Teen and Staff Reviews

Teen Review
The Soul Keepers by Devon Taylor

The Soul Keepers

By Devon Taylor

Rated by
Emma J. From Blue Valley YAAC
Mar 18, 2019

When teenager Rhett dies, he becomes a skelletor on the Harbinger, which is a ship that collects souls when people die. Suddenly, a demon appears and wants some special power that Rhett seems to have. What could it be? How will Rhett and his new friends stop her? Or can they even? 

Teen Review
The Lonely Dead by April Henry

The Lonely Dead

By April Henry

Rated by
Nathan N. from Blue Valley YAAC
Mar 14, 2019

This book is about a girl named Adele who can see the dead. She's diagnosed as a schizophrenic and given pills to stop her "hallucinations", but one day, she misses a dose, realizes how alive she felt, and started flushing her pills. However, she sees the ghost of a former best friend who was murdered, and winds up being the prime suspect.

Teen Review
Kiss Number 8 by Colleen AF Venable and Ellen T. Crenshaw

Kiss Number 8

By Ellen T. Crenshaw

Rated by
Halie S. from Blue Valley YAAC
Mar 12, 2019

Kiss Number 8 tells us about all of the kisses that Mads (the main character) has had so far in her life. The book leads up to her kiss number eight. After that, the book continues to tell us how her life dramatically changed after kiss number eight. The most compelling aspect was how after she kissed one of her good friends that was a girl, and all her friends suddenly stopped hanging around her. I was never disappointed, and I thought this book was very good at connecting with teens.

Teen Review
The Wicked King by Holly Black

The Wicked King

By Holly Black

Rated by
Kaitlin G. from Blue Valley YAAC
Mar 7, 2019

Although this book was a sequel, it draws readers in even more than its predecessor, The Cruel Prince. Characters will be faced with even more difficult decisions, alliances will be formed and broken, all while Black manages to wow the audience with an even more intriguing world than before. I really enjoyed the cover. It well reflects the tensions in this book with the main characters and the Kingdom of the Sea, and between Cardan and Jude over the crown.

Teen Review
If There's No Tomorrow by Jennifer L. Armentrout

If There's No Tomorrow

By Jennifer L. Armentrout

Rated by
Claire B from Monticello YAAC
Feb 21, 2019

Lena Wise is your average high school book nerd, just coasting through life until college, always looking for tomorrow to be better. Though she faces some complications in life with her dad, and beside the fact that she is in love with her best friend, Lena's life is pretty normal. That is until tragedy strikes and Lena begins to realize that for some people, there is no tomorrow.

The most compelling part of this book was the way it approaches teen drinking and survivors guilt. I was happy with the ending and the way all of the events progressed.

Teen Review
The Past and Other Things That Should Stay Buried by Shaun David Hutchinson

The Past and Other Things That Should Stay Buried

By Shaun David Hutchinson

Rated by
Eddy J from Blue Valley YAAC
Feb 19, 2019

Dino's ex-best friend, July, just died. Or so Dino thinks. Dino's family owns a funeral home, and Dino's family tries to make dead people look like they're peacefully resting in their coffin before their burial. Dino is preparing for July's funeral, putting make-up on her, doing the usual, when suddenly, July bolts upright and starts screaming. She's not dead, but she's not quite alive, either. Dino then learns that July's awakening has made it so that nobody, and I mean nobody, is able to die anymore! This compelling, coming-of-age story about friendship will suck readers into it.

Teen Review
Awake in the World by Jason Gurley

Awake in the World

By Jason Gurley

Rated by
Erin L
Feb 12, 2019

Zach Mays is notorious for having the worst luck in Orilly, a small oil town. His father has died and left him and his older brother to care for the family. Zach is lost trying to put his bleak life together until Vanessa, a confident, radiant girl who's planned her whole future, comes into his world.

Teen Review
Analee in Real Life by Janelle Milantes

Analee, in Real Life

By Janelle Milanes

Rated by
Jahnavi P
Feb 8, 2019

Analee in Real Life is about a teenage girl who recently lost her mother. Soon after, she loses her best friend as well. About the only friend she has is in an online game. His name is Harris, and she has a crush on him. So when the most popular boy in the school, Sebastian Matias asks her to pose as his girlfriend to make his ex jealous, she agrees.

Teen Review
Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott

Five Feet Apart

By Rachael Lippincott

Rated by
Soumya T
Feb 4, 2019

A beautiful and compelling story. The book is about two inseparable teens who suffer from cystic fibrosis, and they long to touch each other, but they must stay the dreaded six feet apart at all times, because two people with cystic fibrosis can not go closer then that. They can't even get a few feet closer without risking their lives. The perfect story for anyone who likes a spinning romance with loving characters, and an exciting but emotional plot. Once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down! I even skipped my dinner that day just so I wouldn't have to stop reading!

Teen Review
The Similars by Rebecca Hanover

The Similars

By Rebecca Hanover

Rated by
Lauren F from Blue Valley YAAC
Feb 1, 2019

The Similars is a fantastic literary tale of understanding actions and feelings of others while simultaneously exploring the concept of clones that may be a future reality. Emma is dealing with the aftermath of a friend's suicide when six clones, dubbed 'The Similars', begin attending her high school. One of them wears the face of her recently deceased friend, but she is quick to understand that he is not Oliver and will never be Oliver. 

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