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.

You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott

Pages: 340

Intended Audience: Adult

Genre: Suspense

Notes for Parents: The main character is an adult, and the story has coarse language, some sexuality, and mature themes.

The Back Cover

How far will you go to achieve a dream? That’s the question a celebrated coach poses to Katie and Eric Knox after he sees their daughter, Devon, a gymnastics prodigy and Olympic hopeful, compete. For the Knoxes, there are no limits—until a violent death rocks their close-knit gymnastics community and everything they have worked so hard for is suddenly at risk.

As rumors swirl among the other parents, Katie tries frantically to hold her family together while also finding herself irresistibly drawn to the crime itself. What she uncovers—about her daughter’s fears, her own marriage, and herself—forces Katie to consider whether there’s any price she isn’t willing to pay to achieve Devon’s dream.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

The author is best known as a crime writer, but is also a blogger and journalist.

What’s good?

This is a disturbing story about parents who discover how deeply they’ve become invested in their daughter’s future as an elite gymnast. The plot reveals gymnastics as a subculture that begins at a young age and is full of stress, physical pain, sacrifice, determination, rivalry, and privilege. This is mixed with the world of teenage girls—self-esteem issues, sexuality, gossip, jealousy, back-stabbing, and drama. The characters are vivid and well-drawn. Devon, the gymnast, is cold and focused, while her mom Katie is hopeful and a bit clueless. Dad Eric is motivated by anxiety. And Devon’s little brother Drew is the forgotten, invisible child. Fellow gymnast mom, Gwen is an instigator that pushes the tension higher. The writing is good, the plot is solid, and the ending is provocative.

Best Part: Drew.

What isn’t good?

The action is predictable. Oddly, that didn’t ruin the story. The fascinating part is watching mom Katie as she realizes the truths about everything and everyone around her—her daughter’s desire, her husband’s desperation, her son’s observations…it’s like watching a train wreck. The pace was a bit slow to start, but it picks up. With the exception of Drew, I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable.

Worst part: I don’t understand why it mattered where Katie was standing when Devon’s accident happened.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☻☻ (3/5)

It started slow, but by the end I was riveted. This is ultimately a story about relationships and the things we do for the people we care about.  It raised some interesting questions about what parents and spouses are willing to do to maintain a textbook façade. It wasn’t the mystery I expected, but it was a compelling story. 

Abbott, Megan. You Will Know Me. New York: Tom Doherty Associates, 2010.

The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge

Pages: 377

Intended Audience: Teens

Genre: Historical / Supernatural / Mystery

Notes for Parents: Includes some mature content.

The Back Cover

Faith Sunderly leads a double life. To most people, she is reliable, dull, trustworthy - a proper young lady who knows her place as inferior to men. But inside, Faith is full of questions and curiosity, and she cannot resist mysteries: an unattended envelope, an unlocked door. She knows secrets no one suspects her of knowing. She knows that her family moved to the close-knit island of Vane because her famous scientist father was fleeing a reputation-destroying scandal. And she knows, when her father is discovered dead shortly thereafter, that he was murdered.
In pursuit of justice and revenge, Faith hunts through her father's possessions and discovers a strange tree. The tree bears fruit only when she whispers a lie to it. The fruit of the tree, when eaten, delivers a hidden truth. The tree might hold the key to her father's murder - or it may lure the murderer directly to Faith herself.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

A few of the awards this book has won include: Costa Book of the Year (2015); LA Times Book Prize for YA Literature (2016); a Carnegie Medal Nominee (2016); YA Book Prize Nominee (2016); and the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Fiction (2016).

What’s good?

It’s a gothic mystery set on a bleak island off the coast of England. The main character, Faith, is a passionate, spirited, and curious teen who dreams of being a naturalist like her father. After her father dies and she learns about a mysterious tree he’s been hiding, the adventure begins. The characters are strong, the mystery is dark, and the plot is winding, but easy to understand. The writing is sophisticated with beautiful imagery and period vocabulary. The tension thickens with danger and deceit as Faith closes in on the truth. The ending is full of questions, but still satisfying.

Best Part: “His words were lifeless pebbles on an endless beach.”  (pg. 141)

What isn’t good?

It was slow, especially the first third of the book. We know from the back cover description that Faith’s father dies and she discovers the lie tree. Her father doesn’t die until more than 100 pages in, and she doesn’t discover the tree for another 50 pages after that. Only then does the pace pick up as Faith uses the powers of the tree to solves the mystery of her father’s death.

Worst part: the pace

Recommendation ☺☺☺☻☻ (3/5)

I almost gave up around page 80 because it felt like the story was taking forever to get going, but I toughed it out long enough to get to the good stuff. Once Faith found the tree and was convinced her father was murdered, the story got much more interesting. By the end, I was glad that I’d continued. 

Hardinge, Frances. The Lie Tree. New York: Scholastic, 2016.

Tales of the Peculiar by Ransom Riggs

Pages: 190

Intended Audience: Tweens & Teens

Genre: Supernatural

Notes for Parents: Some unusual content that may be disturbing to sensitive readers

The Back Cover

Wealthy cannibals who dine on the discarded limbs of peculiars. A fork-tongued princess. The origins of the first ymbryne. These are but a few of the truly brilliant and haunting stories in Tales of the Peculiar—known to hide information about the peculiar world—first introduced by Ransom Riggs in his #1 bestselling Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children series.

Riggs now invites you to share his secrets of peculiar history, with a collection of original stories in this deluxe volume of Tales of the Peculiar, as collected and annotated by Millard Nullings, ward of Miss Peregrine and scholar of all things peculiar.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

Many of the stories include annotations and illustrations.

What’s good?

The best description I’ve heard for these stories is “quirky in a deadpan way.” These ten short stories are unique and easy-to-read folktales of the unusual people found in the world of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. The stories range from funny to macabre, and almost all come with a life lesson. Tales include a giant who helps animals, the historic fight between pigeons and humans, a classic (sort of) princess story, a ghost story (with a twist, of course), and a community of cannibals. All include strong characterization, diversity, beautiful illustrations, and several annotations.

Best Part: The copyright page stays in character. “Printed in a nomad’s tent in the desert of Lop, known to some as the Great Lop Depression, extending eastward along the foot of the Kuruk-Tagh to the formerly terminal Tarim Basin in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, an almost perfectly horizontal expanse.”

What isn’t good?

I can’t really think of anything that wasn’t good. I liked some of the stories better than others, but I didn’t dislike any of them. I guess my only complaint would be that I wanted more.

Worst part: None.

Recommendation ☺☺☺☺☺ (5/5)

You don’t need to know the novels to enjoy these unusual short stories from the Peculiar world, but if you’ve read the novels, some of the tales give a deeper insight into characters and situations from the books. The stories are short, entertaining and wonderfully whimsical. The author has a great talent for storytelling. Definitely recommended.

Riggs, Ransom. Tales of the Peculiar. New York: Syndrigast Publications, 2017.