YA

Book Review: Skyward

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Skyward
Book #1
by Brandon Sanderson
read by Suzy Jackson

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: YA sci-fi

Humans on Detritus have been attacked by a mysterious alien enemy they call the Krell since the humans crash landed on the planet 70 years ago. They’ve slowly built up enough of a defensive force to fight back, mostly using fighter pilots. Since she was little, Spensa has wanted to be a pilot like her father, but then her father deserts the largest fight in their society’s history and is shot down. When Spensa is old enough to start training to be a pilot, it turns out no one wants the daughter of a coward defending the planet. Spensa might have to find a different way to claim the stars.

Spensa is the kind of character I normally struggle with, being so defiant and prickly, but I really warmed to her by partway through the book. Her personality was necessary to make her someone who would get back up after so many blows. The way she connects with her flight mates in the book helped to endear her to me, too, and I liked her friendship with Rig. I also really enjoyed M-Bot and his obsession with mushrooms, and I just loved Doomslug. The slow unfolding of the plot and answers to questions inhabitants of Detritus have been asking (or avoiding asking) for decades kept me engaged all throughout the story.

I recently read Blightfall, without initially realizing it was in an already-established universe, and it intrigued me enough that I wanted to start at the beginning. That means that I’m going into this series with more knowledge than the reader is meant to have here in the first book, but I really don’t think it harmed the story for me at all. If anything, I’m all the more anxious to see how we get from where the characters are in this first book to where they are in Blightfall. So despite already seeing the future of this world, I’m still super intrigued to see where the story goes from here.

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Book Review: Thunderhead

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Thunderhead
Arc of a Scythe #2
by Neal Shusterman

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: YA dystopian

Spoiler notice: The following review may contain some spoilers for the previous book in the series, Scythe.

After the events in the previous book, Citra is an official scythe and Rowan is a self-appointed scythe-type…person. They both have the same goal, which is to expose and fix the corruption in the scythedom, though they’re both approaching it in vastly different ways.

This trilogy continues to blow me away. Several things happened in this book that I did not see coming, but I can’t really expand on any of it without spoiling the story. Citra and Rowan really come into their own in this 2nd book, growing in ways that made me both proud of them and sad for them. Scythes Faraday and Curie continue to be great grounding influences. And the villainy from the first book continues here in ways that I could not possibly have expected. One thing in particular that I enjoyed about the story is that the author drops just enough hints to make me dread the climax while not being able to remotely predict what will actually happen. I was left with a book hangover (which I don’t experience often) and a desire to read the final book in the trilogy ASAP. Fans of dystopian YA fiction should definitely check out this series (starting with the first one).

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Book Review: Corpse Creek

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Corpse Creek
Bleak Haven #3
by Vincent Ralph

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: YA paranormal horror

The town of Bleak Haven has had more than its share of serial killers, almost as if it’s under a curse. But Ethan’s older brother’s death was ruled an accident, though Ethan has never been able to accept that. Four years after Brody’s death, Ethan still hasn’t found the closure he needs to move on and hopes visiting the creek where Brody died will help. Instead, he seems to have roused the spirit of his dead brother, who now tells Ethan that he can bring Brody back if he’s willing to sacrifice someone else to do so—a life for a life.

After enjoying the first book in this series, which is a straight-up slasher thriller, the next two books have been more of a letdown. They both still involve horror and suspense, but in a different sub-genre from the first book and even different sub-genres from each other. The second book was more of a zombie story, and this book…well, this one is more difficult to define. It has supernatural elements, though it’s difficult to say how much of it is meant to be real and how much imagined. In the end, there’s not a whole lot of plot, and though yes, it does have some creepy moments, it’s much more of a drama showing how grief can eat away at one’s life and relationships than a thriller. The only character I really cared about at all in this book is Ethan’s dad, as I did appreciate his progression through the book. But in the end, the drama side of the book is repetitive and tedious, while the thriller side is confusing and unfulfilling.

I was really interested in this town after reading the first book and hoped for more insight into why it has such a history of serial killers and violence, but none of the later books so far have delved further into that, at least not in any remotely satisfying way. Like the previous books in the series, this one has no sexual content, but I do seem to recall more language this time. It’s really not necessary to have read any of the other books before reading this one—past events in the town are referred to quite a bit here, but none of them were the subject of any previous books. On the other hand, there are a lot of references to the event that the 4th book is named after, which made me wonder if this installment might have any spoilers for the final book. As for recommendations, I’m sure there is an audience for this kind of exploration of extreme grief with horror elements, so if that interests you, you may want to read some of the positive reviews at the link below.

