Skellig, by David Almond

i think it is a realy good book and i really recomend it to others and once you have read the first chapter you really want to read on.
Becky
5 stars,

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You, by Ally Carter

This is the first book in the Gallagher Girls series. Cammie Morgan is the daughter of the headmistress of the Gallagher Acadamey for Exceptional Young Women. Their school isn't what it is made out to be (a boarding school for rich girls) it's actually a top secret, all girl spy school. Cammie meets Josh when a mission for one of her classes brings her to Roseville, Virginia. She falls in love with him, but how can she see him more if she has to stay on the school property? Cammie and her friends break a lot of rules for Josh...is he really worth it?? What will he do when he figures out that Cammie is lying to him to keep her cover? Oh, and what about Macey McHenry? Is she really cut out to be a spy? Will she ever learn to be nice? This book was so good that I read it in a day!
5 stars,
Anna

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You, by Ally Carter

This is the first book in the Gallagher Girls series. Cammie Morgan is the daughter of the headmistress of the Gallagher Acadamey for Exceptional Young Women. Their school isn't what it is made out to be (a boarding school for rich girls) it's actually a top secret, all girl spy school. Cammie meets Josh when a mission for one of her classes brings her to Roseville, Virginia. She falls in love with him, but how can she see him more if she has to stay on the school property? Cammie and her friends break a lot of rules for Josh...is he really worth it?? What will he do when he figures out that Cammie is lying to him to keep her cover? Oh, and what about Macey McHenry? Is she really cut out to be a spy? Will she ever learn to be nice? This book was so good that I read it in a day!

5 stars,

Anna

Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy, by Ally Carter

This is the second book in the Gallagher Girls series. I found it to be just as thrilling and good as the first. Cammie's mom isn't acting normal. Cammie's spy instincts kick in. She knows something is up but doesn't quite know what. Cammie spies on her mom and figures out that there is another school of spies! It's a all boys spy school! Cammie is on another mission for a class and she meets one of the boys. Are they better then the Gallagher Girls? Little does she know that the mission won't be the only time she sees Zach....
5 stars,Anna

The Da Vinci Code, by Dan Brown

Robert Langdon, a Havard professor doing a lecture tour, is
woken in the middle of the night by the police. The curator of
the Louvre has been murdered the night that Langdon was
suppose to meet him. The police suspect Langdon, but he is
innocent. Helped by Sophie Neveu, a cryptologist, he tries to
solve the murder and clear his name.

I had been meaning to read this book for a long time, so when I
saw it at a book sale this past spring I bought it. It was one of
the heaviest books I got, so it was in the bottom of the bag of
books I bought and I only just got around to reading it a few
days ago.

It was really good! The writing was clever and I loved the
interesting puzzles and riddles. The characters were interesting
and felt quite real. I recommend the movie too if you liked this
book!
5 stars,
Emme

Buffy theVampire Slayer: Blackout, by Keith R.A. DeCandido

Instead of focusing on Buffy, this book mostly follows Nikki, a
vampire slayer in NYC during the '70's. New York City is vamp
heaven, crowed people living in poor housing plus some of their
kills are thought to be the work of the serial killer, Son of Sam.
Nikki fights crime and kills vamps while trying to keep her son
safe. But when Spike comes to town after a fight with Drusilla he
has only one thing on his mind, killing the Slayer.

This is a really good book, the only Buffy book I have read so far
that is five star. DeCandido is a great author, and he totally
"gets" the characters. Spike's character in particular is truly dead
on. DeCandido did a great job taking the character of Nikki, who
we only see briefly in the series, and making an entire book
about her.

5 stars emme

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling

If you have not read the books start with the first, Harry Potter
and the Sorcerer's Stone.

Harry has something new to worry about this year at Hogwarts.
In addition to his grades and his performance in Quidditch Harry
has to worry about a mass murderer who has broken out of the
top wizard prison. Sirius Black is considered one of the most evil
wizards alive and the wizarding community is in a panic. Harry
isn't too concerned, after all Hogwarts is the safest place on
earth. Black wouldn't be able to break in, would he?

