Plot Summary:  Only at Manderley Academy to please her parents, if being away from home and super hard classes were not enough, the “new girl” is faced with reminders of the girl whose place she took–Becca.  She is in Becca’s room, she has feelings for Max Holloway, the love of Becca’s life and strange hints of what might have happened to Becca who just disappeared one night.  She doesn’t want Becca’s life, regardless of what roommate Dana thinks, but what will happen if Becca comes back?

Critical Analysis:  A little contrived in places, this re-telling of Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier mostly works.  Most of the contrivances take place at the beginning.  I wish the author could have figured out another way to get the new girl into the story and at the boarding school…her parents remember her 8th grade wish and apply as a surprise?  And she doesn’t tell them that she doesn’t really want to go so goes anyway for her senior year?  Hard to buy, especially since she spends so much, especially at the beginning, longing for home and family and friends.  I also found some of the re-imagining/re-telling to be a little, well, literal.  A costume party where Dana Veers convinces the new girl to wear the same costume as Becca–straight out of the original.

And yet, the whole cruelty and cattiness between some of the girls really works, as does the isolation and independence of boarding school.  As with the original, the character of Becca and the mystery of what happened to her overshadows everything–the new girl can’t escape.  And still, the new girl manages to overcome, to be herself, to like her life, her situation and to realize she is more than just some girl from Florida, or some new girl who took a popular girl’s place.  I think teens girls will really like this, and if other blog reviews are any indication, they won’t have read the original but perhaps now they will seek it out–and maybe the movie too.

Readalikes: Breathless by Jessica Warman–Katie didn’t expect to like the boarding school, she didn’t want to be away from her older brother Will.  She can just be one of the girls, and focus on swimming and schoolwork.   So why then does she tell everyone he’s dead?

Looking for Alaska by John Green–Miles “Pudge” Halter is abandoning his ordinary life, leaving for boarding school where he is surrounded by friends whose lives are everything except ordinary. When tragedy strikes the close-knit group, Pudge realizes that life is to be lived and love to be given freely.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier–the inspiration for the story, which has great teen appeal in its own right.

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced e-galley.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  Mickey Bolitar is not having a very good year.  His dad is dead, his mom is in rehab, and Mickey is forced to change schools and live with the uncle he doesn’t really know.   When his new girlfriend doesn’t show up to school one day, Mickey grows worried and with the help of his new friends decides to look for her.

Critical Analysis:  I am a fan of Harlan Coben’s Myron Bolitar series.  I think that he has a knack for combining quirky characters with real pathos and lots of dry wit added in for good measure.  When I heard there was going to be a young adult series about Myron and Win, I was interested but wondered how that would work, as they did not meet till college. and Win is, well, not a character you would think belongs in many teen books.  So I was glad when the series about Mickey was announced.

Mickey is actually introduced in the last Myron book, Live Wire.  The beginning of Shelter is the ending of Live Wire from Mickey’s point of view.  I have been disappointed lately in bestselling adult authors who have written young adult books just to capitalize on this growing market.  (I was going to name names, but decided most people would be able to think of at least one…)

So it is both a relief and a delight to report that this is a good beginning to what I hope will be a long running series.  (I was going to be mad at Coben if that weren’t the case.  There are not enough books in this genre being written for teens today but we don’t need poorly written ones either.)

Despite sharing a talent for playing basketball, wisecracking  and a deep love for family, Mickey is not Myron.  I bet Myron wishes he would have thought to yell “Homework” whenever his parents were giving him grief.  Perhaps it is because he is a teen, but Mickey feels things more deeply, and is trying to find the balance between being independent and taking help from others.  Mickey’s friends are great, moving beyond the stereotypes they represent as are the stereotypical jocks who have it in for him.  (Shades of Myron again who just can’t seem to keep his mouth shut around meatheads.)  The secondary storyline about the Bat Lady who says his father might still be alive is intriguing and appears to be a thread that will run through at least the first part of the series.

I hope teens find their way to Shelter, and perhaps to the Myron books as well which aside from a great deal of violence are teen friendly.