I received an advanced review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

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Book Review: Blightfall

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Blightfall
Riftwake #1
by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: YA sci-fi

Soon after winning a decades-long war against alien oppressors, a team from the planet Detritus is sent to another planet, Blightfall, to make contact with a settlement of humans that had been isolated there during the war. But they can’t possibly guess what awaits them even before they land on Blightfall.

I have not read the series that this is an offshoot of. It wasn’t even until I was around 2/3 into the story that I realized this was a continuation of the Skyward series by Brandon Sanderson (though I suppose I should have suspected) and, more directly, a series of side novellas in the same world, written by Janci Patterson. But that means that my perspective will be as a complete newcomer, not a veteran, and as such, I did not have too many issues following the worldbuilding. Yes, I was initially lost with terms like cytonics, aliens that are given only cursory explanations, and people that clearly have backstories that I don’t know. I didn’t feel like it was any more difficult to muddle through the early chapters than any other sci-fi book with worldbuilding that hits the ground running though. By the end, I felt like I had a pretty good understanding of everything I needed an understanding of.

I was caught up in the story and the story world, especially when it became clear that there was something strange going on on Blightfall. I absolutely adored the taynix (slug-like creatures), their way of communicating, and their love of scritches and snuggles. There were a few interludes from the perspective of some of the taynix that made me really curious to know more about the world outside of what we’re shown for this story. I have no idea if any of that is part of the previous books in this world or not. Things got a little strange, though, with a couple of romances that felt awkward and unnecessary. And I really wish fiction writers could understand that having characters with they/them pronouns just makes things confusing in fiction, especially when any kind of action is going on. It was so hard to follow.

Despite the fact that I never had a desire to break into any of Sanderson’s epic fantasy/sci-fi works before, I have to admit that this has made me consider starting at the beginning of the series. As I understand it, this book was basically written by Patterson but with some input from Sanderson, which makes me all the more curious to see what his writing is like. (The only other Sanderson book I have read in the past is Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians.) I recommend the book for fans of futuristic, space-themed sci-fi, even if you haven’t read any of the books that precede it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s Books for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: The Reappearance of Rachel Price

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The Reappearance of Rachel Price
by Holly Jackson

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: YA thriller, mystery

Bel Price’s mom disappeared when she was 2 years old. Now, 16 years later, a British film crew is digging up the past in the hopes of making a documentary about the mystery. When Rachel suddenly reappears, it changes everything—not just for the documentary but for Bel and her family as well. Where has Rachel been for 16 years and who was behind her disappearance in the first place?

The overall plot of this book was engaging and intriguing for me. I was caught up in the question of what was going on and what the truth behind it must be. So though I did have some issues with the book, I want to say up front that I did enjoy my time spent reading. That being said, once the answers were revealed, I could see some chinks in the plot, things that I assume were included only to throw the reader off the right trail but weakened the story. It didn’t ruin the book for me, but I feel it could have been written better.

There were a couple of characters that I particularly liked, mostly members of the film crew. I didn’t care for Bel herself. Even if I can understand and somewhat sympathize with her reasons for being the way she is, she’s still fairly obnoxious. Rachel seems a bit all over the place in the book, which is part of what I mentioned above—specifically Jackson’s attempts to keep the reader guessing.

Though I really liked the first two A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder books and liked this book as well, the ending to this book, along with the 3rd book in the A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, has led me to the decision that I probably won’t read any more Holly Jackson. She has a tendency to write characters with questionable morality, characters that we’re meant to see as the hero, which isn’t my preference. With that personal preference in mind, I do think that many who like YA thrillers will enjoy this book.

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Book Review: Never Fade

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Never Fade
The Darkest Minds #2
by Alexandra Bracken

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: YA dystopian

Spoiler notice: The following review will contain some spoilers for the previous book in the series, The Darkest Minds.

Ruby isn’t happy to be a tool of the Children’s League, though she has to admit that the training they’ve given her has been useful. When she learns about some vital information that needs to be recovered, she embarks on a mission for the League with ulterior motives. Her quest will take her across dangerous lands, into the paths of villains of all different flavors, and, ultimately, back home again.

Given the way the previous book ended, I wasn’t sure how this one was going to go or how much I would enjoy it. But I was just as engaged as I was with the first book, maybe even more so. Through 500 pages, I was caught up, surprised by revelations or small surprises, and hard-pressed to put the book down, especially in the last 1/4 or so. There are some new characters introduced here that I ended up loving, some returning characters that had new and different roles in this book, and then there’s Ruby herself. She could easily have become a character that annoyed me, continually beating herself up for the way she’s evolving, but it never got to a point of bothering me.

