Hollowland

by Amanda Hocking

Published: October 5, 2010
Amanda Hocking, 308 pages

"This is the way the world ends - not with a bang or a whimper, but with zombies breaking down the back door."

Nineteen-year-old Remy King is on a mission to get across the wasteland left of America, and nothing will stand in her way - not violent marauders, a spoiled rock star, or an army of flesh-eating zombies. 

- Amazon.com Description

 Hollowland is set in a post-apocalyptic world overrun with zombies.  I usually hate zombies, but since this book is available for free on Amazon and I enjoyed author Amanda Hocking's Trylle series, I thought I'd give it a try. The zombies of the Hollowland world are a bit more than your average brains-loving zombie. They have been overtaken by a virus similar to rabies and mindlessly attack, which I thought was believable world-building. The story focuses on nineteen-year-old Remy King, who narrates the novel and is as bad-ass as characters come.

The story opens with a zombie attack on the government quarantine Remy and her little brother Max have been living at. Max is held in a medical ward and Remy sets off to find him rather than hiding in her room like the other kids. She finds out that her brother has been taken out of the quarantine already and is headed to another one farther north, and sets off to find him with another girl who refused to stay behind. Along their journey, they meet a medical student and former rockstar who join their group and Remy's quest to find Max.

The group happens upon a  chilling cult, a band of murderous marauders, a lion, and tons of zombies. The action really doesn't let up from the first page! The novel is definitely more focused on plot and action than internal dialogue, prose or character development, and in that sense feels a bit like reading a movie rather than a novel. It's very fast-paced and will keep you hooked. There is some romance, but it's slow-building, believable, and doesn't overtake the story by any means. You'll find yourself glued to the page, wanting to find out how Remy and her friends get out of the next chapter's troubles.

The Princesses of Iowa

By M. Molly Backes

Published: May 8, 2012
Candlewick, 464 pages

What does it mean to do wrong, when no one punishes you? A smart and unflinching look at friendship, the nature of entitlement, and growing up in the heartland. Paige Sheridan has the perfect life. She's pretty, rich, and popular, and her spot on the homecoming court is practically guaranteed. But when a night of partying ends in an it-could-have-been-so-much-worse crash, everything changes. Her best friends start ignoring her, her boyfriend grows cold and distant, and her once-adoring younger sister now views her with contempt. The only bright spot is her creative writing class, led by a charismatic new teacher who encourages students to be true to themselves. But who is Paige, if not the homecoming princess everyone expects her to be? In this arresting and witty debut, a girl who was once high-school royalty must face a truth that money and status can't fix, and choose between living the privileged life of a princess, or owning up to her mistakes and giving up everything she once held dear.
- Amazon.com Description

THIS. BOOK. I can't even.

The Princesses of Iowa is one of those books that completely wraps you up in its characters and plot. It draws you in until your mind is just as tangled in the book's events as the character is. Your mind identifies so strongly with the protagonist that you feel like she is you, or at least your closest friend. It is rare for a book to pull me in this deeply. But let me tell you, this book did.

Paige is, on the outside, a typical popular high school senior and future Homecoming Queen, until she returns to school after a drunk driving accident the year before and begins to doubt the life she's always planned for herself is actually the life she wants. She begins branching out through her creative writing class and discovering that there is, shockingly, more to life than being everyone else's idea of 'perfect'.

I connected with Paige throughout the whole story. I remembered my own high school experience where I, too, decided that popularity and being well-liked was really not as important as I thought, even if my epiphany came much less dramatically than Paige's. 

I don't know how to express how phenomenal this book is without giving away the whole plot. So please, just take my word that this is truly a fantastic novel, especially for a debut! The language flows beautifully and Paige's narration has such a strong voice. I am so thrilled by M. Molly Backes' work here.

The List

By Siobhan Vivian

Published: April 1, 2012
Push, 336 pages

An intense look at the rules of high school attraction -- and the price that's paid for them.

