Kate needs to figure out some things on her own. Like why she can’t stop thinking about Eli. And what she will do when all clues about the graffiti point to someone she knows...

(1) lucky winner will receive Tagged by Mara Purnhagen
courtesy of author Mara Purnhagen

Other details:

• US/Canada mailing addresses only.
• Contest ends 3/30/10, at 9 p.m. PST.

Remember, you must complete the form to be entered. If you have any questions about this contest, see my contest policy, or contact me and ask away.

The Clone Codes by Frederick L., John, and Patricia C. McKissack

The Cyborg Wars have ended, and Earth has continued to exist in peace—at least in theory. The year is 2170, and cyborgs and clones are treated like second class citizens, if they’re treated as people at all. This is thirteen-year-old Leanna’s world, and like most other people living in it, she has grown up with the prejudices against cyborgs and clones. But Leanna is in for a rude awakening when her mother is arrested for being a member of the radical Liberty Bell Movement, an underground organization intent on establishing rights for cyborgs and clones. When a bounty is placed on her own head, Leanna is forced to flee, seeking shelter from the very people she used to hate, cyborgs, clones, and people who support them. With danger looming around every corner and startling revelations about her true identity threatening to tear her apart, Leanna must find out for herself which side she belongs to in this ongoing struggle, and how far she will go to fight.

I am disappointed to say that reading The Clone Codes was a poor experience for me. While I find many of the concepts presented in this novel interesting and relevant, its development in The Clone Codes was frankly unsatisfactory. Starting with characters, young protagonist Leanna is flat and uninteresting. She merely reacts to all the external events taking place around her, and if she was taken out of them, I highly doubt she would have a personality. The plot, though it may in fact be the strongest point of this novel, is none too exciting either. I don’t think I would be overstating things to summarize the story as Leanna alternately running and waiting, with a few moments of actual thought on her part. What I find most disturbing about this novel does not lie in the story itself, but in the fact versus fiction section in the back, which details several historical events and how they were incorporated into The Clone Codes. The basis for the existence of clones in this story is accredited to the Supreme Court ruling in the Diamond v. Chakrabarty case. The McKissacks used this ruling to prove that living organisms may be owned, such as the clones in this story. This is in fact not true; the 1980 case ruled that living organisms, or their genetic code in particular, may be patented. Whether this was just a small oversight, it is nonetheless a misinterpretation of a historical event, possibly manipulated to serve the creative purposes of this novel. And unfortunately, this inaccuracy pretty much discredited the entire work for me, especially because so much of the story was meant to be explained by it.

Other less discriminating readers (and I do not mean this in the sense of prejudice) may enjoy this novel, especially those who liked Skinned by Robin Wasserman. I however find it very unlikely I will follow the rest of this story.

Rating: 1.5

Review copies from publisher Scholastic and Amazon Vine

Heist Society by Ally Carter is Munch-Worthy

When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her on a trip to the Louvre...to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria...to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own—scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving "the life" for a normal life proves harder than she'd expected.
Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster has been robbed of his priceless art collection and wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help. For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in history—or at least her family's (very crooked) history.

Well, where do I start with this one? There's just so much about this novel that make it so appealing to me.

Well, firstly, the cover is just gorgeous. Really, whoever the mastermind behind it is, I commend you. The picture, the model's smirk, her reflective sunglasses, the whole deal is just perfect.
Also, I have a thing for Carter's writing. Sure, I need to catch up a little bit in the Gallagher Girls series, but that doesn't mean I can't check this one out.

And lastly, thievery (in theory) is cool. Seriously, I'm talking about those cool movies like Ocean's Eleven (and Twelve and Thirteen) and The Italian Job. If you're like me and find those movies exciting to say the least, then you probably understand why I want to read this book.

Released February 9, 2010 from Hyperion.