Ghost by Jason Reynolds

Ghost by Jason Reynolds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Once again Jason Reynolds has penned a book that speaks to kids, middle grade boys and girls, who have dreams and live in a tough world. How they figure it out is what Jason Reynolds is truly awesome at- the setting, characters, dilemmas, points of view all work perfectly in this book. Ghost is definitely an urban kid who has not had an easy life but he has enough bluster to make "things" work. Take a track coach with a team trying out and Ghost watching the runners. He takes on a sprinter and blows him away...thus begins Ghost's initiation into running, friends, a coach and dare I say it - will he be able to handle this life where he lives on the wrong side of the tracks, can't afford the "right" running shoes, and still gets into fights? I loved Ghost and I ached for his life where he longed for normalcy with a mom who works by day and takes online courses at night with no money to spare and fear of closed spaces and lots of anger. I sure did admire the stable role models in his life - his mom, store owner, Mr. Charles, Coach Brody, and Principal Marshall. They guide him to become a better Ghost by remaining steadfast with their rules, expectations, and humanity. There was just the right amount of suspense, humor, with the aches and pains of being an athlete interspersed throughout this "real" novel of life and the many "stories" that make up a neighborhood, school, and those in these communities. Highly recommended! Can't wait for the next Track series!

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Redemption Road by John Hart

Redemption Road by John Hart
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I listened to this John Hart audiobook narrated by Scott Shepherd and liked his narration of all the characters EXCEPT Liz the good cop. Shepherd's voice for Liz (not her conscious thoughts) just did not do it for me. Shepherd's Liz was always monotone, flat, with no emotion and did not get across to me, the reader, her brokenness, and her determination. I love John Hart novels and this was one I could not stop listening too but I did not like the resolution of the mystery!!! I do not want to add any spoilers but yuck; I found it almost unbelievable and awful. Maybe if I had read this thriller I might have felt differently but I chose to listen to it and I always love my audiobooks, but even though I LOVED the drama and psychological suspense and love Hart's writing, this audiobook lacked a strong voice for Liz and a less than worthy revenge but I did love Liz, Channing & Adrian's travails and eventual redemption.

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The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry

The Passion of Dolssa by Julie Berry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Loved this book!!! The 1200's was a time of upheaval in the church after the Holy Wars and heretics were pursued ruthlessly, rooted out and killed, burned at the stake, and families and those who knew or helped were punished thoroughly. Julie Berry's historical fiction story about Dolssa who is a pious young woman & talks to her beloved lord, works miracles, and is hunted mercilessly by a knight and friar after miraculously escaping the burning pyre. Botille is a matchmaker and has been dispatched to a town to bring heirs back to an old friends's vineyard. Botille discovers Dolssa on her deathbed, hides her and takes her back to Bajas so she and her sisters can nurse her back to health. What the 3 sisters learn about Dolssa and her passion changes their lives and brings danger to then and their village. What a wondrous story of love, friendship, zealots, hatred, fear and heresy. I loved the seaside village of Bajas that Berry painted with it's beautiful sea and sand and the villagers with their troubles, personalities and sense of community. A harsh picture of fear
and heresy in a troubled time of the church but with cast of wonderful strong female characters, highly recommended!

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The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis

The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I so so loved the 3 main characters as they are nearing the end of high school in a small stifling town offering no prospects- 4.0 student Alex Craft is really the focal point - her sister was viciously murdered and it changed Alex- Alex is the quiet girl who rights wrongs but uses violence. As she works in a shelter with Claire AKA Peekay (Preacher's kid), both girls learn the true meaning of friendship and trust with each other and it changes their life. Also involved is Jack Fisher who helped look for Alex's sister the night she was found. Popular, athletic, smart Jack Fisher hasn't been able to stop thinking of Alex that night when Anna was discovered. Fate has jumped in and Jack wants to know Alex in every possible way. These 3 teens will explore the hazards of senior year and along the way find love, belonging, and the protection of friends. I so did not like the end !!! But Mindy McGinnis wrote a can't put it down book about the fierceness of girls (the positives & negatives) the sex obsessed, drinking guys and the compulsion of one lone girl to turn from violent retribution to living life that showed "other paths and other people." I will not soon forget Alex Craft and the two friends who mean so much to her - Jack and Claire. A must read!

