Fiction – Page 4 – Sneak Peek Books

How to Fall

Fraya is gone, but Jess is determined to discover how Fraya ended up dead at the bottom of a cliff. However, everyone just wants Jess to stop asking questions. After all, Fraya is dead and nothing will bring her back. Despite the obstacles, Jess is determined to follow the leads and find out if Fraya’s death was a suicide, like some believed, or if there was something more sinister at play.

How to Fall is an action-packed story that will have the reader on the edge of their seat to find out what will happen next. As Jess tries to unravel the secrets to Fraya’s death, she meets Ryan and Will. Both boys hate each other, and both want Jess as their own. This budding love triangle is expertly weaved into the story without taking over the mystery of Fraya.

Teens will relate to Jess because she is a likable character who isn’t afraid of the popular mean girls or being an outcast. Jess’s confidence in herself is refreshing in a character. Even though Jess is sure of herself, she doesn’t come across as smug. The romance and language are teen-appropriate and, although there is profanity, it is used sporadically. How to Fall is an enjoyable book that shows how bullying can quickly spiral out of control.

Sexual Content

Jess is going out with a boy, so she can find out what he knows about her cousin’s death. Her friend tells her to wear “Skanky jeans” so the boy talks to her.
Someone started gossiping about Jess’s cousin Freya and telling people she was a “slut.”
At the end of the story, a boy kisses Jess. “I had spent days imagining what it would be like to kiss him, but I hadn’t even come close. He kissed me like it was the start of something, or the end, and I couldn’t work out which it was, but I didn’t want to ask.”
Someone tells Jess that a boy likes “dirty girls.”
Jess goes to a party with a boy and he kisses her. “He pressed his body against mine, and with the kiosk behind me I had nowhere to go, but I didn’t have enough air to complain.”
A policeman gives Jess a ride home. Before she can get out of the car, he grabs her arm. “Slowly, deliberately, he stroked my wrist with his thumb, trialing it across the veins where the blood ran close to the surface. . .” He then wipes off her smeared lipstick. “Before I could stop him he drew his thumb along my lower lip, staring into my eyes the whole time.”

Violence

Natasha is upset that Jess has been spending time with Natasha’s ex-boyfriend. They argue and Natasha grabs Jess. “Before I could move, Natasha shot out a hand and grabbed a handful of my hair.” Natasha then tries to throw her over a cliff, but is stopped.
A character retells a story about when he and a friend were being bullied. Eventually, his friend was attacked and broke an arm.
A group of girls was bullying Freya. One day at school, “a whole group of girls cornered Freya and held her down so Natasha could cut off her ponytail.”
The story begins with Fraya running and falling off a cliff. As the story unfolds, the reader discovers that Fraya had been bullied, which eventually lead to her death.
Someone tries to kill Jess by throwing her off a cliff.

Drugs and Alcohol

A character retells a story about a boy that was “smoking dope.”

Language

Jess and another girl were arguing. The other girl tells Jess, “Don’t think you can do better than me at being a bitch.” Several times throughout the book someone is called a bitch.
Jess’s friend surprises her. Jess says, “God, Will, you scared the crap out of me.”
Someone tells Jess, “Don’t tell anyone, but I am shit-scared of heights.”

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Hide and Seek

Unapologetically curious—that’s Jess Tennant. So when her classmate, Gilly Poynter disappears, Jess decides she must investigate. With only Gilly’s diary as a clue, Jess finds out that Gilly’s home life wasn’t happy, and her social life was a mess. As Jess tries to find out what happened to Gilly, she discovers that the police and her boyfriend want her to keep clear of the case. But Jess is convinced that she can help find Gilly and unlock the secrets that want to remain hidden.

Although most of Hide and Seek revolves around the mystery of Gilly’s disappearance, it also delves into the complicated relationships between people. Jess’s boyfriend is back in town for Christmas break, but instead of spending time together, they are arguing. To add conflict to the story, Jess’s dad is in town trying to win over his ex-wife, which Jess is hoping doesn’t happen.

Jess Tennant is a charismatic character who has the reader running with her from the start. Hide and Seek contains mystery, suspense, and complicated relationships that keep the reader guessing. The characters in the book are complicated and real.

For teens who like mysteries, Hide and Seek tells a good story without adding graphic images of sex and violence. Instead, the author creates interesting characters that drive the action and keep the reader interesting.

Sexual Content

One of the characters is seen kissing his girlfriend. “She grabbed hold of him and kissed him back, pressing her body into his. One of his hands slid down her back, his fingers spreading, digging into her flesh.”
Jess’s boyfriend’s father lectures her on, “taking the appropriate precautions.” Jess is upset by the talk because, “it wasn’t even relevant, currently. We hadn’t. We hadn’t even talked about it.”
Jess kisses her boyfriend several times throughout the book. In one scene, “his mouth tasted of cinnamon and his hand was warm on my neck. His thumb stroked the skin just under my ear and I shut my eyes, lost in him.” Another time, Jess “found myself pinned against the wall. He kissed me, hard, and my heart took off, fluttering in my chest like a hummingbird.”
In her diary, Gilly described having sex with someone in the disabled toilet near the staff room. “We ended up on the floor . . . And it felt amazing. . . But the main thing is that it felt RIGHT.” Later it is revealed that the person Gilly had sex with was her history teacher.
When Jess was trying to figure out who Gill had sex with, another character goes through a list of possible people. Jess “thought of quite a large group she’d left out. The girls.”
Nessa talks about how her parents think she is a lesbian, but she hasn’t made up her mind yet. Later someone defends Nessa asking, “Why do you care if Nessa likes girls anyway? Why does it threaten you?”
The teacher kisses Gilly twice. He “turned his head and kissed her, his tongue probing her mouth.”

