Beautiful Creatures is mysterious and thrilling as you’re thrown into a story like never before. This book keeps you wanting more as the romance and action get hotter and more dangerous by the chapter.
Ethan Wate begins the story as the main character in his normal life stuck in the middle of nowhere. Nothing ever changes in this town where there are no secrets until Lena Duchannes arrives. She shakes up the town, first by living with her uncle, the town’s shut-in, but as the days go by, the town realizes there is something more to Lena. When they try to run her out of town, Ethan is willing to throw his life away for her, as though they were brought together by a dream. Once Ethan finds out about Lena’s sixteenth birthday he doesn’t care that she only has months left to live and they fall hopelessly in love while they fight for her life. Many things are discovered during their race against time and they only have one chance to make it right.
I really liked this book because it is so well written it kept me interested. It takes you in to a different world full of suspense and wonder that you would think you are in the story. I love the plot and find it amazing that Beautiful Creatures finds a way to bring two worlds together in a race against time.
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Beautiful Creatures is a big, awesome book! Click here to check our catalog to see if Beautiful Creatures is on the shelves. Hoorah, first time reviewers! Thanks to Renata for her first (of many, we hope!) contribution. YOU TOO can review for this blog. Just write a review of something you liked and send it to us and before you know it, it will be up here on the blog for everyone to read!
Renata reviewed Beautiful Creatures as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the sequel, giving her a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Renata find out about this amazing promotion? She came into the library and talked to the librarians! You can find out about all of the best books, newest programs, and cool promotions just by asking someone at the library! (and we'll even recommend amazing books like Beautiful Creatures!)
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare (reviewed by Joe Stradling)
This is the first book of an amazing series and documents a truly impressive fantasy world. It is set in New York City and spins around a world set in the background of the mundane which holds angels and demons in constant war, with vampires, werewolves, the fair folk, warlocks, and shadowhunters, or Nephilim, arrayed between. This book starts when Clarissa, a redheaded artist living with her mother, goes to a club with her best friend, Simon. Clary witnesses a brief glimpse of shadowhunters killing a demon intent on exsanguinating humans.
After leaving the scene of this sudden execution, Clary goes to her house to find that her mother has been taken by demons, as well as a rear guard resolved to kill her. She was saved by a shadowhunter by the name of Jonathan Wayland, or Jace, who takes her to hallowed ground that houses a sanctuary filled with other shadowhunters. It is revealed to her that she and her mother are shadowhunters and her mother posseses the mortal cup, a member of the objects that the angel Raziel passed on to humans to help fight the evil that the demons were spreading in the world. The man who abducted Clary’s mother, Valentine Morganstern, is a fanatical Nephilim, banished for trying to overthrow Nephilim government, or the Clave, and who is looking for the cup. She gets her friend Simon into a deep mess, is taken to a city made of the bones of Nephilim, falls deeply in love with Jace, and finds out that her mothers best friend is a werewolf. She finds her mother and her father and her brother and a traitor in the people that she hates and loves, encounters triumph, evil, loss and pain and discovers the whereabouts of the mortal cup.
I liked this book and this series a great deal. Not only was it based on a clever and intricate history and structure, it also had engaging dynamic characters, a cute love story, amazing narrative drive, spectacular settings, a viable conflict, and, best of all, a sequel.
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Mmm, Shadowhunters. (amIright?!) Click here to check our catalog to see if City of Bones is on the shelves.
Joe reviewed City of Bones as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the prequel, giving him a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Joe find out about this amazing promotion?! He's signed up for the library's teen e-mail list, so he gets to hear about all the latest news, promotions, programs, and events first. Want to be on the list? Send us an e-mail at ysweb @ lacnm dot us to get added! You can also hear about what's happening by visiting the library's teen website!