It happens every year. A list is posted, and one girl from each grade is chosen as the prettiest, and another is chosen as the ugliest. Nobody knows who makes the list. It almost doesn't matter. The damage is done the minute it goes up.

This is the story of eight girls, freshman to senior, "pretty" and "ugly." And it's also the story of how we see ourselves, and how other people see us, and the tangled connection of the two.
- Amazon.com description

The List is the story of eight girls with intertwining stories and their experiences after being placed on 'The List' -- a list of the prettiest and ugliest girl from each grade. The list is made by an anonymous student each year the Monday before Homecoming, and obviously has far-reaching consequences for each girl. The girls placed on the list all have interesting stories and ways of dealing with their sudden fame.

This thoughtful story is so interesting and unique. The ugly/pretty list is something I could easily imagine occurring in any given high school. I liked how each girl's story was explored separately, and how realistic the outcomes were. I connected with all but one of the characters on some level. Two of the girls' stories are tied together brilliantly, and you'll never guess who wrote the list!

Second Chance Summer

By Morgan Matson

Published: May 8, 2012
Simon and Schuster, 480 pages

Taylor Edwards’ family might not be the closest-knit—everyone is a little too busy and overscheduled—but for the most part, they get along just fine. Then Taylor’s dad gets devastating news, and her parents decide that the family will spend one last summer all together at their old lake house in the Pocono Mountains.
     Crammed into a place much smaller and more rustic than they are used to, they begin to get to know each other again. And Taylor discovers that the people she thought she had left behind haven’t actually gone anywhere. Her former best friend is still around, as is her first boyfriend…and he’s much cuter at seventeen than he was at twelve.
     As the summer progresses and the Edwards become more of a family, they’re more aware than ever that they’re battling a ticking clock. Sometimes, though, there is just enough time to get a second chance—with family, with friends, and with love.
- Amazon.com description

 Second Chance Summer is a heartfelt tale of learning to let go while also allowing yourself to be vulnerable and open to other people. Taylor Edwards has always run away when hard situations present themselves, rather than dealing with things straightaway. After she finds out her dad is terminally ill and is taken on a summer trip to her family's lakehouse where old memories, friendships, and hurts threaten to return, Taylor is finally forced to deal with the hard and terrifying realities of her life for the first time.

Throughout the summer, Taylor grows immensely in various ways. She deals with her father slipping away, grows closer with her family, reunites with her best friend and boyfriend from five summers ago, and heals the rifts between them.

I definitely enjoyed this book. It is a great mixture of heavy, emotional material with lighthearted summer fun, romance and friendship.

The Queen of Kentucky

By Alecia Whitaker

Published: January 2, 2012
Poppy, 384 pages

This time, I've included the video to the book trailer above rather than the Amazon description, because it's so cute and shows what the book is about just as well!

 

I flew through this first novel from Alecia Whitaker for so many reasons. It's adorable, fun, and so relate able -- at least for me! I connected with protagonist Ricki Jo, or Ericka as she now wants to be called, who is a small town, farm girl in Kentucky who desperately wants to fit in at her new high school. She decides she wants to be popular, dress differently, and of course snag the boy of her dreams -- all before Homecoming. Fair warning: this book is as YA as it gets. It has its moments of petty drama and immaturity, but the storyline and characters are completely realistic. 

I was enthralled by the small town, country setting -- let's face it, I found myself jealous! The ups and downs and friend drama that Ricki Jo Ericka goes through reminded me of my own high school experience of trying to fit in and discover who you are, without changing yourself to please others. Be prepared to connect with a cast of memory-inducing fourteen-year-olds and have a few laughs and tears along the way -- just like real high school.

The Hunt
By Andrew Fukuda
Published: May 8, 2012
St. Martin's Griffin, 304 pages

Gene is different from everyone else around him.  He can’t run with lightning speed, sunlight doesn’t hurt him and he doesn’t have an unquenchable lust for blood.  Gene is a human, and he knows the rules.  Keep the truth a secret.  It’s the only way to stay alive in a world of night—a world where humans are considered a delicacy and hunted for their blood.
When he’s chosen for a once in a lifetime opportunity to hunt the last remaining humans, Gene’s carefully constructed life begins to crumble around him.  He’s thrust into the path of a girl who makes him feel things he never thought possible—and into a ruthless pack of hunters whose suspicions about his true nature are growing. Now that Gene has finally found something worth fighting for, his need to survive is stronger than ever—but is it worth the cost of his humanity?

