Reader Girls Blog

Paperback: 212 pages Publisher: Lachesis Publishing (May 17, 2010) Summary:  Following the light can't be that hard, right? So why don't the dead just do it and leave Stephanie Stewart alone? However nothing is ever as simple as it should be, as Stephanie learns when her hidden 'gift' becomes more than a nuisance, quickly turning into a liability. If she can't learn to trust someone with her secret, the world as she knows it will go to hell. Literally. But if she doesn't choose wisely, she might just end up learning firsthand how hard it is to follow that light. Because she's next on the list to be crossed out. My review: Everyone has a special gift, ability or hobby. For Stephanie Stewart, her 'gift' is being able to see dead people. And if that’s not enough, she has to help them 'cross over,' which she finds out isn’t so easy. Stephanie is like Melinda from The Ghost Whisperer TV show, except younger. To help them cross over she ma...

Reading Level: YA Paperback: 323 pages Publisher: HarperCollins (September 7, 2010) Book Summary: Descended from dragons, the draki's ability to appear human protects them from hunters. Jacinda lives with her pride in the Cascades, but she chafes under her special status as the only fire-breather in hundreds of years. Recklessly breaking the “no-fly” rule, she attracts hunters; mercifully, one hunter, a beautiful boy who looks upon her with wonder, lets her escape. After this, the pride intends to hobble her rebelliousness, and Jacinda is forced to flee. But while twin sister Tamra, who never manifested and was shunned, is happy with the move, Jacinda feels only anguish within Nevada's desert climate. Then she meets Will and, despite recognizing him as the same draki hunter, feels herself come alive. Jordan's compelling addition to the supernatural star-crossed lovers theme is equal parts taut suspense and sensuous romance, with visceral writing and believable relati...

Reading level: Young Adult Hardcover: 496 pages Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (October 12, 2010)  Book summary: BROOKLYN: Andi Alpers is on the edge. She’s angry at her father for leaving, angry at her mother for not being able to cope, and heartbroken by the loss of her younger brother, Truman. Rage and grief are destroying her. And she’s about to be expelled from Brooklyn Heights’ most prestigious private school when her father intervenes. Now Andi must accompany him to Paris for winter break. PARIS: Alexandrine Paradis lived over two centuries ago. She dreamed of making her mark on the Paris stage, but a fateful encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a tragic role she didn’t want—and couldn’t escape. Two girls, two centuries apart. One never knowing the other. But when Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she recognizes something in her words and is moved to the point of obsession. There’s comfort and distraction for Andi in the journal’s antiq...

Reading level: Young Adult Paperback: 348 pages Publisher: Sandpiper (August 23, 2010) Book summary: Life seems to have it in for Franny Flanders.  Her best friends aren’t speaking, her parents just divorced, and her hippie grandmother has moved in. The only karma Franny’s got is bad karma.  Then Franny gets her hands on a box of magic recipes that could fix all of her problems. It could even change the world! Finally, life is looking up. But Franny is about to learn that magic and karma aren’t to be played with. When you mess with the universe, it can bite back in unexpected ways. Ouch!  My review: Dealing with middle school's problems like the cliques and having fights with friends is all pretty stressful, and that's not counting the schoolwork. But for Franny Flanders, it gets even crazier when her Buddhist grandmother moves in and brings her magic box with her. Franny, finding it the easy way out, tries to use the power of the box to fix everything in her ...

R eading Level: YA Hardcover: 272 pages Publisher: EgmontUSA (December 22, 2009) Book Summary: It really was a stupid thing that Brent Staple did – doing it (so the rumour goes) with Chris Sanchez, one of the guy cheerleaders. Who’d have thought that Brent, the school’s hottest jock, could be gay? But the doubt about Brent doesn’t just hurt Tara – it’s the beginning of the end for an inseparable trio of friends. Tara’s training for the marathon, but also running from her father and her fear of ever being abandoned again. Beautiful Whitney Blaire’s got everything and nothing, because her parents have never had time for her. And Pinkie has a compulsive need to mother everyone to make up for the mom she never stops missing. The girls couldn’t be more different, but doesn’t that just prove the strength of their friendship? Then new-girl Riley arrives in school, wafting her long black hair and a scent of lilacs. Suddenly, Tara starts to feel things she’s never felt before for a girl...

We can't believe this is the last Wednesday of August. Summer, where have you gone? We each have a pick this week for one book we're really looking forward to reading. One is a Middle Grade mystery, another is an intriguing YA mystery which has to be solved by the girl who has been murdered, and the last has some awesome elements to it--assassins, pirates, kidnapping, Venice and a boy vampire. The Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone Reading level: Ages 9-12 Hardcover: 304 pages Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books (January 1, 2011) Book summary: Phoebe Stone, author of the sleeper hit DEEP DOWN POPULAR , is back with a middle-grade code-breaking mystery full of romance and excitement. Think CHASING VERMEER meets THE SECRET GARDEN ! Felicity's glamorous parents have a secret. When they leave her with distant relatives in Maine, Felicity hopes they won't leave her long. Her new Uncle Gideon hides things. Her Aunt Miami is star-crossed. And Derek, a kid her ag...

Reading level: Young Adult Hardcover: 592 pages Publisher: Hyperion Book CH (September 28, 2010) Book summary: You can't always run from danger... Haunted by the loss of his mother and sister, Han Alister journeys south to begin his schooling at Mystwerk House in Oden’s Ford. But leaving the Fells doesn’t mean danger isn’t far behind. Han is hunted every step of the way by the Bayars, a powerful wizarding family set on reclaiming the amulet Han stole from them. And Mystwerk House has dangers of its own. There, Han meets Crow, a mysterious wizard who agrees to tutor Han in the darker parts of sorcery—but the bargain they make is one Han may regret. Meanwhile, Princess Raisa ana’Marianna runs from a forced marriage in the Fells, accompanied by her friend Amon and his triple of cadets. Now, the safest place for Raisa is Wein House, the military academy at Oden's Ford. If Raisa can pass as a regular student, Wein House will offer both sanctuary and the education Raisa nee...