Freak The Mighty Review

Author: Rodman Philbrick

Release Date: June 1st 2001

Pages: 156 (PB)

Publisher: Scholastic Point

Most Appropriate For Ages: 10+

Where I Got It: Bought for book club

"I never had a brain until Freak came along..."

That's what Max thought. All his life he'd been called stupid. Dumb. Slow. It didn't help that people were afraid of him. So Max learned how to be alone. At least until Freak came along.

Freak was weird, too. He had a little body--and a really big brain. Together Max and Freak were unstoppable.

Together they were Freak the Mighty.

So I read Freak The Mighty in about 2 or 3 hours. Not necessarily because I was glued to the pages, but because I put off reading it until the day before my book club.

I wish I had been glued to the pages of Freak The Mighty, but that's far from the truth.

Something the leader of the club pointed out and I have to agree with: the style of writing. It's told in first person from Max's point of view, so we read how Max thinks. I see why Philbrick did this, but it made the book difficult to properly read.

I don't really have many things to say about Freak The Mighty because it didn't really stick with me or affect me in any way at all. Everything about it was kind of bland to me. A lot of people seem to love this book though, so maybe I'm in the minority? I don't know. But like I said, it was a half-decent way to kill 2 or 3 hours.

Plot: Predictable and rather boring.

Characters: Intriguing enough, but I never really connected to them.

Writing: Max's voice and thought made the novel difficult to read.

Ending: Sad, and my favorite part of the book.

Kind Friendly? Yes. There was no swearing, but several mentions of death and murder.
Should I read it? Yeah, why not. It's short and popular (which is the complete opposite of me, by the way).

Overall:

The Goddess Test Review

Author: Aimee Carter
Release Date: April 19, 2011
Pages: 293 (e-galley)
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+ 

Where I Got It: For review through Netgalley

It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall. 

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.

Siiiiiiiigh. After hearing a lot of mixed reviews about The Goddess Test, I'm afraid I have to add my review to the negative pile.

The plot just really didn't grab me at all. I had such a hard time getting into it, and it took me forever to read. I can't really point out major plot flaws to you, because all I know is that it was supposed to interest me more than it did.

Kate was okay. First I thought she was annoying, but either I changed towards the end or she did, cause she began to grow on me a bit. But Henry? UGH. The guy must have had permanent-PMS or something cause DANG. And yes, I know why he was moody and that I'm supposed to be all, "Oh, you poor thing!" But here's the thing: I'm not. I'm not very sympathetic. Especially when this guy has had, what, hundreds of years to heal his broken heart and just GET OVER IT and just HASN'T? And Kate and Henry's relationship was so unhealthy, and angsty, but mostly unhealthy, thanks to Henry and his mood swings.

This book was dripping angst. I have a giant angst-puddle on my kitchen floor because of it. If that's your kind of thing, pick it up. It is not really my thing, so I found myself rolling my eyes more than I could count.

I kept with it, expecting something big to happen and to finally get some answers so everyone would stop being annoyingly vague. (And by "everyone" I mean Henry UGH HENRY.) And they did stop, and I did get--surprising--answers, but I wouldn't say it completely made up for my issues with the book.

Plot: Different, but didn't keep my interest at all.

Characters: Kate was okay, Henry was unbearable, and the side characters were kinda bland.

Writing: Okay but nothing special.

Ending: Good but it didn't answer a lot of questions, still.

Kid Friendly? There was sex, death, and maybe a swear word or two?

Should I read it? If this sounds like your type of book, I guess. But I've read better paranormals.

Overall:

One of Those Hideous Books Where The Mother Dies Review

Author: Sonya Sones
Release Date: October 25, 2005
Pages: 272 (PB)
Publisher: SimonPulse
Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+
Where I Got It: Bought

Fifteen-year-old Ruby Milliken leaves her best friend, her boyfriend, her aunt, and her mother's grave in Boston and reluctantly flies to Los Angeles to live with her father, a famous movie star who divorced her mother before Ruby was born.

One of Those Hideous Books Where The Mother Dies was kind of a predictable, cliched novel that you won't really think about once you've finished it, but you enjoyed it well enough while reading it.

