The Dogs by Allan Stratton

Pages: 276
Intended Audience: Teens and mature tweens
Genre: Mystery/Suspense
Notes for Parents: Some scenes of violence and tension may be too strong from sensitive readers.

The Back Cover

Out of the corner of my eye,
I catch something moving by the barn.
When I look, it disappears. Wait.
There it is again, at the cornfield.
Some movement, some thing.
Mom and I have been on the run for years.
Every time he catches up with us, we move to a new place and start over.
But this place is different.
This place is full of secrets. And they won’t leave me alone.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

Cameron and his mom have been on the run from his father for five years. They move to a small town and settle in an isolated farmhouse. That’s when Cameron starts to see and hear things. Soon he’s questioning everything, even his sanity.

What’s good?

Tension, secrets, and imminent danger make this haunting mystery a fast and engaging read. The story unfolds with a steady pace as teenager Cameron, the unreliable narrator, is filled with self-doubt but lets his curiosity set in motion a chain of events that will affect the entire town. A rundown farmhouse surrounded by cornfields is the perfectly disquieting setting for this suspense-filled tale. The writing is well-done, characterization is good, and the ending was unexpected (though, in retrospect, I feel like I should have seen it coming! Well played, Mr. Stratton. Well played).
Best Part: Great cover! It definitely sets the mood.

What isn’t good?

The set up was pretty formulaic. Cameron and his mom are on the run, they move to a small town, into an eerie farmhouse surrounded by cornfields. There’s a creepy neighbor, a school bully, and plenty of rumors that suggest the house was the site of some foul play. It was a fairly conventional scenario that offered nothing special. The secondary characters were never really explored, surprising especially with Jacky and Mr. Sinclair. But I suppose the simplicity of the story is part of the charm.
Worst part: The school bully was underutilized.

Recommendation þþþþo
It was unexpectedly good. Despite a multitude of suspense story clichés, I was still drawn into the mystery and felt easily compelled to see the story through to the end. Perhaps it was the heaviness that isn’t typical of this young adult genre – family violence, abuse, murder – that kept it dark without being creepy or gory. Either way, I read it with enthusiasm and felt a warm satisfaction with the ending. Recommended.

Stratton, Allan. The Dogs. Toronto: Scholastic, 2015. (Hardcover)

The Iron Trials by Holly Black & Cassandra Clare

Pages: 295
Intended Audience: Teens and mature tweens
Genre: Science Fiction / Fantasy
Notes for Parents: There’s some violence, and a strong “evil” element to the story.

The Inside Cover

Most kids would do anything to pass the Iron Trial.
Not Callum Hunt. He wants to fail.
All his life, Call has been warned by his father to stay away from magic. If he succeeds at the Iron Trial and is admitted into the Magisterium, he is sure it can only mean bad things for him.
So he tries his best to do his worst—and fails at failing.
Now the Magisterium awaits him. It’s a place that’s both sensational and sinister, with dark ties to his past and a twisty path to his future.
The Iron Trial is just the beginning, for the biggest test is still to come…

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is the authors’ first collaboration and is the first in a series of a five books.

What’s good?

This story offers an intriguing twist on the classic tale of good versus evil. It’s an unexpectedly dark adventure that draws the reader into a world of magic and mystery. The main character, Callum, is well-drawn and likeable, and surrounded by many interesting—but yet to be fully developed—supporting characters. As well, the world-building is appealing, with promise of much more to be discovered. The pace picks up in the last third of the book with several twists and turns that ultimately leads to a bombshell reveal that I didn’t see coming. (I knew something was going to happen – but not that!)
Best Part: Warren and Havoc

What isn’t good?

It was slow. Until the last third of the book, the plot moved at a snail’s pace. There was plenty of character-building and world-building, but not a whole lot of action, or even explanation for that matter. I still don’t understand the purpose of Master Rufus’ task! The writing was okay, but a bit dull. The setting inside the Magisterium was interesting, but it definitely didn’t feel like modern day USA. Several characters felt incomplete, but that’s the drawback of a series, I guess. Hopefully we’ll learn more about Aaron and Tamara in subsequent books.
Worst part: The pace.
 

Recommendation þþþoo

Many reviewers called this a poorly repackaged Harry Potter. While there are definitely some parallels, it never felt like Harry Potter to me. The beginning was interesting, but the sluggish pace through most of the book almost killed me. Luckily it picked up and ended with a twist I didn’t see coming. Ultimately, this is a good book about magic and adventure; I was just disappointed that it took so long to get to the real meat of the story.

Black, Holly & Cassandra Clare. The Iron Trials. New York: Scholastic Press, 2014. (Hardcover)

Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Pages: 537
Intended Audience: Mature Teens
Genre: Real life / Drug abuse / Novel in verse
Notes for Parents: Deals with many mature issues including drug use, sexuality, date rape. Includes some coarse language.

The Back Cover

Kristina is the perfect daughter: gifted high-school junior, quiet, never any trouble. Then she meets the monster: crank. And what begins as a wild ride turns into a struggle for her mind, her soul—her life.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is a novel written in verse and is loosely based on the author’s own daughter’s experience with crystal meth, or “crank.”

What’s good?

It’s almost painful to witness Kristina, a young, teenaged girl, as she makes the poor decisions that draw her into a world of drug use and abuse. Told in verse, this is a quick but potent read with an even plot and a powerful message. The role that family and friends play in Kristina’s downward spiral is delicately balanced with their equally important role in a hopeful future. It’s tragic to see how easy it is to be seduced by the freedom drugs promise, but this is an excellent cautionary tale about the consequences of that choice.
Best Part: The end—not perfect, but hopeful.

