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