Review Excerpts: “Shelter begins one of the oddest—and most appealing spinoff series in recent years….[T]he youngster copes with some adult-sized problems, including his father’s death, his mother’s drug abuse problems, switching high schools, and his new living situation. Everything seems less pressing, however, than the mysteries surrounding the disappearance of a new girlfriend.”–Barnes and Noble

“Edgy and action-filled, the novel has interesting, likable characters, and it should fly off the shelves.”
—School Library Journal

“Crackerjack pace and multi-layered plotting…”—Kirkus Reviews

“Coben’s semi-noir style translates well to YA, and the supporting cast is thoroughly entertaining. It’s a strong start to the series.”—Publishers Weekly

“Quite satisfying and points to a good deal of potential for what might come next.”—Booklist

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Bibliography: Cohn, Rachel and David Levithan. (2010). Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares.  New York: Knopf Books for Young Readers.  IBSN: 978-0375866593 (hc) 978-0375859557 (pb)

Plot Summary:  On his own in New York for the Christmas holidays, Dash finds a red moleskine notebook in the J.D. Salinger section of the Strand bookstore.  The notebook contains a challenge from the mysterious Lily.  Are Dash and Lily destined to meet in real life?  Or do they only live in the notebook they pass back and forth?

Critical Analysis:  One of my dreams is to visit New York City during the Christmas season.  With this book, I felt like I was there.  I really liked the clever collaboration, and I will need to go back and read their other  joint novels (Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Naomi & ely’s No Kiss List) to see what other fun I missed.  The dares were fun, Lily’s crazy family who assisted her and Dash’s diverse group of friends just added to the story.  Lots of humor and wit along with holiday details and a New York back drop make this an excellent holiday read for teens and adults.

Review Excerpts: “Cohn and Levithan use a familiar but fun formula for this holiday-themed collaboration–think Saint Nick & Norah–mixing an enticing premise with offbeat characters and some introspective soul searching….there are more than enough amusing turns of phrase and zigzag plot twists to keep their attention”–Publisher’s Weekly

“The spirit of the season amplifies Dash and Lily’s loneliness and heightens the connection between them, in another surefire hit from the creators of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (2006).”–Booklist

“As they did in Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (Knopf, 2006), the authors combine their talents to write an appealing book. It makes readers long to buy a notebook, begin filling its pages, and find a friend who might turn out to be more. This book will spend as much time off the shelf as Lily’s notebook.”–School Library Journal

Reviewed from public library e-book copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

]]> http://readspace.net/2011/12/holiday-reading-dash-lilys-book-of-dares-by-rachel-cohn-and-david-levithan/feed/ 0 http://readspace.net/2011/12/holiday-reading-gingerbread-cookie-murder-by-joanna-fluke-laura-levine-and-leslie-meier/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=holiday-reading-gingerbread-cookie-murder-by-joanna-fluke-laura-levine-and-leslie-meier http://readspace.net/2011/12/holiday-reading-gingerbread-cookie-murder-by-joanna-fluke-laura-levine-and-leslie-meier/#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 19:45:33 +0000 Susan http://readspace.net/?p=1765

Bibliography: Fluke, Joanne; Laura Levine and Leslie Meier. (2010). Gingerbread Cookie Murder. New York: Kensington.  ISBN: 978-0758234957 (hc) 978-0758234957 (pb)

Plot Summary:  Three wonderful holiday whodunuits.  In “Gingerbread Cookie Murder” by Joanne Fluke, Hannah Swensen just wants neighbor Ernie to turn down the music on his over the top Christmas display.  When she finally goes to his condo to confront him, she finds him sprawled on the floor with her gingerbread cookies scattered around him.  In “The Danger of Gingerbread Cookies” by Laura Levine, Jaine Austen is visiting her parents at their retirement complex in Florida where she has to suffer through an awful amateur holiday play.  It may be bad, but she didn’t wish for the “accidental” death of one of the actors.  In “Gingerbread Cookies and Gunshots” by Leslie Meier, intrepid local reporter Lucy Stone knows that there is more than meets the eye to the disappearance of a little boy from the back of his parents’ car.  Between her own holiday preparations, she races to track down the boy.