Violence

At a party, a group of girls confronts Gilly. One girl grabbed onto Gilly’s wrist. Then Gilly grips her glass so hard that it breaks. “Liquid started to seep between her fingers—wine mixed with oozing red blood that trickled down the backs of her hands and slid along her forearm, branching out as if her veins were suddenly, shockingly, on the outside of her body.”
Jess sees blood in Gilly’s trash can and assumes it was cutting. “I knew plenty of girls who did it, slashing their skin to ribbons in neat lines down arms or thighs, because physical pain was better than the emotional kind.”
A girl attacks another character. “Nessa grabbed him by the throat . . . Max was choking, his face red, and Nessa let go . . . I couldn’t tell if it was planned or not, but her knee collided with his nose. He jerked his head back, and a spray of blood splattered the fake snow . . .”
Two of the boys fight and the description lasts for several pages. “It wasn’t a pretty fight. It was punching and shoving and gouging eyes. It was a kick to the thigh that wrung a string of curses from Will.” Will’s father shows up and breaks up the fight.
Gilly and the teacher tie Jess to a latter and then lock her in a house that is about to be crushed by incoming waves.

Drugs and Alcohol

Jess goes to a party where alcohol is served.
Jess goes to talk to Gilly’s mother who was acting strange. “I didn’t know if she’d been drinking or if she’d taken something, but there was no way she was sober.” Later Jess discovers that Gilly’s mother had been drugged.
Jess used to live in North London, “where you could buy pretty much any drug you wanted just outside the train station.”
One of the character’s wife is ill. He tells Jess that she, “just stays in her room, popping pills and waiting for the end.”
Gilly wrote in her diary that she wished she were like everyone else, “getting drunk, having fun.”

Language

Hell is used several times. For example, when Jess thinks someone is spying on her, she asks, “What the hell are you doing?”
When Will’s father breaks up a fight, he asks, “Do you want to tell me why you and this idiot are hitting seven kinds of crap out of each other?”
When Jess is asking too many questions, she is told to “piss off.”
One of the characters calls someone a “twisted little dyke” and later someone refers to another character as a “dick.”
In her diary, Gilly uses, “Oh my God, OMFG, and F*****G.”

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

All Fall Down

Three years after her mother’s death, Grace is sent to live with her grandfather, a powerful ambassador who is too busy to spend any time with her. Thrust into a new situation, Grace isn’t sure who to trust. Grace has never been close to her childhood companion, Megan, and wonders why she would want to help her. Her new friend Noah claims to want to be her best friend. Her brother’s best friend Alexei says he’s watching out for her out of obligation. Are they really her friends or do they have other motivations for staying close to Grace?

Grace wants to keep out all thoughts of her mother’s death, but visions of her mother keep appearing. While Grace’s grandfather wants her to put on a pretty dress and attend functions at his side, Grace doesn’t seem to be able to stay out of trouble. When the mysterious Scared Man from her past appears, Grace overhears his plans to kill. Convinced that the Scared Man is responsible for killing her mother, Grace goes on a mission to stop him from killing again.

Grace narrates her own story, which allows the reader to see into her troubled mind and understand her terror. Grace believes that others think she is crazy because she witnessed her mother’s death; despite appearing completely normal, she struggles with panic attacks and visions of her mother. Grace saw her mother being shot in the chest, so why does everyone say the death was an accident?

Full of suspense, interesting characters, and plot twists, All Fall Down is an entertaining story that will leave the reader reaching for the next book in the series. For those who enjoyed the Gallagher Girls series, All Fall Down will not disappoint. However, All Fall Down has a more serious tone with more violence. Although the violence is not described in gory detail and is appropriate for younger audiences, Grace’s mother’s death is described in a detailed flashback. Even though the book is written for readers as young as twelve, as the series progresses there are some readers that will not be ready for the more mature themes.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

Feeling overwhelmed, Grace runs from the house. As she backs out of the door, a “hand grabs me from behind” and she lashes out. “A cry rises up my throat, primitive and raw, and then I’m pushing and lunging. Falling. As I land in the rosebushes, I can feel the thorns of a rosebush tearing into my skin, clinging to my clothes.” In her panic, she hit the Russian ambassador, giving him a bloody nose.
While Grace is sleeping, a boy sneaks into her room and tries to wake her up. Startled, “I wrench the boy’s hand farther back, holding his thumb with my other hand.” After they talk, they sneak out of the house to attend a party.
Grace is told a story about a royal family that was murdered. The person speaking says, “The people stormed the palace and dragged Alexander and his family from their beds.” No other description is given.
Grace thinks that the Scared Man is going to kill the Russian president so she jumps off a balcony. When she jumps, “everyone is watching as I hurl myself over the railing. Even the U.S. Secret Service can do nothing but watch as I fly through the air and crash onto the Scared Man’s back.” Later she finds out that the Scared Man was holding a cell phone, not a gun.
Someone tries to kill Grace. “There’s a fence at my back. I can’t move any farther, and that is when the prime minister lunges for me, grabbing my arms in his massive hands, squeezing like a tourniquet. . . I can’t think anymore, so I just start kicking, screaming.” She struggles with her attacker, “when my elbow makes contact with his nose, I hear a sickening snap and feel the warm gush of blood on the back of my neck.”
Grace witnessed her mother’s death. “. . . I am standing there, watching my mother fall, bloody and broken. . .” The person who tried to help her was injured. “Blood rains down his face. His left eye is swollen shut. And the skin on his left cheek is almost black with blood, singed skin, and a rugged cut that runs from brow to jaw.”

