Gone for Forever and Ever

When the monsters are trying to save the world from other monsters, you know the world has gone to hell in a handbag. In the stunning conclusion to Julie Kagawa's Blood of Eden series, The Forever Song, the very monsters who were responsible for the end of the world are trying to save the world. 

Allie and her sire, Kanin, and her brother, Jackal, are going to kill a Master Vampire. Sarren has created a plague that will completely destroy the world, even more so than Rabidism did. In his sick mind, Sarren thinks he is doing the world a favor by ridding it of all humans and vampires alike. While the illness must be stopped, the trail of carnage Sarren is leaving in his wake just to torment Allie, Jackal, and Kanin is all the more reason to destroy him. He doesn't just kill people for food, he likes to play with his food. 

When they get to Jackal's old city, they are in for a surprise none of them could have predicted. Allie is still grieving the loss of Zeke, and she will only start to heal when she sees Sarren beheaded. When they enter old Chicago, Allie was more surprised than anyone to see what Sarren left her: Zeke, fully vamped and with a mind as warped as Sarren's. Meanwhile, Sarren is headed to the sanctuary, Eden, to fulfill his deepest desires in the most twisted way possible. They know what they have to do, but doing it before Sarren leaves more bloody corpses in his wake is unlikely.

Allie has always been an amazing character, and her grief over the loss of Zeke was palpable. It made her hunt for Sarren so much deeper and darker, that this story certainly had a different feel to it. When she found him and Sarren had made him into a monster, I have to say it was predictable, but I was still stunned by it. I knew it was coming (and I am usually easily duped by plot twists), but somehow that just didn't matter. I think that has a lot to do with Kagawa writes. Allie was so upset and devastated that you couldn't help but understand how she was feeling. And it really solidified how deeply psychotic Sarren was, making the hunt for him all that more important. 

This was such a different kind of vampire story, that I think the preteen Twilight fans would have a tough time liking it at first, because they would be expecting Edward and Bella and instead get a little more Sid and Nancy. This is darker and creepier, but the characters and the story are so well-crafted, I hope they would eventually get over their preconceived notions and get sucked into this story. It is certainly more gruesome and bloody, so choose your audience accordingly. Kagawa is quite the master of her craft, so I can't wait to read the new series, Talon!

How Do You Hide a Dragon?

The life of the Draki isn't easy. Have you ever tried hiding a dragon? What about a whole pride of dragons? But the hunters and the enkros (scientists who torture and dismember dragons) make life particularly dangerous. Jacinda has survived, but in Hidden, she risks her own life to save that of her pride member. Even when it means giving herself to the enkros.

Jacinda bonded with Cassian, but the bond was in name only. She truly loves Will, but responsibility to her pride changes her ability to make decisions based on her emotions. Now that Cassian's sister has been taken to the enkros, she can feel his pain through the bond and knows she must save Miriam. Doing so, however, means letting herself be captured and taken to the enkros, a fate no Draki would choose for themselves.

Inside the enkros headquarters, Jacinda learns just how awful the scientists are. While Drakis go into the lab, they never come out. But Jacinda, Will, and Cassian won't rest until they free Miriam. Inside, Jacinda is pitted against a terrifying gray dragon with razor sharp scales. She survives, barely, but the enkros take her to be tagged with a tracking device. Cassian and Will couldn't have come at a more perfect time, saving her from the implanted device, but Miriam wasn't so lucky. Now they have to outrun hunters who know where they are, and the only safe place they know if is the pride, but returning to the pride means putting them all at risk. Choices aren't always easy, and Jacinda has been plagued by enough of her own tough choices, but the safety of the pride is the toughest one she has had to weather. What will she decide?

This was a very exciting conclusion to this interesting young series. We all have an idea of "the perfect ending," which might not be the perfect ending for some characters, but we know what we want to happen. We also know what the easy ending would be- something that doesn't rock the boat too much and leaves us warm and fuzzy inside. Jordan took a risk with this conclusion by not giving you everything you wanted. You won't be disappointed, but you won't feel warm and fuzzy either. In a book full of tough choices, some of those choices were bound to lead to sacrifices, and that is exactly what happened in Hidden.