The third Harry Potter book has always been my favorite and is
(IMHO) the only one deserving of five stars. While J.K. Rowling
has created what may possibly be the most amazing fantasy
world since Tolkin and has come up with captivating characters,
her writing often leaves a bit to be desired. No so in this book.
5 stars,
Emme

Bloodline, by Katy Moran

Essa has lived on the road and horseback, traveling with his
father Cai. They sing and play music in exchange for lodging,
food and trinkets. Essa has lived like this for 9 years and knows
nothing different; so when his father abandons him, leaving him
with his foster aunt, Essa is angry and resentful. For years Essa
hopes that Cai will return for him, but as every year passes he
believes less and less. In time he becomes use to village life and
having tight bonds with people, animals and the land. But with
war brewing between his people, the Wolf Folk, and their sworn
enemy, Essa finds himself in the middle of complex power plays.
His king's brother sends Essa on a dangerous mission to
infiltrate the enemy's camp, where Essa is recruited to be
bodyguard to the enemy king's son.

I liked this book. Essa and the other characters are interesting
and unique, each with their own voice. I don't think I had ever
read a historical fiction book set in the times of the Anglo-
Saxons, and this was definitely an encouraging first foray into
this subject.
5 stars,
Emme

The King's Rose, by Alisa M. Libby

This novel is based on the true story of Catherine Howard, King
Henry VIII's fifth wife and second to be beheaded. It follows
Catherine from when she first catches the king's eye until the
day of her death.

When she first arrives at court Catherine is unprepared for the
amount of pomp and excitement. She does exactly as her
grandmother, the Duchess of Norfolk tells her to, even when it
goes against her judgement. She works as a lady in waiting for
Henry's current queen, Anne. However before long Henry's eyes
wander to the young girl instead of his queen. He divorces Anne
and marries Catherine. Catherine must abandon her past lovers
and friends, instead becoming the woman the king wants.

I enjoyed this book very much, but was occasionally confused by
the names, ties, friendships and relations. I had some trouble
keeping track of who was who's friend and the relationships
between different characters. Although I though the writing was
very beautiful and the characters well written, I often had to re-
read a few pages in order to fully "get" what was happening.
This rather annoyed me and certainly slowed me down while
reading.
Emme
4 stars

Star Trek: Voyager: The Murdered Sun, by Christie Golden

When Voyager's sensors show that there might be a wormhole
nearby the crew is very excited, this might be their chance to
get back home! However when they arrive they find a very
strange phenomenon, a half collapsed wormhole inside a
strangely weak black hole, sucking an unnaturally high amount
of matter out of a nearby star.

To make matters worse a alien race lives on the star's planet,
which is being slowly destroyed by the forces of the strange
combination of space anomalies. The race is space faring, but
not evolved to a level where the laws of Starfleet allow them to
help. This puts Voyager's crew in a dreadful position.

I really like Christie Golden's Star Trek books, she nails the
characters and comes up with interesting plots. This is her first
ST novel and is not as polished as her later books, mostly the
pacing feels a bit off at times. However overall I really liked it.
Definitely a good book for a Voyager fan.

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, by Roald Dahl

This book is a sequel to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Charlie
and company are in the elevator when suddenly they reach orbit of
the Earth. Two days before NASA had launched Space Hotel U.S.A.,
a hotel with gravity and the interior was a lot like the inside of the
best hotel in the world. When they catch a glimpse of the elevator
the immediately call the president and ask him to do something.
The Chief of the Army wants to blow up the hotel but the president
thinks it's the Russians or the Chinese. It's really Mr. Wonka,
Charlie, and the others! They dock with the hotel and go inside only
to find Vermicious Knids!! To find out why these are bad and what
happens to everybody read this book! 6 stars!!
5 stars

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl

I thought that this book was really funny. it is about a really poor
boy named Charlie who lives in a sort of hut with his parents and
grandparents on both sides of the family. When Mister Willy Wonka
announces that five boys and girls get a chance to get inside his
factory if they find a golden ticket inside a chocolate bar, Charlie is
excited. One day while walking home from school he finds a dollar
bill. He races to a candy shop and buys a chocolate bar. Then he
buys one more bar. As he opens it he something shimmer. He finds
a ticket! When he go to the factory the next day at the appointed
time he meets the four other children who also got a ticket. They
are: Augustus Gloop, Violet Beauregarde, Mike Teavee, and Veruca
Salt. To find out what happens on this crazy journey read this book!
I think it deserves 6 stars.