Critical Analysis:  These shorter novellas are perfect for holiday reading.  They are little treats to fans of the respective authors’ mystery series, and serve as introductions or light diversions for readers who may be less familiar.  I am a long time reader of Fluke and Meier, and also read 2007′s Candy Cane Murder, featuring three stories from the same authors.  (Which reminds me to seek out Levine’s series as well.)  I continue to read Fluke, although I have found the last couple of entries in her series to be uneven.  I actually love her shorter stories because the mystery and action are so tight.   I think the short story and novella are under-utilized forms these days, and look forward to more of these collections.  Plus I am a sucker for holiday stories and Fluke’s recipes.

Review Excerpts:  ”Fluke, Levine, and Meier each offer a yuletide whodunit treat in this entertaining follow-up to 2007′s Candy Cane Murder.”–Publisher’s Weekly

Reviewed from personal copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Bibliography

Plot Summary:  Goose is ready for all things winter: snowflakes, sledding, snow angels, snowballs, snowmen (geese), skating and snow forts.  Duck doesn’t have time for these activities, he knows what time it really is.

Critical Analysis:  So much packed into this little book.  The text is simple and repetitive but the pictures are delightful.  Lots of color, expression and personality.  Goose throws himself into each activity while Duck stands off watching, looking at times worried and at others reproachful.  It all works out in the end when Goose helps Duck decorate the Christmas tree.  Perfect for little ones as both a read aloud and to explore on their own.  There is a whole series featuring Duck and Goose.

Review Excerpts: “A cute story with nice repetition of the phrase “It is not time for…” makes this a child pleaser. The expressions on Duck and Goose’s faces add to the story’s charm.”–Children’s Literature

“It seems a little sad that Duck is such a killjoy, stopping Goose from enjoying his winter fun, but that’s a minor quibble. And the cover glitters! Cheery holiday fare for pre-readers.”–School Library Journal

Reviewed from public library e-book copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  Former MI5 agent, current Episcopal parish priest, Max Tudor finds the gossip and goings on of Nether Monkslip to be just his speed.  But when the brash president of the Woman’s Institute turns up dead during the village Haverst Fayre, Max’s intuition tells him it was no accident.  He cannot believe that anyone in the idyllic village could be to blame but almost everyone admits to disliking the victim.  But who hated her the most?

Critical Analysis:  Malliet has another winning cozy mystery series on her hands ( see Death of a Lit Chick and Death of a Cozy Writer).  I would love to know more about her reading history, as she seems to know just how much of a twist to apply to genre formulas to create a cast of characters, a place, and a murder mystery that are both so typical and yet fresh and funny and utterly readable.  Max Tudor (could his name be more British?) is as much an interest for being a very eligible bachelor as a former intelligence agent.  Malliet gives him a back story  which she uncovers a little at a time (I am hopeful that future installments will reveal more.)  But more than just Max, we have the wonderful cast of village characters, including the buxom older blonde, the mousy owner of a farm, the blustery Major, the antique shop owner, the elderly school teacher who sees all, and the new age shop owner.  All are far more nuanced and subtle then one might expect, and all are welcome to return in the next in the series.

Readalikes:  At the same time I was reading Wicked Autumn, I had downloaded the audio of 12 Drummers Drumming.  (The first of the new Father Christmas series–not, as I had thought, a mystery series starring Santa Claus.)  Rather, Father Christmas is the new vicar of a small village…the book opens at the village May Fayre…has a wonderful cast of characters…it was so similar I had to set it aside to listen to later to focus on the Malliet.

Review Excerpts:   ”Malliet has mastered the delights of the cozy mystery so completely that she seems to be channeling Agatha Christie.. . [with] ironic humor that contribute[s ] a little spice to the village charm, making the story even more delicious. Religion, espionage, tea, and crumpets: a winning menu.” — Booklist

“Agatha Award–winning author Malliet ( Death of a Cozy Writer ) debuts a superb new series. .. You’ ll marvel at the author’s low-key humor and crystal-clear depictions of small-town life… Malliet, like Louise Penny, brings a contemporary freshness to the traditional mystery.”– Library Journal

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  All 19 year old Hannah has ever wanted to do with her life is dance.  And she is so close to living her dream.  Dancing with the prestigious Manhattan Ballet, she and her friends, all fellow dancers, eat, drink, and sleep ballet.  When they aren’t dancing, they are getting ready for a show, attending dinners and galas to fund raise for the company, gossiping about other dancers, taking yoga and Pilates classes, and hoping to make soloist.  But when Hannah meets musician and non-dancer Jacob, everything starts to change.  What has she given up in order to be a ballerina?