I loved where this series went, and I think it matured and grew up in content dynamics as it aged. It went from a clear middle reader series to a final book that expects more from its readers in the depth and breadth. This conclusion proved Jordan knows how to elevate her readers as they progress through her stories, and I am looking forward to her next endeavor!

The Solution to the Maze

There is something so bittersweet about the final book in a series you loved so much. When the final Harry Potter book came out, I was thrilled and heart-broken at the same time! With The Death Cure, James Dashner's final book in the Maze Runner trilogy, I am sad to see the series end, but I started it hopeful the ending would be as I had hoped- finally a little peace for the kids who had been at the mercy of the evil corporation WICKED.

Thomas and his friends survived the Maze (an experiment to judge their responses and hopefully find a cure to the Flare) and the Scorch (the terrifying desert filled with sick crazies). But now that they are back in the hands of WICKED, the company using them as lab rats to find the cure to the Flare, they know nothing good is going to happen to them. Held hostage and isolated for weeks, they finally find a way to escape, but to do so they have to trust Brenda and Jorge- WICKED employees planted in the Scorch to keep an eye on them. But with no other options, they find Brenda and Jorge hate WICKED as much as they do. Unfortunately, the world is a cold, dangerous place for Munies- those immune to the Flare.

Once they manage to escape, they make there way to Denver which has become a walled, protected city free from the sickness. Unfortunately, the safety in Denver is all an illusion. The sickness is slowly starting to take over. When Thomas is contacted by the Right Arm, an organization devoted to take down WICKED, he knows they have to risk their lives and go back to the lab to destroy the evil people who test kids and have no qualms about watching them die. But can Thomas and his friends, the kids who lived through so much, make it through this final trial? Can they get rid of WICKED once and for all? And even if they do, what will be waiting for them on the other side?

Oh Dashner, you rapscallion! You had me hanging through the whole book PRAYING you didn't leave those poor kids in a worse situation (and me totally ticked off) by the end of the story. Thank goodness you took it easy on those kids (and me!). We needed a good ending! This book was a great culmination in the trilogy we spent so much time waiting for (im)patiently and while I am sad to have it end, I am glad it ended the way it did.

This series is phenomenal for any student, but I think it will be particularly successful with male struggling readers. The excitement and commitment to the young characters makes the story more than just plot twists and action. The kids I know who have started this series haven't been able to put it down. In fact, the adults I know who read these books couldn't put them down either! Dashner is an evil genius, but the ending of this series proved he wasn't as evil as I originally thought- he loved his characters as much as I did!

Haunting Cover for a Haunting Story

The cover and design of this book is so unique and so striking you simply can't ignore it. I was so enamored with the design on the cover pages and throughout the book I just thumbed through it for a while before reading it! When I finally did start reading, I realized it was actually as good of a book as it looked. Lauren DeStefano's breakout dystopia Wither is the start of the Chemical Garden Trilogy, and you won't want to stop reading once you hit that last page!

Modern science has cured all those horrible illnesses and defects that affect children. Unfortunately, it only worked for one generation. The generations that follow find themselves with a severely shortened life span before dying an agonizing death. Women live to be 20 and men to 25, and so far there has been no progress in reversing the process. This has caused many first generation people to accept babies as donations for medical experiments to find a cure. More wealthy people have started collecting wives (and usually kidnapping and buying them) in order to have as many babies as possible. This situation has created a world of orphans where young girls are kidnapped and forced to bear children they will never get to raise.

Rhine Ellery and her brother are barely scraping by, but they still do better than most kids their age. They have some food and are able to work enough to stay safe- until Rhine answers an add for work and finds herself in the back of a van with a large group of girls. She has seen other girls in her neighborhood disappear into the hands of the Gatherers, but she never thought it could happen to her. She is tossed from the van where a man makes his decision to keep three of the girls, including Rhine. Once the man leaves, the other girls are put back in the van and disposed of. The three who were chosen and spared are taken to a magnificent estate, but they have no idea where they are. They are brought to a secure wing where they have bedrooms, a sitting room, and a library. This is where Rhine and her sister wives, Jenna and Cecily, are expected to spend the rest of their days, pregnant with Master Linden's babies.