George's Marvelous Medicine, by Roald Dahl

This is a great book a bout a boy named George. He lives on a farm
with his parents and grisly grandma. His grandma has to have
medicine four times a day. One day his parents go out and tell
George to give Grandma a eleven o'clock. After his tell horrible
things he made up his mind to do something. He came up with
changing her medicine. To hear what happens to grandma read this
book. 10 stars!
5 stars

Something of Value, by Robert Ruark

This book is about two boys, Kimani, a native African enslaved
on his ancestor's land, the other, Peter is a son of a European
who decided to come farm in Africa. The two boys grow up
together, playing and working, treating each other as near
equals. But as time passes the two boys part ways, helped along
by both societies' prejudices and old angers, until during the
Mau Mau revolt in 1952 they end up on opposite sides of the
conflict.

This book was very good. The writing was simple and clear, not
wordy. The characters felt very real, despite only existing in the
author's imagination. This a old book, and the africans are
considered quite beneath the white masters who run the show.
The are treated very poorly and routinely called names that
would be extremely racist today.

People who have a delicate stomach may want to skip this book,
as what it says on the cover is very true. "There is much blood in
this book. There is much killing. But the life of Africa was
washed earlier by blood and its ground was, and still is,
fertilized by the blood of its people and its animals. This is not a
pretty book, nor was it written for the amusement of small
children."
5 stars,
Emme

Bloody Jack, by L.A. Meyer

Bloody Jack is a book about pirates. A young
orphan girl had a rough upbringing when both her
parents died. Left on the streets, Mary (Jacky)
Faber had to fight against drunks, body-snatchers,
and thieves to survive. When the leader of her
gang dies, she decides to run away and try to find
a living. She eventually spots an opportunity on a
British Naval Vessel- designed for hunting
pirates.

So Jacky fakes her way on as a boy and becomes a
deckhand. Is she found out and thrown of the ship?
Read it.
4 stars,
Evan

Shadow Kiss, by Richelle Mead

This is the third book of a series, so start with the first book
(Vampire Academy) if you want to read it.

Rose is a dhampir, a half vampire, she is also her best friend's
guardian. Her best friend is Vasilisa Dragonmir, a vampire with
royal blood. It is Rose's job to protect Lissa at any cost. Right
now that cost is the man she loves. Rose has fallen for Dimitri
Belikov, one of the best guardians in the world and Rose's
teacher. Although he feels the same way about her, it wouldn't
be safe for them to be together. It would be too risky for Lissa,
if one of them got distracted by an attack on the other it might
be too late to save Lissa from another attack.

This series kind of bugs me, there is almost no character growth
and the characters seem stereotypical and rather boring after a
little while. The writing, while not brilliant isn't too bad and I
enjoyed the first book back when I read it. But this book just fell
flat for me, it felt like nothing had happened, no plot
developments or character developments. Very predictable plot.
2 stars,
Emme

Little (Grrl) Lost, Charles De Lint

This book is about two girls, T.J. who's family just moved from
the country to the suburbs and Elizabeth, a six inch tall blue
haired Little. When T.J. hears noises in the walls she assumes it
is just mice. However she soon learns that Elizabeth and her
family are living in house as well. The two girls become friends
despite their differences, but when the two of them are going to
a book signing by an author who may know about the Littles T.J.
is attacked by a group of boys and her backpack (with Elizabeth
inside) is stolen. Elizabeth is swept in to a world she is
completely unfamiliar with and T.J. keeps trying to find her.

I really liked this book. The writing is quick and light, but it still
manages to make a detailed world and great characters. I highly
recommend it to fantasy lovers.
5 stars,
Emme

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Willow Files, by Yvonne Navarro

I was disappointed with this book. I didn't realize it was just a
novelization of a few BtVS episodes. They aren't even good
novelizations! The author seems to feel that she must explain
every little detail and uses WAY too many adjectives, which really
slows the story down. It also messes up the timing and the
writing, it is hard to have snappy one-liner arguments if you
split every single sentence up with explanation of exactly what is
going through everyone's head, what their faces look like and
what they are doing. Every sentence has at least one adjective
explaining how someone said it, it is extremely annoying!

