Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

Perfect by Ellen Hopkins, 622 pages

This book is the sequel to the book Impulse by Ellen Hopkins. I thought Perfect would follow what happened to the characters in the book Impulse. But, what it is about is characters related to the characters in Impulse. written in the same tense as Impulse. This was a very thought provoking book. Perfect follows the lives of characters who were all associated with Conner. Cara is Conner's twin sister who is striving to be perfect in every way. Kendra is Conner's ex girlfriend who is trying to win beauty pageants while losing weight to the point her health is at risk.  Jenna is Kendra's sister who finds herself in a relationship with Andre.  All these teens are trying to find their perfect selves in a way that destroys their lives and those of their loved ones.

Smoke by Ellen Hopkins

Smoke by Ellen Hopkins, 543 pages

Smoke is the sequel to the teen book Burned.  It continues right where it left off.  Pattyn is a teen on the run after taking the blame for killing her father. She and her mother and sisters had been abused for years by the man they called Dad.  She killed him to save her sisters from the years of abuse she suffered.  What she takes is the blame for killing her Dad when really it was her sister Jackie who killed him. While on the run, Pattyn finds a friend, a new job and a new love by the name of Angel.  But after losing her true love, Ethan and their unborn baby, Pattyn fears she will never be able to love again.

Traffick by Ellen Hopkins

Traffick by Ellen Hopkins, 523 pages

Traffick is the follow up book to Tricks.  Written in verse, this teen book follows Eden, Cody, Seth, Ginger, and Whitney as they hit rock bottom in Las Vegas.  Each on a different path of drugs, addiction, and prostitution, this book show what happens when teens make poor choices. Ellen Hopkins writes a very intriguing story and manages to tie the lives of these characters together.

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins, 625 pages

In this first book in this teen angst series by Ellen Hopkins, five teens fall into the dark side of prostitution. Each of these five teens come from very different backgrounds across the United States.  Eden, Cody, Seth, Ginger, Whitney each have a very different story growing up, but they all have a few things in common.  They are each looking to find love and happiness, but what they find is darkness and pain.

Burned by Ellen Hopkins

Burned by Ellen Hopkins, 531 pages

Every now and then I like to read an Ellen Hopkins book. Her books explore teen angst to the fullest and usually have some depressing and shocking twist.  This one was no exception.  Pattyn is a teen Mormon girl forced to spend the summer with her Aunt Jeanette after misbehaving. Being sent away turns out to be a blessing because in Pattyn's home her Dad is a mean, angry alcoholic who beats her mother.  What Pattyn finds that summer is peace and comfort in the arms of Ethan.  Of course they fall in love and tragedy falls upon them.

Identical by Ellen Hopkins

Identical by Ellen Hopkins, 565 pages

In Identical, Ellen Hopkins writes about a very taboo subject: incest. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are identical twins who were in a horrific car accident when they are younger that turned their lives upside down. Kaeleigh and Raeanne are exact opposites in personality.  When their mom decides to run for Congress, their Dad becomes their main caregiver. Shocking and disturbing at times, this book is written in verse which keeps the story moving and enthralls the reader.  I knew nothing about this book when I started and towards the end, a surprise twist is thrown out there that makes this one of the best books for young adults.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Looking for Alaska by John Green-221 pages; Michael L. Printz Award Winner, 2006

I liked reading both The Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns, so when I saw this won the Printz Award I decided to give it a try. I was not disappointed. I liked this novel a lot. One review compared Miles Halter (aka "Pudge") to Holden Caulfield, but I liked Miles way better (I did not enjoy reading Catcher in the Rye at all). Alaska is a fairly realistic story that teens can relate to and I liked how John Green dealt with death and how teens (and adults) cope with losing someone close. Additionally, the characters had depth and were relatable, if not likeable. I would recommend this book to anyone into Teen/Young Adult fiction.

Skip Beat! by Yoshiki Nakamura

Skip Beat! by Yoshiki Nakamura  -- 4512 pages
v. 1  184 pages           v. 7  200 pages    v. 12  200 pages
v. 2  208 pages              v. 8  200 pages    v.  13  208 pages
v. 3   208 pages          v. 9  200pages    v. 14 200 pages
v. 4  208 pages              v. 10 200pages    v. 15 - 22 - 1888 pages
v. 5    208 pages          v 11  200 pages

Instead of wallowing in despair when her famous boyfriend (Shotaro) dumps her after using her to make it big, Kyoko goes to work for the rival showbiz company to become even more famous than Sho. Unfortunately, Kyoko doesn't know the first thing about acting and bumbles her way through by sheer luck. The chemistry and romance builds with each new volume. The illustrations are great and tell the story as well as the words. This is a very light, easy read sure to please many.

