Alone

Title: Crane, Robert J.  Alone.  Los Angeles: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2012.  Print.

Summary: When Sienna Nealon wakes up to find two strange men in her house she does what anyone would do, she runs.  It's the first time she's left her house in 12 years, held captive all that time by her mother, and the outside world isn't anything like she imagined.  Sienna must decide quickly who she can trust when she becomes wanted by everyone.  Fortunately, 12 years of training by her mother has trained her to protect herself, or so she thought.

Critical Analysis:  This book was not at all what I expected.  It's actual supernatural fiction, which I didn't know going in.  It surprised me, but it didn't put me off.  I found the characters interesting from the human agents, Kurt and Zach, to the psychopathic mutant, Wolfe.  The book didn't take me long to read because it was so hard to put down.  I found myself reading it at every spare moment I had whether at work or at home and, as soon as I finished, diving into book two of the series.  As the story progresses it only gets better and ends with a twist that left me eager for more.  The book is full of tons of action which makes it a good read for guys and girls, alike.

Book Recommendations With Similar Themes:

1. Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix.  Bethany is about to turn thirteen when her parents leave her with an aunt she's never met, telling the woman, "She doesn't know anything about Elizabeth."  She doesn't understand what's going on, especially when the people in town treat her with a mixture of shock and fear.  As things become even more complicated Bethany becomes determined to find out what's going on and what exactly is in her past that her parents want to keep hidden.

2. Unenchanted: An Unfortunate Fairy Tale by Chanda Hahn.  Mina Grime is a nobody.  She's unpopular, unnoticed, and completely invisible to her peers until a fateful field trip when she saves the life of her crush.  The incident gets the attention of said crush, but it also wakes the curse her family has held for generations.  Mina Grime is a direct descendant of The Brothers Grimm.  To put an end to the curse Mina must live through a twisted version of every Grimm fairytale and defeat each dangerous one.  If she dies the curse will be passed on to her mute brother and that's not a risk she's willing to take.  Can an unpopular nobody face down fairy tales bent on destroying her?  She's about to find out!

Define "Normal"

Title: Peters, Julie Anne.  Define "Normal".  New York: Little, Brown, and Company, 2003, Print.

Summary: When straight-laced Antonia is assigned punk goth Jazz in their school's peer counseling program she's sure she's been assigned to a whole new level of hell.  Antonia is normal and Jazz is just so...not.  The more time Antonia spends with Jazz the more she begins to question what normal truly is and when Antonia's world is turned upside she finds herself looking to Jazz for friendship and comfort.

Critical Analysis:  I truly enjoyed Define "Normal".  The book is a wonderful lesson on judging a book by its cover.  Both girls seem live a certain type of lifestyle.  Antonia is a plain bookish type who always gets A's, and Jazz is a blue-haired black-lipped goth with multiple piercings.  But Antonia's "normal" appearance and Jazz's "abnormal" one say nothing about their home lives.  Through their friendship together they learn not to be so quick to judge on looks alone, because people can be much different than they appear.  To those struggling with family and personal problems at home this book gives hope that help can come in the most unlikely places from the most unlikely people.

Book Recommendations With Similar Themes:

1. Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga.  Kyra Sellers was just discharged from the mental ward after six months.  Now she's back and ready to reunite with the only friend she had before she was admitted.  The problem is that he isn't the same person he was when she left.  That makes her angry and she vows to get back at him, but in the process she learns a few things about herself that she never knew were possible.

2. Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey by Margaret Peterson Haddix.  Mrs. Dunphrey's English class is required to keep a journal.  Tish Bonner would normally blow off something like that, but she could really use someone to talk to and Mrs. Dunphrey has promised not to read any entry marked "Do Not Read."  The more Tish writes the more she finds herself divulging secrets she was never supposed to reveal, but the journal is an outlet that helps her cope with the things that are happening to her and that's something too invaluable to give up.