Don't read this book, even if you are a die hard Buffy fan! You
will be sorry you wasted your time.
0 stars,
Emme

Travel Team, by Mike Lupica

You may think that this book is about basketball, but actually
it is about teens pursuing their goals. The protagonist, Danny,
has been short for his entire life but that never stopped him
from playing basketball. When he tries out for the 7th grade
travel team, he plays brilliantly but because of his height (4’7”)
he is told that he is too short. After failing to make the team,
he is down in the dumps and stops playing basketball for a
while. His father, who had been a basketball star before he
started drinking, creates another 7th grade travel team. At
first, the kids on his team don’t think they are a real team, but
they soon gel and become one of the best teams in the league.
If you have a goal that seems impossible, this book will show
you how one boy achieved his goal. I really enjoyed this book.
4 stars,
Julia

Book of a Thousand Days, by Shannon Hale

After her refusal to marry Lord Khasar, who she knows is evil,
Lady Saren and her maid Dashti are locked in a tower for seven
years. This book is told as Dashti's journal. As they suffer from
heat, cold and lack of food, Dashti tried to take care of her
mistress, who's mind becomes damaged with fear and isolation.
Saren becomes steadily more and more unhinged, and Dashti
decides that that they must find a way to escape.

I really liked this book, Dashti was a strong and interesting
person and I admired her ability to help keep Saren from giving
up. The writing was very good and lyrical and I liked the
drawings and doodles that Dashti had in her journal.
5 stars,
Emmme

Blue Moon, by Alyson Noel

Ever is learning how to control her abilities with the help of her
boyfriend Damen. However then he seems to be losing his memory
and even seems sick, which should be impossible for an Immortal.
When Damen becomes sicker and completely forgets about her,
Ever goes to Summerland, a magical place where she hopes to find
him a cure.

I was not hugely fond of this book, despite liking the first. The
characters were quite flat and the plot wasn't anymore interesting
then the first.
3 stars,
Emme

The Last Apprentice: Curse of the Bane, by Joseph Delaney

This is the second book in an very interesting horror/fantasy
series. Thomas Ward is an apprentice spook, someone who gets
rid of ghosts, witches, and other creepy things that go bump in
the night. After he has dealt with a powerful Ripper, the most
dangerous kind of boggert, Tom is feeling pretty pleased with
himself. However its victim was his master's brother, and when
he dies Tom and his master head out to Priestown to his funeral.
A horrible and powerful spirit called the Bane has been
terrorizing the town and they hope to defeat it.

I recommend that if you want to read this series you start with
the first book, Revenge of The Witch. This series is very good.
The characters are interesting and the plot is interesting. The
author has created a creepy and interesting world.

Absolute Boyfriend, by Yuu Watase

Riiko can't seem to get a boyfriend, so when she picks up a
mysterious stranger's cell phone and he tells her to check out this
website. She signs up for a three day trial with the Nightly Lover.

I liked this book and I will definitely be getting the next book.
4 stars,
Emme

Ultra Maniac: Volume 1, by Wataru Yoshizumi

This story is about Ayu who meets this girl Nina, who is a witch.
Nina is constantly trying to help Ayu out but it always turns out to
be a big catastrophe.
I didn't really like this book. The story and the characters weren't
very interesting, IMO. Nina really annoyed me, which didn't help!
But the art was pretty good.

1 star,
Hannah

Translucent: Volume 1, by Kazuhiro Okamoto

Shizuka Shiroyama is a 8th grade girl who is suffering from
Translucent syndrome, a disease that periodically turns you
translucent.
I liked the story but I was not so big on the artwork.

2 Stars,
Hannah

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J.K. Rowling

This is easily the best book ever. The Harry Potter series is my
favorite, and personally, I think that the Goblet of Fire, the 4th
book, is the best. Full of action, the plot slowly leads towards the
looming end with much emotion, although J.K. Rowling manages to
keep the plot on tack with the first and second tasks. Although I
don't want to give the end away, I thought that it was really
emotional, and I cried at the end. EVERYONE SHOULD READ HARRY
POTTER!!!
5 stars,
Elise