This is the kind of book where I find myself uncertain about who to trust, and I’m not even sure if it’s intentional or if I just wasn’t following certain aspects of the story. I also found a particular plot point (which would be a spoiler to mention) pretty unbelievable, as it relates to the previous book in the series. Overall, though, none of this was enough to make me want to lower the star rating by more than half, and I’m really looking forward to reading the final book in the trilogy.

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Book Review: Scythe

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Scythe
Arc of a Scythe #1
by Neal Shusterman

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: YA dystopian

When mankind discovers the secret to immortality, it might seem like utopia—no more disease, war, or corruption. Most of the world is now governed by a neutral AI cloud called the Thunderhead, and peace reigns. Though natural death may be a thing of the past, a global group of people called scythes are tasked with keeping the population from growing to an unsustainable level. Two teens, Citra and Rowan, are tapped to be scythe apprentices and learn the craft of killing. This is a task that neither of them wants, which is what makes them the perfect candidates.

Even though I’m giving this book a 5-star rating, I want to start this review with a couple of things that I didn’t like about it. I am not a big fan of violence and killing, especially when it is presented as a good thing, as it is here. Yes, it’s way more complicated than “killing is good/necessary,” but some of the people that we are rooting for become completely desensitized to the horror of murder, and I feel that consuming a lot of fiction like this can potentially do the same to the reader. The second thing is the way the author so cavalierly disregards God. Of course a book where immortality is the basis of the worldbuilding is going to eschew the reality of the Creator God, but it felt a little more intentional and biased in this book, which rubbed me the wrong way. None of the things I said here affected my rating, though, or kept me from enjoying the book.

And I did enjoy it, as much as you can enjoy a book like this. I think it was Scythe Faraday, even before I had any idea who he would become to the story, that drew me in right away. Rowan and Citra as co-apprentices are good foils for each other, which makes the dynamic between the three the heart of the story. There are a couple of other characters that I really liked as well, one of which surprised me and would be a spoiler to name.

The book kept me guessing—just when I think I’ve settled into a routine with Scythe Faraday, Citra, and Rowan, everything changes. And then changes again. When I think I know what is going to happen with someone, that person surprises me. And one of my favorite things about the story is that, even though it’s dystopian and there are terrible things happening, there’s a lot of hope, too. At the end of the book, I was excited to read more and hopeful for what’s to come. This book was recommended to me by my 16-year-old daughter, and I feel comfortable recommending it to teens and adults alike.

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Book Review: Thornbird

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Thornbird
by E. Kennedy

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: YA thriller, romance

Gabrielle Thorn’s father confessed to murdering 6 women, but for 10 years, he refused to reveal where their bodies were. As both the 10th anniversary of his conviction and the date set for his execution approach, Gabrielle returns to the town where the murders took place with a new name and new story. Now she’s Ryan Shipley and even the cousins she’s living with don’t know who she really is. Ryan just wants to live as normal a life as she can before she graduates and leaves town for good, but as the search for the victims’ bodies heats up, she starts to get texts from an unknown sender threatening to reveal her true identity.

I don’t think I’d call this book a thriller, and it’s not much of a mystery either. For one thing, the murders have been solved. The only mystery here is where the bodies are, and Ryan does not spend any remotely significant amount of time in the story trying to figure that out—in fact, she actively avoids it as much as possible. For me, there was some suspense in the book, but that was really mostly due to me thinking there was going to be more going on than met the eye. There really wasn’t. A lot of the book is spent with Ryan feeling guilty, nauseous, etc. over what her dad did, the lasting effect he still has on his victims’ families, and keeping her secret from people she’s getting close to. She constantly does things she thinks are a bad idea, mostly chalked up to hormones, and basically is just carried along by the actions of those around her.

Romance is here in full force, though, albeit a worldly, YA version of romance. Ryan is pursued by the football quarterback, which then turns into a predictable-yet-ridiculous love triangle. In fact, around the 75% mark, when a thriller should be heating up, instead the serial killer side of the story slows way down as the romance heats up, and for a few chapters it seems the only focus is the physical side of this new relationship (which, by the way, is the only side to the relationship). After that, there are some reveals, at least one that could probably be seen as a twist, but I still kept expecting something else exciting or unexpected to happen, but the story played out fairly blandly to the end. So much of what happens in the last several chapters is illogical or just really stupid decisions on Ryan’s part.

