Review: Pushing Perfect

Pushing Perfect
by Michelle Falkoff

Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: October 25, 2016

In PUSHING PERFECT by Michelle Falkoff, Kara has strived to be perfect her entire life. She’s gotten straight A’s, been a star student, and met her parents’ absurdly high expectations time and time again. Her ultimate goal is to be accepted to Harvard University where she can finally be free of her parents’ suffocating pressure. The only roadblock in her way is the SATs. It’s the one thing that terrifies her the most. So when a new friend mentions an illicit drug, Novalert, Kara thinks it might be the perfect thing to calm her mind on test day.

Her decision to buy and take Novalert sets in motion a chain of events that will threaten her future and expose her darkest secrets. A Blocked Sender gets their hands on a picture of Kara handing over money for the drugs and Kara soon realizes that she can’t trust anyone, not even the people she thinks are her friends. She must unravel a complicated web of lies, secrets, and blackmail.

This fast-paced, unpredictable novel will keep readers on the edge of their seats. Michelle Falkoff’s characters are realistic and likable, and you will find yourself invested in Kara’s story. Full of suspense and mystery, Pushing Perfect is a page-turner. Readers will be shocked by the plot-twist at the end!  

Review: Saving Red

Saving Red 
by Sonya Sones 

Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: October 18, 2016

SAVING RED tells the story of fourteen-year-old Molly Rosenberg’s relationship with Red, a homeless teenager Molly meets in Santa Monica, California. Though their friendship begins with Molly desperately trying to complete her school’s community service requirement, the two girls quickly grow to find comfort and support in one another. Molly and Red balanced each other out very well, with Red’s outgoing spirit and Molly’s more reserved nature. One of the most exciting things about this novel was that it was written in verse, which gave it a nice flow and created a feeling of clarity and honesty in Molly’s voice as a main character. I would recommend Saving Red to anybody who is interested in reading a novel in verse, but might be afraid to try – this book would be the perfect place to start.

Review: Iron Cast

Iron Cast

by Destiny Soria

Publisher: Abrams/ Amulet

Publication Date: October 11, 2016

Nightclubs. Jazz. Flappers. And magic? IRON CAST artfully combines all of the above, following two best friends employed by Boston’s most notorious gangster, Johnny Dervish. On the surface, Ada and Corrinne could not be more different: multiracial Ada is the first in her family to be born in America, while Corrine is an heiress with nothing to lose. However, both are “hemopaths”, born with the ability to create magical illusions: Ada through music and Corinne through her voice. They perform in the Cast Iron nightclub by night and con rich folks by day for mob boss Dervish, but their entire existence is threatened when Ada is trapped by those who would use her powers for far more sinister means. Sora’s world of magic, mobsters, and the glamorous forbidden nightclubs of the 1920’s combines the forbidden decadence of the Prohibition Era that has captivated audience for decades with fresh, complex characters and an exciting plot. Her writing itself is enthrallingly descriptive and tempered with just the right amount of darkness to keep readers on the edge of their seats. The action-packed plot also incorporates social issues of the time, such as racial equality and women’s rights, in a way that is informative without disrupting the flow of the novel. I highly recommend this book to fans of all genres.

Review: Every Hidden Thing

Every Hidden Thing
by Kenneth Oppel

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 11, 2016

EVERY HIDDEN THING by Kenneth Oppel is a compelling story that is quite similar to Romeo and Juliet. There are two rival families, the Bolts and the Cartlands, who are attempting to be the first to discover a massive set of dinosaur bones, and the two teenagers of the respective families, Samuel and Rachel, are brought together. Although this is very different than books that I usually read, as I am into mainly action and adventure books, the romance does not take up the entire story, and there is still plenty of suspense to keep me interested. I enjoyed the book largely due to this mix of action and romance, and I feel as if other people would enjoy it too. Overall, I had a great experience reading this book and would definitely recommend it to others.

Review: Lost Stars

Lost Stars
by Lisa Selin Davis

Publisher: HMH Books
Publication Date: October 4, 2016

LOST STARS by Lisa Selin Davis is a coming of age novel that demonstrates the close bond between siblings and the profound influence that death has upon adolescents. Davis thoughtfully incorporates a multitude of references to 80's music and pop culture into the plot, using song lyrics to highlight protagonist Carrie’s development throughout the novel. While this novel may seem cliched at first (the ever-present love interest, tyrannical father, absent mother, and teenage angst tropes are all featured in this novel), the story ultimately centers around Carrie’s attempts to cope with her elder sister’s death. I found this novel to be engaging and thoughtfully written, and thought that the well-placed astronomy metaphors were distinct without being the focus of the story.

Review: Level Grind

Level Grind
by Annie Bellet

Publisher: Saga Press
Publication Date: October 4, 2016

In the fantasy book, Level Grind, by Annie Bellet, Jade Crow, a 50 year old sorceress, is running from her ex boyfriend, Samir, who is trying to eat her heart to gain her power. Jade runs a comic book shop with her friend Harper, a shifter who can turn into an animal. She and two other shifters help out Jade throughout the book, and they also have the assistance of Alek, another shifter who works for what shifters consider to be gods. This book is comprised of four novellas (Justice Calling, Murder of Crows, Pack of Lies, and Hunting Season), which form a chronological story. In each of the four stories, there is a main antagonist who is trying to accomplish something evil, while the threat of Samir lurks in the background. Even in the last story, Samir is not the bad guy that Jade and her friends are trying to stop.

I felt that more should have been added to some of the stories. Something bad happens, they find out why, they try to stop it and end eventually succeed, all while Jade is trying to strengthen her magic . The stories are fairly straightforward, and I think it would have been better if there was more of a plot twist per story.  At the end of each story, many of its key points are concluded, leaving not very much room for an effective cliffhanger. I think that the romance in this book does not contribute much to the story, or the development of the characters. I like that this book is fast paced at each climax and that there are small bits of detective work done to figure out what is going on for both the characters and the reader. The reader can try to figure out what is happening before the story reveals it. There are also many references to TV shows, games, comics, movies, and video games that you will only understand if you know about the specific content.

While I enjoyed reading this book, I am not sure if I would read the sequels. Nothing happens in the book that makes me want to instantly have and read the next book. I did not love nor hate this book, but I think it would have been more enjoyable if it was targeted to a more specific age.

Review: Spare and Found Parts

Spare and Found Parts
by Sarah Maria Griffin

Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Publication Date: October 4, 2016

Spare and Found Parts is about a girl named Nell Crane with a ticking heart who lives in a city devastated by an epidemic, and who decides to create a robot companion. The author's writing style is one that might be a little confusing at first, but then adds to the total effect of the book. I enjoyed the plot and how people are afraid of computers ever since some mysterious epidemic devastated the people on this island. I wish that the author would elaborate a bit more on what exactly happened, because I feel like it would add a lot to the total story. I also liked how she introduced different cool aspects, like secret societies, throughout the book, but I feel as if she sometimes used them as plot devices and could have used them more to improve the total story. If there were a second book, I probably would read it to see where the characters go and hopefully find out more about this novel's mysterious past. I think people who are fans of futuristic post-disaster books will enjoy this book because there are lots of cautionary notes about the dangers of technology.