An Inhuman Journey

In a world where we are already terrorized by swine flu and avian flu, the idea of those viruses infecting people with the animal genetics they carry is the next step we hope could never happen. In Kat Fall's Inhuman brings that terrorizing thought to life as the humans hide behind the walls and the animals roam around the outside.

Everything from the east of the Mississippi river is abandoned as the Feral Zone. When a biological disaster allowed animal DNA to mutate a human through a bite or contact with blood, the rest of the country realized quickly they had to abandon the East Coast in order to preserve what was left of the humans on the other side. Meanwhile, scientists worked on a cure, but the sheer amount of animal DNA in the human population makes a cure or even a treatment impossible without samples from every mutation. When a human is bitten by an infected human, the first stage of the Farae virus is a high fever that hits them immediately. Then, they begin stage two:  mutation. The second stage can last for years, if someone is lucky. As they physically transform into the animal, they still retain human conscience and reasoning. These manimals are still feared by the untouched population, but on the other side of the wall, the lines aren't so black and white. When an infected person finally enters the third stage of the virus, they turn into a Feral. The final change can be so abrupt, they can turn on their loved ones, which is why people are so skeptical of the manimals. But when it is your mother, father, brother, child, or spouse, kicking them out when they get bitten isn't so easy. Now thousands of ferals roam the East and even more people are infected by the virus. Meanwhile their families teeter on the balance of love and self-preservation in small civilizations that scrape by a living.

On the other side of the wall, life is different. It isn't necessarily easy, but it also isn't survival driven like life in the east. Lane is fascinated by the Feral Zone, but terrified by it at the same time. When her father, who usually travels for work and leaves her to fend for herself, is revealed by the government to be a "fetch", she can't believe her ears. Fetches go into the Feral Zone to bring back items for people on the other side of the wall, but their very existence is highly illegal and can result in their execution. Lane always knew her father was an art dealer, but she had no idea he spent his life getting on the other side of the wall to collect abandoned art. Now Director Spurling needs her father to fetch something personal. She is offering full immunity for Lane's father, but first Lane has to find him and get him to do the fetch. But finding someone on the Feral side of the wall isn't easy. In fact, it is the most dangerous thing Lane has ever tried to do... until she realizes she has to do the fetch for her father.

Wow! This was such a fast, fun science fiction novel, I couldn't get enough of it! The story behind the virus was as fascinating as the story of what happens to the people it infects. I loved the contrast between the safe zone behind the wall, the intact humans in the Feral Zone, and the manimals. It really demonstrated a class hierarchy that could rival communities existing today. And the descriptions of the manimals and the ferals is so terrifying and creepy, you can just visuals these animal/humans perfectly! It made the story so graphic and vivid, I couldn't get enough of it! 

When Lane started off on her journey accompanied by a green line guard named Everson and a scampish guy named Rafe who makes his living stealing from the guards to deliver to the towns in the zone, I was a little disappointed to see yet another love triangle when I really wanted the action of the story to be the focus. But it actually turned out to be the least offensive and least annoying love triangle I have every encountered! In fact, there was even a point when Rafe outright said, "Ok, I am taking myself out of this silly love triangle!" It was like breaking down the fourth wall for television- if the characters acknowledge the silliness, it makes it not-so-silly! Meanwhile, Everson's "by the book" attitude contrasted with Rafe's "anything goes" attitude perfectly. I loved how they came together to help Lane, protected her, but still did so in wildly different ways. I loved both these boys for very different reasons, and I can't wait to get more of them in the second book. But beware- this ends in a serious cliffhanger, so if you can't wait for the rest of the story, you should hold off until the next book comes out to read this one! This is a good series for strong middle readers through young adult readers. The violence in the Feral Zone is expected, and some of the creature mutations are downright terrifying (I am now having nightmares about weevlings and chimpacabras, Ms. Falls. Thanks for that!), but it is so fast-paced and exciting, it will hold anyone's attention!

Written Like a Two-Hour Series Premiere

When there is a lot of hype about a new novel, and a television series already created before the novel has even been released, I suffer from two distinct and hypocritical emotional states: an overwhelming desire to get my hands on it and see what all the fuss is about and a superficial judgment that anything thought to be so cool can't possibly be really that cool. So I couldn't wait to get ahold of Kass Morgan's The 100, but I wasn't sure what to expect.