So, I don’t really recommend this book to anyone. Younger readers might not be as bothered by the plot holes, terrible characterization, or other things that made me roll my eyes. However, the graphic nature of at least one of the physical interactions between Ryan and her triangle guy is inappropriate for teens. And for once, after reading other reviews, I’m not the only one that felt that it went too far, even amongst reviewers that are less conservative than I am. So let that be a warning to anyone considering reading this, of any age, really.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s Books for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: Night Terror

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Night Terror
Bleak Haven #2
by Vincent Ralph

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: YA paranormal horror

The town of Bleak Haven has had more than its share of serial killers, almost as if it’s under a curse. Though it’s been around 18 years since the last murders, the town still hosts remembrance ceremonies every 3 months. Some of the citizens think it’s time to move on, so they seek out the fabled Burning Book to try to convince everyone that this particular urban legend is nothing more than a fairy tale. But what will they do if it turns out that the book has powers they can’t imagine?

After enjoying the previous book in this series, which is a straight-up slasher story, I was not expecting the follow-up (which is set in the 80s, 40+ years before the first book) to involve supernatural elements. The official synopsis does hint at that, but I wasn’t sure what to expect exactly and simply wanted to read more about this town that has such a bloody history. I’m not a big fan of the zombie genre, and that’s all this basically is. There’s very little in the way of a plot, at least a plot that has any kind of cohesion, and the book is mostly just teenagers running from undead monsters and gruesome death scenes. By the end of the book, I still didn’t really understand much about the origins of the Burning Book or the legend surrounding it, if the book had anything to do with serial killers that came after the first ones in Bleak Haven, or any explanation for other supernatural elements. I’m left saying the same thing that I said in my review of the previous book—hopefully more explanation will come in later books in the series.

The main character was really hard to get a read on—his motivation for fighting, or at least not running away, seems to change randomly. Maybe that just means he’s confused, lying to himself, or even keeping things from the reader, but it mostly just left me feeling completely disconnected from him. Other characters weren’t much better in that regard. Also, I’ve read other reviews that talk about the 80s vibe in this book, even to the degree that the book relies too much on that vibe and not enough on the story itself, but I didn’t really get much nostalgia from this book at all. Other than Blockbuster and cassette tapes being mentioned, I don’t know where the 80s references really were. Not that I need them, but I actually did forget now and then that this book took place around 40 years ago.

There’s no mystery here, no big reveal. It’s really just violence and survival. There is a little bit of language, including the f-word several times, but not nearly as much as I’ve read in other books in the same genre. And there is no sexual content. But there is a lot of pus, bile, and blood. People who enjoy zombie stories and gory death scenes (in the teen/YA age range), and don’t mind there not being much plot might enjoy this book. At this point, I can’t really say whether this book is important to the rest of the series or not, so I can’t even say if it’s necessary to read it if you read the rest. I do plan to read the last 2 books, though, so maybe I’ll come back and edit this review later with more info about that.

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Book Review: Winter

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Winter
The Lunar Chronicles #4
by Marissa Meyer
read by Rebecca Soler

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: YA sci-fi

Spoiler notice: The following review will contain some spoilers for the previous books in the series, starting with Cinder.

Winter may be a princess, but she is still very much under the thumb of her stepmother, Queen Levana of Luna. Cinder and her friends from Earth are on a mission to stop Levana from marrying Emperor Kaito of the Eastern Commonwealth and gaining a foothold on Earth. Winter may be able to be of help to them, if only she can keep a handle on her hallucinations.

This book is both Winter’s fairy-tale retelling of Snow White and the conclusion to the story that started all the way back with Cinder. That makes it a sort of culmination of the Cinderella retelling in the first book as well. And because each book introduces a female protagonist and a male romantic counterpart, everything coming together in this book felt a little too repetitive to me. Their overall stories were different, but 4 romances resolving not too far apart was a bit much for me. Though to be fair, a couple of these romances were at least partially resolved before the end of this book, so it could have been worse. And I don’t mean to say that I didn’t enjoy the book. I really liked the way the main plots played out, the threads from previous books that Meyer weaved together in this final installment. After several books talking about the moon colony, getting to go there in this book added a new, exciting dimension. I like that Meyer explored so many different facets of that world.

At times, it seemed as though so many characters/pairs of characters got to be a bit too much for the author, too difficult to make sure they all had their own distinct personalities. For example, when Thorne (my favorite character since book 2) had cause to be concerned for Cress, I wish he had reacted more Thorne-like, as opposed to doing this best impression of Wolf’s broodiness. Thankfully, Thorne was more himself by the end of the book. Most of the time, though, I could see distinct differences in how Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter acted, thought, and talked. Part of that last one might have been due to the audiobook narrator putting on a slightly different voice for some of the characters, but since that’s how I consumed this series, the narration was definitely a plus for me in that area.

Overall, this was a solid YA sci-fi series for me, and I am sure I’ll revisit it again in the future. Fans of futuristic sci-fi and/or fairy tale retellings, maybe around age 15 and up, should definitely consider checking out this series, starting with the first book (you really don’t want to dive in here on the final book).

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