Critical Analysis:  I feel in love with ballet when I saw The Nutcracker on television.  Up till that point, I had been studying clogging (which was lots of fun in its own way.)  I begged my mother to let me switch to ballet classes.  There was something so graceful, so beautiful, so perfect about the dancers I had seen.  Bunheads shows all sides of the ballet world.  The beautiful glitzy innocent perfect side of performance is exemplified through Matilda, the young daughter of a stage hand who is enthralled with ballet and adores Hannah.  The intense competitive sometimes dark side is shown through Hannah and her friends, who comfort and confide in one another but always compete and never fully trust.  There is rejoicing in compliments, getting cast in certain parts while at the same time jealousy and despair.  How did that dancer get chosen over me?  There are even horrible scenes where Hannah is told to lose weight in her breasts and a star dancer collapses.

Even when Hannah starts to question her world and her devotion to dance, there are still moments where the reader can see that she loves ballet–a dancing a combination in a quiet moment, going up into the flies to have the best view of the performance.  Flack does an excellent job of communicating Hannah’s emotions to the reader.  We see her eyes opening and her world expanding.  We feel her being pulled in many directions, her struggle to return to her dream once she realizes that there might just be more out there for her.

I loved this book for it’s realistic portrayal of the world of professional ballet, all the glitz and the glam and the dirt.  Rather like Hannah’s description of her costume for dancing Rubies in Balachine’s Jewels: “The costume is a cherry-red cropped Lyrca dress that hits just below the hip.  The bodice is adorned with glittering ruby crystals all the way down to my belly button….The costume is old and not easy to clean and has a distinctly human smell….If I look closely, I can see where the fabric has been bleached by the sweat of other dancers and places where missing jewels have been replaced with ones that don’t exactly match” (p. 273).

With the popularity of movies such as The Black Swan and television shows such as So You Think You Can Dance?, even girls who aren’t dancers will enjoy this book.

Readalikes: For more books featuring dance:  So You Think You Can (Read About) Dance

Review Excerpts: ”A multi-layered and absorbing good read by a promising debut novelist.”–Kirkus Reviews

“Exhilaration and drudgery, passion and exhaustion, exist side by side for dancers in the exalted Manhattan Ballet, a world unto itself, which Flack (a former New York City Ballet dancer) brings vividly to life in this strong debut.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“…[A]n entertaining read, shedding light on a world most readers know nothing about. After the success of the Oscar-winning Black Swan, this title will appeal to dancers and those with two left feet.”–School Library Journal

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  Heavy rains have caused the Williamette River to swell, threatening the city of Portland.  Several people have been caught in the swiftly rising waters and appear to have drowned.  The medical examiner discovers that the latest victim was poisoned before she ever went into the water.  Other drownings are soon shown to be poisonings as well, and Archie Sheridan has a new serial killer on his radar.  Susan Ward is sure that the killings have something to do with the Vanport Flood of 1948.  Archie and Susan are racing against the rising waters, trying to track a killer without becoming his next victim.

Critical Analysis:  It hardly seems fair to the author or the reader to advertise this as book 4 in the Archie Sheridan/Gretchen Lowell series.  Gretchen barely makes an appearance, and when she does, it is secondary to the action and the story.  Don’t worry, there is still plenty of action, thrills, suspense and murder to go around.  But even more than that, the looming presence of the river, the rain and the rising waters add to the atmosphere, sense of place, a sense of urgency.  The story feels leaner and tighter than the previous entries in the series, perhaps because the focus really is on the core group of Archie and Susan with Henry and Clare, and the events are clustered within a short time frame.  It seems reviews are quite mixed, but count me as one who is pleased to see that Cain can write quite a story without an assist from the Beauty Killer.