I am the Cheese, by Robert Cormier

Although 'I Am the Cheese' made me want to read more to find out
what happened, it didn't answer about 90% of my questions about
it. What kept me reading was thinking that it would explain why
the boy was biking to Vermont, what happened to his parents, who
the person in therapy was, etc. at the end. However, it answered
none of that and left me confused and hanging. Apparently there is
no sequel, so it won't continue elsewhere. Overall, I was not
impressed at all with this book.
2 stars,
Naomi

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by J.K. Rowling

I first read this book years ago, when I first got hooked on the
Harry Potter series. My sister and I have analyzed the series so
much since then, and we can randomly quote scenes from any of
the books at length (our mother thinks we're crazily obsessed).
Now, when reading the first again, it seems somewhat juvenile, but
because I know what wonderful books the story leads to, I love the
whole thing, and soak up every scene. No matter how many times I
read it, I still laugh at the same scenes and get shivers in others.
HIGHLY recommended... I LOVE THIS SERIES!!!
5 stars,
Elise

The Power of Un, by Nancy Etchemendy

I love this book. I've read it multiple times since I got it, and every
time I marvel at how wonderfully it was written. Originally, the
main character doesn't like one girl in his class at all, and gets
extremely annoyed by his younger sister who is obsessed with
dogs. The girl, Rainy, went to a carnival with the main character,
Gib, and his sister. With him, you both realize how much he actually
likes these girls when their lives are put in danger. I admired him
for what he did, and got annoyed and sad along with Gib
throughout the story.
5 stars,
Naomi

Mitch and Amy, by Beverly Cleary

Even though this is a book for middle-schoolers, I still thought it
was sweet. The morals about standing up to bullies hold true for all
ages, and nothing in the plot was unnatural or unbelievable — it
was so general the story could've happened to anyone. There
wasn't a page in the book that I skipped for lack of interest, and
there was constant action despite the simple plot. I strongly
recommend any of Beverly Cleary's books, and this is a good one.
4 stars,
Elise

The Carnivorous Carnival, by Lemony Snicket

The Carnivorous Carnival is the ninth book in A Series of
Unfortunate Events. Orphans Violet, Klaus, and Sunny are now in
yet another dire situation where they have to disguise themselves
to try to escape from Count Olaf... but in my opinion, as this is the
ninth book, everything in the book had been done before and it
was just a repeat of Lemony Snicket's other books in a different
setting. The people at the carnival were unnaturally mean, and
Lemony Snicket's writing style is depressing and repetitive. Unless
you REALLY LIKE the first eight books, this one isn't a great one to
read.
3 stars,
Elise

Sea of Trolls, by Nancy Farmer

The Sea of Trolls is a very thick book, although that is slightly
deceiving because the font size is rather large. When I first
started reading this book, I thought that the events were weird,
and I didn't like any of the characters. It took me more than
halfway through the book before I decided that I could accept
what was happening in the story, although it took me a several-
month gap before I picked up the book after having dropped it
in the quite dull middle. The pace at the end of the book picked
up, although the story wasn't quite believable, and I ended up
putting the book down thinking that it wasn't TERRIBLE. In
general, I thought the whole thing with the life force and bards
was too much for me, with Jack pulling up fire and feeling the
heartbeat of the earth... that's too weird for me. This book is a
waste of time for anyone to read; the best thing that I can say
for it is that it was fun to make fun of it with my siblings.
2 stars,
Elise

Elissa's Quest, by Erica Verrillo

I know this is a book for late elementary-schoolers. I knew that
when I first picked up Elissa's Quest, but it had been sitting on the
bookshelf in my sister's room and I'd never read it. Elissa's Quest
was a relatively short book, and I found the action and suspense
juvenile, although my sister told me that she enjoyed that when
she was in 4th grade. Still, it was a little too unnatural to be
believable, what with talking donkeys and crows. I thought the
book was pretty dull — it sat half-read next to my bed for months
before I finally decided to finish it.
2 stars,
Elise

Nory Ryan's Song, by Patricia Reilly Giff

This book definitely keeps you interested and wondering what is
going to happen next. The emotions are realistic, and the events
make you feel happy, sad, or angry for the characters. The author
includes enough detail to get an idea of what things would look
like, and what they would smell or sound like, too. The words made
me cry at some parts, feeling the same sadness that Nory Ryan
would have.
Naomi
5 stars