Drugs and Alcohol

Grace takes prescription pills that help her deal with anxiety. Several times she refers to the pills. When she has a panic attack she doesn’t want anyone to find out because, “It will be just like after (her mother’s death). With the pills and the shrinks and the looks.”
After Grace jumps off a balcony and lands on the Scared Man, she is given more medication. The medication makes her act differently. The medicine makes Grace shake “my body like a pendulum that can never quite stop moving.”
Someone drugs Grace so that she will go to sleep. After she takes the drugs, she thinks, “I want to argue and demand answers, but it is all I can do to focus on the glass that is falling, shattering on the floor. Two seconds later, I follow.”
Grace’s grandfather “pours himself a drink, I can tell it isn’t the first of the night. The way things are going, it almost certainly won’t be his last.”

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

See How They Run

Finding the truth about her mother’s murder was supposed to bring Grace peace. But the past still haunts her. Grace realizes that her mother carried secrets of her own, but there are those who want those secrets to stay buried. And there is someone who is willing to kill to make sure the truth never comes out.

Grace knows there are century-old secrets surrounding her family. The only thing she doesn’t know is who to trust in her search for the truth. And when a U.S. citizen is murdered on Adria soil, Grace realizes that death is just a tool that a powerful person isn’t afraid to use.

Full of suspense and intrigue, the second installment of the Embassy Row series will captivate readers and pull them into the mystery surrounding Grace. See How They Run focuses less on Grace’s friends, and their absence makes the story less interesting. Grace doesn’t trust her own decision-making skills, and often refers to her “crazy” nature. Her complicated character adds suspense to the story. The addition of Adria’s history and the murder of a royal family creates an eerie atmosphere.

For those who enjoyed the Gallagher Girls series, See How They Run will not disappoint. However, See How They Run focuses on the death of a royal family and the murder of a young man. Even though the violence is not described in detail, the story makes it clear that someone is willing to kill innocent people.

Sexual Content

At a party, a boy kisses Grace. “He is leaning closer and closer. I close my eyes and feel his lips brush mine.” The kiss ends when she shoves him back.
Alexei and Grace kiss. The first time they kiss, Grace thinks, “Spence kissed me. But this is more. More intimate. More gentle. More emotion pounds through my veins than anything any boy has ever made me feel.”

Violence

An integral part of the plot revolves around a revolt that happened 200 years ago. During the revolt, “The king, the queen, two princes and a baby girl who wasn’t even a month old yet. Five of them. They pulled them from their bed, and they killed them.” The family was murdered and their bodies were hung from the palace.
When Alexei finds out that Spence kissed Grace, Alexei “turns and pulls back his arm in one smooth motion, dropping Spence to the ground with a single blow. . . They tumble and twist and brawl closer and closer to the party.” The fight lasts over several pages, but no one is seriously hurt.
When Jamie finds out that his friend kissed Grace, he “doesn’t say a word of warning. He just hits him.” Spence’s head jerks but he stays on his feet. The boy doesn’t hit back and Jamie leaves him with a warning to leave his sister alone.
During the festival, a drunk man recognizes Alexei. Then a mob of people attacks him and Grace. “The first fist that hits Alexei knocks him nearly off his feet. He doesn’t see it coming. . . I can feel myself getting pushed, almost knocked to the ground. I lash out, kicking a man in the knee as he lunges at Alexei. But two other men are already upon him.” During the attack, Grace is stabbed in the side.
Someone bombs a car. It is unclear if the driver was killed in the explosion or if the vehicle was unoccupied.
Someone stabs Jamie. “. . . I see blood that covers Jamie’s shirt. He’s trying to press against the wound with his free hand, but it’s not working. My brother is going to bleed to death, die right in front of me.” A helicopter arrives to take him to an Army hospital in Germany. It is unclear if he will survive his wounds.

Drugs and Alcohol

In the past, Grace has been given medication for anxiety. When she has a bad dream, she blames it on “the meds that I’m not taking.”
During a festival, a man walks by Grace and her friends. She comments that the drunk’s “breath smells like liquor.”
When Grace is stabbed, someone tends to the wound and then gives her “a small glass bottle” with medicine in it to help with the pain.
Grace does not want Alexei to turn himself into the authorities, so she drugs him. “His hand goes limp . . . His legs wobble. But thankfully we are out of view of the street by the time he passes out completely and falls, sprawling on the weeds.”

Language

A character, “mumbles something that I think must be the Russian equivalent to Oh my freaking goodness.”