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, 328 pages

It's the 80s (my favorite decade) and high schooler Eleanor has just returned to her very abusive home. Overweight with frizzy hair, poorly dressed Eleanor tries to keep a low profile and ends up facing the horrors of bullying ... at home and at school. She keeps it together by forming an unusual friendship with Park. Park is oriental boy who is very small in stature. He has his own demons to fight but for some reason comes to Eleanor's defense (passively) by offering her the seat next to him on the bus. Every day they ride together to school without a word to each other. Every day Park notices Eleanor watching him read his comics. He starts to share them with her and slowly music is added to the mix and they become friends. Their friendship is a life line for both. As Eleanor opens her world to Park they realize they are much the same in likes as much as their worlds are very different. Park does what he can to save Eleanor from the horrors of home and school. It's such a beautifully written book alternating from both viewpoints that I found often found myself with tears streaming down my face. This is a book every child (and parent) should read and understand what bullying does to a person. Sometimes all we see in kids is the shell... and not what is inside. Such bittersweetness ends this story and I think that it ended exactly as it should have.

Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins

Spell Bound by Rachel Hawkins, 327 pages
(#3 Hex Hall Series)

In possibly the final installment of the Sophie Mercer story, Sophie alone has escaped the clutches of the evil Casnoff sisters with her demon powers bound inside of her. As she tries to discover what has happened to her vampire bestfriend, demon father, warlock fiance and her "works for the enemy" love interest, Sophie will uncover far more than she imagined. After having her world rocked by several revelations, Sophie must pull her self together to: 1. Find her friends and her father. 2. Unlock her magic that has been tucked away inside her. and 3. Stop the Casnoff sisters thereby ceasing their plot to amass a demon army by changing all of her classmates into demons. Being powerless is a problem until Elodie steps in to save Sophie's skin more than  few times. By far my favorite of the series save for a few story-lines that went sour in my opinion. Most notably was Cal's story. I really thought the author could have done more for Cal than she did. Other than the few flaws, I was overall happy with the "ending."

The Dead & the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer

The Dead & The Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer-308 pages

This is the second book in Pfeffer's Last Survivor's series.  In the first book, Life as We Knew It, an asteroid has collided with the moon which knocked it closer to Earth.  Because of the different gravitational pull, all sorts of natural disasters happen and you find out how a family in Pennsylvania deal with the hardships.  In The Dead and The Gone, the perspective if from a teenage boy living in New York City and the things he must do to take care of himself and his two sisters after the moon is hit.  I was hesitant to read this because I liked Life as We Knew It so much and really felt that it could have been a stand alone.  I don't think this lived up to the first novel, but it was nice to read a different perspective.

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, 338 pages
(Book one of series)
The book is as disjointed as the writing, yet still appealing to the reader. Juliette grew up never knowing the loving touch of another human. No one can touch her skin and live. Her parents have abandoned her to the __ABUSIVE__ insane asylum where she has been for years without human contact. Too keep herself sane, she keeps a journal. Written in first person, the writing includes a lot of crossed out sentences, repetitive words and nonsense - pretty much what you would expect from someone who has been locked up for years and is trying to remain sane. When the government takes an unnatural interest in her, it's all she can do to keep it together and get out alive. Throw in a bit of romance, suspense, drama and special powers, and you have this book in a nutshell.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

"Daughter of Smoke and Bone" by Laini Taylor, 418

Seventeen year old art student, Karou, has been living a double life. To her human friends, she is mysterious and not easily approached. To the creatures from her drawings, she is family. Karou works for her father-like figure, Brimstone (a horned creature much like a demon), collecting _unusual_ items in exchange for wishes. She doesn't like her job very much (aside from the wishes) and longs for a life free of anything abnormal. Unfortunately for Karou, there is more to her life than even she is aware. Her job of collecting is a very important one with many lives hanging in the balance. When a stranger crosses her path, romance ensues with the struggle between "good and evil" being on the forefront. Who is Karou really and what secrets are being kept from her? What will she do when faced with truth and betrayal by one of her loved ones? Filled with suspense, romance, danger and quite a dose of drama and loss, this book will lead you on an interesting journey through the writer's imagination.