Warcross by Marie Lu

Pages: 353

Intended Audience: Teens

Genre: Science Fiction / Thriller

Notes for Parents: There is “virtual” violence (when they’re playing the Warcross game), and some actual violence, but nothing too graphic.

The Inside Cover

The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bouty hunter, tracking down Warcross players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty-hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. To make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships—only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.

Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem… and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is the first book in a series. It takes place in the same universe (but an earlier era) as the Legend series. You don’t have to have read the Legend series to understand this one.

What’s good?

The virtual reality game Warcross has become a global industry and its championships is a high stakes international event in this future world. Emika is a strong, resilient young woman who accidentally gets noticed by the games creator and drawn into a mystery. There’s plenty of action, danger, tension, and excitement. The plot is simple and is surrounded by several strong sub-plots. Emika is a great character – clever, perceptive, and brave. The technology is easy to understand, as is the sla . The ending presents some interesting moral questions.

Best Part: Emika.

What isn’t good?

This is definitely a plot-driven story. While the main character, Emika, is well-drawn, her teammates and other secondary characters are not very developed. The mystery is good, but the romance is weak. A couple of big reveals shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise since the author drops several hints well ahead of time.

Worst part: I didn’t like the romance.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☺☻ (4/5)

This was a hard book to put down. It was a fast-pace, virtual Hunger Games-like adventure that was easy to read. It was always moving forward, even when the story was looking back. I loved the main character, Emika, and enjoyed the diversity of the other characters. Definitely recommended.

Lu, Marie. Warcross. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2017. (Hardcover)

The Witch Boy by Molly Knox Ostertag

Pages: 213

Intended Audience: Tweens and Teens

Genre: Graphic Novel / Supernatural

Notes for Parents: Some mature themes

The Back Cover

Everyone in Aster’s family is born with magic. Boys grow up to be shapeshifters; girls into witches. No exceptions.

But Aster can’t seem to get the hang of shapeshifting. Instead, he spends his time spying on the witchery lessons the girls are getting. He seems to have a knack for casting spells and wants to know more, but the only person he can share his growing gift with is Charlie, a girl from the non-magical side of town.

Then, during a night of shapeshifting practice, one of the boys goes missing. Aster knows he can search for the boy with the witchcraft he’s been secretly learning. Could breaking his family’s most important tradition save the day—or ruin everything?

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is the author’s first middle-grade graphic novel.

What’s good?

This beautiful graphic novel uses fantasy to explore gender issues and other topics like friendship, family, secrets, and power. The plot is simple but with a complexity of themes, including gender roles, non-conformity, self-acceptance, and courage. The characters are well-developed, and very likeable. The novel is a quick and easy read with good illustrations.

Best Part: There is a great example of what we can become (a monster!) if we’re forced to deny who we really are.

What isn’t good?

There isn’t anything I didn’t like. The drawings aren’t as crisp as the kind of style I prefer, but they’re still good and the colors do a good job of setting the mood. If anything, I wish there was more to the story.

Worst part: None.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☺☻ (4/5)

There’s so much in this one little story. It took me less than an hour to read, but I found in packed full of meaningful symbolism and excellent imagery that left me with lots to think about. Definitely recommended.

Ostertag, Molly Knox. The Witch Boy. New York: Graphix, 2017.

The Smell of Other People's Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock

Pages: 223

Intended Audience: Teens

Genre: Real life / Social issues

Notes for Parents: Contains some mature content.

The Back Cover

Four very different lives are about to become entangled.

Ruth has a secret that she can’t hide forever.

Dora wonders if she can ever truly escape where she comes from.

Alyce can’t bring herself to leave the life she’s always known.

Hank and his brothers decide it’s safer to run away.

They live in Alaska, on the cold edge of America, where each one must find the strength, courage, and heart to survive.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This book was a William C. Morris Award Finalist. It was also a New York Public Library Best 50 Books for Teens selection, a Chicago Public Library Best of the Best book, and a Shelf Awareness Best Teen Books of the Year selection.

What’s good?

This is a beautifully written, visual story about a group of teens living in 1970s Alaska. Their lives are simple but their problems are complex, though recognizable to every generation. As their connections to each other emerge, the story becomes a fascinating tale of friendship, love, survival, and the art of choosing your own family. Tough subjects are covered – death, alcoholism, violence, abuse, poverty – but the story never gets dark. It’s emotional, but always hopeful. Every character is important and every chapter has a purpose. Diversity, culture, and traditions are subtle themes. The ending is heartfelt.

Best Part: The chapter titles. (e.g. “Ballerina Fish Slayer” and “If You Must Smoke, Smoke Salmon”)

What isn’t good?

The book was interesting – quite engrossing, in fact – but there was very little excitement or action. The pace is slow, but steady.

