Purity, by Jackson Pearce

Well, this was well written, but.
I know that these Purity Balls really do happen, but it is so far from my experience that I have no idea how realistic this book was. I don't think they do them in Rhode Island, lol!
Shelby is struggling to keep the promises she made to her dying mother, but when her father wants her to participate in the Princess Ball, she worries that her promises she made her mother will counteract the vows she is supposed to make to her father about living a pure life. She figures out, with the help of her best friend Jonas, that the thing to do is to break the purity vows before the ball, so she won't be lying (???)
So Shelby starts to look for a guy to have sex with, completely overlooking Jonas, who is so obviously in love with her...
Ugh. I don't know.

Lexapros and Cons, by Aaron Caro

This was a fun, quick read that took a very empathetic look at OCD, and the humor was nice to lighten it up -unlike, say, Kissing Doorknobs or The Butterfly Clues.
The ending was kind of silly- a real John Hughes moment, but unrealistic.

Talk to the Snail, by Stephen Clarke

Another book by Stephen Clarke, but not nearly as funny as his novels. In this one, he offers insight and jokes about understanding French society, but his own voice is not nearly as enjoyable as his fictional alter-ego, Paul West. Fun, but I hope there will be another Paul West book at some point.

A Surrey State of Affairs, by Ceri Radford

Well, this was a bit of a mess- it really read like 2 books in one. The first half was a bit of a straight-up modern take on Diary of a Provincial Lady, which I do adore, but didn't translate very well to now, and the second half (well, really it came too late, more like the last quarter) was a wonderful finding-yourself kind of thing, that didn't match well with the first bit. I wish it had gone one way or the other- preferably, the other.

Two Truths and a Lie, by Sara Shepard

Another in the Lying Game series by Sara Shepard, absolutely ridic guilty pleasure YA.

Monday Mornings, by Sanjay Gupta

Really excellent, gripping novel from the incredibly impressive Sanjay Gupta.
Focusing on a group of surgeons at a prestigious teaching hospital, this was a fascinating look into the minds and backgrounds of some of the most talented and dedicated doctors in the world.
I can't imagine where Sanjay Gupta found the time to write a novel, but I'm so glad he did, and I am still thinking about some of the situations the surgeons encountered.

Welcome, Caller, This is Chloe, by Shelley Coriell

When junior Chloe is dropped by her two "best friends", and her advisor turns down her proposal to do her individual study on Villanous Vixens- The Not-So-Squeaky-Clean Women of Daytime Soap Operas, she finds herself finding refuge (and a project) trying to help turn around the school's student-run radio station.
This was a fun read, with some solid characters and a refreshing protagonist in Chloe.
I did like it that Chloe had good relationships with her family, and I found the issues her grandmother faced were handled with great sensitivity..

The List, by Siobhan Vivian

Every year, right before Homecoming, The List is anonymously released into the school, naming the Prettiest and Ugliest girls in each grade.
This had some good characterizations, and an interesting twist, and I read it in on great gulp.
It was a good read, a quick read, and one that went very well into some over-trod territory, and came out with an interesting look at how appearances can be deceiving and how motives can get so twisted.

Merde Happens, by Stephen Clarke

Yet another hysterically funny book in Clarke's international misunderstandings series featuring hapless, if handsome Paul West, this time valiantly crossing the USA in a Mini-Cooper, trying to win an international tourism promotional contest for the UK.

Pandemonium, by Lauren Oliver

Follow up to Oliver's Delirium, which I felt was a much stronger book.

In Pandemonium, Lena is in the Wilds, and fighting the system- it's very much a middle book.



Ok read, but nothing spectacular.

I Hunt Killers, by Barry Lyga

Well written thriller, with a very dark side.
Jazz can never escape his father's legacy- a serial killer who brought his young son to murders, training him to be a killer too. Now Billy the Butcher is in jail, and Jazz is trying desperately to stay home with his demented and cruel grandmother until he is 18, and can't get sucked into the foster system.
His life is as good as he imagines it could be- he has a best friend and a girlfriend, but when bodies start turning up in his small town, he feels the town's eyes upon him, and wants to solve the crimes to prove his innocence and to try to right some wrongs.
This was powerful writing, and Jazz was a really unique protagonist.

