Sprout by Dale Peck

3 Stars

After his mother died of cancer, Sprout and his father packed their belongings and moved from Long Island to Hutchison, Kansas. They may as well moved to another planet. Sprout has been in Kansas for years now, but is still the new kid. His green hair makes him stand out as it is, but add in his eccentric, alcoholic father and the fact that he’s an in-the-closet gay teenager in the reddest red state in the country and there’s no way he can fit in.

"Sprout" popped up on a recommended reading list since I adore all that is David Levithan. Kind of an unfair thing to do to Dale Peck since Levithan just sets the bar soooooo high when it comes to teenage characters, huh? That being said, "Sprout" was a fairly decent read. I know many people have a huge pet peeve with adolescent characters who speak like an Encyclopedia Brittanica, but I’m not one of them (Non-spoiler alert: If you are generally annoyed by this – ride it out for the duration of "Sprout" – there might be a method to his madness). I kind of loved Sprout Bradford throughout most of the book. He was unique, he was witty and he obviously needed people to love him. Peck wrote a good book. However, open endings are my kryptonite. An open ending just sucks the happy endorphins right out of my system - especially when the book is less than 300 pages. Finish the book, Peck. I might even break my own rule and read the sequel. Until then, 3-Stars is as good a rating as I can muster.

The Troop by Nick Cutter

NetGalley ARC

5 Stars

A group of boy scouts and their troop master set off for a camping trip on an uninhabited island just off the mainland. They plan on a weekend adventure spent earning merit badges and learning a few lessons on how to live off the land. However, when an emaciated stranger shows up on the island carrying a potential biological weapon in his system in the form of a tapeworm, the trip becomes a test of survival of the fittest.

It being October with a forecast of thunderstorms, I went searching for a scary book to read. "The Troop" popped up as a giveaway, but my impatience led me to NetGalley searching for instant gratification rather than waiting for the drawing (or, heaven forbid, the actual publication date). As I said, I wanted something that would potentially scare the pants off me. What I got was so much more than I expected.

Let’s begin with the blurb on the cover … (Okay, before we even get to the blurb, can I mention the actual cover? Absolutely GORGEOUS. I believe Mr. Cutter will see copies of this novel flying off the shelves for that photo alone.) Alright, back on track to the blurb – it calls "The Troop" "Lord of the Flies" meets "The Ruins". I haven’t read "The Ruins" (don’t worry, it’s on the TBR), so I kept calling it "Stand By Me" meets "Cabin Fever" meets "We Need to Talk About Kevin".

What could have been a simple coming-of-age story about a group of boys from different walks of life who have bonded over the years in the Scouts together quickly morphs into the grossest of gross horror novels with the introduction of the "worm". Please note, this book is not for those with weak constitutions. And by constitutions, I don’t just me you have a high tolerance for the ick factor. While it might be a good idea to keep a barfbag handy for many scenes in this book, the parts that describe the mental state of the troop are far more horrific and are the ones which will give you nightmares.

I don’t hand out 5-Star ratings often. To get a 5-Star from me, the book pretty much (i) has to consume my life, (ii) I have to run the gamut of emotions while reading it and (iii) there can be NOTHING I can nitpick (example: "XYZ was gooooood, but it would have been even better if it were 100 pages shorter"). I started "The Troop" assuming it would be a 3-Star read, max. Never did I imagine I would be peeling layer after disturbing layer of the onion off until the last page. The setting was eerie, the dialogue believable, the character development absolutely phenomenal and the pace was perfect. I could not tear myself away from this book (and according to my husband I had a look of absolute terror on my face for 90% of it). I have no choice but to grant it a 5-Star rating.

Just One Day by Gayle Forman

2 Stars

Allyson has always been a good girl – never going against the tide or doing anything that would upset her parents.  She’s so good, in fact, that she doesn’t even dare drink with all of her friends while on a post-high school graduation trip to Europe.  When the trip is winding down, Allyson’s friend convinces her to live a little and go see a Shakespeare performance that is not on the itinerary.  At the play Allyson meets Willem – an actor with the troop who offers to spend Allyson’s final day in Europe with her.  When Allyson wakes up from their whirlwind day alone she begins to question every decision she’s made.  “Just One Day” follows Allyson for a year while she tries to discover who she is.

I developed a huge girl-crush on Gayle Forman after reading “If I Stay”.  It was so different and brilliant and I just KNEW my crush would turn in to true love with Forman’s future works.  Unfortunately, “Where She Went” did not resonate quite so deeply with me, but I was not quite ready to give up just yet.  My apologies to all who loved this book, but for me, “Just One Day” was absolutely “meh”.  I don’t tolerate pathetic female lead characters very well, and Allyson was just soooooo pitiful.  One day with a dude who continually reiterates that, for him, it is really just one day of fun and frolicking and she’s going to ruin her entire life over it?  Honey,

Sadly, I believe this will be my last attempt at love with Gayle Forman.  Sadder still, is the fact that I think my opinion might be a bit different if “Just One Day” and “Just One Year” were one book instead of broken into two, but I’m not willing to waste any more of my time on Allyson and Willem’s story.