 Sadly I never connected to the story like I need to. I think maybe part of the problem was Ruby. While I sometimes liked her humor, she was blind to things I figured out quickly and occasionally annoying. And all of the side-characters were...well, pretty much non-existent.

OOTHBWTMD was told in verse, so it's a really fast read but--for me--that's about all it was. I know some have liked it a LOT more than me, so it's worth a try if it sounds like your style.

Plot: I feel like I've read it before...

Characters: Ruby irritated me.

Writing: Good. It had a different tone than some verse books I've read.

Ending: Saw it coming.

Kind Friendly? There was mild swearing, and mentions of sex.
Should I read it? You know what, yeah. Though it wasn't my cup of tea, I'm sure lots of others will enjoy it. (Mainly because they have.)

Overall:

The Vision Review

Author: Jen Nadol
Release Date: September 27, 2011
Pages: 220
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+
Where I Got It: Through tour site for review
Other Titles In Series: The Mark

Cassie Renfield knows the mark tells her when someone is going to die and that she can intervene and attempt to change fate. But she still doesn't understand the consequences, especially whether saving one life dooms another. With no family left to offer guidance, Cassie goes in search of others like her. But when she meets Demetria, a troubled girl who seems to have the power of the Fates, Cassie finds the truth isn't at all what she expected. And then there's her heady new romance with bad boy Zander. Dating him has much graver repercussions than she could ever have imagined, forcing Cassie to make choices that cut to the essence of who she is and what she believes.

Jen Nadol offers readers a romance with big stakes and an ethical dilemma with no easy answers in this riveting sequel to The Mark. Paranormal fans who love the psychological thrill of Lisa McMann's bestselling Wake trilogy will flock to these books.

In my opinion, The Vision was one of those sequels that was almost unnecessary. It just seemed to be The Mark all over again, with one--unsatisfying--answer. The pacing was a bit too slow and the plot is a bit too much like The Mark for me to enjoy The Vision a lot.

I hated to have to say all that, because I really liked The Mark...but it was way too true.

The Vision did have it's strong points, like Cassie. While sometimes she was a bit too floppy, I still think she's such a believable character. The side characters were rather flat, though.

Unfortunately The Vision was a big let down for me.Will I be reading the next book in the series? ...Well, I think I'd see what others thought of it before picking it up. I'm more excited to see what else Nadol can do at this point.

Plot: Read it before.

Characters: Cassie was ok, but the rest were blah.

Writing: Good.

Ending: Liked it.

Kind Friendly? There was mild swearing and making out.
Should I read it? If you really enjoyed The Mark, The Vision did answer some questions you had. But as it's own installment it didn't work for me. Hopefully you'll feel differently, though.

Overall:

Sometimes it Happens Review

Author: Lauren Barnholdt
Release Date: July 12, 2011
Pages: 322 (E-galley)
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Most Appropriate For Ages: 14+
Where I Got It: For review from Galley Grab

On the last day of her junior year, Hannah's boyfriend Sebastian dumped her. Facing a summer of loneliness, Hannah turns to her best friend Ava for comfort. Ava does what BFFs do: she stays by Hannah's side...until it's time for Ava to head up to Maine for the summer. Also left behind is Ava's boyfriend, Noah, who's such a great guy he gets Hannah a job at the diner he waits tables at. Slowly, Hannah comes out of her funk thanks to Noah's good conversation and their fun times at the diner. But things get complicated when their friendship turns into attraction--and one night, into a passionate kiss.

The novel opens on the first day of senior year; the day Hannah is going to see Ava, Sebastian, and Noah all in one place. Over the course of the day secrets and betrayals are revealed, and alliances are broken and reformed. In the end, everyone is paired up once again, but not the way you might think...

I think my expectations were too high, because Sometimes It Happens just...wasn't my favorite.

My main problem with this book was the main character, Hannah. Or more accurately, the lack of one. I thought Hannah had no real personality. And she was completely backbone-less! I mean, she just went along with whatever people told her to do, whether she wanted to or not. And she didn't seem to grow at all throughout the novel. It also does not help that used either "like" or "totally" every other sentence.

The "It" that "Happened" was revealed on page 3 or so. This was a creative way to tell a story, but it also made the plot a little boring.