What isn’t good?

Due in part to the verse style but mostly because of the first-person perspective, the entire story lacks depth. There is very little development of secondary characters, and even the main character offers us no detailed understanding as to why she makes all of those bad choices. There are no opposing perspectives, no inside information, and everything happens exactly the way we expect.
Worst part: The style. Verse just did not work for this story.

Recommendation þþþoo

The story was not as edgy as I expected. I’ve been hearing about this novel for years and anticipated much more grit and emotion. The story was good and there were definitely excellent moments and well-written scenes, but overall it was lackluster and offered nothing new. It was a good read, but not a great one.

Hopkins, Ellen. Crank. New York: Margaret K. McElderry, 2004.

If You Find Me by Emily Murdoch

Pages: 264
Intended Audience: Mature Teens
Genre: Real life
Notes for Parents: Deals with some mature issues including sexual abuse and violence. There is some coarse language.

The Back Cover

A broken-down camper hidden deep in a national forest is the only home fifteen-year-old Carey has ever known. The trees keep guard over Carey and her younger sister Jenessa as their mentally ill mother comes and goes with great frequency—until one fateful day when their mother disappears for good. The girls are found by their father, a stranger, and taken to reenter a bright and perplexing new world of high school, clothes, and boys.
While six-year-old Jenessa adjusts quickly, Carey must come to terms with the truth of why their mother spirited her away ten years ago, and she is haunted by a past that won’t let her go…a dark past that hides the secret of why Jenessa hasn’t spoken a word in over a year. It’s tempting to let go and fit in. But Carey knows she must keep her sister close, and her secret even closer, or risk watching her new life come crashing down.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is the author’s first novel.

What’s good?

This is much more than just a fish out of water story. Carey and her sister Jenessa have been surviving on their own for a long time and when Carey’s biological father shows up with a social worker to take them home, Carey must confront a lot of demons. The story has good writing, and a great narrative voice. Characterization is strong, and the plot moves at a good pace. As Carey reconnects with remnants of her old life, new truths surface that are difficult and emotional. I like the strong bond Carey has with her sister and the friendship that develops with Pixie.
Best Part: St. Joseph of the Bean

What isn’t good?

There is some inconsistency when it comes to what Carey knows and doesn’t know as a result of spending 10 years in the woods. For example, she’s baffled by a school locker, but doesn’t seem at all bothered by the school routine. The accuracy of the social worker’s procedures are a little suspect, as well. Showing up to a trailer out the woods with a child’s biological father instead of the police doesn’t seem right. A few other little things required some suspension of disbelief that distracted from the larger story. Lastly, I guessed “the big secret” long before it was revealed (as I suspect many others did too).
Worst part: Ryan’s nickname for Carey.

Recommendation þþþoo

It didn’t have an impact. Good story, good writing, but nothing truly outstanding. I liked Carey and Jenessa, but the other characters are forgettable. I would have liked to know more about their mother Joelle. Most of the supporting characters lack depth. However, there was an emotional element to the story that was well done, and the writing style is nice. If the subject interests you, then it’s worth the read.

Murdoch, Emily. If You Find Me. New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 2013.

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Pages: 308
Intended Audience: Teens
Genre: Mystery / Crime
Notes for Parents: Some mature content; crime scenes; and some scenes that may be frightening for sensitive readers.

The Back Cover

Seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But it’s not a skill that she’s ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI comes knocking: they’ve begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to close infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie’s help.
Cassie moves across the country to train with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own, and who can be as puzzling as the unsolved homicides they have to work together to crack. Cassie’s roommate, Sloane, is better with statistics than she is with people, and human lie detector Lia is as prickly as they come. Brooding Dean shares Cassie’s gift for profiling, but keeps her at arm’s length. Then there’s sarcastic, privileged Michael, who has a knack for reading emotions and uses his skills to get inside Cassie’s head—and under her skin.
No one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes close to home, danger creeps closer than Cassie could ever have imagined. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a murderer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is the first book in a series. The author has advanced degrees in psychology, psychiatry, and cognitive science, and has a PhD from Yale. She’s a psychology professor.

What’s good?

This is a fast-paced, exciting crime thriller centered on a group of teenagers empowered by their natural (not supernatural!) abilities who help the FBI track down a serial killer. While this is a dark tale that delves into the psychology of a killer, the plot is easy to follow. There is plenty of misdirection to keep the reader engaged, and, while the end wasn’t a great surprise, there were enough twists and turns that I second-guessed myself several times. The characters are likeable and Cassie, the main character, has the potential to be a strong heroine in subsequent books.
Best Part: Creepy “killer” chapters.

What isn’t good?

The story was a little weak. The grim subject matter and tense, psychological game-playing deserved a more complex plot with better developed characters. Cassie’s supporting cast was made up of clichéd teenagers who, as a team, offered no sense of cohesiveness (though this may come with time in subsequent volumes). There was an attempt at weaving together the drama of Cassie’s past with the mystery of an active serial killer, but the tension was never sustained, probably smothered by a feeble stab at romance.
Worst part: The ridiculous game of Truth or Dare.

Recommendation þþþoo

While many reviewers called this “Criminal Minds” for young adults, I think that’s a little exaggerated. The premise requires suspension of disbelief to accept the use of teenagers in any capacity by the FBI, let alone for pursuing serial killers. Barry Lyga’s book I Hunt Killers did a better job of getting into the mind of the killer. However, the main character is likeable, the mystery was persistent, and – the bottom line – it was entertaining. Recommended.

Barnes, Jennifer Lynn. The Naturals. Los Angeles: Hyperion, 2013.