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Take the Key and Lock Her Up

Death is no stranger to the royal family of Adria. Centuries ago, the royal family was murdered, which changed the political landscape of Adri. However, the infant princess survived and was hidden; those who hid the child wanted her to take her rightful place as queen. Now, two hundred years later, there are still some that believe the princess’ descendent should sit on the throne.

Grace discovers that the princess’s blood runs through her veins. If people find out that Grace is a lost princess, the news could spark a revolution. Some people want to use Grace as a pawn, others want to silence her forever. Grace must figure out a way to save herself and the people she loves. Danger and deceit hide around every corner, and if Grace fails, she will pay with her life.

Take the Key and Lock Her Up is the exciting conclusion to the Embassy Row trilogy. The third book in the series ramps up the suspense because Grace isn’t sure who wants to help her and who wants to kill her. The romance heats up, but the kissing scenes are tame and appropriate for younger readers. Even though the book is written for readers as young as twelve, there are some readers that will not be ready for the more mature themes. For younger readers, the content may be disturbing because there are several scenes that focus on a mental institution and how the drugs affect the patients. In addition, Take the Key and Lock Her Up has more violence than the first two books because there are several factions that want Grace dead. The ending of the story is a bit predictable, but that doesn’t detract from the story’s enjoyment.

Sexual Content

Grace and Alexei kiss five times throughout the story. The first time, Grace brings “my free hand up and weave my fingers into Alexei’s dark hair, pull him close, and kiss him. Like maybe it’s the last thing I’ll ever do.”
Alexei kisses Grace. “. . . Alexei’s lips are on mine, and I’m not aware of anything anymore. It’s different from the kiss on the bridge. There’s no urgency now. . . This is about now—right now. No future and no past.”
Alexei and Grace kiss. “. . . His lips are on mine and my fingers are in his hair and everything fades away, the streets and the darkness. . .”

Violence

After Grace is drugged and taken to an unknown location, she escapes. “I just pick up the candlestick and throw it over my head as hard as I can . . . I can hear the chaos behind me, cries of pain and fury and fear.”
Someone is trying to capture Grace. In order to help her, Alexei throws a man over a bridge.

When a man tries to grab Grace, Alexei fights him. Grace watches “him twist, launching himself over the bigger man, and in a flash Alexei has his arms around his neck and he’s squeezing . . . The orderly slumps as Alexei cuts off his . .” At the same time, an orderly tries to drug Grace, and she throws her “hands up, catching his wrist with both hands, pressing up as he presses down.” She makes the man put the syringe in his own leg, and she and Alexei are able to escape.
Grace’s friends blow up a car. “Flaming debris fills the yard. Windshields are smashed. Tires are flattened.” No one is injured.
For no reason, a woman attacks the prince. She “slaps him hard across the face and starts kicking and clawing.” Several people pull her off of him.
Someone poisons the king, and he “pitches awkwardly forward and crashes down the massive staircase. . . (he) has landed, limp and broken, on the polished parquet floor.”
When Grace discovers a secret, someone hits her, knocking her out. Later, this person shoots a man in the chest, “and he drops to the ground.”
When a woman attacks Grace, her son shoots her. “The gun is tumbling from his hand as his mother crumbles, blood-soaked, to the floor.” The woman survives.

Drugs and Alcohol

Grace drugs someone’s tea. When Grace drugs the person, “she slumps slowly to the ground, getting mud and grass stains all over her pretty white suit.”
A guard drugs Grace. When it happens, she feels “a pinch in my neck. I turn to see a guard behind me holding a syringe.”
While walking down the street, Grace passes some drunk people and goes by a café where people are drinking wine.
Alexei’s mother was in a mental institution, where she was prescribed drugs. Grace thinks, “I don’t know what they were giving her at that facility, but I can imagine. I know better than anyone that the medicine can be far worse than the disease.”
A woman is put in a mental intuition where she is given a vial of medication. Grace thinks that the medicine is “supposed to feel like peace, like bliss. But to me they always felt like your heart was covered with frostbite. They made me so numb I actually burned.”

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

The Rosemary Spell

As Rosemary is moving into a new bedroom, she discovers a mysterious book hidden in a locked cabinet. The book used to belong to the town’s famous poet Constance, an elderly poet who has lost most of her memory. With her best friend, Rosemary tries to unravel the secret of the words. However, when they read what is written within, Shelby suddenly disappears—no one remembers her, not even her own parents.

Rosemary and Adam desperately try to figure out how to keep Shelby’s memory alive and how to bring her back. As they embark on their quest, they need Constance’s help, but her memory is fleeting. The two aren’t sure how to get the answers they need to break the spell. And as each minute passes, memories of Shelby are harder and harder to remember.

Right from the start, The Rosemary Spell will capture readers’ hearts with the characters. The mystery of the old book adds just a bit of creepiness without being scary. The Rosemary Spell is full of suspense, but what really drives the book is the close relationship between the three characters. Throughout the story, the reader will also gain insight into Rosemary’s feels of being abandoned by her father, as well as how Alzheimer’s affects the elderly. In the end, Rosemary learns that “There is loss in life, and the best we can do is face it head-on and meet it with grace and remembrance.”

Sexual Content

None

Violence

During a storm, Adam and Rosemary take a small boat across a swollen river. Rosemary injures her arm. “Swearwords I have never spoken, that I didn’t even know I knew, rise up inside me, but I keep my mouth shut. If I open my mouth, I’ll throw up.”
Adam, Rosemary, and Shelby try to cross back over the swollen river, and the three almost drown.