So why didn't I give up on Sometimes It Happens? Because it definitely had it's upsides. Like, for one thing, NOAH. He pretty much had every awesome quality in a guy one can have: a sense of humor, good taste in music, and a natural hatred towards skinny jeans (they just bug me!). All of the other side characters were well-developed as well.

Sometimes It Happens was just not for me. Maybe older fans of the chick-lit genre will like this one more than I did. I'll be trying some of Barnholdt's other books in the future, though.

Plot: Predictable and kinda cliched, but kept me reading I guess.

Characters: Hannah wasn't the best main character, but I'm slightly obsessed with Noah.

Writing: Pretty good, though "totally" and "like" were used way too much.

Ending: Kinda open-ended, but fitting.

Kid friendly? Eh. There's swearing, sex, mentions of sex, and one brief mention of pot.
Should I read it? Depends on your taste.

Overall:

Positive reviews:

Katie's Book Blog

Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf

Princess Bookie
Sophistikatied Reviews

This Girl Is Different Review

Author: JJ Johnson
Release Date: April 1, 2011
Pages: 320 (e-galley)
Publisher: Peachtree Publishers
Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+
Where I Got It: From netgalley to review
Challenge: Debut Author 2011

This girl is different... That's what Evie has always told herself and it's true. Home-schooled by her counter culture mom, she's decided to see what high school is like for the first time for her senior year. And what a year it is.

As it turns out, it's not just Evie who's Different. Lots of people are. Many of her assumptions about others are turned on their heads as she makes friends with kids her own age for the first time, discovers what's good and what's bad about high school, and learns lessons about power and its abuse both by the administration and by Evie herself.

As a home-schooler, when I hear the word "home-schooled" in a book synopsis, it's kinda an automatic read for me. I want to see how the author portrays home-schoolers, plus I know I'll be able to relate to the character even if--like in This Girl Is Different--the character decides to go to school. And while I liked how JJ Johnson showed home-schooling and liked the main character a lot, I still have mixed feelings about This Girl Is Different.

On one hand, I liked the idea for the story a lot. On the other hand, it dragged too much for me.

On one hand, I liked most of the characters and how smart they were (especially Evie!). On the other hand, their personalities are kind of inconsistent and their reactions to things could be totally random and it made them seem less real to me.

So, yeah, you can see why I'm so conflicted about this novel.

There were parts of it that I thought were great, such as Evie's political activism in her local high school and how awesome her mother and principal were. This book talks a lot about power and responsibility and how students should be treated in school, which was something else I loved about the book.

But then there was some other stuff that I didn't like too much about it. Like Evie and Rajas' relationship--how quickly it developed, how different Evie could be around him, and his weird floppiness. They just didn't work for me. And while I appreciated Jacinda not being the catty-cheerleader stereotype, she just ended up being a strange character for me. I won't say why, but I ended up getting sick of her three-fourths through the book. Rajas too. This goes back to the thing I said about character's personalities being inconsistent. I swear they're bipolar or something cause, MAN could those two throw a hissy fit, which didn't seem like it would work well with their personalities. Perhaps this was intentional, but either way it bugged me.

*sigh* End rant. But anyways.

This Girl Is Different was an enjoyable read, though I didn't love it as much as I'd hoped to or as much as I'm sure some people will.

Book Report:

Plot: Prone to dragging, but interesting enough as a whole.

Characters: I liked Evie, but the side characters? Ummm...yeah, I don't even know.

Writing: Pretty good. I loved being inside Evie's head.

Ending: Very satisfying.

Kid friendly? Pretty. There's some make-out scenes, talk of sex, and very mild swearing.

Overall:

 

Here Lies Bridget Review

Author: Paige Harbison
Release Date: January 18, 2011
Pages: 219 (e-galley)
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+
Where I Got It: From netgalley to review
Challenge: Debut Author 2011

Bridget Duke is the uncontested ruler of her school. The meanest girl with the biggest secret insecurities. And when new girl Anna Judge arrives, things start to fall apart for Bridget: friends don't worship as attentively, teachers don't fall for her wide-eyed "who me?" look, expulsion looms ahead and the one boy she's always loved—Liam Ward—can barely even look at her anymore.