Rhine is 16, Jenna is 18, and Cecily is only 14. Cecily is the only one who is interested in being Linden's wife, as the life in the estate is better than what she experienced in the orphanage. Young and enthusiastic, she vies for Linden's attention. Jenna is the oldest, and while she despises Linden and everything he stands for (he sister was in the van of girls not chosen), she chooses to accept her fate with unwilling concession. Rhine is the only sister wife who wants to escape. She worries about her brother desperately and beings to grow attached to the young man, Gabriel, who delivers food and answers to the wives on the floor. Her feelings for Gabriel are forbidden, but she can't help but care about him.

Her biggest struggle is that she doesn't actually hate Linden. He turns out to just be a clueless, heartbroken boy, much like his new wives. Just after the wives arrive, Linden's previous wife and only true love, Rose, died in the wives wing. He has never really recovered, and only took the new wives at the urging of his father, the evil Vaughn. Vaughn has given his life over to finding the cure that will save his son, but his methods are far less than ethical. He is a horrible, vile man who is afraid to stop at nothing to help his son and find a cure, even if that means sacrificing the lives of the wives. When Vaughn finds out about Rhine's attachment to Gabriel, he takes Gabriel away. Now Rhine must find the boy she truly cares about and find a way out of the estate. But how can she do that when the estate seems like a fortress with no entrance or exit?

I loved so much about this book, it is hard to pick anything specific. The characters were dynamic and had to be peeled away layer by layer like an onion. The characters you thought you would hate turned out to be sad and broken. The ones you thought you would like were flawed. The story takes turns that you would never expect, and the mast villain, Vaughn, is so beyond evil they would have to make a new classification for him right next to Josef Mengele and President Snow of Panem from The Hunger Games. He gives me the creeps just thinking about him. The beauty of this book lies in the fantastic story telling and the haunting but beautifully written prose. This was a difficult topic to broach- forced marriages and kidnapping- but DeStefano accomplished her goal with ease.

The language is moderate, but this might be a book left for mature 9-12 grades. It has tons of discussion opportunities and can make for a great book to read with your child or student. I am thrilled by DeStefano's breakout novel and can't wait for the next book in the trilogy. We are in a stage of the YA world where young people are contributing as much as seasoned authors, and so far, the experience has been amazing! I can't wait to see what they throw out next!

Might be Dark but Definitely Isn't Hollow!

Authors need to stop waiting a year or more before releasing their next book in a series- I almost died waiting for this one! The Forest of Hands and Teeth series has been a roller coaster ride. Zombies, dystopian settings, fenced towns, and lost family and friends- who could keep up?! With the final book, The Dark and Hollow Places, Carrie Ryan exceeds expectations and brings a great series to a bittersweet end.

Annah has survived for three years in the Dead City without Elias. When he left to join the Recruiters, he did it to find Annah's twin sister- the one they left behind in the fences and never found again. Annah survives day to day in the horrible city, but she has never gotten over her guilt for leaving Gabry behind. When she decides Elias is never coming back and she should leave the city, she sees someone at the gate she never thought she would see again- Gabry. She manages to fight her way into to the city just in time to see the gate dogs go after Gabry's companion, indicating he was clearly infected. To Annah's horror, Gabry goes after the Recruiters to help her companion escape into the icy river below.

As she watches the Recruiters drag Gabry off, she knows she must find a way to save her sister. On her way home, Annah is surprised by the same guy who Gabry protected: Catcher. Catcher tells Annah he was sent to find her by Elias. He also tells her he is an Immune. Catcher was bitten, but didn't die- instead he can walk among the Unconsecrated (zombies) without being bothered, but the virus is still inside him. When the Unconsecrated start piling into the city, madness begins that is not unlike the horrors of when the virus first broke out. The Recruiters are holed up on their island, the only defensible part of the city, and when Elias is reunited with Annah, the three of them decide to make there way to the island where they assume Gabry is being held.