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

Adam and Rosemary find an ancient book that has writing that appears and disappears. The book also has a spell, which when read out loud makes whoever hears it no longer exist. Not knowing it is a spell, Adam and Rosemary say it, and Adam’s sister, Shelby disappears.
When Adam and Rosemary repeat a line from Shakespeare, “Rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray, love, remember,” they remember Shelby.

Spiritual Content

None

5 to 1

Women rule the land. Women are respected. Women built Koyanagar into a country where women could do anything. But to accomplish this, they had to put men into their place.

If they want chance at having a better life, the boys of Koyanagar must compete for a wife. Those who do not have a wife—and do not give their wife a female child—will be forced to guard the wall. Everyone knows once you’re sent to guard the wall, it’s only a matter of time until you end up dead.

Sudasa should feel excited about having young men compete for her hand in marriage. As she watches the test though, she realizes her cousin is among the contestants and has been given an unfair advantage over the others. Someone wants to make sure her cousin is the clear winner of the test.

The only boy who could possibly beat Sudasa’s cousin is Kiren. But there’s a slight problem, as Kiren hopes to gain his freedom by losing the test. Sudasa knows that Kiren may be her only hope in avoiding a marriage to a cousin who she despises. Yet, she also knows that Kiren doesn’t want to win the test and be forced to marry her. As she wrestles with the right thing to do—for herself and for Kiren—she discovers Koyanagar isn’t based on fairness at all.

5 to 1 is written from both Sudasa’s and Kiren’s point of view. Sudasa’s story is written in verse; however after reading the first page, the reader will be so engrossed in the story that they forget that they are reading poetry. Because Kiren’s point of view is in prose, it is easy to keep track of which character is speaking.

The world of Koyanagar is mesmerizing and unique. The characters come to life and add interest to the story. The two main characters drive the action. Both characters are struggling to do the right thing, and in doing so they capture the reader’s heart.

The only down side of 5 to 1 is the story ended without having the conflict completely resolved. The end of the book is frustrating because Kiran and Sudasa’s fates are unclear.

Sexual Content

In a speech, the president talks about when girls were sold, “to the highest bidder.” And some were, “raped, fated for ruin.”
One of the contestants tells a guard, “I bet you wish it was still the old country, huh? A man should be able to stick it to his wife whenever he wants, and if she doesn’t like it, he should be able to slap her senseless.”
A contestant tells Sudasa, “You’ll be the one sweating in our marriage bed.” When she slaps him, he laughs at her.

Violence

Abortion is talked about throughout the book. Before Koyanagar became a country, many families aborted girl children. Now women abort boy children.
The president of the country tells the people, “The people took their money and spent it on illegal ultrasounds. If they didn’t hear the words ‘It’s a boy,’ they spent more money on doctors who could quietly made the problem go away. If they couldn’t afford these luxuries, they waited nine months and then took care of things themselves. Some abandoned their baby girls in a park, knowing they would be sold to lands far away. Other used a towel. A pail. And a grave.”
There are several references to Agnimar Cliff where young men go to jump off the wall and end their life. Boys who are weak or do not want to be trained to guard the wall jump off Agnimar Cliff.
A boy was killed because he, “refused to tell the State where his girlfriend was hiding.”
Sudasa’s sister says that she would abort a baby if it was a boy. She would do this even if abortion is illegal. When Sudasa protest, her sister says, “You saw that disabled boy competing for you. Do you think a mother would want a boy like that in her belly?”

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

People wanted boy children because they could, “attend their funeral pyres and release their souls to heaven.” A character gives a boy a proper funeral pyre to “free the boy’s soul for rebirth.”
Being invited to be a part of the marriage test is supposed to be an honor. “That’s what she keeps saying, as if the mere act of being invited to fight for one’s life is a gift from the gods we’re not supposed to believe in anymore. I don’t believe in them, but not because religion has been banned . . . I just don’t think a being that’s good and fair would lie a place like Koyanagar exist.”

Better Off Undead

Adrian Lazarus has always felt like an outcast. But now that he’s dead, life gets even worse. Even though Adrian does not have a beating heart, he still feels the pain of people talking behind his back. When the school bully, Daryl, decides to target him, Adrian isn’t sure what to do. Then a mysterious girl, a beekeeping boy, and a seventh-grade sleuth enter his life. Can his friends help Adrian stay safe?

Now that Adrian is a zombie, he notices that the world is changing. Forest fires burn, super-flues spread, and bees vanish. While advertisements claim everyone is safe, Adrian and his friends are worried. Is there anything they can do to help the earth?

Better of Undead takes a humorous look at the inside of a junior high school and explores the need to fit in. When the school bully targets Adrian, he and his friends come up with an interesting way to stop the bullying. As Adrian suffers through junior high, he learns that being beautiful isn’t important. It’s what inside that matters. He also realizes that he does not have to let his zombie instincts take over.

