Will Appeal to Fans of "The Hunger Games"

The Forsaken (The Forsaken Trilogy #1) by Lisa M. Stasse (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2012, 384pp.)

This latest offering in the YA dystopia genre covers the adventures of Alenna Shawcross, a shy, quiet teen citizen of the oppressive United Northern Alliance. Her story begins after she fails the national Government Personality Profile Test and is banished to Island Alpha, a dumping ground for social undesirables and political dissidents. Every child in the UNA grows up hearing horror stories about Island Alpha, that it’s a prison colony populated by violent sociopaths—and that the average life expectancy is 18. Imagine her surprise, then, when she discovers that the other island inhabitants are, for the most part, just normal kids like her. But Island Alpha has a reputation for a reason. There are bad kids, too. The Drones, a chaotic horde of teens who really are violent and anti-social, are constantly on the prowl. What’s more frightening than the Drones themselves is their almost rabid devotion to a mysterious figure known as the Monk. Containing elements of intrigue, suspense, and romance, The Forsaken reads like a kind of futuristic version of Lord of the Flies—except it’s much more accessible, entertaining, and appealing than LOTF will ever be. Recommended for Ages 16-18, and fans of The Hunger Games.

Unique Ideas, Narrow Target Audience

Ephemerine Tree (Cosmic Library #1) by Mirti Venyon Reiyas (Self-Published, 2012, 166pp.)

Eda, a young woman from planet Artea, is enlisted by Rainyun, a light-being from the Ephemerine Realm, to help steer her world away from environmental disaster. Reiyas produces a very creative piece of work to provide a unique, cautionary tale. Artea—and the rest of the galaxy, for that matter—is suffering from the use of the destructive tachyonic particle inverse dematerializer, a device built to extract electricity-producing potrillion juice from ocean caves at the expense of the environment. While the dematerializer seems to be a stand-in for fracking, the author is able to make it part of a very believable universe. While this short novel is great to read for its ideas, its focus on spiritualism and New Age principles may not appeal to mainstream readers looking for a face-paced action tale. Recommended for Ages 16-18.

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Solid

Solid (Solid #1) by Shelley Workinger (CreateSpace, 2010, 236pp.)

Seventeen-year-old Clio Kaid and about ninety-nine other teens have just received the shock of their lives: they are not ordinary kids at all, but the products of an top-secret government experiment that altered their genes before birth. After this rather embarrassing admission, the Army has invited the test subjects to a secret government training facility where they can explore their new-found super powers. Everything’s pretty hunky dory at first, but soon, things begin happening that lead Clio and her friends to suspect that the Powers That Be may have ulterior motives.

It’s an interesting premise, if not exactly a highly original one. The plot didn’t grip me as much as I had hoped, and the characters don’t undergo much development, partly because they don’t have enough to do. However, now that the setting and main characters have been established, I would still be interested in seeing what else this series has to offer. Recommended for Ages 13-Up.

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How the Other Half Lives

Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite by Lianne Simon (Faie Miss, 2012, 246pp.)

Confessions chronicles two years in the life of Jamie, a teen born with Mixed Gonadal Dysgenesis. She has one testis and one ovary and could easily pass as either male or female. But which is she, really? She was raised as a boy, despite the fact that she would rather play dress-up than football. Now that her older brother, Scott, has been killed in Vietnam, Jamie’s parents—and her father, especially—need for her to be a boy. Convinced that her cross-dressing is a phase she’ll outgrow (a phase which has lasted sixteen years, mind you), her father feels that Jamie will come to her senses once she experiences the joys of being a man. He agrees to consider letting her live as a woman only if she completes a list of “Things Boys Do,” a series of tasks that ranges from getting her hair cut short, to hunting and killing an animal, to learning to drink and smoke. Fortunately, Jamie can do most of those things--how hard can it be to get your hair cut?—but can she do these things as a man?

I found Jamie to be a refreshing protagonist. Far from being a rebellious youth, she’s actually very respectful of her parents, even though she comes to realize that if she doesn’t embrace her true self, she’ll be torn apart by misery. I also appreciate the fact that even though we never really get to know Jamie’s parents beyond their roles as the story’s antagonists, they are never reduced to mere stereotypes. My only complaint is that the supporting cast is not more fully developed. But it is Jamie’s story, after all.

For readers born with conditions similar to Jamie’s, Confessions of a Teenage Hermaphrodite will certainly be a welcome addition to this neglected area of young adult fiction. For those born without such difficulties, it’s still an enlightening, eye-opening experience. Recommended for Ages 16-Up.