What Annah doesn't realize is that to get onto the island, Catcher must give himself to the Recruiters. The Recruiters love having Immunes to do their dirty work and get food and supplies where the others can't go. They know, however, the only way to keep an Immune is to hold onto someone they love. In order to get onto the island, they must accept that they are prisoners. The island, full of dangerous Recruiters and a leader who can barely keep them from murder and rape (and sometimes doesn't), is almost as bad as the Dark City, now overrun with zombies. Together, Elias, Gabry, Annah, and Catcher must find a way to get themselves off the island and to a safe place where they can be together... but how can they do that when even the river is filling up with the Unconsecrated and the Recruiters put people in cages with zombies for fun?

This was an amazing follow up to the first two books, and I think the primary reason for its success is that none of these books are true "sequels". They do not pick up where the story last left off or continue with the same characters, although they are all connected in very important ways. Master Plot Weaver Ryan has the ability to tell completely different sides of the story without losing her audience. She knows how to make you love the characters, even though the characters are flawed and damaged. Catcher was my favorite reprise in this story, as he struggles with loving Annah, feeling responsible for Gabry, and fearing even the slightest kiss will infect the woman he loves. He brings guilt to a whole new level!

The language and violence in this book is slightly more mature than the previous books. I would say this was the most dark of the three stories. The Recruiters are simply evil, and there are things that happen on that island I can't seem to forget no matter how hard I try! This is a great series for any student, male, female, young, older. It will appeal to a wide range of students, and it really matures with each book, giving the reader a chance to grow along with the story. I absolutely loved this story and am sorry to see it end!

Fallen Angels: The New Vampires

I had a tough time getting through Lauren Kate's first story, Fallen. It was a long book that wasted hundreds of pages being vague and didn't get to the point until the last 50 pages. The premise was good, but the execution was too slow. Therefore, I had great hopes that once the secret from Book One was out (Daniel was a fallen angel and Luce is his only love, but they were cursed and every time their love is realized, Luce dies and the cycle begins again), the story could progress a little faster. I was right, and the sequel, Torment, is an even better book than its big sister.

After the story of Daniel and Luce's history comes out, and the curse seems to be broken (usually the first kiss leads to Luce's smiting), they have to figure out what comes next. Unfortunately, there are a lot of creepers out there who don't want them to be together- namely the Outcasts. The Outcasts are fallen angels who never chose a side and found themselves cast out of both Heaven and Hell. For their betrayal, they were all blinded, but that only succeeded in making them creepier and more deadly. Now they are hunting Luce, and Daniel must go to great lengths to protect her. He makes a truce with Cam, the evil fallen angel (demon) who vied for Luce's attention. Together they decide to put her in a special school, Shoreline, to protect and shield her while they hunt the Outcasts.

Shoreline turns out to be educational on many levels for Luce. First, she realizes the school is populated by Nephilim, the children of angels and mortals who are left in a weird state of limbo that leaves them with diluted power and no place in either the angel or the mortal world. The school is disguised as a legitimate school filled with mortal students, but all the Nephilim attend a special "honors" program which is really training for how to brave the world at large. It is run by an angel and a demon who teach them a new curriculum once Luce arrives.

They begin to teach Luce, along with her friends Miles and Shelby and the rest of the class, about the Announcers. The Announcers are the same shadows Luce has seen all her life. They are shadows that allow the viewer to see glimpses of their past, although they don't always show what the viewer wants to see. As soon as Luce realizes what the Announcers can do, she begins investigating her former lives, with and without Daniel. She has been so consumed by Daniel's love that she never realized her love for him not only ended her past lives, it also ruined the lives of her past families. As she explores the people her former selves left behind, she sees the true costs of the curse that ends her life every time she finds her true love: the family who lose her.