Insurgent

Title: Roth, Veronica.  Insurgent.  New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2012.  Print.

Summary: With war between the factions now on the horizon Tris must make some very big decisions that could make or break not only herself but those that she loves.  As dishonesty and betrayal show themselves at every turn Tris has to figure out who she can trust and what she can do.  As things get worse she's exposed to horrors she never imagined.

Critical Analysis:  I'll be honest, I had an incredibly hard time finishing this book. It was only through urging from a friend who read it that I kept reading.  The story itself isn't bad, in fact it's pretty interesting.  The part that bothers me is the romance between Tobias and Tris.  The entire relationship is very unnecessary to the story and detracts from it greatly.  Tris spends most of the book whining over Tobias and the state of their relationship to the point that it had me rolling my eyes and putting the book aside.  A good third of the book drags as she spends time moping about her current situation and her relationship, or lack thereof, with Tobias.  If the relationship had been omitted from the book the book would have been spectacular.  I would gladly reread Divergent, but I don't see myself ever reading Insurgent again.  That said, the rest of the book was good and the ending left me gasping in shock.  If only it hadn't been so bogged down with an unnecessary romance I would have enjoyed the book so much more.

Divergent

Title: Roth, Veronica.  Divergent.  New York: Katherine Tegen Books, 2011.  Print.

Summary:  At the age of 16  boys and girls alike are sorted into one of five separate factions.  Those who value honesty the most become the Candor, selflessness the Abnegation, knowledge the Erudite, bravery the Dauntless, and peace the Amity.  On the day of selection Beatrice Prior makes a choice that will shock everyone.  In the days that follow she begins an initiation that will push her to her limits and test who she really is.  If only she can keep the truth a secret, because it's the truth and not the initiation that could truly hurt her.

Critical Analysis:  One of the first things I heard about this book before I read it is that it's "just like The Hunger Games."  Honestly, that's what made me wait so long to read it.  A few of the girls at work read it and were saying great things so I picked it up and read it as well.  I can see how people might say it resembles The Hunger Games, but I don't think it really does.  Other than being set in a dystopian world, there's a lot of differences in the stories.  The majority of the book describes Beatrice's initiation into the faction she chooses on the day of selection.  I found it fascinating the way that the society was broken up.  While the story was wonderful and hard to stop reading, it was obvious that the book is the first one that Veronica Roth has written.  The writing style has an amateur feel to it, but it in no way detracts from the story the author is telling.

Book Recommendations With Similar Themes:

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.  Every year a male and a female from each of the 12 districts are selected to participate in The Hunger Games.  The 24 contestants are put into an arena where they are forced to fight for their lives until only one remain.  Everything is shown on every television in every district, all for the Capitol's entertainment.  When Katniss Everdeen takes the place of her little sister who was chosen fro the Games, she learns the truth behind them and has to become stronger than she ever thought possible if she hopes to survive.

Warm Bodies

Title: Marion, Isaac.  Warm Bodies.  New York: Atria Paperback, 2011.  Print.

Overview:  Set in a world overrun by zombies, R is a zombie unlike any other.  R has thoughts and feelings and he's done something that no other zombie has ever done.  During a feeding frenzy R saves a teenage girl from being eaten by his fellow zombies and now his life and the lives of everyone else, living and dead, will never be the same.

Critical Analysis:  Warm Bodies is unlike any zombie story I've ever heard.  For one, it's told from the point of view of the zombie.  That makes the story very interesting to read.  Instead of seeing from the mind of the zombie's victims, in this story we get to see what the zombie is thinking.  It's incredibly weird to have that perspective on a post-apocalyptic world, but it's what makes the story so gripping and hard to put down.  I would definitely recommend this book for those who like supernatural books that aren't cookie cutter.

