Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday

Rating: 5/5 (It was amazing!)
Pages: 320
Genre: Murder Mystery


Summary (from Goodreads.com)
Hartley Grace Featherstone is having a very bad day. First she finds out that her boyfriend is cheating on her with the president of the Herbert Hoover High School Chastity Club. Then he's pegged as the #1 suspect in a murder. And if that weren't enough, now he's depending on Hartley to clear his name. Seriously? Not cool.

But as much as Hartley wouldn't mind seeing him squirm, she knows he's innocent, and she's the only one who can help him. Along with her best friend, Sam, and the school's resident Bad Boy, Chase, Hartley starts investigating on her own. But as the dead bodies begin to pile up, the mystery deepens, the suspects multiply, and Hartley begins to fear that she may be the killer's next victim.

My Thoughts
There’s nothing more comforting than a murder mystery with a character with your name in it that happens to be an airhead, and then later is murdered. Yay me!

Despite Deadly Cool’s odd plot about a girl helping clear the name of her boyfriend, ahem, correction ex-boyfriend who cheated on her, the story turned out to be quite interesting, and actually a good read. The book came with some witty humor while being able to hold its serious context.

Although, it was cliché in parts referring to Nancy Drew and a few stereotypical characters that were easy to pick out from the crowd, I felt the main character, Hartley, had a lot to offer and I enjoyed reading about what she had to say and what she felt, regardless of her pathetic inability to lie about her sneaking around.

All in all, this light-hearted murder mystery was a nice change from the paranormal young adult novel swarming the bookshelves of bookstores, while being fast-paced and easy-to-read.

Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger

 

Rating: 3
Pages: 214 (depending on the version you read)
Genre: Coming of Age



Summary (from Goodreads.com)

Anyone who has read J.D. Salinger's New Yorker stories—particularly A Perfect Day for Bananafish, Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut, The Laughing Man, and For Esme—With Love and Squalor, will not be surprised by the fact that his first novel is fully of children. The hero-narrator of THE CATCHER IN THE RYE is an ancient child of sixteen, a native New Yorker named Holden Caulfield. Through circumstances that tend to preclude adult, secondhand description, he leaves his prep school in Pennsylvania and goes underground in New York City for three days. The boy himself is at once too simple and too complex for us to make any final comment about him or his story. Perhaps the safest thing we can say about Holden is that he was born in the world not just strongly attracted to beauty but, almost, hopelessly impaled on it. There are many voices in this novel: children's voices, adult voices, underground voices-but Holden's voice is the most eloquent of all. Transcending his own vernacular, yet remaining marvelously faithful to it, he issues a perfectly articulated cry of mixed pain and pleasure. However, like most lovers and clowns and poets of the higher orders, he keeps most of the pain to, and for, himself. The pleasure he gives away, or sets aside, with all his heart. It is there for the reader who can handle it to keep.


My Thoughts
Now that I’ve read Catcher in the Rye, I’m starting to see a little bit of Holden here and there in the books I read. I think Holden is a lonely, lost teenager, and an angry one at that. I like him because he doesn’t edit what he has to say when he talks, he’s blunt. But I don’t like him because he is sort of a hypocrite. I also got tired of the “Goddamn’s” in the story, yet the “phony’s,” although tired of them, actually amused me.

I read this book for English, and I think that’s why I didn’t get as much as I could have out of it. I felt like it was work to read it and of course, I would have read it even if it wasn’t for English, but I think I would have enjoyed it more if I had read it on my own terms.

But if I wrapped it all up, I would say that the book is extremely negative, yet is funny. I think that everyone can find a something about Holden that they can relate to. The parts of Holden that I found myself relating to, were the fact that he didn’t care about being popular and being antisocial was what he was okay with. I found that even though being alone is nice, that you do get lonely, and then you want to talk to someone. And it doesn’t matter who it is really, especially when you’re alone. But, I don’t think I would ever in this lifetime find myself talking to nuns. Personally, sometimes I felt if I were sitting in a coffee shop or somewhere and Holden came up to me and wanted to buy me a drink (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) I would wonder what his intentions were, and think “weirdo” and then possibly eventually come to the conclusion that he’s simply lonely and not some creeper, or up to something.

Overall, the book was interesting, gross in parts, grossly hilarious in others, and I still feel like I missed out on a bunch of what Holden was saying and what was happening, so I’ll return to the novel in time. Meanwhile the phrase “Goddam skates” continues to ring in my head for some crude reason.

Disclaimer

*Disclaimer*
The summaries of most of these books are from the back of the books, although some of them I have altered and rewritten.