Tessa Masterson Will Go To Prom, by Emily Franklin and Brandon Halpin

This was really good. Clearly based on the Constance McMillan 'lesbian prom' controversy, it was told in alternating chapters by Tessa herself, and her lifelong best friend Lucas, who didn't realize she was a lesbian, and asked her to go to prom with him. When she tells him no, and why, he is hurt and angry, as he feels she had lied to him by not openly telling him her orientation, and in an unfortunate escalation of events, Lucas inadvertantly begins a cultural clash to their small town. National media pick up on the story, the ACLU gets involved, and Tessa, Lucas, and the town are forever changed.
I really liked the voices- all of the characters were well drawn and fleshed out, even minor characters had memorable scenes.

Freshman Year and Other Unnatural Disasters, by Meredith Zeitlin

A charming, fun, well-done bit of New Yorky fluff. A group of girls are determined to stand out in their freshman year, and each find a way to do so, through soccer, theater, boys and so on. A good bit of underage drinking, taken very casually by the 14 year old protagonist, Kelsey, but essentially a very sweet, cute novel.

Bringing Up Bebe, by Pamela Druckerman

Absolutely the best parenting book I have ever read. The first parenting book that made any sense. This made me feel so much better about being a mom, and let me shake off a lot of the guilt-trip of being an American mom. Wish I'd had this book months ago!

Vacation, by Matthew Costello

Ah, a solid, creepy, distressing and properly gory zombie apocalypse novel!!!
After how much Sadie Walker is Stranded, I was almost loath to start this one, but this title did not disappoint.
NYPD cop Jack is badly hurt in a Can Head fighting incident that left his partner dead, and he is off duty to recover. His wife and kids want to get out of their fenced in Staten Island zone, so they set off for a terrifying road trip to the Adirondacks, to Paterville Family Camp, reputed to be safe and secure.
After getting there, though, Jack and Christie find there is a hideous sinister side to the outwardly jolly camp, and their vacation turns into a nightmare.
Well written, well plotted and cinematic, this was pretty awesome.

Terrarium Craft, by Amy Aiello

Beautiful but not especially helpful book. More about creating vignettes with plants than actually creating self sustaining terrariums.

The Final Four, by Paul Volponi

Wow. I really loved this, a well characterized portrait of the members of two NCAA teams meeting up in a Final Four situation.
The Michigan State Spartans, a major player in college basketball, have a stong team with one truly exceptional freshman player in Malcolm McBride- a one-and-done guy who will play NCAA for one year to become eligible for the NBA draft. His offense skills are already legenday, and like Lamar Odom, Kobe Bryant, and Magic Johnson, he will enter the NBA draft and go pro as soon as he can. His appetite for victory and his arrogance/confidence make him a bad team player, but the coach wants this prodigy player to take them far.
The Troy University Trojan are a total cinderella team- like Gonzaga in 1990, they have played far beyond everyone's expectations, and the future of the school's program will change based on their performance at the Championship, and their coach has suddenly stepped into the big leagues. Their 'star' player is defense player Roko Bacic, a red-headed Croatian who moved to America in high school after his uncle was assasinated for uncovering mafia corruption in the war-torn country. Growing up in rural Alabama, Roko's only scholarship offer came from the low-seeded school, but a team who may be tighter than the Spartans.
There are actually fantastic characterization of almost all the other players, and of the coaches as well- I really felt like many of these were very fully fleshed out, with lots of shades of grey...The writing seemed strong and descriptive to me, and I loved the kind of moral ambiguity that made most of the book so strong.

