Dead Witch Walking, by Kim Harrison

First book in what looks like a promising series, Rachel is a
witch and works for Inderland Security. She is basically a
supernatural cop. However she is not in her boss's good graces,
and finally, sick of dull and insulting jobs she decides to quit.
Quitting the IS isn't recommended if you like being alive though,
the last guy to quit was found mysteriously blown up. Rachel
now has hit men and evil fairies trying to kill her, a vamp
housemate who claims to not drink blood anymore and a pixy
with a bad temper living in her backyard.

I was a bit on the fence about this one. Although the characters
are great, the plot was wandering at times and I wasn't loving
the writing, it seemed a bit flat. I'll give the next book a try
though in hopes that it improves.
4 stars, Emme

Kitty and the Midnight Hour, by Carrie Vaughn

Kitty is a radio host- and also secretly a werewolf. She accidentally starts a new show, The Midnight Hour. It is a talk
show for the vampires, werewolves and other supernatural
beings who have been in hiding from the "normal" humans. As
Kitty does her best to help other people with their problems, she
starts to realize that her pack, the werewolves she hangs out
with every full moon, are maybe not the best place for her.

I LOVED this book! I honestly think it was won of the best books
I have read lately. I liked that Kitty was both willing to see that
she is not perfect and tries to do something about it. I hate when
a book has a heroine who does nothing about her problems
except complain. The writing was great and I laughed out loud
several times while reading this book.

If you like urban fantasy I HIGHLY recommend this book.
5 stars,
Emme

Quantum Prophecy: The Awakening, by Michael Carrol

In The Awakening Danny and Colin discover that the superheros of the past that were believed to be dead are alive and well. Although, they did lose their superpowers. Danny and Colin renew the superhuman era and strugle together as they fight evil. Along the way they meet more friends to help them with the battle. If you read this book and enjoy it don't miss the others!
5 stars,
Anna

Skellig, by David Almond

When Michael moves to a knew house things start to go wrong. His baby sister is sick, his parents are upset. Michael is in the garage looking around at all the junk when he finds a creature on the floor. It lays there until Michael tells Mina, the girl across the street about it. Together they discover who and what Skellig is, and cure Michael's sister.
3 stars,
Anna

Scat, by Carl Hiaasen

I love all of Carl Hiaasen's books for kids/young adults but I really liked Scat. When their teacher goes missing Nick and Marta want to find her. They go to her house and are caught trespassing by a man who claims to be the teachers nephew and calls himself Twilly. Amidst all his detective work Nick has to deal with the fact that his dad was injured in war and had to have his arm amputated. His father has to become a lefty so Nick decides to endure the hardships with him. Nick keeps his right arm tied behind his back and continues the search for his teacher.
As he searches he realizes that his teacher isn't as bad as she seems, actually she's pretty cool.
5 stars,
Anna

Dairy Queen, by Catherin Murdock

Dairy Queen is a heartwarming story about a girl trying to find her true self. Along the way she trains a lazy quarterback from the rival high school. As she trains him they get closer. Amidst all the training she realizes that football is really her passion, but how will her family feel about this? Will her strict father stop her from living her dream? I liked Dairy Queen because of the way the author surprised me. I would think one thing but something completely different would happen.
3 stars,
Anna

Hawksong, by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

This first book of a fantasy series tells the story of Danica
Shardae, heir to the avian shapeshifter throne. He people and
the serpiente have been at war for longer then can be
remembered, no one knows who the war started, but Danica is
determined to end it. She will do anything- even marry the
prince of the serpiente- if it will bring an end to the killing. The
problem is that both peoples are reluctant to allow a marriage
that will bring peace, and Danica and the serpiente prince, Zane,
are in grave danger.
The writing in this book is not as polished as in some of
Atwater-Rhodes books, but if still quite good. The characters
are interesting and realistic. The setting is good.
It is a nice mix of action and romance.
4 stars
Emme

Jinx, by Meg Cabot

While temporarily living with relatives in New York City Jinx discovers a whole different "world". Her Cousin believes herself to be a witch. While struggling to fit in during school Jinx is learning about a obsession she had never discovered before, witchcraft. She and her cousin battle for the use of Magic. Little Does Jinx know her cousin has been practicing witchcraft for years and has a plan to defeat her. This book is a great, spine chilling read. I really recommend it.
5 stars,
Anna

Now You See It.... by Vivian Vande Velde

When Wendy's glasses break she finds a new pair in her yard. They are exactly her prescription. Is it just a coincidence? The glasses allow her to see things she had never imagined existed. Such as elves and fairies. She wears the glasses to school and when she does two of her classmates appear differently. Will they discover she knows their secret? Read this spectacular book to find out.
4 stars,
Anna

Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf, by Jennifer L. Holm

While I'm sorry if you like meatloaf but if you ask me this title says everything you need to know about meatloaf!! I don't agree that middle school is that bad though. The main character does though. She really really really hates middle school. Every Day something horrible happens to her. This book is in a diary/collage form and contains everything from her thoughts to notes she finds in her lunch box from her mom. I thought this was a good book.
3 stars,
Anna

Yours Truly Skye O'Shea, by Megan Shull

A girl named Skye in six grade has to live in the footsteps of her two older sisters. She finds this very difficult. When she tries out for the hockey team all the coaches ask about her older sisters. She feels like her parents pay more attention to her sisters than her. She decides to take her mind of her troubles by writing to her favorite hockey player. She gets a note back along with an amazing surprise. I really recommend this book and all of Megan Shull's other books too.
5 stars,
Anna

Cecile: Gates of Gold, by Mary Casanova

12 year old Cecile Revel is a peasant in 18th century France.
She works hard to keep from starving and dreams of one day
going to court, where she could wear fine gowns and end her
nearly constant hunger.
When a noblewoman is riding in the woods near her home, she
takes a bad fall. After Cecile and her father help her, the
noblewoman offers Cecile a job looking after her dogs at court.
At first glance the new life Cecile has at court seems like
heaven. But after a bit the strict rules and constant suspicion
makes Cecile isn't all balls and fancy dresses!
The writing in this story is pretty good, but not exceptional.
The characters, on the other hand, are really well done and
believable. If you enjoy historical fiction, then this book is for
you.
4 stars,
Emme

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Slayer, Interrupted, by Scott Lobdell

Well, I really didn't love this graphic novel.

It has two story lines in it, one follows Buffy Summers just after
she discovers that she is the Chosen One. This story line is
predictable and rather dull. I had hoped to learn more about
Buffy's early days as a slayer and find out some about her first
watcher. This book contains little on her early slaying and none
on her old watcher.

The other story line is a bit more interesting. It is about Giles
taking a test to prove that he is a worthy watcher and doesn't
need to resort to magic .

I wasn't fond of the writing. It lacked wit and was uninteresting. I
didn't care for the artwork either. The drawings of Buffy looked
very little like Sarah Michelle Gellar and the coloring didn't seem
interesting. For the battle scenes everything was extremely
overly bright and neon-y, but for the rest of the book it was
dark and dull.
2 stars,
Emme

A Horse like Barney, Jessie Haas

Sarah has wanted a horse of her own for a long time. Now that
her parents have decided to let her have one she is eager to
begin searching for the perfect horse. However both of her
parents are far to busy to help her star looking right now.
Frustrated and tired of waiting, Sarah enlisted one of her
friends who is old enough to drive in helping her begin a secret
search for her dream horse.
This book is quite well written and accurately describes the
interesting, but often confusing, task of horse hunting.
If you want an unusual horse story that is quite realistic this is
the book for you.
4 stars Emme