When a desperate Bridget drives too fast and crashes her car, she ends up in limbo, facing everyone she's wronged and walking a few uncomfortable miles in their shoes. Now she has only one chance to make a last impression. Though she might end up dead, she has one last shot at redemption and the chance to right the wrongs she's inflicted on the people who mean the most to her.

And Bridget's about to learn that, sometimes, saying you're sorry just isn't enough…. 

 Here Lies Bridget was a short book, and while it's plot had me intrigued enough, I never really connected to it's characters.

The first half of Here Lies Bridget is Mean Girls without the humor, and the second half is A Christmas Carol without the ghosts. It was interesting enough, but for some reason something about it was a bit off to me. I went into the book expecting more of a unique paranormal element than I got, and honestly I think that threw me off.

I never really connected to any of the characters. They were very stereotypical and occasionally a little bland and just unrealistic. I mean, what girl would stay friends with Bridget?

Oh, Bridget. Let us talk of Bridget for a moment.

Bridget was the girl we can't even "love to hate" because we simply refuse to put the word "love" in the same sentence as "Bridget". I just plain hated her. Sure, she's got issues and everything, but everyone does, Bridget. We're just not all byatches about it, K? Yeah, she grows in the end but man I just hated her too much to even care.

The final message that Here Lies Bridget tries to send is an important one and well-received, but it's not one that we haven't heard before. The characters kept me from connecting to this one, in the end. That being said, it was a very fast read, and I'll be on the lookout for more of Harbison's work in the future.

Plot: Kept my attention.

Characters: Eh.

Writing: Promising.

Ending: Very satisfying.

Kid friendly? Pretty. There's some mild swearing and teen drinking.

Overall:

Tour: Trickster's Girl Review

Author: Hilari Bell
Release Date: January 3, 2011
Pages: 289 (E-book)
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+
Where I Got It: For review from Netgalley

In the year 2098 America isn't so different from the USA of today. But, in a post-9/11 security-obssessed world, "secured" doesn't just refer to borders between countries, it also refer to borders between states. Teenagers still think they know everything, but there is no cure for cancer, as Kelsa knows first-hand from watching her father die.

The night Kelsa buries her father, a boy appears. He claims magic is responsible for the health of Earth, but  human damage disrupts its flow. The planet is dying. Kelsa has the power to reverse the damage, but first she must accept that magic exists and see beyond her own pain in order to heal the planet.

Sadly, I felt kind of indifferent about Trickster's Girl.

It started out pretty strongly, and I liked the environmental message a lot. Sadly, though, I became bored a little more than halfway through and from there I just didn't really care that much anymore

But I didn't really not like it, either. As I said, I felt almost indifferent towards it. The characters were decent. That's it. Decent. I was intrigued by Raven, Kelsa's magical mentor, and I would've liked to get to know him better than we did. He could've been so much more than he was, I thought.

So, I guess those are pretty much my only thoughts. This review sounds kind of mean, but like I said, I didn't not like Trickster's Girl. I just I wish I'd enjoyed Trickster's Girl more, but instead it was just an average, OK read for me.

Book Report:

Plot: Not too bad. Slow moving occasionally.

Characters: Average.

Writing: Decent enough.

Ending: Rather anti-climactic, I thought, but not bad.

Kid friendly? There are a few swears, but nothing too extreme. This one's pretty safe.

Should I read it? Yeah, sure, go for it.

Overall:

Blog Tour: Low Red Moon Review

(1st review with new reviewing style!)

Author: Ivy Devlin
Release Date: September 14, 2010
Pages: 196 (ARC)

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Most Appropriate For Ages: 13+
Where I Got It: For review for tour

The only thing Avery Hood can remember about the night her parents died is that she saw silver—deadly silver, moving inhumanly fast. As much as she wants to remember who killed them, she can't, and there's nothing left to do but try to piece her life back together. Then Avery meets the new boy in school—Ben, mysterious and beautiful, with whom she feels a connection like nothing she's ever experienced. When Ben reveals he's a werewolf, Avery still trusts him—at first. Then she sees that sometimes his eyes flash inhuman silver. And she learns that she's not the only one who can't remember the night her parents died.Part murder mystery, part grief narrative, and part heart-stopping, headlong romance, Low Red Moon is a must-read for teen paranormal fans.
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I refuse to compare Low Red Moon to Twilight. This has been done with countless other books, this one included, and I don't think it's fair to anyone. So I won't do that, even though I totally could....However I will say that this book is aimed to readers who enjoyed Twilight, definitely.