Review Excerpts: “Perfect for readers who want to mix true crime history with their contemporary serial killers….The pace is as relentless as the floodwaters engulfing Portland.”–Library Journal

“[T[he story is deftly handled, the suspense is plentiful and Cain’s evocation of the gloomy atmosphere and Portland setting is superb.”–Kirkus Reviews

“Cain easily weaves the history of the real-life Vanport flood with her trademark heart-stopping moments, and fans will be pleased to see the series flourishing without Gretchen on every page.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“The enveloping floodwaters are every bit as terrifying as the octopus-toting killer (many of the key action scenes take place in or under the black water), and the river itself takes on a kind of evil persona, a superhuman antagonist of unfathomable power.”–Booklist

Reviewed from public library audio book.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Plot Summary:  Teens Keri, Janna and Sione have something in common.  All had an older brother who committed suicide.  Janna tells Keri she and summer fling Sione think it might have been murder, with a pattern of deaths stretching back for years.  They try and catch the person responsible, but when they get close, strange and dangerous things start to happen.  Will they stop the killer from striking again?  Or end up victims themselves?

Critical Analysis:  I have a hard time writing about a book like this, as I don’t want to give too much away, so here goes nothing.

I hesitate to call this novel paranormal.  For me, as of late, that term invokes visions of vampires, werewolves and ghosts in a sort of other world that might look like our world but is different.  Healey instead gives the reader something real.  Real feelings both on the part of the main characters and the secondary ones.  Grief and fear and a need to do something, to take control.   Human feelings and motives that drive actions both good and bad.  This reality adds a layer of fear and suspense and emotion to the events as they unfold.  This story, the setting, and the characters as so well realized that days after finishing the book, I can see it in my mind, playing like a movie.  (It would be an excellent teen horror movie I think.)

Readalikes:  I was reminded of Shirley Jackson’s short story, The Lottery and of Margo Lanagan’s Singing My Sister Down.

Review Excerpts:  ”[A]n intense and powerful novel that explores the effect of suicide on families….skillfully keeps her characters on an emotional roller-coaster even as they deal with physical threats. The climax delivers a gut punch that only underscores the sensitivity of the subject matter (without lessening the thrill at all).”–Publisher’s Weekly

“Healey has got a whopper of a concept here, and strong main characters to make the most of it. It is easy to identify with at least one of the trio—shattered Keri, lovely Janna, soulful Sione—and get swept up in the mystery that surrounds them as they work to protect Takeshi and Aroha, who are endearing.”–VOYA

“Told in alternating chapters by the teens, the story unfolds at an even pace, with the characters developing into fully realized and distinctly different personalities. Healey merges Maori and Samoan words and cultural influences throughout the text. A good choice for teens who prefer their fantasies mixed with more realism.”–School Library Journal

“…Healey (Guardian of the Dead, 2010) seamlessly integrates noir and fantasy tropes to explore issues of suicide, trust, sexuality, race, insecurity and free will in a way that feels fresh.”–Kirkus Reviews

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.

Bibliography

Plot Summary:  The summer before eighth grade, and Drew is working in her mother’s cheese shop where she hangs out with surf bum Nick (who she also has a crush on.)  When she isn’t working, she plays with her pet rat and ponders her dead father’s Book of Lists.  When she met Emmett in the alley behind the shop after closing one night, she never expected the friendship and adventure that would follow.

Critical Analysis:  This quiet unassuming book is almost perfect.  A perfect picture of what it is like to have your everyday existence interrupted, to allow a stranger to become a friend, to widen the circle of your life.  It is about small events that change us and how we have to take a chance to grow and become the person we are going to be.  At least partially autobiographical in nature, Reinhardt’s mother also owned a gourmet cheese shop, it is also a perfect snapshot of atmosphere, time, and place.  I hope that librarians are preparing their booktalks using the details of rats, cheese and the Book of Lists to entice readers to pick this up.  They won’t be disappointed.

Review Excerpts: “Laced with mystery and fascinating details about Drew’s chief interests—rats and cheese—this quiet novel invites readers to share in its heroine’s deepest yearnings, changing moods, and difficult realizations. Strong imagery…will stay with readers.”–Publisher’s Weekly

“Reinhardt has written another book that will resonate with any readers learning to spread their wings and fly.”–School Library Journal

“[A]  lucid voice that is thoughtful and entertaining without being showy….There is a hint throughout of being a step removed that balances the immediacy of the events being related and the power of hindsight….Quiet yet immensely appealing.”–Kirkus Reviews

Reviewed from publisher provided advanced copy.  Amazon Affiliate: If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.