Nobody knows except those who make the decisions, but 100 of the juvenile delinquents imprisoned in the colony will be sent back to Earth. They are convinced Earth is safe to recolonize, but to be sure, they are willing to sacrifice 100 teens who would be executed after their 18th birthdays anyway. For Clarke, it is a surprise, but it isn't like she really has anyone back on the ship anyway now that her parents were executed. All she cares about is her cellmate Thalia, who is also coming along. Wells is the Chancellor's son. He knew he had to do something truly horrible to get onto that ship headed toward Earth, but what he did threatened the psychological well-being of every person aboard the colony. He knew this would be the result, but the only thing he cared about was getting on that drop ship to be with, and to protect, Clarke. Even though she didn't want him there after what he did to her.

Bellamy isn't on the Drop Ship, but he needs to be. In a colony where reproduction is heavily controlled, he is probably the only person aboard who has a sister, and she is being sent to Earth. Unable to protect her from being arrested, he must now find a way to get on the ship in order to be with her on Earth. What he has to do, though, is unheard of, even for the colony that executes so many 18 year olds for petty crimes. During the chaos of Bellamy's entrance onto the ship, though, Glass manages to make her way out of the drop ship. Originally slated to go to Earth, she knows she must find Luke. What she doesn't expect, as a now fugitive of the entire colony, is that Luke might not have been waiting for her. Once the drop ship lands on Earth, it is a race to survive with minimal supplies, a crash landing, and a world they couldn't have imagined. But life back on the ship for Glass isn't much better.

I was surprised when I saw this was already in the process of becoming a TV series without having even been released as a book yet. Don't get me wrong, the premise is fantastic, but how do you know how people are going to react to it until some have read it? So I went into this book expected to be floored by a phenomenal story, and I am sad to say I was pretty disappointed. The premise, as I said, is fabulous. But the story was really written as a two-hour series premiere, not the first book in a series. From the beginning with the snippets of all four main characters and their situations to the sudden ending, everything in this screamed TV. Honestly, there was no wrap up for the story, there was no world-building (because on TV, who needs a single description of the scenery, right?), and the only focus was the four main characters despite 100 kids on that island (ok, a few died early, but still, 90+). Seriously, there was absolutely no description of Earth save for two mutated animals, that warranted a paragraph each, and a decrepit building. What is it like there? Is there anything around you? can you see signs of what chased humans off Earth in the beginning? I got nothing. Until a tiny little snippit right before the book ended. Sound like a fabulous series permiere? Yep. Like a great first book? Nope. I just felt cheated by this book that was obvious supposed to be a screen-play. If I had not known the original of this book for the CW Network, I think I would be even more disappointed with it. At least with the TV series, I will be able to see a little of what Earth looks like.

And how fast does Morgan expect to pump these books out? If the TV show is starting now, and with so very little information in the first book, they are going to run out of story lines in like 4 episodes. So does the show carry on without the next book? Who would buy the books and watch the show simultaneously, then? Will she toss out a book every 6 months to keep up, or let the show run independently?

I also had another weird feeling when I read the acknowledgments: "I owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to Joelle Hobeika, who not only dreamed up the premise for The 100, but whose imagination, editorial acumen, and tenacity were essential for bringing it to life." So, wait a minute... Morgan didn't even come up with the story herself? So she is essentially someone's not-so-ghost writer? That makes me even less interested in this story, which is sad because the premise and the characters are an absolute gold-mine if done well. Sadly, though, the characters felt rather shallow and one-dimensional and the premise was swallowed up by the complete lack of information and development throughout the entirety of the novel. I am sad I had such trouble with this story. It could've been great!!

The Ultimate Test

The college admissions process can be grueling. Having everything you have done in your adolescence examined to determine your potential for future success is painful to even think about. But what if you attendance in a University was determined with a Testing that rivaled the Hunger Games? In Joelle Charbonneau's The Testing, a group of young adults face the ultimate college admissions process... one that comes down to life or death.