I will also start this review with one of my biggest problems about Low Red Moon: the romance went WAY too fast. By page 60 Ben and Avery are already prepared to go all the way, and this is only on their second encounter. I swear these two were more horny than "in love" since sex is all either of them seemed to care about. (Yes I can see why they may move a little fast, but come on, that is really fast.) Although I will say that I did enjoy their connection, but it could've developed at a smoother pace.

Maybe one of the reasons I didn't like how fast the romance moved has something to do with not liking the characters. Avery never really showed much of a personality aside from the forest, grieving over the loss of her parents, and being in love with Ben...wait, no, that's no entirely true. She also seemed to enjoy disobeying her Grandmother (who was the one character I liked) even when it's clearly for her own good or when she knew it would hurt her Grandma. Ben wasn't too bad, but he was very vague and beautiful and I've just read his type before.

As for the plot, I did enjoy that. I didn't know in advance who the murderer was, which is always nice. And I enjoyed the paranormal aspect of it as well, even if it wasn't all that original.

The writing was grabbing. But, and maybe this was just because I have the ARC, there seemed to be a lot of too-long sentences, or too many paragraphs ending in dashes. This could totally just be me being particular, but it stood out to me.

Like I mentioned, I think this one is aimed for readers who are still in their Twilight phase. I've grown and become pickier since my Twilight phase, so maybe this one just wasn't for me. So although it doesn't really offer anything new to the YA paranormal genre, I do think it has it's place with readers.

Book Report:

Plot: Well paced, easy to follow, and enjoyable.

Characters: Blah.

Writing: Grabbing, but I spotted some things that could've been done better. (This may have just been me.)

Ending: Wrapped it up nicely.

How kid friendly is it? Well, they seem to constantly talk about sex (they're just horny!), and there are 1 or 2 swear words.

Should I read it? Depends on how picky you are and what kind of read you're looking for.

Overall:

Crossing Review

Author: Andrew Xia Fukuda
Release Date: April 27, 2010
Pages: 214 (ARC)
Publisher: AmazonEncore
Where I Got It: For review from author

A loner in his all-white high school, Chinese-born Xing (pronounced “Shing”) is a wallflower longing for acceptance. His isolation is intensified by his increasingly awkward and undeniable crush on his only friend, the beautiful and brilliant Naomi Lee. Xing’s quiet adolescent existence is rattled when a series of disappearances rock his high school and fear ripples through the blue collar community in which he lives. Amidst the chaos surrounding him, only Xing, alone on the sidelines of life, takes notice of some peculiar sightings around town. He begins to investigate with the hope that if he can help put an end to the disappearances, he will finally win the acceptance for which he has longed. However, as Xing draws closer to unveiling the identity of the abductor, he senses a noose of suspicion tightening around his own neck. While Xing races to solve the mystery and clear his name, Crossing hurtles readers towards a chilling climax.
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I have some mixed feelings about Crossing.

When I was contacted to review Crossing, I was skeptical as it's not my usual type of book. But the plot managed to keep me interesting and guessing until the end. It was a raw story of an immigrant's life in America.

The main problem I had with it was our main character, Xing. At the beginning of the book I liked him, but as it went on it was made clear that even the reader can't take his word. He lies almost compulsively and does odd, impulsive things without giving any reason as to why. So I didn't really connect with him, no matter how hard I tried. There are very few other characters, and we didn't get to know them very well.

The writing was truly brilliant. It sucked me in even when the characters failed to. I will be interested in reading what Andrew Xia Fukuda puts out next.

The ending was vague, sad, but somewhat satisfying. Overall, not too bad. I've read a lot of other reviews raving about this novel, so maybe my problem with Crossing is my issue.

Morphues Road: The Light Review

Author: D.J. Machale

Release Date: April 20, 2010 (Today!)

Pages: 344 (ARC)

Publisher: Aladdin

Most Appropriate For Ages: 10+
Where I Got It: From publisher

Marshall Seaver is being haunted.

