Tag Archives: sci-fi

Book Title:
Shallow Graves
Book Author:
Kali Wallace
Publishing Date:
January 26th, 2016
Publisher:
Katherine Tegen Books
Date Read:
January 19th, 2016

Synopsis

For fans of Holly Black and Nova Ren Suma, a gripping, hauntingly atmospheric novel about murder, revenge, and a world where monsters—human and otherwise—lurk at the fringes.

When seventeen-year-old Breezy Lin wakes up in a shallow grave one year after her death, she doesn’t remember who killed her or why. All she knows is that she’s somehow conscious—and not only that, she’s able to sense who around her is hiding a murderous past. In life, Breezy was always drawn to the elegance of the universe and the mystery of the stars. Now she must set out to find answers and discover what is to become of her in the gritty, dangerous world to which she now belongs—where killers hide in plain sight, and a sinister cult is hunting for strange creatures like her. What she finds is at once empowering, redemptive, and dangerous.

Tense, complex, and wholly engaging, Shallow Graves is a stunning first novel from Kali Wallace.

My Review

Shallow Graves is an interesting little book about a girl who wakes up in a grave eighteen inches under the ground, a few houses down from her own house.  She has been dead for a year, but doesn’t know this … Continue reading

3.5 stars
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Book Title:
Hardwired
Book Author:
Trisha Leaver and Lindsay Currie
Publishing Date:
November 8th, 2015
Publisher:
Flux
Date Read:
November 16th, 2015

Synopsis

Genetically flawed. Perfectly human.

< When seventeen-year-old Lucas Marshall tests positive for the M0A1 gene—a genetic abnormality believed to predispose humans toward violence—he is shipped off to an impregnable government facility to undergo a battery of psychological tests aimed at making him crack. Now, having

But any hope Lucas has of returning to a normal life is shattered when the van transporting him to the reintegration facility is forced off the road by a group of radicals intent on accessing the facility and exposing it's dehumanizing practices. And Lucas is their ticket through the front door.

Spurred by rumors that the facility is secretly holding one of his old friends captive, Lucas and his bunk mate, Chris, agree to infiltrate the testing facility’s inner sanctum. But once inside, Lucas’s carefully laid plans begin to unravel, and he's forced to seek help from a group of kids he neither knows nor trusts. And when every genetic test claims your only allies are hardwired to become the next Charles Manson, it’s impossible to know who has your back.

My Review

If you like a quick science fiction book that is loaded up to the brim with action, then this is a great book to pick up.  It’s incredibly fast-paced and has a story line that will practically blow you away. … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
Until We Meet Again
Book Author:
Renee Collins
Publishing Date:
November 3rd, 2015
Publisher:
Sourcebooks Fire
Date Read:
October 27th, 2015

Synopsis

They exist in two different centuries, but their love defies time.

Cassandra craves drama and adventure, so the last thing she wants is to spend her summer marooned with her mother and stepfather in a snooty Massachusetts shore town. But when a dreamy stranger shows up on their private beach claiming it's his own—and that the year is 1925—she is swept into a mystery a hundred years in the making.

As she searches for answers in the present, Cassandra discovers a truth that puts their growing love—and Lawrence's life—into jeopardy. Desperate to save him, Cassandra must find a way to change history…or risk losing Lawrence forever.

My Review

This book was absolutely beautiful.  It was romantic, it was thoughtful, and it was completely original.  The writing flowed so well, and the words just wrapped you in the story and created a sweet time-travel romance that will make your … Continue reading

5 stars
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Book Title:
NEED
Book Author:
Joelle Charbonneau
Publishing Date:
November 3rd, 2015
Publisher:
HMH Books for Young Readers
Date Read:
October 14th, 2015

Synopsis

"No one gets something for nothing. We all should know better."

Teenagers at Wisconsin's Nottawa High School are drawn deeper into a social networking site that promises to grant their every need . . . regardless of the consequences. Soon the site turns sinister, with simple pranks escalating to malicious crimes. The body count rises. In this chilling YA thriller, the author of the best-selling Testing trilogy examines not only the dark side of social media, but the dark side of human nature.

My Review

I have a tendency to pick up a “thriller” and be disappointed less than halfway in.  I guess I just don’t find the majority of them very thrilling or exciting, and yet, I keep reading them.  I’m always searching for … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
Hotel Ruby
Book Author:
Suzanne Young
Publishing Date:
November 3rd, 2015
Publisher:
Simon Pulse
Date Read:
October 17th, 2015

Synopsis

Stay Tonight. Stay Forever.

When Audrey Casella arrives for an unplanned stay at the grand Hotel Ruby, she’s grateful for the detour. Just months after their mother’s death, Audrey and her brother, Daniel, are on their way to live with their grandmother, dumped on the doorstep of a DNA-matched stranger because their father is drowning in his grief.

Audrey and her family only plan to stay the night, but life in the Ruby can be intoxicating, extending their stay as it provides endless distractions—including handsome guest Elias Lange, who sends Audrey’s pulse racing. However, the hotel proves to be as strange as it is beautiful. Nightly fancy affairs in the ballroom are invitation only, and Audrey seems to be the one guest who doesn't have an invite. Instead, she joins the hotel staff on the rooftop, catching whispers about the hotel’s dark past.

The more Audrey learns about the new people she's met, the more her curiosity grows. She’s torn in different directions—the pull of her past with its overwhelming loss, the promise of a future that holds little joy, and an in-between life in a place that is so much more than it seems…

Welcome to the Ruby.