Adrian tells his story in a humorous way that will make readers laugh. At the end of the story, the action slows as the author reinforces the messages. One message is that the environment is changing and you should do something about it. The danger of having personal data mined is also shown.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

Daryl, the school bully, pushes a girl and then hits Adrian in the face. “He turned away from me, head ducking down, then turned back and landed a sharp, compact punch to my face.”
Gia talks about all of the bad things that have happened. “Outside Quebec, massive fireballs incinerated part of a town. Thirty buildings melted into a thick greasy mass. Cars burned like crumpled paper. Forty-seven people died, and five of those bodies were never found. They were vaporized by the sudden blast of radiant heat.”
Adrian found a dead squirrel outside of his house and ate it. “A fresh kill, blood still leaking from its nose, but otherwise not too shabby.”
Adrian is taken to see a man who is interested in learning about Adrian’s condition. When a bodyguard tries to block his path, he thinks about biting him. “I felt a surge of power inside me that was beyond myself. It was something other, and greater, than my ordinary being . . . My eyes locked on the vein in the bodyguard’s neck. As I was about to attack, teeth bared. . . “
In order to trick the school bully, Adrian and his friend stage a fight at a school dance. “Adrian grabbed Zander by the shoulder, spun him around, and landed a right cross to his face. Zander fell backwards . . .” The two are kicked out of the dance and meet in the woods. “Zander charged forward, tackling me to the ground. . . Zander gained the advantage and viciously kicked me in the stomach . . . I leaped on Zander’s fallen body . . . I burst a large packet of fake blood that had been planted inside Zander’s shirt. While Zander shrieked in agony, my two hands tore up the string of sausage that had been hidden in the hollow. They dripped with bloody sauce.”
A doctor wants to run experiments on Adrian. In order to get him to agree, Adrian’s little brother and Adrian’s friends are kidnapped and held hostage. In order to escape, Zander “was punching the bodyguard on the head . . . The guard shrugged him off and with one backhanded blow swatted Zander to the ground . . . He snarled and gave me a two-handed shove that propelled me into the window. My forehead cracked against the thick pane.” When the house catches on fire, everyone is able to escape.

Drugs and Alcohol

Pretty Pillz are mentioned several times. The Pillz claim to make everyone beautiful. “It’s as easy as swallowing a pill.”

Language

Profanity is used rarely, but includes: jerkwads, school butt, hell, and damn.
A kids at the smells the air near Adrian and says, “Stinks in here, don’t it? I mean, crap, it’s totally disgusting.”
A kid at school threatens to kick Adrian’s butt. When someone tells him to stop, the kid says, “Who. . . in the hell . . . are you?”
After being hit, Adrian yells, “Get out of here now or I’ll fire-trucking eat your brains! Only I didn’t say ‘fire-trucking.’ Because, like, who would? Is it even a word? No, I said a different f-word, one that I have heard before, plenty of times (I used to ride the school bus, after all).”
“Oh my God” is said several times. When told a story, Adrian replies, “Oh my God.”

Supernatural

Adrian dies when hit by a car. He describes himself as a “shuffler, ankle-dragger, shape-shifter, howler, freak. I am a living dad, soulless corpse, brain-sucker, crawler, spitter, wraith, wuss, dumb butt, flailer, mutant, haunt.”
Gia, who is allergic to bees, was stung by a swarm of them. “I woke up. I was alive, and I wasn’t supposed to be alive. . . That’s when I saw her, the queen bee. She sat on my chest, and I swear, Adrian, we regarded each other in perfect silence, like equals. . . And she spoke.” The queen bee told Gia, “It all connects.”

Spiritual Content

None

The Friendship Code

Lucy is excited to join the new coding club at school. She wants to learn how to code so she can create an app to help her uncle who has cancer. But once coding club begins, Lucy is frustrated because she isn’t learning as quickly as she wants. To make the situation worse, Lucy is put in a group with several girls she barely knows.

Lucy finds a cryptic coding message taped to her locker. She needs help translating the messages and the only people who can help are the girls from her coding club. As Lucy tries to discover who is sending the secret messages, she learns that coding and friendship take time, dedication, and some laughs.

The Friendship Code is the first book in the Girls Who Code series. The Friendship Code is an easy-to-read, enjoyable story. Readers will relate to Lucy as she struggles to make new friends. Like many girls, Lucy is fearful that others will judge her based on her appearance, and she struggles to fix a friendship that ended because of a misunderstanding. At the end of the story, Lucy learns the importance of friends helping each other.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

None

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Wishtree

Red, an oak tree, has watched over his neighborhood for generations. As a “wishtree,” people have been putting their wishes on Red’s branches. Through his time watching and hearing people’s wishes, Red has gained much wisdom. Still, people confuse him.

Red’s best friend, a crow named Bongo, and the animals that live in Red’s hollows give Red’s life a sense of meaning. But when a new family moves into the house across from Red, he wishes that he could do something for the sad little girl who sits at the base of his trunk every night.

Red narrates this beautiful story about the complicated nature of friendship. Red comes alive and shines with personality in Wishtree. The story deals with the complicated issue of people who hate, but the themes are dealt with in a kid-friendly manner. Red’s animal friends come alive and bring a touch of humor to the story. Although Wishtree was written for 10- to 14-year-olds, the story will captivate an older audience as well.

Sexual Content

Red explains that he is different than other trees. “Some trees are male. Some trees are female. And some, like me, are both . . . call me she. Call me he. Anything will work.”