It begins with mysterious sounds, a fleeting face outside a window--all things that can be explained away. That is, until he comes face-to-face with a character who only exists on the pages of a sketchbook--a character Marshall himself created.

Marshall is quickly convinced these strange incidents have something to do with his best friend, Cooper, who has gone missing. Together with Cooper's beautiful but aloof sister, Sydney, Marshall searches for the truth about his friend while ultimately uncovering a nightmare that is bigger and more frightening than he ever could have imagined.
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The Light can be rather slow at times, but overall was decent.

I personally wasn't scared at all. I guess everything that happened to Marsh was too far-fetched for me to be afraid of. The plot did drag along at some points too. I thought that the book could've been shorter, and that maybe more questions could have been answered earlier in the book. However, the plot was interesting and left me guessing.

I kind of connected with the characters. I did like Marsh and could feel for him, as well as Sydney. But I never really loved them. I did want the two characters to develop feelings for each other, but there was hardly any romance in The Light.

The writing was OK. Marsh's narration was amusing, but other than that I found it to be lacking. For a bestselling author I felt like D.J. Machale could have been more descriptive. He's a good storyteller, though.

So I didn't love The Light, but I didn't dislike it either. It was enjoyable, and I think that fans of teen horror would agree.

And check out the awesome trailer for The Light:

The Devouring Review

Release Date: September 1, 2008
Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers
Age Group: 14+
Pages: 240 (Paperback)

When dark creeps in and eats the light, Bury your fears on Sorry Night. For in the winter's blackest hours, Comes the feasting of the Vours, No one can see it, the life they stole, Your body's here but not your soul..." THE VOURS: Evil, demonic beings that inhabit human bodies on Sorry Night, the darkest hours of the winter solstice. When Reggie reads about the Vours in a mysterious old journal, she assumes they are just the musings of an anonymous lunatic. But when her little brother, Henry, begins to act strangely, it's clear that these creatures exist beyond a madwoman's imagination, and Reggie finds out what happens when fears come to life. To save the people she loves, Reggie must learn to survive in a world of nightmares. Can she devour her own fears before they devour her? The Devouring is an engrossing tale of terror that will have you wondering: what if your worst fears became your living nightmare?

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The Devouring is only 231 pages (the last nine pages are an excerpt from the sequel), so it really shouldn't have taken me 4 days to read...and yet it did.

The idea was awesome, but I feel that the whole "my mommy left us" thing got in the way of the story of the Vours. But when the storyline was centered on the Vours, it delivers the promised chills. There were some parts of the book that freaked me out. The book didn't grab me in any parts, even the parts when I felt it should've grabbed me.

Reggie and her brother, Henry-who had been "devoured"-were OK characters. I didn't feel a strong connection with them, even though Reggie wasn't whiny about her situation. Aaron was probably my favorite character, he was quirky, funny, and the only character I felt a slight connection to. Eben was my next favorite, but I was kinda expecting him to die, so I'd made peace with that possibility.

The writing wasn't great. Not bad, it just didn't stand out to me. Simon Holt's writing wasn't all that descriptive, but he is a decent storyteller.

Overall, this book delivers the promised chills...but it doesn't offer you much more than that. It was OK. I'm not sure if I'll be reading the sequel...I'd recommend it...but not in a heartbeat.

But I do love love LOVE the cover.

Thireteen Reasons Why Review

Release Date: October 18, 2007
Publisher: Razorbill
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 288

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker--his classmate and crush--who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list.

Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

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After hearing how amazing this book was, I decided to step out of my usual comfort zone and try it. The plot sounded pretty interesting. I have to say that it left me disappointed.

Hannah was such a whiner. Maybe that's just me being insensitive, but I couldn't relate to her at all. Towards the end, her reasons were more convincing, but she seemed very melo-dramatic to me. Clay seemed like a much better character.

I had no trouble putting this book down. It didn't grab me like some books that I've read. It took me six days to read, and that's not a very good reading time for me.

The one thing that did impress me with this book was the writing. It surprised me that this was Jay Asher's debut novel. He had a great voice, and I can see him going far.

Overall, this book was OK. I'd recommend it to realistic fiction fans. I do plan on reading any more books Jay Asher has to offer, though.