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The Heart of Darkness (Remnant Chronicles #3) by Mary Pearson

The Beauty of Darkness by Mary E. Pearson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The final book in The Remnant Chronicle series is over and I am happy (such a GREAT series), devastated (I will miss the characters & narrators) and I still want more of Lia and Rafe! The narration by Emily Rankin, Ann Marie Lee, Ryan Gesell, Kirby Heyborne, Kim Mai was superb! The voices of Caden, Lia, Pauline, Rafe and the mystical gods foretelling the future just made the book that much better and this book was superb! I found my self listening all the time and then waking up thinking about all the drama, the continued machinations of the evil Vendan Comisar and all the betrayals these different characters had to suffer but work together to forge forward to unite against evil that was so deeply ingrained in a kingdom. But Lia, Rafe, Caden and Pauline do not disappoint as strong protagonists!!! A Highly recommended & favorite series & glad I could not get to it as each book was published- it was awesome jumping from Kiss of Deception to The Heart of Betrayal and finally The Beauty of Darkness!!!

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A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom

A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley, and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the ARC A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom. I really enjoyed debut author, Eric Lindstrom’s first book, Not If I See You First and his second book nails the fear and anxiety one teen, Mel Hannigan suffers as a result of being diagnosed and living with bipolar disorder. Her aunt has it, her brother “had” it and Mel does not want her friends or the world to know about her mental illness as she grapples with memories, taking meds, and dealing with highs and lows that are bipolar disorder. Lindstrom paints an authentic portrait of a teen haunted by secrets. Mel loves working at The Silver Sands Suites, she caters to each senior lovingly and I especially liked her friendship with retired psychiatrist and resident, Dr. Jordan. He is not Mel’s real doctor, except she sees him as “her real doctor.” It is through this friendship/relationship the reader really learns about bipolar disorder through their conversations – since Mel is busy hiding it from everyone but her family. As she navigates her world of high school, the retirement home, and doctor appointments the reader sees Mel as this normal, sincere girl who has suffered and does not want anyone to know about it. Everyone loves her but doesn’t know the real Mel Hannigan. What if they find out? Will they still like her and want to be her friend? This is a must read about teens, mental illness, and the fears of hiding your true self. Mel Hannigan is someone we all need to know, highly recommended!

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The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Loved the world building, characters, and skill of Kelly Barnhill's sumptuous fantasy feast. Luna is a baby when she is inadvertently fed moonlight by friendly witch Xan. So rather than have another family raise her Xan, a swamp monster, Glerk and tiny dragon, Fyrian all lovingly tend to Luna as she grows. For luscious middle grade read, you will not get much better. An excellent fairy tale for all!

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The Love that Split the World by Emily Henry

The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time travel, love, two different worlds are what senior Natalie Cleary deals with as she loses a boyfriend, gains a one true love, and struggles to make sense of her worlds colliding. I loved Natalie and Beau's story and you will too!

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The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time travel, love, two different worlds are what senior Natalie Cleary deals with as she loses a boyfriend, gains a one true love, and struggles to make sense of her worlds colliding. I loved Natalie and Beau's story and you will too!

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The Kiss of Deception (Remnant Chronicles 1) by Mary Pearson

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved the narration of this audiobook by Emily Rankin, Ann Marie Lee, Ryan Gesell, Kirby Heyborne, Kim Mai were stellar. Guest Book One of the Remnant Chronicles, The Kiss of Deception, tell the story of a princess who bolts on the day of her wedding to freedom from an unwanted marriage, to a new life as a bar maid. In this new town with her best friend, Pauline, Lia beings a new life all the while unaware she has been followed by an assassin and her jilted prince. Oh the deception, it was delicious. A must read! I can't wait to listen to Book 2.

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Posted in #yearofya (http://bit.ly/yearofya

Loving YA Series Fiction

 

BJ Neary (9/27/16)

Retired HS Librarian – Abington Senior High, Abington, PA

bjneary@comcast.net

http://nearynotes.blogspot.com/

 

I am so happy that my book-loving librarian friends, Mollee and Tavia, founders of #yearofya, the virtual Twitter book chat that I so look forward to and participate in monthly, asked me to be a guest blogger!  As I began to think about what I most ENJOY RIGHT NOW in YA literature and looked at my Goodreads bookshelves, I realized I have been totally hooked on YA SERIES fiction for years now and wanted to share (1) my CURRENT favorites, (2) series books not to be missed, (3) amazing audiobook series and (4) NEW series I am SO looking forward to jumping into (I want your recommendations too!)