Violence

A boy carves the words “leave” into Red’s bark. “I couldn’t tell what he was carving, of course. But I could tell from the determined way he moved that it was meant to hurt.”
Red talks about some things that happen in his neighborhood. “Someone threw raw eggs at the blue house. One afternoon, a car passed by, filled with angry men yelling angry things, things like ‘Muslims, get out!’”
Someone throws raw eggs at Red. “Splat. Splat. Two more times, and the car roared off with a screech of tires.”
Bongo leaves a “large deposit” on the boy who carved the words into Red’s trunk.

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

The One and Only Ivan

Ivan once lived in a jungle, now he lives in a small domain at Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade. He spends his time watching the people who come by and television shows. Ivan doesn’t think about his life in the jungle, instead, he is content to talk to his friends Stella, an elephant, and Bob, a dog.

Ivan also likes to draw pictures. His favorite thing to draw is a banana. No one seems to understand his art, except for Julia, a little girl who sits outside of his domain in the evenings when her father works cleaning the mall.

Ivan thinks he is content with his life until he meets Ruby, a baby elephant who was taken from her family. Ruby makes Ivan remember what his life was like when he lived in the jungle and what it means to be a silverback—a protector. With the help of his artwork, Ivan hopes to help Ruby escape living in her domain at Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade.

Ivan’s first-person narrative is a touching story about Ivan’s friendships and his love of art. Through his eyes, the reader is introduced to how captive animals are treated. Although the story is told with humor, the topic may be upsetting for more sensitive readers. In the end, Ivan and his friends finally have a happy home that will make the reader smile.

Sexual Content

Ivan likes to watch romance shows on the television. “In a romance there is much hugging and sometimes face licking.” Commercials also have people that have people that “face lick.”

Violence

A claw-stick is used to punish elephants when they do not listen to their trainer. “Once Stella saw a trainer hit a bull elephant with a claw-stick. . . when the claw-stick caught in the bull’s flesh, he tossed the trainer into the air with his tusk. The man flew, Stella said, like an ugly bird.”
When poked with a claw-stick, Ruby hits her trainer with her trunk. “. . . I know he must be uncomfortable, because Mack drops the claw-stick and falls down on the ground and curls into a ball and howls like a baby.”
Bob, a dog, “used to have three brothers and two sisters. Humans tossed them out of a truck onto the freeway when they were a few weeks old. Bob rolled into a ditch. The others did not.”
Ivan’s family is killed by humans. “They shot my father next. Then they chopped off their (his family’s) hands, their feet, their heads.” The hands were used to make ashtrays.

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

The Bard and the Beast

Playing with his dragon, having a toad race, and having a berry war with Clara—these are the things that are important to Prince Lucas. When Queen Tasha decides that Lucas will learn to play a musical instrument, he is reluctant to go to lessons. Even when a traveling bard comes to the castle, Lucas still isn’t convinced that music can be magical. When the two go for a walk, Lucas takes the bard to peek inside a cave, but instead of finding lizards, they find a ferocious monster.

Young readers will relate to Lucas for a variety of reasons—Lucus struggles to be on time, he angers his mother, and he doesn’t see the importance of learning to play an instrument. Suspense is added when Lucas keeps finding strange, green feathers. The bard brings additional action to the plot by telling exciting stories of how music has helped keep kingdoms safe.

Black and white illustrations appear on almost every page and help readers visualize the story. Easy-to-read vocabulary, dialogue, and simple sentence structure make The Bard and the Beast a perfect book for beginning readers. Although The Bard and the Beast is the ninth installment of a series, the previous books do not need to be read in order to enjoy the story.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

A bard tells the story of a king who went fishing. A huge snake swam along the boat, and the king “lifted his paddle and whacked the snake on the head.” When the snake went to attack, a bard used music to confuse the snake. “It shook its head wildly and then lowered itself into the water and disappeared.” Later that night, the snake came into the king’s sleeping chamber, ready to attack, but the bard again played music to save the king.
Will goes into a cave where a basilisk lives. If he looks into the basilisk’s eyes, it will kill him.

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Ghost Attack

When Alex and his cousin Sarah visit their grandparents, they don’t expect to find a ghost. Alex gets terrible red hives every time a mysterious ghost is near. Even though Alex screams every time the ghost appears, the ghost persists in showing up. Alex and Sarah decide to delve into Thistle’s Fall’s history to find out who the persistent ghost is and how they can help him.

Full of humor, Ghost Attack has a suspenseful plot that will keep readers interested. The easy-to-read story has many good aspects—a loving family, a lesson about making assumptions, and lively squirrels. David Lubar weaves mystery and ghosts into a non-scary story that is fun to read. Readers will be eager to pick up the next book in the series—Monster Itch #2: Vampire Trouble.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

None

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

Ghosts haunt Thistle’s Falls. “There were railroad brakeman ghosts, tragic romance ghosts, stranded pioneer ghosts, and pretty much every other kind of ghost you could imagine.”

Spiritual Content

None

Dino-Mike and The Dinosaur Doomsday

When Dino-Mike’s father goes on an expedition to Antarctica, Dino-Mike doesn’t expect much to happen. But when the Bones siblings unexpectedly arrive, they bring danger with them. The Bones siblings wake up a Doomsday Dinosaur who could easily crush Dino-Mike, Shannon, and Jurassic Jeff. The three think that the Doomsday Dinosaur is their worst nightmare, but there is more danger lurking beneath the Antarctic ice.