Poor Little Dead Girls by Lizzie Friend

3 Stars

NetGalley ARC

When Sadie gets an athletic scholarship to an exclusive ivy league prep school, she's beyond thrilled.  Shortly after settling in to her new surroundings, she finds herself kidnapped and placed under a grueling interview process to become a member of an exclusive secret society.  At first she’s simply pissed at the embarrassment of being a part of this type of hazing ritual, but when she discovers her life will be filled with fabulous clothing, a wonderful new boyfriend and friends who will have your back no matter what, Sadie changes her mind.  That is, until she realizes there is more to this secret society than meets the eye and the connections don’t end with just an elite bunch of high school students.

This was a fun little book.  The mystery isn’t earth shattering and there aren’t a whole lot of twists or turns in the road before you get to the finish, but I wanted to keep reading it anyway.  I found the heroin likeable, the supporting characters interesting, and the dialogue quick, witty and believable.  Note:  They sometimes talk like teenagers so if you hookers don’t like that, then whatevs (seriously, phrases like that are contained in this book so don’t say you weren’t warned).  I’m not generally a reader of the “YA Thriller” genre, but I think this one would receive a pretty decent ranking for those who look for those types of books.  It also had the bonus of two roommates who, although not a HUGE part of the storyline, conjured up this image for which I will be eternally grateful ; )

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

4 Stars

Ishmael Beah was a normal adolocent in Sierre Leon. He and his friends adored hip hop music and spent their free time learning songs by NWA, Heavy D, LL Cool J, piece-parting a cool wardrobe and learning dance moves in order to compete in talent contests throughout the area. Ishmael’s life is completely torn apart when the rebels and the official army begin fighting. Villages are destroyed, women and girls are raped, men are murdered and children are kidnapped, drugged, brainwashed and turned into tiny robotic soldiers.

Ishmael’s story reads like fiction – it’s nearly impossible to wrap my brain around the fact that this is a true account. My heart broke for this child over and over and over again. The writing style is simple, yet so significant. I encourage everyone to read this book. You’ll be hypnotized by the horror and inspired by a boy who emerged from the deepest darkness imaginable back into the light.

The Broken Ones by Stephen M. Irwin

3.5 Stars

Detective Oscar Mariani is dealing with a personal ghost.  In fact, everyone in the world is.  You see, several years ago the world flipped on its axis bringing back the dead in a ratio of one per every live person.  With a dead friend or relative as their new shadow, some people find themselves going off their rocker and committing murder.  That’s where Oscar comes in.  As the head of a nearly defunct department, it’s his job to say whether the ghost REALLY made you do it, or if you’re just using that excuse to avoid jail time.  Now Mariani finds himself dealing with an even more bizarre situation.  A young woman’s body has turned up with ritualistic carvings on her corpse and more young girls are missing.  It’s up to Oscar to solve the crime – and maybe figure out who his own personal ghost is in the process.

Any T.V. watchers reading this?  Remember “Friends”?  Remember when Rachel made the trifle????  “It’s a trifle.  It’s got all of these layers.  First, there’s a layer of ladyfingers, then a layer of jam, then a layer of custard (which I made from scratch), then raspberries, more ladyfingers, then beef sautéed with peas and onions, then a little more custard, then bananas and I just put some whipped cream on top!”  “The Broken Ones” kept bringing the image of that horrific trifle to the surface of my brain the entire time I read it.  Overworked detective?  Good.  Potential serial killer?  Goooood.  Maybe a satanic ritual killer even?  Goodgoodgoodgoodgood. Don’t know who is bad and who is good and what is up and what is down on the rollercoaster of reading?  GOOOOOOOOOD.  Dystopian society?  Huh????  Ghost story?  Wha????? 

“The Broken Ones” was a good book.  The mystery kept me guessing, Oscar was a pretty fabulous main character, I read in just a few hours so the pages were apparently turning.  It just had one too many layers – like poor Rachel’s trifle/shepherd’s pie combo.

Variant by Robison Wells

3.5 Stars

Benson Fisher has been in the foster care system since he was five years old.  After spending the majority of his life being bounced from family to family he’s excited when he wins a scholarship and a chance for a fresh start at Maxfield Academy.  But when Benson is dropped off at a school that looks more like a prison and is ran by “gangs” of students rather than adults, where breaking the rules can equal death, he knows he has to do everything he can to escape this new life.

Although I read plenty of YA material, this book would have never made a blip on my radar if it weren’t for my favorite 12-year old kid.  You see, in his middle-school you get awarded for reading the Truman Award Nominee book selections – read 4 and you get something-or-another, read all 12 and you get a pizza party.  Reward is a great motivator for a kid who doesn’t particularly share his mother’s obsession with books.  That being said, when this not-so-into-reading kid told me I just HAD TO read “Variant” I was all in.  And you know what, he didn’t steer me wrong.  “Variant” was a real page turner.  If you/your kid enjoyed “The Hunger Games” and “The Maze Runner” and “Divergent” and “Legend” andonandonandonandonandon, you’ll probably like this one too.  It’s an easy read that is action-packed and has a great twist.  The only real problem I have is that it falls into the trap of WHY DOES EVERY YA BOOK HAVE TO BE MULTI-PART?????  I generally just pretend that all of these books are stand-alone rather than a series, but this one has me a little intrigued.  Not enough to actually read the second book, but enough that I’ll make my kid read it and tell me what happens ; )