Book Recommendations With Similar Themes: 

1. Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst.  Pearl is your average teenage vampire living in a boarded up house with her vampire family, drinking blood, and avoiding the sun.  That is until a unicorn appears and stabs her with his horn.  Then Pearl begins to change and her family decides they can use it to their advantage.  If Pearl, now able to walk in the sun, enrolls in high school she'll have access to hundreds of meals on legs.  That's just what her family needs when they host the Vampire King's feast, but along with ability to walk in the sun Pearl starts changing in other ways that might sabotage the feast that her family has worked so hard to prepare.

Conjuring Raine

Title: Lassiter, Maya.  Conjuring Raine.  Waking Dreams Press, 2010.  Print.

Overview:  Raine has known Joshua all of her life.  He shows up for an hour, a day, and then disappears for months and sometimes years.  For most of Raine's life Joshua has managed to remain elusive and mysterious.  Then, one night, Raine gets drawn into what Joshua does for a living and draws the attention of people who want her hurt.  Now Joshua must protect her while keeping his distance to keep her safe from the demon that's been taking over his body since the day he became a vampire.  The only problem is that Raine doesn't want distance, she wants to get to know this man that she's known all her life without really knowing him.

Critical Analysis:  I read this book as soon as I finished Toby Streams The Universe.  It wasn't until I posted the last two reviews that I realized I'd never posted this one.  While the story of Conjuring Raine is completely different from Toby Streams The Universe it's just as interesting.  The book goes back and forth from Raine's point of view to Joshua's, not only dealing with the present but with their pasts as well.  Through flashbacks you learn not only about Raine and Joshua's past encounters but also who Joshua was before he was a vampire and how he became one.  Another interesting aspect to the story is Joshua's demon, a thing that manifests itself in black veins that grow to cover more and more of Joshua's body as it takes over more control.  The demon speaks to Raine while Joshua sleeps, striking up a bargain with her.  Joshua's past and Raine's present become intertwined in twists and turns that are an intricate as they are surprising.  There's also a great cast of more minor characters including Joshua's best friend and a ruling body of vampires that see over all vampire affairs.

Book Recommendations With Similar Themes:

1. Sunshine by Robin McKinley.  The Voodoo Wars are over and Rae "Sunshine" Seddon thinks she'll be safe visiting her family's abandoned lakeside cabin, a place she wants to go to clear her head.  Unfortunately, that's where a group of vampires find and abduct her to use as bait.  Chained in a room with a starved vampire named Constantine she befriends him and makes an escape but their journey is far from over.  As she fights the vampires who abducted both her and Constantine she learns about her own magical abilities, abilities her grandmother tried to teach her when she was young.

The Nightmarys

Title: Poblocki, Dan.  The Nightmarys.  New York: Random House, 2010.  Print.

Overview: When Timothy July and Abigail Tremens are partnered for a history project they don't realize that their once separate lives are going to become intertwined by waking nightmares.  Both haunted by different horrors - the ghosts of two girls who made Abigail's world a living hell, and a dead and rotted vision of Timothy's brother, Ben - the two come together to find out just what's going on and why they're being haunted.  With the help of Abigail's grandmother they work to find out the truth and put an end to the horror.

Critical Analysis:  From the opening scene this is a book filled with horror and scary things going on.  The style the author uses to describe the details makes the nightmares come to life. It's easy to see exactly what Timothy, Abigail, and the others are seeing.  As the book progresses it becomes harder for the characters to discern the nightmare from reality and keep the two separate.  They must use tricks to keep the nightmares from overtaking them and the fear from paralyzing them.  The book is very much about taking a person's deepest fears and using them against that person.  With elements of magic, the book definitely delivers on the scare factor.  Unlike a lot of horror books it wraps up nicely at the end which I found satisfying.

Book Recommendations With Similar Themes:

1. Rotters by Daniel Kraus.  Joey Crouch lived a life like any other American teenager until an accident kills his mother and he's sent to live with a father he knows next to nothing about.  A father who disappears for days at a time, coming back with strange things he locks in a safe in his room.  His father's profession is anything but legal, most definitely macabre...and Joey's about to learn the family business.