Cia Vale waits to hear if she has been chosen for the Testing, like all graduates. In order to go to University, you must be chosen by the government for the Testing, but no one knows the exact formula for being chosen. Since the Seven Stages war left most of the world a poisonous, charred wasteland, only the students with the most potential are chose for the Testing. And of those, only the best of the best are chosen to move onto University. The government can't waste resources on people who aren't going to find real solutions to their very dangerous problems, like how to grow crops in soil that has been bombed and still contains the poison of those terrifying days. When Cia is chosen for the Testing, she is thrilled, until her father tells her about his own nightmares of the Testing. While the testers wipe your memories of the Testing after they are finished, her father is proof that they can't take everything... even if you wished they had. 

While Cia knows, thanks to her father's warnings, not to trust the other candidates, she can't help but be drawn to Tomas. They clearly have a lot in common, having come from the same colony, but their connection is more than that. As the tests begin, it becomes clear just how far the Testers are willing to go in order to weed out the unsavory candidates. Unfortunately for Cia and the others, their definition of unsavory doesn't exactly follow a moral or ethical code. The tests become more and more dangerous, but the final test is the one that will weed out the most candidates. The final test is the one they might not survive, if they have even survived this long. Cia and Tomas are safer if they work together, but can she trust him?

OK. Let's acknowledge the elephant in the room. If you have read the Hunger Games, you are going to see a LOT of similarities here. Not just the "every dystopia after Hunger Games is going to be compared to Hunger Games even if they have nothing in common" shtick. Nope. This book really is very similar, from the unwillingness to enter the contest/trial, to the kind mentor who guides the leading lady, to the "do I trust, do I not trust" the boy from your home town who was sent with you, to the other murderous, treacherous contestants. But there is the thing. Even with those incredibly obvious similarities and familiarity, this was still a really great story. Sometimes I get bogged down where there is too much "inspired by" going on in a new series, but this one was SO exciting and interesting that I didn't care where Charbonneau got her inspiration. I really, really liked this story a lot. The characters were interesting and surprising, the world is terrifying and mesmerizing at the same time, and the plot was fast-paced and well written. Truthfully? Whether you think you spy a Collins copy cat or not, you won't be able to deny the fact that you like this series just as much as Hunger Games! Truly, don't let the familiarity with the story bog you down. Just let Charbonneau work her magic and you won't be sorry.

This story is appropriate for anyone who read or watched the Hunger Games (sorry, but you can't deny they connection). It is also good for anyone interested in dystopias or post-apocalyptic stories. The content can be gruesome at times, especially if you are truly sensitive to any violence, but I don't think it is too gratuitous to preclude students from reading this series. I am sure there are enough people out there who will be disturbed by the violence and won't want to give this book to their children or students, but I promise you the message behind the violence is strong and anti-violent. This story will be perfect for any reluctant reader, and even though the protagonist is female, I think you will find a lot of male readers clamoring for the sequel once they give this story a shot. So don't let yourself be bogged down by the Panem similarities. Instead, look at this book with a clear mind and an open mind- one that will let you recognize it for the fabulous ride it will take you on. 

Starts with a Roar

Animals are endangered, extinct even. Plants are bulldozed for parking lots and apartment buildings. Habitats are destroyed, and humans are at war with nature. Nature isn't winning. Until the Animal Plague.  When the Animal Plague turned all the animals into murderous crazed beasts hell-bent on destroying their one common enemy, humans, the humans were forced to abandon most of the world and live behind giant walled cities while the rest of the earth is poisoned to rid the planet of the hostile animals. In The Roar, by Emma Clayton, the world may not be exactly as it seems. 


Ellie knows her parents think she is dead, but she hopes her twin brother Mika knows she is out there. Kidnapped and trained as a super soldier thanks to her mutations, Ellie just wants to get back to her twin brother- her other half. Mika, on the other hand, is sure Ellie is alive, even though no one believes him. He has learned to keep his thoughts to himself after everyone was convinced he was crazy. But he knows he has to find a way to get Ellie back to him.


When the government releases a new pod fighter video game, the kids can't get enough of it. They start living just to play the game, almost in a zombie-like trance. The game quickly weeds out the normal kids from the prodigies, and Mika is one of the few incredibly talented kids who gets to compete in the final rounds of the competition. What no one is aware of, however, is the terrifying levels of corruption within the government who created the game to not only weed out the talented mutants like Mika, but to control the rest of the population as well. Mika suspects there is more to this game, but he knows it is the only way back to Ellie, and for Ellie, he would risk everything.


