tiny pink books

Betrayed by P.C. Cast
St. Martin’s Griffin, 2007.

Something dark and mysterious is brewing at the House of Night while Zoe attempts to establish herself in her new role as leader of the Dark Daughters.  We have mystery, drama, and more magical vampire powers revealed in this quick read.  Once again, the plot and characters follow predictably cliched patterns, but I’m not complaining because the books remain very fun to read!

Recommended to older teen and adult fans of Twilight and supernatural series books in general.

Marked by P.C. Cast
St. Martin’s Griffin, 2007.

I’ve avoided the House of Night series until just now, but I have to say that I’m hooked.  When Zoe is marked at her high school, it means and end to her life as a human.  She leaves her dysfunctional family to live at the House of Night, a sort of vampire boarding school where young fledgelings go to complete the change in their bodies, becoming vampires…or die.  We are introduced to a fun cast of vamp characters as Zoe makes friends, meets her teachers and mentors, and tried to find a place for herself.  Add to that some extra special magic vamp powers, mean girls style drama, sexy, but oh so wrong, bloodlust, and a hot new love interest and you’ve got yourself a fun, quick read that’s sure to have you picking up the next book.

What I liked about Marked is that it was a simple, easy read, but it moved quickly and maintained my interest, even while following cliche after cliche.  These are YA books, however, I think they are most suited to older teen and adult fans of Twilight.  Though the language is clean, it touches on subject matter a little too dirty for me to feel comfortable handing out to a tween (though if they find it themselves and are comfortable, more power to them!).

Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen
Viking Juvenile, 2008

Another feel good winner from Sarah Dessen!

When Ruby finds herself abandoned by her alcoholic mother, she tries to make a go of it on her own before her estranged older sister steps in and whisks her to a quiet suburban life.  Unable to trust her new family or surroundings, Ruby fights against settling in.  She shuns potential friends and steadfastly attempts to stay independent, relying on no one but herself.  But as Ruby’s sister, her sister’s husband and her new neighbors come through for her again and again, Ruby grows more comfortable and confident in developing trusting relationships.

I loved this book.  Even though it’s one of the books where you can see where they plot is going from page 1, Ruby’s journey was so enjoyable that it was hard to put down.  Dessen has a knack for writing spot on characters and Lock and Key really showcases this talent here.  Recommended for teen and adult readers who want lots of character development with a happy ending.

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, 2009
I picked up the audio version of this book without many expectations.  I’d heard about this book and something about the title and cover (perhaps the preppy east coast vibe) never really appealed.  I’m happy to report that my first impressions were completely wrong–The Summer I Turned Pretty is a lovely book!
Fifteen-year-old Belly has spent every summer at a beach house owned by her mother’s best friend Susannah.  Her “summer family” consists of her mother, her brother Steven, Susannah and Susannah’s two sons, Conrad and Jeremiah.  Full of memories, family drama and romance, this is the summer when everything changes.

What I loved about this book is that Han succeeded in creating the magical little world of the summer beach house.  It’s nostalgic and beautiful and really makes you think that you can feel the warm sunshine on your back while you read it.  Anyway, I’m not going to yammer on too much.  I will say that the audio version of this book was great.  I really think it helped connect me to a character and a world that I don’t have much in common with.  I felt like I really knew the characters and their world by the time I finished.  The sequel, It’s Not Summer Without You is out now and should be available in audio towards the end of July.

The Dead Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan
Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2010

I was very excited about this sequel to last year’s chilling Forest of Hands and Teeth and was even more thrilled to see the audiobook version out so quickly.  Contrary to the buzz surrounding this book, I found it to be a slight disappointment.

Almost nothing like her mother, Mary (the protagonist of Forest of Hands and Teeth), Gabry lives happily within the barriers of her small, seaside town of Vista.  The barriers around Vista keep out the mudo–hordes of undead zombies that have overrun most of the world. Everything about Gabry’s life changes one night when she and her friends sneak over the barrier and are attacked by mudo.  Death, adventure, infection, love triangles and revelations of Gabry’s past follow in this muddled sequel.

I was bothered by the abundance of melodrama in this book.  The romance plot lines, in particular, were overly dramatic and felt forced.  I think the audio format enhanced this…it was almost unbearable at parts!  When there was action was where The Dead Tossed Waves shined.  Although I’d still highly recommend this book to fans of the Forest of Hands and Teeth (as well as other books in the genre), Dead Tossed Waves lacks the mystery, pacing and strong characters of Forest that made it so appealing.