After leaving the scene of this sudden execution, Clary goes to her house to find that her mother has been taken by demons, as well as a rear guard resolved to kill her. She was saved by a shadowhunter by the name of Jonathan Wayland, or Jace, who takes her to hallowed ground that houses a sanctuary filled with other shadowhunters. It is revealed to her that she and her mother are shadowhunters and her mother posseses the mortal cup, a member of the objects that the angel Raziel passed on to humans to help fight the evil that the demons were spreading in the world. The man who abducted Clary’s mother, Valentine Morganstern, is a fanatical Nephilim, banished for trying to overthrow Nephilim government, or the Clave, and who is looking for the cup. She gets her friend Simon into a deep mess, is taken to a city made of the bones of Nephilim, falls deeply in love with Jace, and finds out that her mothers best friend is a werewolf. She finds her mother and her father and her brother and a traitor in the people that she hates and loves, encounters triumph, evil, loss and pain and discovers the whereabouts of the mortal cup.
I liked this book and this series a great deal. Not only was it based on a clever and intricate history and structure, it also had engaging dynamic characters, a cute love story, amazing narrative drive, spectacular settings, a viable conflict, and, best of all, a sequel.
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Mmm, Shadowhunters. (amIright?!) Click here to check our catalog to see if City of Bones is on the shelves.
Joe reviewed City of Bones as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the prequel, giving him a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Joe find out about this amazing promotion?! He's signed up for the library's teen e-mail list, so he gets to hear about all the latest news, promotions, programs, and events first. Want to be on the list? Send us an e-mail at ysweb @ lacnm dot us to get added! You can also hear about what's happening by visiting the library's teen website!
Leaving Paradise by Simone Elkeles (reviewed by Alanna Cover)
Another majorly spoiler-y (and majorly epic!) review from Alanna, huzzah!
Caleb hit Maggie. Caleb hit Maggie with car. Caleb go to jail. Maggie stay in hospital. Caleb wants everything go back to normal. Maggie want go to Spain. I stop Caveman talk. Now.
When Caleb is released from prison, he's back to Paradise, back to school, back to his sexy girlfriend, Kendra, back to his old buds, and back to his family. But, when he's back, he figures out that it's nothing that he remembered, or would ever remember. School moved on without him, his best friend is dating Kendra, and his family is so whack: his twin sister is totally emo, and his mom is overdosing on her depression meds.
CRAP! What's Caleb to do? For now, he lives like it was... and Kendra has something deep in mind for him.
Maggie? Well... everything has changed for her too. An avid tennis player, she gets home from the hospital with a leg that she can hardly walk on. Ugly scars cover it, and she fears she'll never get anywhere in life. That's why she's decided to leave, everything has changed around her, she's lost all of her close friends, she's a loner, and her mom is... a bit protective. But life has different plans for her. Her scholarship wasn't accepted for the college she wanted to attend. Life sorta crashes around her at that point, because Caleb comes back, and for one, she's terrified of him. And then she's more ignored at school. Then a nice lady, her mother's boss' mother, offers to give her a job to pay for college. Maggie agrees.
Caleb, basically having to go to his community service after school everyday is given a job, to help a the same lady, Maggie and Caleb have to work together for a few weeks. Maggie planting bulbs, and Caleb building a gazebo. One day, he gets into a fight on the way to the bus stop because a couple of guys dissed Maggie. Because Maggie and Caleb were best friends before, Caleb feels the same as he ever did. It was an accident, he didn't mean to. Then things go crazy with Maggie's life, her mom starts to date Mr. Reynolds, Maggie's boss's son. (confusing, huh?) ANYWAYS!! She freaks out... and calls her dad. Who doesn't care. Like, reeaally doesn't care. She loses it, and the first number her fingers dial is her ex-best friend, person-who-hit-her-with-car... isn't that enough information? She calls Caleb, they meet, and she pours her heart out to the boy who hit her with his car... and then he kisses her. WHOAH!!! It was so cute though. :3 Eh... but she runs. Anyways, on the bus the next day, they sit on the bus together again, and they hold haands. and this and that and they keep working... and then when EVERYTHING goes perfectly..
