YA Slasher Pick: There's Someone Inside Your House

There's Someone Inside Your House
by Stephanie Perkins
Dutton
2018
287 pages
ISBN: 9780525426011

There's a slasher loose in Osborne High School  and more than likely probably someone they see every day. As student bodies begin piling up in their small town in Nebraska, the police investigate all the teens who know each other. The murders don't seem to be connected in any way the police can decipher and they are getting more and more brutal.

Makani is new to town, having just moved from Hawaii to escape a past that is bound to intrude on her present. When she first sees goth boy Ollie, she's in love. The relationship between the two characters make this book special. When Makani is targeted, both Ollie and her grandmother step in to save her life. The killer is nearly apprehended but outruns Ollie (btw, naked Ollie!).

The police are incompetent and Makani and Ollie do more to solve the case and save themselves than anyone else. There are moments of great slasher gore and the book picks up, but so many more moments of promises that are dashed before the reader can enjoy the horror. Makani's BIG secret turns out to be not so big and not so terrifying.

This book doesn't fit the romance genre and it's not horror, maybe horrifying romance? Cover art will sell this one from the shelves and Stephanie Perkins' fans will likely buy it. If you are looking for a solid horror book for teens, this one just doesn't deliver.


Grade 9 and up.
FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Bewitching PIck: What the Spell

What the Spell (Life's a Witch)
by Brittany Geragotelis
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2012
328 pages

Watch the book trailer here


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Brooklyn feels invisible--she goes through the motions every day at school but no one ever notices her. She's not super model beautiful, she's not super-smart, she's not popular, she's not athletic. She's just plain. No one turns around when she walks into the room.

On her sixteenth birthday, Brooklyn's parents unbind her powers allowing her to use her magic, but they warn against using it at all; they caution her to keep it a secret. Witches have been burned in history; witches are misunderstood and murdered. If anyone finds out about their family, they will have to flee.

The first thing Brooklyn does is to make herself over. She becomes a more beautiful version of herself. When she goes to school, everyone notices. Suddenly, she's the girl people are watching and wondering about. The Elite even approach her and ask her to sit with them at lunch. They are everything Brooklyn strives to be and more. They rule her school and are above reproach, but they're not so nice. They use people and bend the rules. They are vicious and cruel. They have no morals and throw caution to the wind. When they start to ask Brooklyn to do their dirty work, how far will she go to be popular?

Witchcraft is one thing, but Brooklyn discovers that her family is famous for being magical matchmakers. She can make anyone fall for someone else. When she uses her powers to entrap Asher, she realizes that he may not really be crushing on her. It may be her spell. Is she willing to accept the fact that she used magic to influence his feelings? And when her spell backfires, is she willing to accept the consequences of her selfish actions?

Part "The Secret Circle" and part "Gossip Girls," teen readers who like the girl witch genre will find What the Spell a welcome addition. Brooklyn has no sense of self; she tries so hard to fit in that she is willing to do anything, even lose the one she loves.


Recommended grade 9 and up. No language; teen angst, some romance, some talk of "going all the way."

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Chick Pick: The Lipstick Laws

The Lipstick Laws
by Amy Holder
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group
2011
240 pages

Title Available April 4, 2011

Move over, Lindsey Lohan, there's a new mean girl named Britney and she's got her sights set on high school sophomore April Bowers. April is a second year student at Penford High School but hates to start school again. She really doesn't know anyone except Delvin McGerk, who acts like a loser/stalker.

When the most popular girl in the school takes an interest in being her friend, April is excited. The mean, but popular, girls are led by Britney who acts like a conceited diva and stoops at nothing to embarrass and harass other less popular girls. April cringes when the girls play Rank the Skank and make fun of all the other girls. Their constant gossiping and degrading are making April sick to her stomach, but she craves their attention and longs to be popular. When Britney invites her to join their private clique, April agrees but worries about the price she will have to pay.

Readers will cheer when April gathers her own posse to go after Britney. As April gets even--in a fair and square way--she shows herself to be the better person and even wins the guy of her dreams.