With the pain of her families in her heart, and Daniel's refusal to tell her why she was banished to Shoreline and what is after her, Luce sets off on a dangerous and headstrong path. After putting herself in danger, the disappearance of a friend and almost drowning of another friend makes her realize there is more to the threat than she realized. Will the continued secrets and the weight of the curse be too much for Luce? Will she be able to get beyond everything in order to continue to love Daniel? Or will the kindness of another boy lead her from her destiny?

This was a vast improvement over the first book. While this installation still leaves much to the imagination and does not give so much away that you won't buy the third book, it doesn't leave the reader confused the entire time either. If you have read the first book, there is enough background knowledge already established to keep the reader intrigued yet informed. The new characters are really great additions to the story, and the old favorites from Luce and Daniel's previous school make appearances throughout the story. This was definitely a great follow-up to a mediocre first story that left me excited for the next book.

Like Fallen, the language is average, but the story requires a little staying power from a reader. I probably wouldn't recommend this series to a struggling reader, based on the length and will power needed to complete it. Once the story starts to progress, though, there is a lot to talk about and sink your teeth into. Don't give up on this series before you read Torment. You will be missing out if you don't keep with it!

A New Dystopia Emerges

A dystopia is a strange thing. We want the world to be perfect, without pain, suffering, or oppression, but can such a thing exist? Veronica Roth's new dystopia comes out of a world that hoped to eliminate certain parts of human nature and focus on other parts. Divergent is a story of dystopian Chicago where people think a focus on one great quality of society can eliminate all the bad aspects of human nature. While seeking a utopia, they find themselves living in a dystopia, complete with the control and oppression they sought to avoid.

Beatrice Prior is part of the Abnegation faction- a group of people who devote themselves to selflessness to better the world. Because of their devotion to selflessness, they are in charge of the government, a fact the other four factions aren't always comfortable with. Erudite (knowledge), Dauntless (bravery), Amity (friendship), and Candor (honesty), along with Abnegation, make up the five factions in Chicago. When a kid comes of age in this society, they must choose which faction to join. Most kids follow the faction in which they were raised, but some jump to a new faction. First they take an aptitude test that gives them guidance as to which faction would fit them best, but the choice is all theirs. When Beatrice's brother Caleb chooses Erudite over Abnegation, their parents are shocked. When Beatrice chooses Dauntless and reinvents herself as Tris, her father is devastated, but her mom seems oddly proud. What they don't know is that her aptitude test was inconclusive- leading the tester to believe she was a Divergent. Luckily for Tris, the tester knows how dangerous it is for Divergents and warns Tris to hide the fact vehemently.

Immediately Tris must report to the Dauntless headquarters and before they even arrive, they are tested with death-defying stunts. Whether jumping from a train or leaping from a building, the Dauntless initiates are instantly thrown into the world they chose. When they get to the headquarters, they learn their initiation will consist of three stages and by the end, only ten initiates will remain with Dauntless. The rest will become Factionless castaways- sent to live in the margins of society, a fate worse than death for most.

As Tris continues her training, she gains a few friends, a few enemies, and a particularly interesting attachment to her trainer- a mysterious guy named Four. Training is brutal for the fearless. They must overcome their physical fears as well as their emotional fears before they can be considered Dauntless. Unfortunately, this leads to a lot of fierce competition, especially when a girl like Tris keeps coming out on top. But her budding friendship with Four helps her not only realize important things about herself, but also about the world they live in. More and more, Tris feels like something is happening between the five Factions that could lead to dangerous consequences. Together, they must get to the bottom of what is happening outside the Dauntless headquarters, even if it means risking everything they know and love.

This was an A.MAZE.ING story. I could not put it down and read all 500 or so pages in one day. I am sure it will be compared to Hunger Games because it is a YA dystopia in the wake of Suzanne Collins, but that is not enough for this story. It is the kind of story that holds its own in a world of similar stories and will keep the reader engaged and begging for the sequel. I know it is a long book, but I am sure this story will keep even the most reluctant readers hooked.