Mrs. Reynolds dies, Caleb learns he isn't supposed to have any relation with Maggie, Kendra corners Caleb in the hall (after deciding for them both that they have a secret relationship. ooh la la-NOT. it was kinda ewwie tho.. >_<) and makes him say that he doesn't like Maggie, who is behind him, who slaps him, and the perfect relationship is over. But then Maggie figures something out. She becomes strong. And with that, she's determined to stay and finish high school and figure everything else out later. Caleb leaves his whacked up house (he was gonna be kicked out sooner or later, anyways...), and they meet on the road where it all happened, Maggie realizes that Caleb didn't hurt her. It was Leah, Caleb's twin sister, who couldn't take what happened, and Caleb, being a good brother, took the blame for hitting her. Caleb says goodbye, he is Leaving Paradise. Probably for good. And thus ends the story. It killed me. CLIFF-HANGERS FAIL!!!! D= That's that. End of Leaving Paradise... go home children, nothing else to see... BUT WAIT!! What is that I see in the near horizon of September? No.. IT CAN'T BE!! IT'S THE SEQUEL TO LEAVING PARADISE!!! :O Can't wait :3
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Simone Elkeles is the BEST! Click here to check our catalog to see if Leaving Paradise is on the shelves.
Alanna reviewed Leaving Paradise as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the sequel, giving her a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Alanna find out about this amazing promotion?! She's signed up for the library's teen e-mail list, so she gets to hear about all the latest news, promotions, programs, and events first. Want to be on the list? Send us an e-mail at ysweb @ lacnm dot us to get added! You can also hear about what's happening by visiting the library's teen website!
Caleb hit Maggie. Caleb hit Maggie with car. Caleb go to jail. Maggie stay in hospital. Caleb wants everything go back to normal. Maggie want go to Spain. I stop Caveman talk. Now.
When Caleb is released from prison, he's back to Paradise, back to school, back to his sexy girlfriend, Kendra, back to his old buds, and back to his family. But, when he's back, he figures out that it's nothing that he remembered, or would ever remember. School moved on without him, his best friend is dating Kendra, and his family is so whack: his twin sister is totally emo, and his mom is overdosing on her depression meds.
CRAP! What's Caleb to do? For now, he lives like it was... and Kendra has something deep in mind for him.
Maggie? Well... everything has changed for her too. An avid tennis player, she gets home from the hospital with a leg that she can hardly walk on. Ugly scars cover it, and she fears she'll never get anywhere in life. That's why she's decided to leave, everything has changed around her, she's lost all of her close friends, she's a loner, and her mom is... a bit protective. But life has different plans for her. Her scholarship wasn't accepted for the college she wanted to attend. Life sorta crashes around her at that point, because Caleb comes back, and for one, she's terrified of him. And then she's more ignored at school. Then a nice lady, her mother's boss' mother, offers to give her a job to pay for college. Maggie agrees.
Caleb, basically having to go to his community service after school everyday is given a job, to help a the same lady, Maggie and Caleb have to work together for a few weeks. Maggie planting bulbs, and Caleb building a gazebo. One day, he gets into a fight on the way to the bus stop because a couple of guys dissed Maggie. Because Maggie and Caleb were best friends before, Caleb feels the same as he ever did. It was an accident, he didn't mean to. Then things go crazy with Maggie's life, her mom starts to date Mr. Reynolds, Maggie's boss's son. (confusing, huh?) ANYWAYS!! She freaks out... and calls her dad. Who doesn't care. Like, reeaally doesn't care. She loses it, and the first number her fingers dial is her ex-best friend, person-who-hit-her-with-car... isn't that enough information? She calls Caleb, they meet, and she pours her heart out to the boy who hit her with his car... and then he kisses her. WHOAH!!! It was so cute though. :3 Eh... but she runs. Anyways, on the bus the next day, they sit on the bus together again, and they hold haands. and this and that and they keep working... and then when EVERYTHING goes perfectly..