Funny tongue-in-cheek dialog and fascinating study in mean girl clique-ishness, The Lipstick Laws will captivate female readers who like the Clique books and the Pretty Little Liars novels.

Recommended grades 9-up. Some mild language, references to drag queens, cross dressing, teen drinking, and marijuana.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the galley from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Ghostly Pick

Three Quarters Dead
by Richard Peck
Dial Books (Penguin), 2010.
208 pages

Sophomore Kerry Williamson doesn't fit in. She sits alone at the end of a lunch table where three fabulous, popular girls gather for lunch. Kerry eavesdrops on their conversations, longing to be like them. Tanya is the queen of all; she rules the group. She is perfect--from her flawless skin to her long blond tresses.

When Tanya invites Kerry to sit with them, Kerry fells like it's a dream come true and she can't believe her good fortune. She is suddenly living the part of a popular girl, that is...until a terrible accident ruins everything. Time passes. Seasons change. And then out of nowhere...Kerry gets a text message from Tanya.

She's thrilled. Maybe all these months she has been stuck in a bad dream. Three Quarters Dead is a great high school clique novel with a ghoulish twist. Honestly, readers won't be able to put this one down. Anyone who loves a ghost story or a thriller will love this book. Peck is a masterful storyteller.

Highly recommended. Grades 7 and up.
Publishing release: October 26, 2010

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this ARC in a box sent to me from a fellow librarian. I received no monetary compensation for my review.

High School: Mean Girls Pick

The Debs: Love, Lies, and Texas Dips
by Susan McBride
Delacourte Press, 2009
293 pages

Think Mean Girls with a Texas swagger and a Houston drawl. The storyline follows four debutantes as they prepare to be Rosebuds--the creme de la creme of Houston's country club set.

There's Jo Lynn, spoiled, pampered, beautiful, cunning, and two-faced. Jo Lynn--the girl with an eye for designer duds and Vera Wang dresses. Jo Lynn--the girl with the perfect quarterback boyfriend who dreams of quarterbacking at Texas Tech.

There's Mac, the nice girl.

There's Laura, the girl who always has to be second best to Miss Perfect, Jo Lynn.


There's Ginger, granddaughter of one of the staunchest debs in memory. Ginger--who has to maintain the family name.

The drama unfolds as the girls prepare to be presented at the event of Houston society: The Rosebud Ball.

What happens when false rumors are posted on myspace? Will someone have to step down?

Girls who love gossip and drama will love this read. It's like Gossip Girl, Texas style.

As a good ol' Texas girl myself, I enjoyed looking at how the uber-wealthy live.

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL. Recommended for grades 10-12.
Sex, some language, adult situations.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from a fellow librarian. I received no monetary compensation for this review.

YA Pick

Ruined

by Paula Morris

Scholastic, 2009.

309 pages

Rebecca hates the idea of leaving her friends in New York City for a semester in filthy post-Katrina New Orleans attending a snooty boarding school full of the city's richest families. She hates living with her weird Aunt Claudia who reads tarot cards for tourists in the Bourbon Street district and seems to know an awful lot about voodoo legends and curses.

The prep school kids are cliquish and rude to Rebecca and consider her an outcast. Only one boy, Anton Grey, talks to her, but he is careful not to let his other "friends" know that he is nice to Rebecca. Once Rebecca follows Anton and his friends into the Lafayette Cemetery and stays hidden from view. As she is leaving, she stumbles upon a young girl named Lisette. Lisette is easy to talk to and tells Rebecca all about the history of New Orleans and the rich families who live near the cemetery. There's only one problem: Rebecca is the only one who can see Lisette--because Lisette is a ghost.

Rebecca and Lisette try to discover the reason that Lisette is not at rest. They also are thrown into danger when an old Haitian voodoo curse threatens Rebecca's life.

Part ghost story, part high school clique novel, Ruined is an entertaining read that will appeal to mystery and gothic readers who have a penchant for dark and gloomy places and mysterious happenings in the Big Easy (New Orleans). Recommended for YA collections grades 7-up.