 

What I relish in any series is that they can be any genre; authors build believable and fantastical worlds and craft strong, authentic characters that readers can relate to and cannot wait to explore and enjoy in more than one book. To satisfy my cravings for the next sizzling series sequel, I preorder the next book in the series either for my Kindle, order hard copy from Amazon or for my listening pleasure on Audible.  Afterward, I excitedly look forward to discussing the sequels and series with my friends.  Since I curate Young Adult Novels on Scoop.it, I cannot wait to read reviews from bloggers and other publications like SLJ and Booklist for their recommendations concerning these new releases.

 

How do I keep track of all the series?  I use Goodreads and I just love free FictFact because there are several ways to find your favorite series: Browse by Series, Browse by Author, Popular Series Overall, Most Popular by Genre, Book Release Calendar (love this) and Search…could not be any easier!

 

(1)  MY CURRENT faves (linked to my reviews on Goodreads)

 

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas                An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

And I Darken by Kiersten White                     The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Andieh

The Raven King by Maggie Steifvater           Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski          The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer       The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey

 

(2)  Series not to be missed - (my oldies but goodies)

 

Over the years, my students and I enjoyed discussing and sharing series.  Therefore, I am providing even more series (Animoto video) since I was a high school librarian for ten years. Retired for 4 years, I still ravenously read YA series and am always anxiously waiting for the next new title!  When I was a high school librarian, I did not get around to reading as many series as I would have liked, since librarians are also performing multifaceted jobs (you know what I mean.)  By the time I was able to read series such as, Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi and Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson, the whole series was finished!  I just gobbled all three books in the trilogy (one over Christmas break and the other over summer), loved them, of course, and it was heaven!

 

 

 

 

(3)  Amazing audiobooks series

 

A Court of Thorns and Roses Series	Sarah J. Maas
The Selection Series	Kiera Cass
Daughter of Smoke & Bone Series	Laini Taylor
Half Bad Series	Sally Green

 

(4)  New Series I Want to READ - you can’t read every single series that comes out, but this Animoto video shows a few I WANT to read but have not gotten to yet.  But, oh how I do want to jump into them!

 

Nerd Alert! I just received Crooked Kingdom, Six of Crows, Book 2 by Leigh Bardugo on my Kindle, so I will begin reading this heist thriller immediately!

 

Additional Series Books Links

YA Series Adults Will Enjoy    

Essential YA Series Reads

Underrated Series That Need More Love

The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider

The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dan John Miller's narration of Ezra Faulkner was perfect and his other voice of Cassidy was awesome (I liked her but did not love her) and his other voices of his friends and parents were good. After Ezra Faulkner is hit and forever taken from his beloved game of tennis when he returns to school, his life is not the same. Now he sits at lunch with his boyhood friend that he lost touch with, becomes involved with the debate team and meets Cassidy Thorpe. As he falls for her, he becomes a much nicer person more aware of the jerk he had been throughout high school. With high hopes for Homecoming with Cassidy, it all comes apart, and Ezra is left bereft and questioning why, why, why? I was not happy with this book's ending but I was not surprised. I found Ezra a strong believable protagonist and wished Cassidy was too.





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Crooked Kingdom, Sequel to Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh wow, what a great great book! I did not know Crooked Kingdom was a sequel so there will be no more Kaz Brekker adventures and that makes me truly sad. But I could not put this book down, as Six of Crows ends, Inej was captured by Van Eck and Kaz and his band of merry thieves all band together to rescue her. I love Bardugo’s schemes, her worlds, her characters, and this book did not disappoint! Inej is still the wonderful Wraith who has a conscience and Kaz’s back and possibly his love? Kaz evolves in this book, but how much can he really change when he can’t get past his brother’s drowning, swimming and touching his bloated dead body? The expanding relationship with Matthias and Nina gave me some Grisha/Fjerdan hope and romance, Wyland and Jesper continue their friendship and alliances (where will that take them?), and Kuwei Bul and Colm are welcome additions to Brekker’s crew as he schemes his way to revenge, money, and salvation; and the hateful characters like Rollins, Jan Van Eck and Per Haskell just get more and more nasty and wily, filled with never ending fights, lies and revenge. I fell in love with this plot, these characters, their worlds and want to read more and more about them. For a sweeping story, and elaborate machinations! Will Nina kick the parem that became her obsession and will her Grisha power return? Will Jesper still be hooked on gambling and getting himself and his friends in trouble? Just READ this book; you will lose yourself in their worlds, their loves, their insecurities and their daring do. Highly recommended!

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