My only concern for this book is the vocabulary, but it isn't really a concern. Actually, there is something more to the fairly impressive vocabulary in this book. I think this book is not only excellent for entertainment value, but can also serve a greater purpose. The vocabulary in this story is a great starting point for SAT preparation. As a teacher, we all know vocabulary instruction means the most when a student encounters it in context, but it is hard to find a book with enough vocabulary to be useful in preparation for those dreaded SATs... but Divergent does it effortlessly! Unfortunately, what the book gains in vocabulary for older students may preclude it from being a great book for younger students. The vocabulary is very mature and I guarantee the context will keep these words with the student, no matter what. Just make sure the student is ready for such adult vocabulary.

This was a fantastic debut by Veronica Roth. I can't believe she is only 22, but I am blown away by the world she created. It is so original and well-developed, and the characters have so much depth. I love this story and can't wait to share it with my students, family, friends, and colleagues. This is one you won't forget (especially with a sequel in the future!).

Vampires, Werewolves, Faeries and Shadowhunters, Oh My!

Now, please keep in mind there is more to this book than the hunky torso on the cover! Mortal Instruments: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare is the first installment of a trilogy, all of which is written, published and out in the world. I cannot tell you how much I love when that happens! Nothing makes me crazier than getting sucked into a great book only to find it has absolutely no ending because it is the first book of a trilogy! Drives me crazy! But when I stumble upon an already finished trilogy/series? So exciting!

City of Bones starts off with Clary, a normal girl raised by her mother, who does normal things, forgets homework, hangs out with her friends, and occasionally finds herself in a spot of trouble. But one night, at a club with her friend Simon, she sees something sketchy going on- a guy being lured into a janitor's closet by a girl and two tattooed, scary guys. When she breaks into the room, she quickly discovers the guy being attacked isn't so innocent after all- actually he is a demon and the others are Shadowhunters- a group of humans, also known as Nephilim, who are sworn by blood and genealogy to kill all demons and any Underworlders who break the rules of the Accords. Underworlders are all the half-human creatures like vampires, werewolves and faeries who have created a life of peace (sort of) and harmony with the rest of the world. The Accords are a peace treaty the Shadowhunters struck with the Underworlders to stop hunting them if they continue to leave mortal humans (known as mundies or mundanes) alone in their ignorance.

But when her mother calls and frantically tells Clary not to come home, Clary goes anyway and finds herself face to face with a Ravener demon, but her mother is mysteriously gone. Jace, the huge blond Shadowhunter, finds Clary with the Ravener dead, but her in desperate need of mystical medical attention. He takes her back to the Institute, where Hodge, the Institute's leader, makes sure she is healed and fully restored. It is with the Institute and the Shadowhunters that Clary finds the true nature of who she is, who her mother is, and even who her "uncle" Luke really is: all with Shadowhunter blood. But now Valentine, a rogue Shadowhunter determined to kill all Downworlders despite the Accords, is back from the dead and ready to start his plan with the Mortal Cup- the only thing that can make more Shadowhunters from mortals- but at a steep price. Clary, Jace, and the two other Shadowhunters, Alec and Isabelle, must find the Mortal Cup while also finding out how Clary came to be immersed in the mundie world with no recollection of her Shadowhunter heritage.

This book is very, very interesting and I am thanking the writing and publishing Gods for pushing the other two books out before I found this one, because it certainly does not end with any semblance of closure- it was meant to keep you waiting for the rest of the trilogy. Clare's take on the mythical world of faeries and vampires is really interesting, and different from other stories of the same genre, while not changing their backgrounds too much. The Shadowhunters are a great addition to these time honored horror tales, and they are wrapped up in their own wars, disagreements, and factions. The writing isn't terribly complicated, the vocabulary is average, but the book is large- almost 500 pages. If you had a kid who made it through Harry and Twilight, this would be a great next step to keep them hooked! Give the Mortal Instruments series a chance, but don't be surprised if you start seeing faeries and pixies in the shrubs after you do!