Ghostgirl by Tonya Hurley

Ghostgirl by Tonya Hurley

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publish Date: August 2008
ISBN: 0316113573
Page #: 336pp
Reading Level: Young Adult
Classification: Fiction
Genre: Paranormal/Coming of Age

Series: The Ghostgirl Series
Ghostgirl (2008)
Ghostgirl: Homecoming (2009)

Subjects: Death, Gothic, High School, Popularity, Satire, Voigts

Annotation:

High school outcast Charlotte Usher spends her whole summer plotting how to get crush Damen Dylan to notice her. Everything is working out perfectly until she dies by choking on a gummy bear.

Summary:

Charlotte Usher just wants to be noticed by the cutest guy in school, Damen Dylan, but unfortunately for her she dies before this can happen. On the first day back, she gets her wish in physics class when he's assigned as her lab partner, only for her to die minutes later choking on a gummy bear. Now Charlotte attends the Dead Ed and is living in the dead dorm with other deceased teens. This does nothing to thwart her designs on Damen, but alas she has a plan of reaching Damen.

Megan says:

To begin with, this book is visually stunning! I was drawn in by the cover and cuteness of the entire package. Luckily I found the story to be cute and funny, which made the purchase well worth it. I especially liked the quotes from musicians, bands and authors at the beginning of each chapter. I think the main theme in this story is self acceptance. Teens who liked Zombie Blondes and Generation Dead will definitely like Ghostgirl.

Stars: ★ ★ ★ ★

Tony Hurley Website
Ghostgirl the blog

Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link

Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

Publish Date: October 2008

ISBN: 0670010901

Page #: 400pp

Reading Level: Young Adult

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Paranormal/Horror/Supernatural/Fantasy

Subjects: Faerie, Magic, Monsters.

Annotation:

Kelly Link has created nine beautifully bazaar short stories aimed for teenagers dealing with classic coming-of-age dilemmas with components of magic and fantasy worlds.

Summary:

Alread a praised adult short story writer Kelly Link has created a collection of short stories explicitly aimed at a young adult audience. Each story has a teen protagonist, whether they are human or not and mixes the typical stories about teenagers with elements of magic, fantasy and monsters of course. There are a total of nine stories.

Megan says:

As a fan of short stories and paranormal realities, Pretty Monsters happily satiates my needs. Each of these nine stories are well crafted accounts of the fantastical, otherworldly and all around strange realities. From a handbag with a village inside to a monster negotiating to eat a camper to an undead babysitter are nearly a few of the beautifully bizarre things in this amazing book. I highly recommend this book for fans of Holly Black and Melissa Marr.

Stars: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Kelly Link Website

Kelly Link interview

The Compound by S.A Bodeen

The Compound by S.A Bodeen

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Publish Date: April 2008

ISBN: 0312370156

Page #: 256pp

Reading Level: Young Adults

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Science Fiction/Real Life

Subjects: Apocalyptic, Deception, Family, Family Politics, Survival, Twins, Voigts, War

Annotation:

After the nuclear attack, Eli and his family have been living in a Compound his father had built for six years. When they start to run out of food supplies and Eli gets the internet working he finds that his father may be holding them captive, not protecting them.

Summary:

Billionaire Rex Yanakakis has created a Compound, a three-story underground shelter that will house the family for 15 years in the event of a nuclear war. When that actually happens, not everyone in Eli’s family makes it in, Gram and Eli’s twin brother Eddy are left out because they did not make it in the allotted forty minutes. Now, Eli has been living in the Compound for six years and things start to go wrong not only with their food supply but also with living in the Compound in general. Eli begins to realize his father may have been lying to them all and he gets the internet to work all his suspicions are confirmed and his twin brother is alive. Eli has to figure out why his father would do this and how to save his family and get out of this Compound.

Megan says:

I found this story to be both suspenseful and riveting as it depicts deep philosophical questions on serious issues about what it means to survive; specifically, what are the ultimate boundaries of utilitarian ethics? Where do you draw the line between living and surviving? This story really made me think about a lot issues in society as a whole. On one hand I felt for Eli and pretty much was with him the entire ride, but on the other hand I took the time to see through the fathers eyes, which made this story very interesting as he was mad in the sense of being crazy. I would recommend The Compound to teens who like to read about real life family drama with suspense and apocalyptic attributes.

Stars: ★ ★ ★ ★

The Devouring by Simon Holt

The Devouring by Simon Holt

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Publish Date: September 2008

ISBN: 0316035734

Page #: 240pp

Reading Level: Young Adult

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Supernatural/Paranormal

Series Title: The Devouring
The Devouring (2008)
The Devouring #2: Soulstice ( Septemper 1, 2009)

Subjects: Brothers and Sisters, Courage, Demons, Fear, Mystery, Possessed, Voigts

Annotation:

When the lights go out on Sorry night, bury your fears or the Vours will creep in and take your soul while occupying your body. This is what happened to Reggie’s little brother Henry and now Reggie must save him but the only way to do that is to live in a nightmare world.

Summary:

Reggie Halloway is a horror fanatic. Upon working in a occult bookstore she finds a creepy journal about the Vours, in which are horrific demons who feed on fear and take over the body, morphing its host into a cold, cruel creature. Thinking the journal is fiction, Reggie and her friend Aaron attempt to summon a Vour. Things go horribly awry when a Vour takes over the body of her little brother, Henry. The only way to get Henry’s souls back into his body is if Reggie battles the Vours, but this task is not easy and requires Reggie to face all of her fears.

Megan says:

This book was truly horrifying (and I mean that in the good way)! Teens that like suspenseful horror stories will LOVE The Devouring. The premise of the story is about Reggie and her friend Aaron who love anything dark and scary, that is until they mess with the worn heap of darkness in which inhabits Reggie's little brother on Sorry Night. This sets the tone of utter horror as Reggie is forced to live through her worst nightmares in order to save her loved ones. The graphic content contains blood and gore, which add to the chills of the story. I would recommend this to any teen who loves horror fiction.

Stars: ★ ★ ★ ★

The Devouring Website