Dino-Mike and The Dinosaur Doomsday is an action-packed story that has Dino-Mike and his friends battling both the Bones siblings and ancient dinosaurs that come to life. Although the majority of the story is fictional, the story contains some facts about Antarctica and the dinosaurs that roamed. However, readers should not pick up the Dino-Mike series if their sole intention is to learn factual information about dinosaurs.

The series will appeal to younger readers because it is written with imagination and action. Scattered throughout the text are onomatopoeias that help create suspense. The story is easy to read and is a good series to pick up to interest beginning readers. Although Dino-Mike and the Dinosaur Doomsday is the seventh book in the series, the plot can be understood without reading the previous books.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

The Bones siblings cause an avalanche that “poured down on the base, covering it completely.” Dino-Mike’s father is trapped inside.
The Bones siblings wake up a Doomsday Dinosaur that breaks through the ice. “The ground beneath their feet opens up. CRUNNNCH! A geyser of ice thrust them thirty feet into the air.” Shannon almost falls into the crack in the ice, but Dino-Mike is able to save her.
The Bones siblings wake up burrowing dinosaurs that attack a group of people. “Jeff leaped backward just as one of the burrowing dinos burst through the ice, snapping its jaws. It was a narrow miss!” Dino-Mike is able to anticipate where the dinosaurs will pop out of the ice and keep the group safe.
A giant water dinosaur “chomped down on Dino-Mike” and “leaped into the air, and then arched its long body and dove back toward the water below.” The dinosaur tries to eat Dino-Mike, but he gets stuck in the dino’s throat and is sneezed out.

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

The Bones siblings have a device that allows them to wake-up dinosaur fossils and control the dinosaurs. They also have a controller that allows them to open an “interdimensional portal.”

Spiritual Content

None

Happy’s Big Plan

Happy’s story continues in the second book of the Big Apple Barn Series. Happy is learning what it means to be a school pony. As different people begin riding Happy, he learns that he is going to have to pay close attention to what his rider wants. Learning to listen is hard, but with the help of the other horses and Roscoe, the barn mouse, Lucky is figuring out how to fit into his new home.

Diane’s daughter Ivy wants to ride Happy, but Diane isn’t sure if Ivy is ready to ride such an inexperienced pony. With the help of Roscos, Happy devises a plan to show Diane that he has a special bond with Ivy. Prudence the barn cat makes her appearance in the story and is a fun addition.

With a simple plot, Happy’s Big Plan is easy to read and will capture the attention of horse fans. Black and white illustrations help break up the text and keep readers engaged. The text is easy to read, with short sentences and dialogue that give the horses personality. Happy’s Big Plan will be enjoyed by beginning readers who are fans of animals.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

None

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Eva Sees a Ghost

After Eva Wingdale’s teacher tells the class a spooky story, Eva sees a ghost flying through the air. When Eva tells her friend, no one believes her. Eva and her class go on a ghost hunt, but the ghost does not appear. Can this determined little owl prove that there is a ghost in Teutopolis?

Eva uses problem-solving skills as she tries to prove the ghost is real. Through Eva’s story, younger readers will be reminded of the difference between what is imaginary and what is real. Eva Sees a Ghost is a fun ghost story written specifically for newly independent readers. Bright and colorful pictures illustrate every page. The ghost in the story is shown as just a white blur (and turns out to be a snowy owl). The text is easy to read and has a simple plot.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

None

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Eva’s Treetop Festival

Eva Wingdale loves her new dairy. By writing in her diary, she tells of her desire to start the first Owelmentary Bloomtastic Festival. Eva wants to organize everything in the spring festival including a fashion show, a talent show, an art show, and a bake-off. However, she soon discovers that she does not have enough time to do everything and must ask for help. With the help of her classmates, the Owelmentary Bloomtastic Festival turns into a hoot of a good time.

Eva’s Treetop Festival is the first book in the Owl Dairies series and is specifically aimed at newly independent readers. Bright and colorful pictures illustrate every page and bring Eva’s world to life. The text is easy to read and has a simple plot.

Younger readers will be able to empathize with Eva as she struggles with her fear of speaking in front of the class, her inability to do everything herself, and her dislike of a “mean” classmate. Eve’s dislike of Sue is clear when she writes that Sue is “always sticking her bat into my business. And she is SO mean. Her name should be Meany MeMearnerson.” In the end, Sue ends up helping make the festival a success.

Sexual Content

None

Violence

None

Drugs and Alcohol

None

Language

None

Supernatural

None

Spiritual Content

None

Happy Go Lucky

Happy Go Lucky lives with his mom at Shoemaker Stables. When Happy is sent to live at Big Apple Barn, his life changes. He must get used to new people, new horses, and a new job as a school pony. With the help of Roscoe, a mouse who repeats the advice of a cat, Happy learns that new things can lead to a happy ending.

Because Happy must learn how to act in a new situation, and how to make new friends, younger readers will be able to relate to the events in Happy Go Lucky. Happy struggles with how to act in his new home. He also learns that he cannot always trust the advice of others, because even when someone isn’t trying to give “bad advice” ponies often want different things.

The book has captivating illustrations and ends with facts about horse terminology. Happy Go Lucky would be a great book for early readers.

Sexual Content