Thursday, December 30, 2010

Fallout

falloutThe final installment of Ellen Hopkins’s trilogy is here!  If you enjoyed Crank and Glass, you’ll definitely want to read Fallout.  Written in free verse, Fallout explores how three teenagers try to cope with the consequences of their mother's addiction to crystal meth and its effects on their lives.

New Fantasy Books

firelightFirelight by Sophie Jordan

When sixteen-year-old Jacinda, who can change into a dragon, is forced to move away from her community of shapeshifters and start a more normal life, she falls in love with a boy who proves to be her most dangerous enemy.

 

 

 

iron kingThe Iron King, Book 1 of The Iron Fey, by Julie Kagawa

"Meghan Chase has a secret destiny--one she could never have imagined.... Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school or at home. When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything  she's known is about to change. But she could never have guessed the truth-- that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face... and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart. –from back cover

daughterThe Iron Daughter, Book 2 of The Iron Fey, by Julie Kagawa

Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan is deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, becomes a prisoner of the Winter faery queen, and loses her own fey powers. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey, ironbound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. No one believes her and trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly.

Zombies vs. Unicorns

zombiesWow, Justine Larbalestier and Holly Black weren’t kidding around when they recruited the authors for this new book of short stories: Garth Nix, Scott Westerfeld, Libba Bray…just to name a few.  Justine Larbalestier says that zombies are our own walking deaths.  Funny, grim, and terrifying, they cannot be escaped.  Unicorns are sparkly and pastel and fart rainbows (sorry, she said it, not me).  Holly Black says that unicorns are healers, arbiters of justice, and, occasionally, majestic man-killers.  Zombies drool and shed and probably carry diseases.  So, according to Justine and Holly, one question has dominated all others since the dawn of time: Zombies or Unicorns?  If you want to read the background on this epic argument, check out Justine’s blog http://justinelarbalestier.com/books/zombies-vs-unicorns/introduction/

I think my favorite thing about this book is how Justine and Holly use each story as another opportunity to further expound on their position regarding the relative superiority of their favorite genre of fantastic beings: zombies or unicorns.  They are both incredibly and hilariously outspoken regarding their chosen ones.  In the introduction to Alaya Dawn Johnson’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” Justine writes, “Hallelujah!  After wading through Garth Nix’s ye oldey unicorn muck you now get to read a proper zombie story.” And writing about Libba Bray’s “Prom Night,” Holly says, “’Prom Night’ creeped me right out.  You know what I need? A nice unicorn story to get the taste of zombies out of my mouth!”

Thursday, December 9, 2010

New Books!

Jumpstart the World by Catherine Ryan Hyde, the author of Pay It Forward

Elle is a loner. She doesn’t need people. Which is a good thing, because she’s on her own: she had to move into her own apartment so her mother’s boyfriend won’t have to deal with her. Then she meets Frank, the guy who lives next door. He’s older and has a girlfriend, but Elle can’t stop thinking about him. Frank isn’t like anyone Elle has ever met. He listens to her. He’s gentle. And Elle is falling for him, hard.
But Frank is different in a way that Elle was never prepared for: he’s transgender. And when Elle learns the truth, her world is turned upside down.  Now she’ll have to search inside herself to find not only the true meaning of friendship but her own role in jumpstarting the world. Tender, honest, and compassionate, Jumpstart the World is a stunning story to make you laugh, cry, and honor the power of love. –from the publisher

The Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood

In the right dose, everything is a poison. Even love . . . Jessamine Luxton has lived all her sixteen years in an isolated cottage near Alnwick Castle, with little company apart from the plants in her garden. Her father, Thomas, a feared and respected apothecary, has taught her much about the incredible powers of plants: that even the most innocent-looking weed can cure — or kill. When Jessamine begins to fall in love with a mysterious boy who claims to communicate with plants, she is drawn into the dangerous world of the poison garden in a way she never could have imagined . . –from the publisher

I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett

It starts with whispers. Then someone picks up a stone. Finally, the fires begin. When people turn on witches, the innocents suffer. . . .Tiffany Aching has spent years studying with senior witches, and now she is on her own. As the witch of the Chalk, she performs the bits of witchcraft that aren t sparkly, aren t fun, don t involve any kind of wand, and that people seldom ever hear about: She does the unglamorous work of caring for the needy. But someone or something is igniting fear, inculcating dark thoughts and angry murmurs against witches. Aided by her tiny blue allies, the Wee Free Men, Tiffany must find the source of this unrest and defeat the evil at its root before it takes her life. Because if Tiffany falls, the whole Chalk falls with her. Chilling drama combines with laughout-loud humor and searing insight as beloved and bestselling author Terry Pratchett tells the high-stakes story of a young witch who stands in the gap between good and evil. –from the publisher

Review of Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

shiverShiver is an original romance/supernatural story about the heartbreak that can occur when someone shifts between two natures. Ever since Grace was attacked by wolves when she was younger, she has been obsessed with watching the wolves in the woods behind her house, especially the wolf with the yellow eyes, her wolf, the one that saved her from the rest of the wolf pack. These wolves are a haunting presence in her life. Sam literally lives a double life. For a few months every summer Sam is a normal boy, but every winter he turns into a wolf and loses his ability to think as a human, except for lingering memories of the girl Grace, whom he watches from afar. One day, Grace finds her wolf injured on her back porch, and before her eyes he turns into a boy! Finally together as girl and boy, they fall in love, but complications ensue. A newly-turned wolf is wreaking havoc in town, prompting the townspeople to want to get rid of the local wolves for good. Another major complication is that Sam can only turn human so many times before he loses the ability to change from wolf to human, and his time is up. As winter gets closer and it gets colder, Sam is fighting to stay human or risk losing his life with Grace forever. To find out what happens, read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater.  Review by Lizzy Healy