F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a work of art. Set in the roaring 20s in New York, the novel follows Nick Carraway as he unravels the truth about his neighbor, Jay Gatsby, his cousin Daisy, and everyone else surrounding his new apartment in West Egg. For the first six chapters of this novel, I didn’t understand the hype, but I was sold by the end.
Happily Ever After is a companion novel to The Selection series by Kiera Cass. The first story, “The Queen,” tells how King Clarkson and Queen Amberly fell in love. Their relationship is very toxic; his tests were controlling and not justifiable because he didn't want to marry someone vain. The second story included, “The Prince.” retells the beginning of the Selection from Maxon's perspective.
Before is the final book of Anna Todd’s After series. This book gives some insight into a few of the characters’ lives before After takes place and provides a retelling of the beginning and end of Tessa and Hardin’s relationship through Hardin’s point of view.
Lord of the Flies by William Golding is a novel about a group of boys stranded on an island all by themselves. The novel explores the human mind and how everyone has the capacity to commit atrocities, and all that they need is a push in the right direction.
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories is a companion book to Holly Black’s Folk of the Air series, this time following High King Cardan, one of the series’ more compelling characters.
Written by John Knowles, A Separate Peace is a realistic fiction story about a boy named Gene who attends boarding school in New England and is set during the years of World War II. The plot mainly follows Gene and his best friend Phineas. Gene is quiet, inverted and an intellectual. Phineas is everyone’s favorite person; he is athletic, charming, and a daredevil.
This next installment in The Hunger Games series follows now 17-year-old Katniss Everdeen as she struggles with the aftermath of her victory in the 74th Hunger Games. The foundations of this mighty and cruel country shake as districts prepare to revolt, apparently encouraged by Katniss’s stunt with the berries that led to her victory. A personal visit from President Snow frightens Katniss, and she must decide if she wants to try to stop the uprisings or join them.
Veronica Roth’s Divergent, the first series in her trilogy of the same name, is a young adult dystopian novel. At this time, society is split into five factions, each based around a core value. Beatrice Prior’s initiation ceremony is arriving soon now that she’s sixteen, and she’ll have to choose between remaining in the faction she was born into or joining one of the others. After making her choice, Beatrice, nicknamed Tris, must navigate training, initiation, and relationships with her peers and family.
After Ever Happy is the final book in the After series written by Anna Todd. This book follows Tessa and Hardin as they adjust to living in different states to get space from one another and experience personal growth. This book had a different vibe than the rest of the series; it had more of a somber tone than the others, which I didn’t love.
After We Fell, the third installment of Anna Todd’s After series, might just be the best book in the series. Tessa and Hardin learn to live separately and travel to England for Hardin’s mom’s wedding. Throughout all of this, Hardin and Tessa actually seem to learn how to communicate for the most part, and a lot of drama arises surrounding both Hardin and Tessa’s parents.