Mrs. Reynolds dies, Caleb learns he isn't supposed to have any relation with Maggie, Kendra corners Caleb in the hall (after deciding for them both that they have a secret relationship. ooh la la-NOT. it was kinda ewwie tho.. >_<) and makes him say that he doesn't like Maggie, who is behind him, who slaps him, and the perfect relationship is over. But then Maggie figures something out. She becomes strong. And with that, she's determined to stay and finish high school and figure everything else out later. Caleb leaves his whacked up house (he was gonna be kicked out sooner or later, anyways...), and they meet on the road where it all happened, Maggie realizes that Caleb didn't hurt her. It was Leah, Caleb's twin sister, who couldn't take what happened, and Caleb, being a good brother, took the blame for hitting her. Caleb says goodbye, he is Leaving Paradise. Probably for good. And thus ends the story. It killed me. CLIFF-HANGERS FAIL!!!! D= That's that. End of Leaving Paradise... go home children, nothing else to see... BUT WAIT!! What is that I see in the near horizon of September? No.. IT CAN'T BE!! IT'S THE SEQUEL TO LEAVING PARADISE!!! :O Can't wait :3
--
Simone Elkeles is the BEST! Click here to check our catalog to see if Leaving Paradise is on the shelves.
Alanna reviewed Leaving Paradise as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the sequel, giving her a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Alanna find out about this amazing promotion?! She's signed up for the library's teen e-mail list, so she gets to hear about all the latest news, promotions, programs, and events first. Want to be on the list? Send us an e-mail at ysweb @ lacnm dot us to get added! You can also hear about what's happening by visiting the library's teen website!
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher (reviewed by Bear Schacht)
A prison like no other........
Long ago Incarceron was built, and many prisoners were placed inside. It was intended to create a perfect society, but something went terribly wrong. On the inside, everything is in chaos. The strong rule the weak, and the living prison does nothing but observe. On the outside time has been outlawed, and everyone is forced to live in a past era, and most of them have no idea what is going on inside.
Claudia is the daughter of the Warden of Incarceron. Finn is inside, but has vague memories of the outside.
Both struggle in their different worlds, until they both find mysterious crystal keys with which they can communicate. Claudia finds her way into incarceron, and they try to escape back out, something that has been done only once before. Trouble is, that's against the rules. The prison was designed to keep people in, and it does not want them to leave.
A gripping and complex story, masterfully told with plenty of suspense and plot twists, a must-read for any steampunk fan.
(and then, at the end, with the thing, and it's like...... SOOOO awesome!)
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Ah, Incarceron, one of my favorites!! Click here to check our catalog to see if Incarceron is on the shelves.
Bear reviewed Incarceron as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the sequel, giving him a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Bear find out about this amazing promotion?! He's signed up for the library's teen e-mail list, so he gets to hear about all the latest news, promotions, programs, and events first. Want to be on the list? Send us an e-mail at ysweb @ lacnm dot us to get added! You can also hear about what's happening by visiting the library's teen website!
Long ago Incarceron was built, and many prisoners were placed inside. It was intended to create a perfect society, but something went terribly wrong. On the inside, everything is in chaos. The strong rule the weak, and the living prison does nothing but observe. On the outside time has been outlawed, and everyone is forced to live in a past era, and most of them have no idea what is going on inside.
Claudia is the daughter of the Warden of Incarceron. Finn is inside, but has vague memories of the outside.
Both struggle in their different worlds, until they both find mysterious crystal keys with which they can communicate. Claudia finds her way into incarceron, and they try to escape back out, something that has been done only once before. Trouble is, that's against the rules. The prison was designed to keep people in, and it does not want them to leave.
A gripping and complex story, masterfully told with plenty of suspense and plot twists, a must-read for any steampunk fan.
(and then, at the end, with the thing, and it's like...... SOOOO awesome!)
--
Ah, Incarceron, one of my favorites!! Click here to check our catalog to see if Incarceron is on the shelves.
Bear reviewed Incarceron as part of our special summer promotion: review a book and get the ADVANCE READING COPY (ARC) of the sequel, giving him a chance to read it MONTHS before it was released! How did Bear find out about this amazing promotion?! He's signed up for the library's teen e-mail list, so he gets to hear about all the latest news, promotions, programs, and events first. Want to be on the list? Send us an e-mail at ysweb @ lacnm dot us to get added! You can also hear about what's happening by visiting the library's teen website!
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