- Amazon.com Description

The Hunt is a unique take on dystopian vampire fiction. The main character, Gene is a human (or 'heper') who has spent his life trying to blend in with the vampire population and is chosen for an exclusive heper hunt. When he arrives at the training for the hunt, he discovers that everything is not quite as it seems and has to work doubly hard to hide his human characteristics or risk being eaten.

The vampires have interesting characteristics, such as scratching their wrists rather than laughing, and are quite violent and not at all watered-down for a YA audience. There are several violent scenes throughout the book.

Although I quite enjoyed the plot premise of this book, and as such had high hopes, there were a few disappointments. I found that Gene's character was underdeveloped and rather boring. Much of the dialogue was corny and unbelievable, and there were several moments when I couldn't believe how dumb he was for someone who was supposed to be incredibly intelligent. The beginning of the book was a bit slow, but did definitely pick up towards the middle. The one thing I really wish I could change about this book was the lack of world-building. It was never explained how vampires took over the world, or other important information. Hopefully some of these things will be clarified in the sequel. It feels like a good editing job could have vastly improved this novel, but it's still decent.

Despite its flaws, I do think this book is worth reading. It's an interesting storyline and has a lot of action. It isn't comparable to other dystopian/paranormal fiction, which I think is a good thing. Don't discount it because of the vampires either -- these vampires are unlike the others you've read about!

Bitterblue

By Kristin Cashore

Published: May 1, 2012
Dial, 576 pages

Eight years after Graceling, Bitterblue is now queen of Monsea. But the influence of her father, a violent psychopath with mind-altering abilities, lives on. Her advisors, who have run things since Leck died, believe in a forward-thinking plan: Pardon all who committed terrible acts under Leck's reign, and forget anything bad ever happened. But when Bitterblue begins sneaking outside the castle--disguised and alone--to walk the streets of her own city, she starts realizing that the kingdom has been under the thirty-five-year spell of a madman, and the only way to move forward is to revisit the past.

Two thieves, who only steal what has already been stolen, change her life forever. They hold a key to the truth of Leck's reign. And one of them, with an extreme skill called a Grace that he hasn't yet identified, holds a key to her heart.

-- Amazon.com description

Bitterblue has realized that she knows little about her kingdom or the people she is ruling, and begins sneaking out of the castle at night to find out more. She begins to see that everything is not well in the kingdom, as her advisers have told her. She discovers puzzle after puzzle of things that don't make sense, and enlists the help of those around her to figure out just what is going on in her kingdom. She uncovers many secrets of both the past and present and finds herself in the middle of a deeply woven and intricate plot of secrets that have been going on for nearly fifty years, since the beginning of Leck's reign.

Bitterblue has a truly amazing plot. Cashore has managed to brilliantly weave her two other novels, Graceling and Fire into Bitterblue's story while still giving this book plenty of material on it's own. I was amazed by Cashore's ability to write such intricate story lines with several different mysteries happening at once, and then tie them together in the end neatly. I have truly fallen in love with each character in the book, even those I did not expect to.

If you haven't read Cashore's Graceling or Fire first, I strongly recommend that you do so. You won't be able to truly appreciate the world or characters without knowing the other two stories as well. Katsa and Po from Graceling make several re-appearances and we get to read more about their relationship dynamic, as well as various Council members. At the end of Bitterblue,  there is a surprise character appearance that I was thrilled over.

The entire trilogy is extremely well-written and complex. The world that Cashore has created is certainly a fantasy world, but is still believable. The characters are truly unforgettable -- I have become quite attached to each of them! Bitterblue is an excellent novel and deserves more recognition and readers than it has.