Teen and Staff Reviews

Teen Review
 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone book cover

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

By J. K. Rowling
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Sanay M.
Jan 27, 2025

Eleven-year-old Harry Potter is first introduced to the wizarding world by a towering, sasquatch looking man named Hagrid, who informs him that he’s a wizard and is invited to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Here, he will begin a journey of magic like no other. He will make loyal friends, learn of the rich history of the magical world, and conjure otherworldly spells. Along the way, he will uncover secrets about his dark past and face off against the most dangerous wizard known to man - all in his first year.

Teen Review
Better Than the Movies book cover

Better Than the Movies

By Lynn Painter
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Rose K.
Jan 27, 2025

Liz Buxbaum has been waiting for her swoon-worthy, perfect rom-com love story her entire life, a dream she’s been chasing ever since her mother died when she was young. So, when her childhood crush, sweet and incredibly charming Michael Young, moves back to boring old Omaha, Nebraska, she takes the opportunity with both hands, but it won’t be easy.

Teen Review
10 Blind Dates book cover

10 Blind Dates

By Ashley Elston
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Rose K.
Jan 27, 2025

Sophie’s world is falling apart. Griffin, her longtime boyfriend, has unexpectedly dumped her, leaving her with a crushed and shattered heart.  Her parents are away and her older sister’s about to have a baby, and she’s being forced to spend her winter break at her grandmother house, aka family central. Things couldn’t get any worse, could they? Except they do. By miles. Nonna’s decided to set up Sophie for . . . blind dates? Her family is betting.

Teen Review
Check & Mate book cover

Check & Mate

By Ali Hazelwood
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Rose K.
Jan 27, 2025

Mallory Greenleaf has quit chess, a game she used to love and adore, forever. After tragedies struck her family, one after another, she’s stuck at a job she hates, with sisters she hates, and a best friend that may be moving on. Suddenly, Mallory’s world has turned upside down, and at the center of it all is the illusive, mysterious, and unfairly attractive Nolan Sawyer, the #1 chess player on the planet. Worst of all, he’s firmly obsessed with her, and she doesn’t know why.

Teen Review
The Night Circus book cover

The Night Circus

By Erin Morgenstern
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Rishi Tek
Jan 27, 2025

The Night Circus is a fantastical tale of mystery and enchantment. The story revolves around Le Cirque des Rêves, a magical circus that appears without warning and is only open at night. The circus is not just a spectacle; it’s a battleground for two young illusionists, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood for a magical duel. The stakes are high, and their future, as well as the fate of the circus, hangs in the balance. 

Teen Review
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me

By Tahereh Mafi
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Layla M
Jan 24, 2025

Shatter Me is a story about a girl named Juliette living in a dystopian future Earth. Juliette has been incapable of human touch all her life and that leads her to being locked away for years. With the prospect of having a better future Juliette must make tough decisions and choices to escape her captivity. Shatter Me is the first book in the series and I liked how you could tell Juliette changed throughout the book due to the writing style. My favorite characters are Juliette and Adam.

Teen Review
Namesake by Adrienne Young

Namesake

By Adrienne Young
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
TeenReviewer11
Jan 24, 2025

Namesake by Adrienne Young is the sequel to Fable. This book continues the story of Fable, a 17 year-old girl who was left on the island of Javal by her father. Fable is able to save up money to seek voyage out of the island with West and his crew. They travel across the Narrows and attempt to survive the challenges that come along their way. Fable learns more about her mother and a family friend Clove, who she thought was dead.

Teen Review
The Getaway List by Emma Lord

The Getaway List

By Emma Lord
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by
Bridget A
Jan 24, 2025

The Getaway List by Emma Lord is a romance book that follows the story of Riley as she moves to New York after graduating from high school. She reconnects with her best friend Tom, and together they try to rediscover who Riley is. To do this they take an old list of goals and dreams from their glory days. As they complete them, they make new friends and memories along the way. I thought this book was such a fun read, the book flowed very well and had a good plot.

Teen Review
The Locked Door by Freida McFadden

The Locked Door

By Freida Mcfadden
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by
Anonymous
Jan 24, 2025

The Locked Door is a fictional thriller about the life of Nora Davis, daughter of the Handy Man, a famous serial killer in Oregon. The book narrates Nora's lonely life as a surgeon while her father is behind bars. While Nora is in denial about her psychological similarities to her father, a copycat killer is on the loose and they're coming for her. Throughout the book, Nora experiences flashbacks that detail what her life was like living in a house where girls were being murdered in the basement.

Teen Review
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

A Christmas Carol

By Charles Dickens
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Ashton F
Jan 24, 2025

Who doesn't like Christmas, this time of year when a family's invaluableness is appreciated? Ebeneezer Scrooge that's who. That's who dislikes the warm sensation of generosity. He alone with some help from curious individuals accommodate a unique traversal through happiness and tragedy. It is a journey that is meant to depict the joyous times of celebration where a small sacrifice is not as dangerous as it may seem, and yet the unseen hardships undertaken by families in this time are not all known to those with no financial worries.

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