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The Day that Music Died

Source: Publisher Website

Death of a Dreamer: The Assassination of John Lennon by Alison Marie Behnke (21st Century, 2012, 112pp.)
 
In six chapters and a little over 100 pages, Death of a Dreamer deals with a whirlwind of interrelated topics: tumultuous political climate of the 1960s, the life and death of the late great John Lennon, and Mark David Chapman, the man who would stalk and murder one of the era’s most influential musicians in cold blood.

Placing an age range for this book is problematic. Based on the picture-book layout, one could say that it’s targeted at children and young adults, especially since it goes out of its way to define terms like ASSASSINATE, GIG, and CAPITALISM. However, the process of plowing the chapter on capitalism’s battle against communism will definitely lose the attention of anyone in the 9 to 12 age range. It also covers more “adult” topics, such as Chapman’s depression and questionable mental state, and Lennon’s drug use and posing nude for Annie Leibowitz. The slow pace of these beginning chapters will require the reader to have the patience of a young reader who doesn’t mind wading through the slow parts. The ending, however, is quite dramatic. Like any Beatles fan, I actually found myself gripped and somewhat saddened by the book’s narration of Lennon’s final hours. An ambitious work for a semi-picture book of only 112 pages, it will be of particular interest for anyone who’s interested in, as I like to call it, the day that music died. Recommended for ages 12-18 who have an attention span that lasts longer than 10 seconds.

Of Light and Shadows

Of Light and Darkness: The Vampire’s Daughter by Shayne Leighton (Decadent Publishing Company, 2011, 292pp.)

Of Light and Darkness: The Vampire’s Daughter is a love story that takes place against the background of genocide. The titular “vampire’s daughter” is Charlotte Ruzikova, a mortal teenager living among the witches, shapeshifters, elves, and vampires that make up the hidden town of the Bohemian Occult. Abandoned as a baby on the streets of Prague, she was rescued by Valek, a lonely, kind-hearted vampire who has since raised her as his own daughter. Now in her late teens, Charlotte confronts the undeniable attraction she feels for her adoptive father just as the Regime, a group of high wizards, takes over the supernatural community and seeks to eradicate the vampire species.

Overall, the novel carries through as an interesting story, but I felt there were some flaws in the characters and plot worth pointing out. While I can accept the premise of an adopted daughter falling for her guardian, Charlotte didn’t seem mature enough for me to classify her affections as anything other than a schoolgirl crush. And while the novel starts out original and fresh with Harry Potteresque atmosphere, it inevitably drifts towards some more well-worn plot points: a trusted friend becomes bitter and turns to betrayal after the object of his affection eludes him; the hero crashes a wedding in order to rescue his love interest from a forced marriage to the villain, etc.

As a writer, I’d have to say: it could have been much better with a few plot/character tweaks, but as a reviewer, I’d say: another interesting--though somewhat flawed--addition to the YA paranormal canon. Recommended for Ages 16-Up.

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Interesting Idea, but Reads Like a Rough Draft

Book of the Hidden (Hidden Trilogy #1) by Annalynne Thorne (TEM Publishing, 2012, 120pp.)

Witch sisters Vivian and Jean are leaders of the Underground, a secret magical society and haven for supernatural creatures who seek asylum from the hatred of mankind. When a mean-spirited werewolf, Astrid, attacks teenager Seth and infects him with lyncanthropy, Vivian brings him into the safety of the Underground. “Turning” a human against their will is a crime in the Underground, so she has Astrid banished. 

In order to cure Seth, Vivian seeks the missing Book of the Hidden, a tome of magic that can reverse his transformation. She quickly finds it, but by this time, the two have fallen in love. Non-magical humans aren’t allowed to live in the Underground. Although Vivian knows that Seth will be better off with a normal life, Seth insists that he would rather stay afflicted than live on the surface world without her. Meanwhile, the bitter Astrid seeks revenge against the pair.

The concept of such a society as the Underground is an interesting idea that an author could do a lot with, as is the scenario of sacrificing personal happiness for a loved one. Unfortunately, the novel reads like a rough draft. While a lot can be accomplished in 120 pages, the whole tone of the story feels rushed. This prevents the reader from really getting to know the characters and the world they live in. In addition, there were numerous spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, and run-on sentences. Most teen readers will probably not mind such nit-picky mistakes, and in fact enjoy the story regardless. For others, you may want to look elsewhere. Recommended for Ages 16-18.

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