Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher

Jay Asher's debut novel was brilliantly conceived. I can't say enough good things about the idea of having a teen boy (Clay) listening to the last thoughts of a girl (Hannah) who, by the opening of the novel, has already killed herself. Like Clay, we can't wait to find out how different people and events contributed to Hannah's decision. The book is hard to put down. In the beginning, the use of audio tapes threw me off, because I couldn't imagine how a twenty-first-century teen would have access to such an outmoded form of technology. Nor did I have confidence that the subsequent teens in the tapes would have access to a machine they could use to listen to them. Asher gets around this by having Tony's story, which I won't divulge here, but it still required a leap of faith on my part. The language of Hannah and Clay compensated for my leap of faith, pulling me into realistic teen drama, teen thoughts, and teen emotions. There was never a moment while reading from either Hannah or Clay's points of view that I didn't hear and imagine a real teen. In spite of the realness of the teen voices, I still didn't always get a full sense of the characters, which took something away from the ending, since I couldn't recall Skye. Although I appreciated this clear sign that Clay had indeed been transformed by the tapes, I still would have liked more. I was disappointed not to see Clay encounter the others in the tapes. Over all, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and recommend it to everyone, teens and adults alike.

The Infernal Devices, by Cassandra Clare

When a seventeen-year-old Tessa leaves New York to find her older brother in London after their aunt dies, she's abducted by the dark sisters and tortured into learning about a power she never knew she had. Little does she know that a terrifying mastermind plans to use her power to destroy the entire race of Shadow Hunters, known as the Nephilim. I absolutely loved this trilogy. The setting, the plot, the narrative style, and the characters were brilliantly done. I especially loved the characters, which were amazingly distinct despite a large cast. My favorite characters were Tessa, Will, and Jem. They were all three so good, that you couldn't help but love them. All three books also continued to add new twists and turns to the story. Even the Epilogue of the last book has a surprising twist, and I loved it! I highly recommend this series to young and old alike.

Audiobook Giveaway!

To celebrate the release of the audiobook edition of The Gatekeeper's Sons, I'm holding a giveaway. Enter to win a $20 Itunes giftcard, a $30 Amazon giftcard, and a free copy of the audiobook. The contest ends in one week, on June 17th.


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Expats, by Chris Pavone

Expats, by Chris Pavone, is about an American family in which the wife and husband have careers they keep secret from one another until everything comes to a head in Europe. Shortly after resigning from her CIA agent position, Kate is surprised when her husband, Dexter, says his job requires them to move to Luxembourg. With two little boys, Kate agrees to make the move only to find intrigue follows. Unsure whether her suspicious nature is making her paranoid or if her snooping is warranted, she nevertheless snoops to uncover one secret after another.

I truly enjoyed watching Kate unravel the mystery surrounding her and found the book difficult to put down, especially during the second half. The author does a remarkable job of making what would seem an unbelievable tale believable by crafting consistent characters with realistic motives. Although I sometimes was jarred by the movement in time and felt the ending was abrupt, I loved the story and would recommend it.

The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

It took time for me to warm up to the narrator (Death) and his habit of stopping the story to ruminate and make comments. I even had a bad dream that he had pinned me down and was forcing me to listen to his tale as he lay on top of me in my bed. But at some point, he became endearing, like the hot-mouthed Rosa. I fell in love with the characters and was enthralled with their joys and sorrows. I miss them now that I've finished their story.

The narrator's descriptions were also a pleasure, and I felt the author found a way to infuse originality into a story humanity has needed to tell over and over since the Second World War.

The Book Thief is a beautiful testament to the power of words--to their ability to kill and to save lives. It is also a beautiful testament to human beings in exactly the same way.

The Hunger Games Trilogy, by Suzanne Collins

I recently included the first book of this trilogy in my Young Adult Literature class at the University of Texas at San Antonio because I truly admire the world and complexities created by Collins. The characters are multidimensional and believable and their futuristic dystopian society has just enough similarities to our own with its use of television and propaganda, class striation, and exploitation of the poor to be relatable.

I know many parents have criticized the level of violence in this series, but the ultimate message is similar to the one in Jonathon's Swift's Modest Proposal: We need to stop sacrificing our children in our political conflicts. It's no accident that Katniss is seventeen years old when many soldiers in our country and others recruit that age so that they are prime for enlisting by age eighteen. And families who pride themselves on serving their nation for generations in the armed forces are not unlike the career tributes.

Collins's trilogy is anti-war in the same vein as Small Soldiers, a partially animated movie in which technologically advanced toys go to war with one another. But it is also fatalistic in that the rebellion and the Capitol soon become indistinguishable from one another in the same way as Orwell's men and pigs in Animal Farm.

I highly recommend this heart-wrenching, fast-paced series to young and old alike.

Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern

I enjoyed a great deal about this novel. I loved the concept and have never read anything like it, which is saying something because I've read a lot of books. I was also amazed by the author's imagination. Her descriptions of the circus, the clothing, the setting, the rooms, and even the books were so vivid that they felt tangible. I truly was carried away during the scenes at the circus, feeling like a reveur.

I gave the book three stars because, for me, the heart and soul of a good story comes from its characters, and Morgenstern's, though unusual and distinct and memorable, were not developed adequately enough to make me invested in their journeys. There were times when I had to force myself to continue because I didn't care enough to feel compelled to finish their stories.
So was it interesting? Yes! Imaginative? Absolutely! At times, breath-takingly beautiful? No doubt. But a compelling read it was not. Not for me, anyway.