Six of Crows

Who doesn't love a heist? Take six misfits with varying talents. Offer them money, big money, life changing money. Send them into an impossible situation. Throw as many challenges in their way as you can. Put them in mortal danger at every turn. Oh- what's missing you say? How about some tricky romances? Put those all together and you have the next great series from Leigh Bardugo. You may know her from the Grisha Trilogy. Well, move over Alina- Kaz Brekker is here. Katz is the leader of the Crows. He is broody, talented and out for revenge for past wrongs. Then there is Inej, the Wraith. She can get in anywhere- including Kaz's heart. Jesper, the clown, always down for an adventure. Wylan, the rich man's son, harboring a secret. Matthias, the Grisha hunter and Nina, the Grisha he is in love with- even if he can't admit it. These six crows set out on a mission that means sure death. Or the greatest payday of their lives. I LOVED this book. Each character is finely crafted and their backstories will break your heart. The mission is worthy of the risk. The mysterious Kaz will be forever on my favorite fictional boys list. Not as high as Will of course, but right next to Han, another of my favorite thieves. Bardugo has created a world that is filled with stories yet to be told, with characters that will cling to you long after you have left them to their mission. I think I liked it more than the Grisha series- more characters to love. But you can't go wrong with either. So pick this up and put it in someone's stocking and then steal if for yourself. Just make sure you are sneaky about it. Happy reading my friends and Merry Christmas!

Carry On

Well, Rainbow Rowell is three for three. First I fell in love with Eleanor and Park. Then Fangirl. And now Carry On. This is the story of Simon Snow and Baz, the fictional characters that Cath writes about in Fangirl. Rowell has taken this story within a story and made it a story of it's own. Confused? Don't be. This is a story that stands on it's own. It is a Harry Potter for a more mature audience. Simon is at Watford School for Magicians. He is roommates with his evil archenemy Baz Pitch. Pitch is a vampire, maybe. He is always out to kill Simon, maybe. They will be the death of each other, maybe. Simon has his faithful sidekick Penny and his uninterested girlfriend Agatha. He is seemingly always about to be killed by some horrible monster and has no control of his immense store of magic. He is the Mage's Heir. He is destined for great things. He just doesn't know what. There is an unlikely love story that I loved. There is magic. Heroic deeds. And the most hilarious spells ever! This is an amazingly funny story with a touching heart. I couldn't get enough. It is told from many points of view which gave great insight into everyone's perspective. I can't say enough nice things about this book. I'm sad it's over. I don't think there will be more, but I will cast my spell, I wish I may, I wish I might that this isn't the last I've read about Simon and Baz. If you haven't spent any time in Rainbow Rowell's worlds, run, don't walk to the nearest place to get books and take your pick. Happy reading my friends!

Slated

Kyla has been in the hospital for nine month and now she is going home to her family. A family she has never met. In fact, she doesn't know who she is or why she was slated. Only criminals are slated- minds wiped and given a second chance. Kyla must find a way to fit into her new family. She is monitored by her Levo which is wired into her wrist and keeps track of her emotions. If she gets to upset or sad or angry, she will pass out or worse, die. But Kyla starts to have memories of her previous self. She is more alert than most slated. When others start to disappear, Kyla gets her friend Ben involved. But Ben is not as savvy as Kyla and he isn't content to sit back and observe. Kyla must try to convince him not to do anything stupid, like join the AGT terrorist group. Society is divided to two factions trying to control their population. The closer Kyla gets to the truth of her life, the more danger she and her new family are in. She is determined to find Ben and figure out her place in both the past and the present. I enjoyed this novel. No one is what they seem, everyone seems to have major secrets that will somehow impact the plot. Not sure what they are yet, as this is, of course, book one. Kyla is no damsel in distress and I look forward to seeing what her true skills are. Happy reading my friends.