The Girl Who Could Silence The Wind, by Meg Medina

This was a lovely, moving story set in a magical-realism Latin America.
Sonia Ocampo was born the night a terrible storm beset her small mountain hamlet, but as she was born, the storm cleared, and miraculously, not a single villager had died. Since her birth, Sonia has been treated as a bearer of blessings, the girl to ask for prayers to cure sickness, create love, make it rain. She is exhausted from bearing the wishes of her community, and takes a chance to leave to work in the City, a long voyage by train. She knows she will miss Pancho, a young poet/bike taxi driver
In Casa Mason, the home of wealthy widow Katerina Mason, she is a housemaid rather than a angel, and she is sexually harassed by the son of the house.
When she finds her brother is missing and finds that he too was trying to come to the City but never made it, Sonia and Pancho leave to try to rescue her beloved brother.

Masque of the Red Death, by Bethany Griffin

With a terrible plague ruining the city, 16 year old Araby and her best friend April run wild in the city's notorious Debauchery Club, where only the wealthy and healthy can use drink and drugs to seek oblivion. Araby's father is the scientist who created the masks that keep citizens who can afford them safe, while the poor of the city have no protection from contagion.
When the Debauchery club doorman, Will, saves Araby from overdose one night, she begins to see that there is more to life than she knew, and soon has to decide for herself what is right and what is wrong, rather than what glamorous tattered gown she should wear to go party every night. Steampunky romantic plague-ridden dystopia- awesome!

The Daughters Join The Party, by Joanne Philbin

Weak entry into the Daughters series. New daughter Emma is the vaguely rebellious daughter of a senator about to enter a presidential campaign, and she bitches about it every damn second, until she finds she is an asset to the campaign.

Sadie Walker is Stranded, by Madeline Roux

Very middling zombie apocalypse. Frustrating, in that nothing really HAPPENED, and the book ended without any kind of resolution or even any real change.

The Age of Miracles, by Karen Thompson Walker

Breathtakingly good book.
11 year old Julia lives in Southern California, hanging out with her best friend Hanna and avoiding getting teased on the school bus when the earth starts spinning more slowly.
This was just hauntingly good- brilliant writing, a startlingly original voice, and one of the most moving coming of age stories I have ever read.

Killer Stuff and Tons of Money : Seeking History and Hidden Gems in Flea-Market America, by Maureen Stanton

Fascinating look at the life of a middle-rung antiques dealer- waking at 4 am, driving from state to state to fairs and flea markets, always searching for the one killer find, the lottery ticket, the magic piece. Great and thought provoking in the age of IKEA and crap.

The Butterfly Clues, by Kate Ellison

This was an excellent and tense thriller. Penelope, a troubled teen with obsessive compulsive issues and kelptomania, gets involved in the murder of a stripper named Sapphire. Penelope becomes obsessed with the case, and keeps going to Neverland, an area of Cleveland where runaway teens and homeless adults squat in abandoned buildings, an area her parents would never let her visit, if they were paying more attention.
In Neverland, she meets and falls for a runaway named Flynt, and keeps prying into Sapphire's murder, going so far as to try to work at the same strip club.
This was a really good read, but I felt like there were too many issues - like, dead sibling, check, drugged out mom, check, OCD, check, prom problems, of course. There were also some side plots that hardly added to the story, and it ended unconvincingly.

The Selection, by Keira Cass

Fun but predictable near-future dystopian YA.
It is time for Prince Maxon to marry, and 35 girls are chosen to compete for his hand in marriage. 16 year old America Singer is one, and despite her many reservations, blah blah blah.
Fun, but I am not sure why it's getting such huge buzz.

Winning Mars, by Jason Stoddard

Clever and fast paced near future sci-fi. After the Chinese have gone to the moon and taken the US flag down and taken the rover back to Shanghai as a souvenir, entertainment producer Jere decides to create a reality show based on winning a race on Mars. Securing funding and sponsorship is one thing, finding the perfect "cast" is another, and governmental interference threatens to shut down the show, but Jere and his girlfriend Patrice- aka Yvette Zero, one of the world's biggest interactive media stars- boldly go ahead with Winning Mars.
Fun read!!!