Fat Vampire by Adam Rex

Rating: 2/5 (It was okay)
Pages: 324
Genre: Supernatural, Humour

Summary (from book)

Doug Lee is undead quuite by accident--attacked by a desperate vampire, he finds himself being cursed with being fat and fifteen forever. When he has no luck finding some goth chick with a vampire fetish, he resorts to sucking the blood of cows under cover of the night. But it's just not the same.
Then he meets the new Indian exchage student and falls for her--hard. Yeah, he wants to bite her, but he also wants to prove himself to her. But like the laws of life, love and high school, the laws of vampire existence are complicated--it's not as easy as studying Dracula. Especially when the star of Vampire Hunters is hot on your trail in an attempt to boost ratings....
Searing, hilarious, and always expected, Fat Vampire is a satircal tour de force from one of the most original writers of fiction today.

My Thoughts

The good:

1. I really love the cover of this book. It's unique and creative and very eye-catching.

2. The summary and reviews on the back of the book were convincingly funny and appealing.

3. It had some parts that did make me laugh-out-loud and I was genuinely interested in Doug's conflicting situation. And a good start in the plot.

4. Jay is my favourite character. Although he was a bit cliche character-wise, I still enjoyed his company.

 The bad:

1. The book went bad after the first sixty or so pages. The interest rate really dropped for me and the book started focusing on diffrent things. I really wished it would have focused more on the main character instead it begins to more greatly focus on Segal and I'm left wondering isn't this supposed to be about Doug and his fatness, his thirst for blood and issues with girls?

2. I began to feel very disconnected with the characters and I didn't feel attached the them or the story at all.

3.  The stroy began to throw in all this random stuff about a vampire hunter TV show and a vampire mentoring program among other things. And I'm sitting there wondering where did all this come from? What happened to Doug being fat and drinking from cows?

4. I wasn't too crazy about the ending. It didn't leave me feeling satisified. The book in all didn't do it for me really.

Overall, the book was unique, much different from anything I've read. It was funny, which I liked, however, the story just didn't satisfy me.

Perfect Chemsitry

Pages: 357
Genre: Romance
Rating 5/5


Summary
When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created “perfect” life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she's worked so hard for—her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more. In a passionate story about looking beneath the surface, Simone Elkeles breaks through the stereotypes and barriers that threaten to keep Brittany and Alex apart.


My Thoughts

Perfect Chemistry is about a girl and boy who hate each other. It’s funny, suspenseful and touches your heart. It resembles the story of Romeo & Juliet, but it is also quite unique too, despite the stereotypical characters, the dialogue and characters bring it something that you can’t resist.

Alex (or Alejandro, which he hates being called) lives with his two younger brothers and his mother. He’s living on the poor side of town and he’s in a gang called the “Latino Blood.” There are rumors that he’s in to drugs, been arrested several times and he gets into knife fights. “Alex probably brings his dates sharp knives as gifts, in case she’ll need one when she’s out on a date with him.” But really, he’s like a leather teddy bear; tough on the outside, yet squishy on the inside.

Brittany lives with her anxious mother, mostly absent father and her autistic older sister, Shelley. She’s living on the poor side of town and she’s in the popular crowd and the cheerleading team. There are rumors that she is perfect, happy and only cares about her boyfriend and shopping. “This summer she went to the mall, bought new clothes so she could expand her wardrobe, and spent her daddy’s money on plastic surgery to enhance her, ahem, assets.” But really, she’s just a sweet hard piece of candy; heavenly tasting, yet she could do some serious damage to your teeth.

Overall, I loved Perfect Chemistry even though it has some flaws; Simone Elkeles brings something to this story that has never been told before.

Girl, Stolen by April Henry

Pages: 213
Genre: Suspense, Realistic Fiction
Rating: 3/5


Summary
Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what's happening, their car is being stolen--with her inside! Griffin hadn’t meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others. But once Griffin's dad finds out that Cheyenne’s father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes—now there’s a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn’t know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price?


My Thoughts
I was quite impressed with the research the author must have done for this novel. I believe that the research was mainly based on people who are blind and car theft.

The story began with a fast-paced opening and it just gripped me. I didn’t want to look up from the page to save my life. However, as I read further into the story, the pace died down quite fast and I found I was losing my interest. There were some parts in the story that seemed drawn out and not related to the main picture. I thought that it was silly that Cheyenne was constantly stressing about how she might die if she didn’t get her medication, but really it was like she had the flu.

Girl, Stolen went back and for the between Cheyenne and Griffin’s perspectives. I love books when they do that. I feel it gives you better insight to your main characters and really brings the book to life.