Worst part: Nothing terrible.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☺☻ (4/5)

I can best describe this book as warm and honest. It’s easy to read and easy to understand, and it is to the point with no unnecessary storytelling. It’s a sad but beautiful tale with a hopeful ending. Definitely recommended.

Hitchcock, Bonnie-Sue. The Smell of Other People’s Houses. New York: Ember, 2016.

Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse

Pages: 301

Intended Audience: Teens

Genre: Historical / Mystery

Notes for Parents: This is about the Holocaust so it contains some mature content.

The Back Cover

Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days finding and delivering sought-after black-market goods to paying customers, nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the German army invaded. Her illegal work keeps her family afloat, and Hanneke also likes to think of it as a small act of rebellion against the Nazis.

On a routine delivery, a client asks Hanneke for help. Expecting to hear that Mrs. Janssen wants her to find meat or kerosene, Hanneke is shocked by the older woman’s frantic plea to find a person: a Jewish teenager Mrs. Janssen has been hiding, who has vanished without a trace from a secret room. Hanneke initially wants nothing to do with such a dangerous task but is ultimately drawn into a web of mysteries and stunning revelations—where the only way out is through.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This novel won the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery.

What’s good?

Hanneke does what she must to make sure that she and her family survive the German occupation of the Netherlands, which includes the dangerous task of finding black-market goods for her neighbors. An opportunity arises that makes her realize that she can be part of something bigger. But will she take the risk? The pace was brisk and the plot had me captivated from beginning to end. There were many twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. The story touched on themes of friendship, courage, loneliness, truth, romance, and of course the cruelty and racism of the Nazis and their supporters. All of the characters were important and brilliantly drawn, even Bas, Hanneke’s boyfriend who died before the story even begins. The ending was well done.

Best Part: Hanneke was an excellent example of a strong, female character.

What isn’t good?

The entirety of World War II is extremely complex, but this story is not. We get a glimpse of what the Dutch Jews are going through, but we’re given no real sense of the terror they are facing. We also see just a small pocket of the resistance and what they do, and never learn about the vastness and intricacy of the revolution.

Worst part: None.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☺☺ (5/5)

I loved it! I was engrossed in the story from the moment it started. This is an easy-to-read, easy-to-understand story set in a very complicated time in world history. The actions taken by these teenagers are perilous but believable. The story was heart-breaking, heart-stopping, and well-written. Definitely recommended.

Hesse, Monica. Girl in the Blue Coat. New York: Little, Brown, & Company, 2017.

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Pages: 599

Intended Audience: Teens

Genre: Science Fiction / Thriller

Notes for Parents: Contains lots of violence that may be too much for sensitive readers.

The Back Cover

<ERROR>

AND WITH NO FURTHER OPTION THEY HAVE TURNED TO ME.

The year is 2575, and two rival mega-corporations are at war over a planet that’s a little more than an ice-covered speck. Now, with enemy fire raining down on them, exes Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to escape on the evacuating fleet.

PLUCKED ME BACK FROM THE BLACK THEY LEFT ME IN. THINKING I WILL SAVE THEM.

But their problems are just beginning. The fleet’s AI has gone crazy, a deadly plague has broken out on one of the ships, and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on.

AND I WILL. OF COURSE I WILL.

As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it’s clear only one person can help her: the ex-boyfriend she swore she’d never speak to again.

AM I NOT MERCIFUL?

<ERROR>

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

The novel is written in epistolary format, meaning it’s made up of transcripts, diary entries, memos, reports, illustrations, webpages, terminal read-outs, emails, instant messages and more. This is the first book in the Illuminae Files trilogy.

What’s good?

Kady is a sassy, brave, and emotional lead character. Her determination to not only save Ezra, but save the ships and all the people aboard them is the epicenter of this fast-paced thriller. Heart-stopping moments are mixed with heart-break, danger, lies, fear, grief, and desperation. Actions create doubts about morality – is it okay to do bad things for the greater good? – and AIDAN’s twisted logic brings into question what constitutes humanity. The visual format of the story lends itself well to the tension, giving fragments of information forcing the reader to piece things together, just like the characters.

Best Part: I like how the swear words in the reports are blacked out.

What isn’t good?

Some pages fly by and others have such minute details that it slows the pace. There’s lots of information to pay attention to, and lots of tech talk, short forms, and slang that force the reader to work hard to understand what’s happening. There’s no shortage of violence and painful deaths—which isn’t necessarily a bad thing—but readers should be aware.

Worst part:  Nothing was terrible.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☺☻ (4/5)

This was unexpectedly riveting. However, I’m not sure I want to make a habit of reading this format because I was exhausted by the end. It was a great story with strong characters and plenty of suspense, but it was also a challenging read that requires attention to detail. It was a unique experience that I definitely recommend trying at least once.

Kaufman, Amie and Jay Kristoff. Illuminae. New York: Ember, 2015.