Reader: Derek D.
Age: 13
Title: Storm (The SYLO Chronicles #2)
Author: D.J. MacHale
Publisher: Razorbill
Pub Date: 03/25/14
Galley: Yes
Top 25: No
Convince us to read the book: This book is the second book in the SYLO
Chronicles series. I really liked this book because it was full of action,
suspense, and a couple of plot twists. The four main characters from the first
book - Tucker, Tori, Kent, and Olivia - grow closer together as they travel
across the country searching for answers. Even though they sometimes break each
other’s trust and get angry at each other, they always look out for one another
and stick together to the end. The situations that they get into are also very
interesting and full of action. They meet lots of characters on their cross
country quest. Most of those characters are only in a short part of the book,
but they are still noticeable. The plot of the story is very fascinating and
answers many questions from the first book, but still leaves some to be
answered in the next.
Memorable or Forgettable: The action and plot of this book helped make it
really memorable. Also, the characters and their development also made reading
this an unforgettable experience.
Cover: The cover does reflect the contents of the book,
but it only shows an image of something that happened near the end of it and
doesn’t show the overall contents of the book.
Age Range: 12 through 17
Quality: 4Q Better than most
Popularity: 4P Broad general teen appeal
tags: action / adventure / apocalyptic /
dystopian / science fiction / SYLO Chronicles
/ ya lit
Reader: Derek D.
Age: 13
Title: Seaborne #1: The Lost Prince
Author: Matt Myklusch
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Pub Date: 5/26/15
Galley: Yes
Top 25: No
Convince us to read the book: This book was an exciting story about loyalty,
morality, and betrayal. The main character, Dean, along with his former
crewmates, Ronan and Rook, search for a magical golden orchard on the legendary
island of Zenhala for a ruthless pirate king. Delivering information of the
orchard’s whereabouts will grant them their freedom to travel the world on
their own. On the island, Dean must take a series of trials to prove that he’s
a prince who was lost in a pirate raid 13 years ago. The gang quickly uncovers
a plot to assassinate Dean, which makes them question otherwise trustworthy
island leaders. As they uncover more about the island’s economics and history,
Dean and Ronan start to question if what they’re doing is following an
honorable pirate code, which is to steal only from those who can afford it or those
who deserve it. Meanwhile, Rook is loyal to the pirate king and tries to
convince Dean and Ronan to find and report the location of the orchard. The
book has lots of action, along with plot twists that will keep you reading. I
would recommend this book to anyone looking for an interesting and adventurous
read.
Memorable or Forgettable: This book had a dynamic set of characters
involved in an action filled story taking place in a beautifully described
setting. It raises a thought provoking question of how you can be an honorable
pirate and thief. All these things make this book a memorable read.
Cover: The cover features Dean rushing through the air
on his makeshift parasail that is mentioned throughout the book with the
Snapdragon by his side. It did tempt me to pick up this book and it accurately
portrayed the book’s contents.
Age Range: 12 through 13
Quality: 4Q Better than most
Popularity: 4P Broad general teen appeal
tags: adventure / mystery / pirates / ya lit
Reader: Derek D.
Age: 12
Title: Mortal Gods
Author: Kendare Blake
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pub Date: 10/14/14
Galley: Yes
Top 25: No
Convince us to read the book: This book put an exciting twist on Greek
mythology by having gods in the bodies of teenagers and having them fight other
gods, and their fates, literally, for survival. This book also contains past
heroes that have been reincarnated as high school students. Throughout the
book, the main characters, Cassandra, Henry, Andie, Hermes, and Athena, are
constantly put up against, and injured by various monsters and creatures from
Greek mythology. Also, they travel to various locations all around the world.
All this happens without their parents or other students discovering where
they've been going or what they've been doing. The parents are mentioned in the
book, though, and they do state that they think they should give their kids some
sort of punishment for always missing school, but they never do. That kept
nagging at me as I was reading this book and I kept waiting for an explanation,
but never found one, or if there was it wasn't made clear enough to notice. This was just a minor thing that didn't subtract much from the plot,
but a clear explanation would make the story more believable. The characters
really grew closer to each other as the book progressed and the plot kept
getting thicker and the book harder to put down. Overall, I really am loving
this series and can't wait to get my hands on the next book.
Memorable or Forgettable: The book's modern spin on a rich set of
characters from various Greek myths made this book memorable. Also, the
cliffhanger ending will be something I will never forget.
Cover: As I was looking through the shelves for a book
to check out, this one immediately grabbed my attention because of the title,
Mortal Gods, displayed in large font. I am a fan of anything having to do with
Greek mythology, so I immediately checked out this book and its prequel. When I
looked closer at the cover, I saw a girl coming out of what looks like a cave
and looking at a building that looked like Greek architecture, most likely
Olympus, which made me think that at some point in the book a character will
visit the famous palace of the gods. I was correct, which shows that the cover
does portray the content of the book.
Age Range: 12 through 15
Quality: 4Q Better than most
Popularity: 3P Some teen appeal
tags: fantasy / Greek mythology / paranormal / romance / Goddess war / ya lit
Reader: Derek D.
Age: 12
Title: The League of Seven
Author: Alan Gratz
Publisher: Starscape
Pub Date: 08/19/14
Galley: Yes
Top 25: No
Convince us to read the book: Anyone interested in clockwork automatons, secret societies, alternate histories, monsters that lurk in shadows, or an overall creative world, should be sure to pick up a copy of The League of Seven. I really enjoyed how this book tied heroes from legends into the secret history of a world where Native Americans and Yankees are banded together under the United Nations and the internet is a series of tubes. The plot of the book really kept me interested, as it warped some of history's greatest inventors into power hungry villains or paranoid scientists. The characters really developed as they came closer together to prevent the rising of the Mangleborn. This book was a really fun and enjoyable read.
Memorable or Forgettable: The creative world and interesting play on history and historical figures really make this book memorable.
Cover: The cover tempted me to pick up this book because of all the different types of characters and things happening to them that are shown. Right off the bat, I see a mustached robot, a girl with small brass animals hovering around her, and a boy that is covered in black lines and doesn't seem to notice that he's being electrocuted. All these things made me curious to figure out how they tied into the book. The cover did a really good job of reflecting the books contents and showing what the characters look like.
Age Range: 12 through 13
Quality: 4Q Better than most
Popularity: 4P Broad general teen appeal
tags: fantasy / steampunk / alternate history / ya lit