The Academie, by Susanne Dunlap

YA hist fic, set at a boarding school in Saint Germain where Hortense de Beauharnaise (Josephine Bonaparte's daughter), Caroline Bonaparte (Napoleon's daughter), and Eliza Monroe (daughter of the future US president all actually attended.
The writer changed their ages a bit, and of course they went to masked balls and all sorts of silliness, but it was a fun and quick read.

Running With Trains, by Michael Rosen

Novel in poetry about cows and running and Vietnam or something.

Love and Haight, by Susan Carlton

Uneven but good YA set in 1971, in San Francisco. Wanna-be hippie Chloe and her best friend MJ go to visit Chloe's free spirit aunt Kiki, but Chloe has another reason to be there- she needs an abortion. Interesting look at womens rights and the hippie scene.

The Crazy Things Girls Do For Love, by Dyan Sheldon

Charming, fun, and better-than-it's-cover YA book about what happens after a new hottie student turns the environment club into the hottest club at high school. I really enjoyed this, but did wish that the girls had had more self-respect.

Blueprints of the Afterlife, by Ryan Boudinot

Extraordinary post-apocalyptic novel. In the years after the FUS (Fucked Up Shit), residents of the Pacific Northwest are creating New York Alki on Bainbridge Island, using newman (essentially cyborg) labor, people are hooked into Bionet, which can be hacked by DJs who control them, the climate is fucked, polar bears (ACK) are gone, a rogue glacier has hunted down cities...
Overwhelming, epic stew of ideas and words, brilliantly done, but not super focused.
I loved it, it read like Bacigalupi in some ways, but I do wish it was a tiny bit tighter. So good though, and wildly different from Boudinot's first novel, Misconception, which I also thought was insanely good.

Flatscreen, by Adam Wilson

This was so much less than I was hoping for. For a book to be praised the way this one was, I hoped for a lot more than the usual mopey rich white Jewish boy on drugs in the suburbs shit that every other 'slacker' novel has as an antihero.

In fact, this was such a letdown, it deserves a whole new tag: dissapointing, for all the books that come with so much hype that I feel cheated by the blurbs and reviewers.

In The Merde For Love, by Stephen Clarke

Very funny continuation of the story started in A Year In The Merde, but this time focusing more on his ludicrous (but very frisky!) love life.

Defending Jacob, by William Landay

Fantastic, dark legal/family thriller with excellent style and a haunting end.
This reminded me in some ways of Lionel Shriver's agonizing We Need To Talk About Kevin, but with more of a thriller tone. Wonderful.

White Girl Problems, by Babe Walker

UGH. One of the worst books I've read in a long time- I can't believe I finished this shallow foul cesspit of a book.Waste of paper.

I Am J, by Cris Beam

Interesting book about a teenage transgender person. Jenifer has always wanted to be a boy, and starts looking into how to actually make that happen. Testosterone shots and surgery and all that- it was interesting, but not to me relatable.

Pretty Little Secrets, by Sara Shepard

Filler in the Pretty Little Liars series. Fun, but didn't really add to the plot.

The Fear Index, by Robert Harris

Fantastic sci-fi/financial thriller. Hedge fund genius Alex and his parter Hugo are pitching a new product to client that Alex has created to run on algorithms he has created around an AI called VIXAL 4. The AI makes trades based on the fear index and on news it gathers from thousands of sources, and the book is a great and truly chilling ride.

The Odds: A Love Story, by Stewart O'Nan

Beautifully written yet ultimately unsatifying novel from one of my favorite writers, O'Nan.  Art and Marion have lost almost everything- their marriage is fractured from infidelities and they are on the verge of losing their home. In a last desperate weekend, they revisit Niagara Falls, the site of their honeymoon, and bet their last remaining assets on a roulette wheel.