The Roar is a pretty long book, but it reads fairly easily. I have to admit, there was a long section in the middle of the book that could have been condensed and still maintained the same effect. It was this very long part about Mika working his way through the levels of the pod fighter video game that bored me a little in the middle. But once he progressed to the further rounds, it got more exciting... and more deadly. The world that was described, these cramped walled cities, the bottom portion damp, moldy, and filled with flood water and the top reserved for the wealthy where they could ignore the poverty of the millions of people beneath them. It was a pretty terrifying world, but the level of corruption and deception beneath the actual world is the real terrifying part. You don't get to see this corruption until the very end of the book, but it will leave you anxious to start the second book, Whisper.


This is a series that reads like a middle reader story, but has some complex ideas (not really content), and could appeal to lower skilled, older readers. It is certainly long, so it might be daunting for some students. The video games as mind and population control, however, is an awesome topic to discuss with your children and students. So many kids get sucked into these video games, that it would be interesting to pose a "what if?" to them in contrast to this story. I bet they would think twice about it next time they picked up the video game... what if they are being controlled?! It would be a great conversation to have and one that affects them personally. Overall, this was an interesting story and I look forward to the second book, but it was a little younger than most dystopias or post-apocalyptic stories out there. 

The Definition of Pure

Do we truly know the effects of something as catastrophic as nuclear war? What happens to people 2 years later, 10 years later, 50 years later? Now imagine the power of nuclear catastrophe in the hands of madmen with a mission- save the elite population, erase the rest of the population, and start over. In Julianna Baggott's Pure, the world has been irrevocably changed, but only a handful of people know the real story behind its destruction. Everyone else is just trying to survive.


When the Detonations occurred, many people were lucky enough to be touring the Domes, which were created as a prototype to protect the population from nuclear war. But only a small amount of the population survived the Detonations in the Dome. Everyone else was left outside to fend for themselves. While most people died, something strange happened to the ones who actually survived the blast- they fused to things around them. Pressia's hand fused to the doll she was holding. Some people fused to other people, and many mothers fused to their own children. People fused to animals, creating strange mutations, some more human than others, but all called Beasts by the people outside the Dome. Other people fused to trees, building rubble, and even the earth, becoming Dusts, the dangerous mutations that stalk people as they walk across the ground. Survivors of the Detonations wear their scars with pride, but for Pressia, her doll's head hand has always been a reminder of everything she lost.


Now Pressia is trying to escape the OSR, a radical group that hunts the weak and gathers the strong at age 16 to become soldiers to fill their ranks. She has managed to escape them so far, but the appearance of a Pure, a boy from inside the Dome, has her risking her life to save both of them. Partridge escaped the monotonous life in the Dome on the wisp of a hope his mother was still alive after growing up and being told she died in the Detonations. His father, leader of the Dome, was about to put him under to try recoding (genetic alterations done to improve people in the Dome), but Partridge escaped before the surgery can be done. When he comes across Pressia, he is willing to risk everything, even his life, to find his mother. Pressia takes him to Bradwell to help him find his mother.


Bradwell is the son of two people who knew the real intentions of the Domes. He holds meetings and tries to educate the wretches outside the Domes about the "cleansing" the elite in the Dome accomplished with the Detonations, but his efforts don't get him very far. When Pressia comes to him with a Pure, he isn't interested in risking his life for some unscarred kid who knows nothing about true suffering. What he doesn't expect is to care about Pressia more than anyone can afford to care about another person in such a cruel, harsh world. When Pressia is snatched by OSR soldiers, Bradwell agrees to help Partridge find his mother only if they find Pressia first. Together they set off through a new world full of mutations and abominations in order to find people who may already be lost. But the one thing they have not lost is hope that Pressia and Partridge's mother are not lost. Hope is all they have left.