Sweet Little Lies (LA Candy Book #2) by Lauren Conrad
Harper Collins, 2010

Hello guilty pleasures! Sweet Little Lies, MTV’s reality TV starlet Lauren Conrad’s second novel, is so bad, it’s good.  Following more reality TV adventures of girl next door sweetheart Jane Roberts and her cast of generic friends, Sweet Little Lies mostly focuses on the tabloid gossip drama that Jane faces after her reality television show hits it big.  The writing is formulaic and efficient.  The characters are about as cookie cutter as possible. It’s not high art, but my attention never strayed as I read this entertaining fluff.

These are quick books with plots so thin that they can be insulting to your intelligence.  You shouldn’t like it, but you do (if you’re me, anyway).  Obviously, if you’re seeking depth, go elsewhere for your reading pleasure.

Journey to the End of the Night by Louis-Ferdinand Celine
First published in 1932

Reading this book is like taking a personal journey to the end of night.  A hard book to sell to the average reader, this is a bleak, semi-autobiographical work tells the long, dark and unhappy life of Ferdinand Bardamu.  An epic book, feeling even longer than its 462 pages should, Bardamu travels through World War I, to the colonies of Africa, to America and into the poor suburbs of Paris, as a somewhat shady doctor.  Seriously, there are so many journeys in here that it’s like reading five books in one!  Along the way, Bardamu contemplates the ever present inevitability of death and his complete disgust for humanity.  Sound fun?  The thing is, Journey to the End of the Night is hilarious in a sick way.  Celine also paints an incredibly vivid picture with his words that Journey, for me anyway, is more like a life experience than a book.

As for my journey–it took me 10 years to complete it!  I picked up this sunny charmer in high school (probably off the shelves of my intellectual then boyfriend) and the challenge and read it until I was merely 30 or 40 pages from the end…and then I lost the book.  Ten years later (aka, last month), I snatched it up in used bookshop, reread it and finally finished it with glee!  I feel like if books were races, this would be my marathon!

So if I haven’t made it clear yet, I recommend this book to intellectual, sarcastic and bitter high school students and other readers who can appreciate an amazingly written, yet meandering book filled with more depravity, disgust and musings on the brutality of life and death than you can shake a stick at.  I would not recommend this book for reluctant readers or people looking for something short, sweet or sunny.

Dirty Girls Social Club

The Dirty Girls Social Club by Alisa Valdez-Rodriguez
Saint Martin’s Griffin, 2003

This is your standard professional women in the city (the city being Boston) book with a a twist (the twist being that all of the women are Latina).  It works.  It’s fun, a little bit trashy and I enjoyed listening to it as an audiobook on my commute.  Sums it up right there!

Haters by Alisa Valdez-Rodriguez
Little Brown, 2006.

When 16-year-old Paski is whisked away from her beloved hometown in New Mexico, she struggles to fit in and find her place in her new Orange County high school.  Topmost of her problems is ultra popular and ultra mean Jessica Nguyen.  Facing potential romance, a twist of psychic ability, and adult issues than she’s ever faced before, Paski rides mountain bikes, makes friends, and figures out where she wants to stand in the social world of her new school.

I liked the first half of this book.  Paski is a refreshing character–she’s tough, she’s smart, and she’s unique.  I also liked how the author tackled some very “growing up” issues like birth control, awkward (but so necessary) sex talks between Paski and her father and peer pressure.  I also liked the way there’s just a touch of a supernatural story here, with Paski’s psychic ability.  The problems I had with this book had to do with the ending.  For all Valdez-Rodriguez’s realism at capturing the evils of the high school social world, the ending pushed way too far and felt tacked on and hard to swallow.  That said, it was still an enjoyable book…just quite disappointing in its end.

Absolutely Maybe by Lisa Yee
Arthur A. Levine Books, 2009

Maybelline “Maybe” Chesnut is nothing like her former beauty pageant queen mother, Chessy, who constantly brings in a stream of new husbands.  Hiding in her baggy clothes and rainbow colored hair, Maybe doesn’t really fit in at school or at home.  After Chessy’s latest fiancé attacks Maybe, she sets off, running away to Los Angeles to find her biological father with her two best friends, Ted and Hollywood (aka Daniel).  As her friends find their places in the glitzy world of Hollywood, Maybe struggles to find her own place and discover who she really is.

This was a decent book.  It’s one of those books that was fun to read-the characters, including Maybe, are all larger than life, charming, and lovable.  Although the plot (and, to a degree, the characters) are somewhat unrealistic, the sweet charm and light heartedness of everything here will win over the non-cynical reader.  This was an okay, fluffy read for people who just want something a little bit quirky, a little bit sugary and a lot happy ending.  Reader seeking anything deep or twisty, go elsewhere!