These Days Are Ours, by Michelle Haimhoff

Repellent post 9/11 novel about underachieving spoiled rich kids in NYC. From the vain and narcissistic protagonist who wants another terrorist attack to happen so she wont be under pressure to get a job to the trust fund kid who walks around with holes in his sweaters, every character was unpleasant except Adrian, a 'poor kid' who went to Brown on scholarship, and doesn't need to hang out with this pack of losers.

Death Comes to Pemberley, by P.D. James

Yet ANOTHER sequel to Pride and Prejudice, this time in the form of a mystery byt the usually talented P.D. James, but as with almost every Austen adaptation/sequel/whatever, it was pretty awful.

The A-Circuit, by Georgina Bloomberg

Pretty terrible YA about riding on a competitive level. Usual rich girl/working girl nonsense with lots of horsey stuff mixed in.

172 Hours on the Moon, by Johan Harstad

Flawed YA sci-fi. NASA in a wildly improbably decision, decides to hold a worldwide lottery for 3 teens to travel to a secret moonbase (with a trained adult astronaut crew, at least) but of course everything goes wrong.
Required too much suspension of disbelief to work.

Getting Somewhere, by Beth Neff

4 teens are offered the choice between juvenile detention, or working on a CSA farm. Each girl has different reasons for being there-  as the back of the jacket says, there's
The Junkie
The Dealer
The Thief
The Recluse
and they all have terrible secrets, and they all blah blah blah.

Was actually an absorbing read, but I feel like I've read it 8 times before.

Chopsticks, by Jessica Anthony and Rodrigo Corral

Haunting and absorbing YA graphic. Piano prodigy Glory Fleming is missing- but the events that lead up to her dissapearance are as unclear as her fate. Passionate romance, intense pressure, and  a serious obsession with playing the childrens' waltz Chopsticks add up to a dizzying, twisting graphic novel that I want to read over and over. This was one of those books where the format is so perfect for the story, and the questions that linger after the last page just make you want to start over again, focusing on every single perfectly chosen image and painting.

Various Positions, by Martha Schabas

Dark and disturbing YA about a young ballerina whose obsession with sex ruins lives. Very much Black Swan but younger.

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity, by Katherine Boo

Intense and depressing and heartbreaking and illuminating look at life in an airport slum in Mumbai. This was a harrowing read. The whole book left me wanting to hide from the world, but was certainly one of the best nonfiction books I've read in a long time.

People Who Eat Darkness: The Fate of Lucie Blackman, by Richard Parry

Intense and disturbing non-fiction account of the disappearance, search for, and ultimately, the trial of the killer of Lucie Blackman, an English girl who went to Tokyo to work as a club hostess.
Parry, who had spent a decade in Japan before Blackman's disappearance made headlines, followed the case from the start, and kept at it through the 6 year trial of the unusual Korean-minority killer who never did admit to killing Lucie, although he did admit to multiple rapes and one "accidental" death of another gaijin bar girl.
A deep look at the Japanese justice system and it's failures, but also a searching portrayal of a family when a member of that family disappears...
Great non-fiction read, for true crime fans. Would recommend to anyone who enjoyed The Devil in the White City, or similar.

Arctic Rising, by Tobias Buckell

Wow! Straight out awesome climate disaster scifi thriller. Not as well written as Bacigalupi, but a hell of a plot, and out-of-the-box refreshing protagonists made this an un-put-down-able read. Futuristic Arctic cities, climate modification schemes, chase scenes, I want this to be a movie.

Anne of Hollywood, by Carol Wolper

Well adapted take off on Anne Boleyn's story. In this adaptation, Henry Tudor is the head of a major studio, Anne and Mary are establishment party girls, Theresa Cromwell is a scheming executive who can't force Anne into her own plans, and Jane Seymore is a vapid San Fransisco socialite.
Except for beheadings, this was pretty faithful to history- and maybe in Hollywood, divorce after an airtight prenup feels like a beheading?
Fun, but not what I hoped for.