I enjoyed reading about how Cheyenne adapted to the new fact that her eye sight was gone and may never come back. I marveled over how she would fold her bills in certain ways so she would know how much money she had and how she struggled with her walking stick and eventually had to snap at people for asking to pet her seeing-eye-dog. “He’s working!” she would say, not wanting to sound uptight, but people just didn’t get it through their thick heads. Cheyenne has learned not to be picky about her food and eats whatever ends up on her fork. This fact shocked me because there are so many things that I am picky about. If I became blind like Cheyenne I don’t think I would ever have found myself eating whatever ended up on plate. Another thing that struck me was the she wouldn’t be able to read on her own…ever. Reading is something I do quite often and when I listen to something being read to me I find it’s just not the same as reading it myself.

Griffin’s age is not mentioned in the story, but I’m assuming he’s between the ages of fifteen and seventeen. He’s the one who accidentally kidnaps Cheyenne. He plays the “nice bad guy” in the story which I wasn’t so sure if I liked. Griffin was trying to befriend Cheyenne, which I thought was kind of nice but then when I got the feeling that the author became to insinuate that Griffin was developing a crush on Cheyenne I was like “what the hell?” “No,” and “that’s weird.”

Over all, I did enjoy the book, but it’s not something I loved. The story line was awesome, the information I learned was cool but the book just didn’t seem like it was pulled together right. It seemed odd and not as realistic as it should have been. It just didn’t meet its potential.

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin



Pages: 288
Genre: Romantic Fantasy
Rating: 5/5 (Awesome)

Summary
If Naomi had picked tails, she would have won the coin toss. She wouldn't have had to go back for the yearbook camera, and she wouldn't have hit her head on the steps. She wouldn't have woken up in an ambulance with amnesia. She certainly would have remembered her boyfriend, Ace. She might even have remembered why she fell in love with him in the first place. She would understand why her best friend, Will, keeps calling her "Chief." She'd know about her mom's new family. She'd know about her dad's fiancée. She never would have met James, the boy with the questionable past and the even fuzzier future, who tells her he once wanted to kiss her. She wouldn't have wanted to kiss him back.

But Naomi picked heads.

After her remarkable debut, Gabrielle Zevin has crafted an imaginative second novel all about love and second chances.


My Thoughts

This story blew me away. I couldn’t imagine being Naomi, losing my memory of the past four years, forgetting who I am, who I was. The way she dealt with her memory loss amazed me. I wondered; how is she not frustrated or angry? How does she sit there so calmly wondering about what her life used to be like? Instead, it was her best friend William asking those questions too.

Naomi is a seventeen year old girl who is sporty, laidback and extremely popular. Our first impression of her isn’t much though, considering the fact that she has no memory of herself. However, she is trying to figure out who she was, but she’s more interested in the person she wants to be. She learns things about herself that repulse and surprise her. And she begins to wonder if losing her memory was for the better, or at least I did. Something that repulsed her was when she realized she was mean, very mean actually, and she begins to change that right away. Her meanness seems to be fueled by her anger towards her parent’s divorce. While something that surprises her is that she is insecure with her body just like any typical teenage girl but the part she was shocked about was that she kept a food diary.

Will is one of my favorite characters in the book. He’s the jealous, protective and patient best friend. He knows you like the back of his hand, and he’d take a bullet for someone he especially cares about. He’s funny and playful and always creating mix CD’s for Naomi. He’s even hardworking and dedicated but he has his flaws too. He sometimes is annoying and on the rare occasion gets up Naomi’s face, and has a slight problem controlling strong emotions such as anger and jealousy.

James is the dark, brooding mysterious love interest in the story. He’s the guy who finds Naomi and rides in the ambulance with her to the hospital. He sounds like a cool guy with his leather jacket and all. Naomi wishes he had told the paramedics he was her boyfriend rather than her brother. When we finally reach into the depths of James’s secrets we realize he’s severely depressed and in need of great help. And he knows it, but he doesn’t let anyone get too close.

Ace is athletic and “hot” according to all the girls, even Naomi. But he doesn’t seem to do it for me. He seems quite full of it but genuinely he is a really sweet guy. The shocker is the Naomi is told that this is her boyfriend and she wonders how she’s supposed to handle this one after laying eyes on James and drooling and all.

I fell completely and utterly in love with this story. I want to read it all over again right now. He characters are so real, so funny, so interesting. The book covers such serious matters with hints of humor throughout the story, Memoirs of a teenage amnesiac is something you hope you’ll never forget.