Another Day

I love David Levithan's books. Haven't read one I disliked. One of my favorites was Everyday. It is the story of A, who jumps to a new body every day. He meets Rhiannon and falls in love and for the first time, tells someone about his life and his rules. He leaves her with Alexander, in hopes she can find happiness with him. Well this book is the same story from Rhiannon's point of view. It shares her feelings as she learns of A's life, his feelings for her, and her dysfunctional relationship with Justin. She must decide if the outside of a person matters if you love the inside. She must decide if she can deal with the life A presents to her. She must decide if her own happiness is more important than what other people think. I couldn't put this book down. I put off reading it for a while because the first one made me sad and happy, but mostly sad. This one leave me with more hope. If I could send David Levithan a post-it note, it would have a big, red heart on it. It doesn't matter which book you read first, it just matters that you read these books. It will make you question what is important and reaffirm that YOU are important. The kids in my classes who have read this will love this tale told from the other side. Know I did! Happy reading my friends!

After the End

Well, that was fast. I picked up this book earlier today and couldn't put it down. This is Juneau's story. She is living in post apocalyptic Alaska with her clan. She is set to become the Sage of her clan when she gets older. When she is out on a hunt, her clan goes missing and she sets off to find them. To do this she must go outside the barrier her clan has set. Only one thing- there was no apocalypse. There was no WWIII. Life is normal outside their isolated land. Miles is the spoiled son of a pharmaceutical
owner. He is biding time until he goes to Yale. He has done something stupid and is trying to get back into his father's good graces. When he hears that his father is looking for a missing Alaskan girl, he decides if he can find her, maybe his father will help him get back into Yale. Juneau gets a message to look for someone who's name will take her far. Lo and behold she finds Miles and they team up, each with ulterior motives. What they don't expect is to actually like each other, despite the betrayals. Juneau must convince him that magic can exist and Miles must defy his father to keep her safe. You see, Juneau holds the key to a revolutionary drug that Miles' father will do anything to possess. Of course, Juneau doesn't realize this is one of the multitude of lies her family has told her. Together they go on the run to find the answers Juneau is looking for as she searches for her family. I loved this book, especially the beginning when you aren't sure if these are characters in the same story! It is told in alternative chapters and the action doesn't stop. So make sure you have a couple of free hours to get lost on their journey. Looking forward to the next book, which I will be picking up on Monday! Happy reading my friends!!

Cruel Beauty

Nyx was raised to save her world. On her seventeenth birthday, she is to be married to the Gentle Lord. She is then to kill him and avenge her mother and the deal her father made. She has spent her life resenting her father for making this deal and her sister for being the twin her father loved. As she goes to her new husband, Ignifex, she finds that killing him isn't going to be as easy as she thought. Then there is Shade, who only comes out at night and looks stunningly similar to Ignifex. He is the opposite of her husband, kind and helpful. She looks to him to help her take down her husband and restore her world. But things take longer than she had planned, and Nyx finds her husband to be more and more interesting. Eventually she falls in love with him. But she has made promises to her family that they are not going to allow her to break. She must decide if she can betray the only one who has ever loved her for a family who never really cared. Her choice may reset the world and leave Ignifex and Shade to the whims of the Kindly Ones who are not what their names may imply. Nyx must find a way back through her memories to save her husband and outsmart the demons. What will this cost her? Is it a price worth paying? This book wasn't my favorite. It was okay, a little confusing in parts and probably not something I would recommend considering all the great books out there. It is an interesting concept, the duality of the villain and how that is portrayed, but not enough to make my favorites list. With only a couple of days of vacation left, my next book awaits. Not sure what it will be, but there is no end to my stack. Happy reading my friends!

Fairest

It is always interesting to see how a villain becomes a villain. Sometimes, you even feel sorry for them a little bit. But then you catch yourself and remember that just because bad things happen to you doesn't mean you have to make life miserable for others. This is the story of Levana from the Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer. It's one of my favorites and since the last book has just come out, I thought I should quickly read the companion novel of Levana. So, sitting in the sand at Newport Beach, I learned how the evil queen became the evil queen. I learned how Selene was born, how she was disposed of and how the next book will be about Winter, Levana's step daughter. I learned that Levana had a horrible childhood thanks to her eviler sister. And how she took that out on Evert, the man she loved who didn't love her back. I learned why she is determined to marry Kai. Meyer is a great writer, who has weaved so many fairy tales together into an epic series. I enjoyed this book and can't wait to get my copy of Winter so I can see who gets a happily ever after- and it better be all my favorites! Thorne, Cress, Scarlet, Wolf, Cinder and Kai. I'm counting on the end of this fairy tale series to have the ultimate fairy tale ending! Happy reading my friends!!