My Review

I’m going to start off with this: Hotel Ruby is by far the best book I have read this year.  And I’ve read a ton of books this year.  It’s so very rare when I find a book that I … Continue reading

5 stars
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Book Title:
Darkest Dawn
Book Author:
Katlyn Duncan
Book Series:
Willows Lake, #1
Publishing Date:
September 17th, 2015
Publisher:
HarperCollins
Date Read:
October 16th, 2015

Synopsis

One desperate journey for the truth

Returning to Willows Lake eleven years after her mother’s tragic death, Sloane Baker knows she will finally get the answers she needs! She always suspected that there was something more sinister at the heart of the accident that claimed her mother’s life, but a cryptic note could be the key to her past…

Two lives changed forever

The small town has always seemed safe to Brianna Taylor – until a mysterious new girl arrives who looks exactly like Bri! Now everything Bri knew has been thrown into question and Sloane’s arrival has changed the world of Willows Lake forever.

Strange things are happening in Willows Lake. But when they turn deadly, Bri and Sloane must find a way to save each other or risk losing everything they hold dear…

My Review

Darkest Dawn by Katlyn Duncan is an interesting book with a plot that’s definitely gripping.  It was a great page-turner that I didn’t want to put down until I had finished it! The story starts off with Sloane receiving a … Continue reading

3.5 stars
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Book Title:
No True Echo
Book Author:
Gareth P. Jones
Publishing Date:
October 13th, 2015
Publisher:
Amulet Books
Date Read:
October 5th, 2015

Synopsis

Eddie thinks nothing ever happens in his small, boring town. Every day is exactly the same, down to what the bus driver will say when he picks each kid up in the morning. But then, one day, someone new, and very pretty, walks onto the bus. At least, Eddie thinks she’s new, but there is something oddly familiar about Scarlett. Intrigued (and smitten), Eddie starts to follow Scarlett—and what he discovers is odder still. Scarlett is a Senior Echo Time Agent from the future, come to his town to investigate the origin of time travel, which, unbeknownst to Eddie, was invented right in his hometown, by someone he knew. Soon Eddie is swept up in the investigation and in time. But time travel is a dangerous business, and Eddie will learn more than he wants to know about his long-dead mother.

This psychologically rich thriller redefines the time travel novel for a teen audience.

My Review

Eddie is your average teenage boy – going to school, spending time with friends, riding his bike, and he lives in the middle of nowhere where nothing ever really happens.  He lives with his grandmother (who he calls Ruby because … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
This Monstrous Thing
Book Author:
Mackenzi Lee
Publishing Date:
September 22nd, 2015
Publisher:
Katherine Tegen Books
Date Read:
September 15th, 2015

Synopsis

In 1818 Geneva, men built with clockwork parts live hidden away from society, cared for only by illegal mechanics called Shadow Boys. Two years ago, Shadow Boy Alasdair Finch’s life shattered to bits.

< His brother, Oliver—dead.

His sweetheart, Mary—gone.

His chance to break free of Geneva—lost.

Heart-broken and desperate, Alasdair does the unthinkable: He brings Oliver back from the dead.

But putting back together a broken life is more difficult than mending bones and adding clockwork pieces. Oliver returns more monster than man, and Alasdair’s horror further damages the already troubled relationship.

< Then comes the publication of Frankenstein and the city intensifies its search for Shadow Boys, aiming to discover the real life doctor and his monster. Alasdair finds refuge with his idol, the brilliant Dr. Geisler, who may offer him a way to escape the dangerous present and his guilt-ridden past, but at a horrible price only Oliver can pay…

My Review

I’m going to start off by saying that I’ve never read Frankenstein.  Sure, I’ve heard of it, I know the general premise and what it’s about, but I’ve never actually read the book.  While you don’t need to read it … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
The Body Institute
Book Author:
Carol Riggs
Publishing Date:
September 1st, 2015
Publisher:
Entangled Teen
Date Read:
August 30th, 2015

Synopsis

Meet Morgan Dey, one of the top teen Reducers at The Body Institute.

Thanks to cutting-edge technology, Morgan can temporarily take over another girl’s body, get her in shape, and then return to her own body—leaving her client slimmer, more toned, and feeling great. Only there are a few catches…

For one, Morgan won’t remember what happens in her “Loaner” body. Once she’s done, she won’t recall walks with her new friend Matt, conversations with the super-cute Reducer she’s been text-flirting with, or the uneasy feeling she has that the director of The Body Institute is hiding something. Still, it’s all worth it in the name of science. Until the glitches start…

Suddenly, residual memories from her Loaner are cropping up in Morgan’s mind. She’s feeling less like herself and more like someone else. And when protests from an anti–Body Institute organization threaten her safety, she’ll have to decide if being a Reducer is worth the cost of her body and soul…

My Review

This book had an incredibly interesting premise, and I thought it was written very well.  Set in the future, we start off with our main character, Morgan Dey, a teen Reducer at The Body Institute, who is finishing off a … Continue reading

4 stars
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Book Title:
A Long, Long Sleep
Book Author:
Anna Sheehan
Publishing Date:
January 22, 2013
Publisher:
Candlewick Press
Date Read:
August 18, 2015
Source:
I received a copy from the publisher - Thank you!

Synopsis

It should have been a short suspended-animation sleep. But this time Rose wakes up to find her past is long gone-- and her future full of peril.

Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for sixty-two years when she is woken by a kiss. Locked away in the chemically induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten subbasement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now, her parents and her first love are long gone, and Rose-- hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire-- is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat. Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes-- or be left without any future at all.

My Review

A Long, Long Sleep is a futuristic sci-fi take on Sleeping Beauty. Rosalinda is a sixteen year old girl who is much older than sixteen.  The book begins with Rosalinda being woken from her stasis tube by a kiss from … Continue reading

4 stars
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