Wow! Julianna Baggott really let the creative juices flow with this one! There are so many dystopias and post-apocalyptic stories out there these days that it is hard for books to not feel somewhat derivative of what came before them, but Baggott wrote a truly original, unique, innovative story that kept my interest from the first page to the last. It felt like some kind of macabre, nuclear, Island of Dr. Moreau with all the creepy combinations that happened when people fused after the Detonations! I admit I was a little confused by everything at the very beginning of the story, but as the explanations quickly unfolded, I couldn't tear myself away from the story. And the deep corruption that ran through the society is simply fascinating. But the best part of the story was the three main characters: Pressia, Partridge, and Bradwell. There is so much going on with these three kids from totally different backgrounds, but somehow they are all connected. They were dynamic characters who you can't help but find yourself invested in. I loved how this story unfolded and revealed more and more depth with each passing page without feeling as though there were huge information dumps or too much held back- it was the perfect blend of contextual understanding and suspense. 


I would probably give this story to any mature young adult through adult who is interested in science fiction or post-apocalyptic and dystopian stories. I wouldn't give this to an immature or weak reader, not because the content is overly sexual or violent (because it isn't), but because the story is very complex and intricate. It would most likely lose a person who wasn't a strong reader with enough stamina to get to the heart of the story and work everything out. And it would be a shame to ruin this book for them by giving it to them before they are ready for it because this really is an amazing story! I have no idea where the series plans to go with the next book, but if this book is any indicator, it is going to be amazing. Honestly, that unpredictable nature of the story is what makes it so unique! And I have this sick, twisted, morbid fascination with seeing what kinds of strange mutations we will run into next! This first book has the potential to be the beginning of a legendary series.

I was a Goner in Only Five Pages!

One would think with the crazy first weeks of school, I would have no time to plow through an almost 600 paged book, but Gone, by Michael Grant, does not give you the opportunity to put it down. From the first five pages, this book grabs you by the seat of the pants and hurls you through a creepy post-apocalyptic world where all people over the age of 14 simply disappear- *poof* and gone.

Sam, also known as School Bus Sam after he rescued his school bus full of kids when the driver had a heart attack, was once a hero, but has faded back into the wallflower he is happiest being. When all the adults and kids over 14 disappear in Perdido Beach, though, Sam is the one all the other kids start looking to for guidance. No one know what happened to the adults, but right in front of their eyes, they all just disappeared. Sam is reluctant to be their leader, but when he rushes into a burning building to save a little girl, it is clear heroism is simply in his nature. With the help of his friends, Astrid, Edilio, and Quinn, they set off to find Astrid's autistic little brother and hopefully some adults. What they find, however, is that a giant, electrified border has made a circle around the whole area- exactly a 10 mile radius all around the nuclear power plant. Nothing can come in and no one can get out. Something strange is also happening to everything and everyone living within the wall. The animals are mutating and some of the kids are starting to develop powers.

The real showdown, however, starts when the Coates Academy kids (a school for delinquent rich kids) come down from the school to take over as leaders of Perdido Beach. Their leader, Caine, is all too willing to use his powers to gain control or let his evil sidekick, Drake, wield his menacing punishments. Kids are beaten to death for defying Caine's rules, food is an ever-growing concern, and safety becomes a luxury. Can Sam come to terms with his own power? Can he, with the support of his friends, become a true leader among the kids inside the wall?

This is an amazing story about kids forced to grow up quickly. When they have to defend themselves with guns found at the power plant, Sam finds himself struggling with the idea of asking 8th graders to wield guns while being horrified at asking a 5th or 6th grader to defend themselves. This story has a lot of Lord of the Flies themes as civilized life quickly breaks down. The lead characters are the embodiment of good and evil, with consciences and cravings for power being the ultimate battle. Kids are quickly given roles of nurse, day care operator, guard, and cook. These same kids had parents and adults to take care of them not 24 hours earlier. It is a harsh new world where anything is possible.

The reading level is relatively accessible, but the story is very, very long. It is action packed and there isn't a dull moment in the whole story, but 500+ pages is a lot to ask of a middle school student. Therefore, I would save this great story for an older kid who reads a lot or is really into this type of story. It might overwhelm a struggling reader who isn't ready for such a long book. Otherwise, I would suggest everyone give this book a try! It has a little bit of everything from an apocalypse to supernatural powers! You can't ask for much more! Just be careful when picking up the next two books. The second book is Hunger, and the third is Lies. I accidentally picked up the third book and ruined a little of the second story before I even got a chance to read it! Oh well. It won't stop be from reading the next two books!!