Horror Pick: The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein
by Kiersten White
Delacourte Press
2018
287 pages
ISBN: 9780525577942

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein is the perfect book to curl up by the fireplace with. Don't let the lights grow too dim. Don't let the shadows linger too long. This spooky and creepy read will keep you up at night.

Deftly re-imagined by Kiersten White, Mary Shelley's masterpiece has undergone big changes. The main character of this novel is a female who fights to stay alive and stay safe. Although set in the 1800s, Elizabeth Lavenza is as feisty as power female protagonists of today.

Elizabeth is born into poverty. She's sold away by her unloving father to become a playmate of a wealthy family's son. Victor, even as a boy, isn't quite right. There's something wrong. Something that lurks deep inside of him. He's dangerous to himself and others. Victor's a problem child, and unless he can learn to play with others, he'll never become human.

Young Elizabeth knows her place in the household is precarious unless she can make insert herself into Victor's life so deeply that he must have her to survive. She is intelligent beyond her years, but because it is the 1800's, she must use feminine wiles to get what she wants. Feminists may have a problem with this, but it's doubtful whether feminists would read a YA retelling in the first place.

Readers will love the fact that they get to see Victor's own descent into madness.

The setting is atmospheric and imaginative; the story is historically beautiful and gritty. Mary Shelley would be proud to see this version if she were alive today. The cover art is breathtaking with creepy raised lettering sewn together with needle and thread. In fact, I would say this is my favorite YA cover of the year.

Highly, highly recommended for any horror collection. Grade 8 and up.

Dystopian Pick: Plague Land

Plague Land
by Alex Scarrow
Sourcebooks
December 2017
384 pages
ISBN: 9781492652106

In this scary sci-fi dystopian novel, main character Leon watches a news story about  a horrific virus that has broken out in Africa. His mother tells him not to worry; they're so far away in England. Within a week, the deadly sickness has spread to England, and it's terrifying.

Bodies liquify and turn to "juice."Entire cities are wiped out. The strange thing is that the way the plague seems to be moving, as if it's adapting. Humans are on the run, but there is no outrunning whatever this is. It  may be the end of the human race.

The ending leave an opening for a series, and YA fans will not want to wait long to pick up the sequel.

Recommended grade 9-up.

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

YA Pick: American Panda

American Panda
by Gloria Chao
Simon Pulse
2018
304 pages
ISBN: 9781481499101

Tender, heartfelt, and oh, so needed, American Panda delivers a sweet story about learning who you are and finding your voice even if it means disappointing your family or worse, breaking apart your bonds.

Seventeen year old Mei Lu is a freshman at MIT. She is younger than everyone she meets and she doesn't volunteer her age. Her parents have pushed her into studying medicine, but Mei is a germ-a-phobe who carries hand sanitizer everywhere. Her Chinese born parents are traditional and  have sacrificed and worked hard to give Mei and disowned older brother Xing an easier lives in a country of opportunity.

As children, Mei and Xing are expected to be dutiful and respectful. This includes following their parents' life plan for each of them. They must marry a good candidate from a Chinese family. Xing must become a doctor or other profession that can make tons of money. As a girl, Mei's spouse must be able to provide for her. This means Mei must marry a doctor or in the very least, a professor. Not as much money, but the prestige factor is enough. Mei's mother makes matchmaking her first priority (remember Mei is only seventeen). Xing makes the mistake of falling in love with a woman who may have trouble conceiving a child. It is of the utmost importance to Mei's father that his own son has a son to carry on the Lu name. Her parents disown Xing and kick him out of the house.

Living in the dorms at MIT, Mei doesn't have the privacy she had hoped for. Her parents know her school schedule by heart. If she doesn't return their phone calls or texts, they want to know where she is and who she is with. Mei's mother is the epitome of a tiger mom. Mei's roommate is Nicolette, and they start off barely tolerating each other. Mei misses her brother who is now a doctor. She longs to speak with him about her own fears: her fear of germs, her hatred of biology, her fear of speaking up to her father. Mei begins to meet Xing in secret.

When Mei finds herself having feelings for two very different, NON-Chinese boys, she keeps that secret as well. Another secret is that Mei has been teaching traditional Chinese dance classes and she loves it. Dancing is her passion, not medicine. Too many secrets are spilling over until Mei finally tells the truth.

American Panda is the story of many first generation Americans whose parents have immigrated from other countries. It is not an Asian story (although it is). It is an immigrant story that so many teens will find themselves in. Whatever country their parents came from, it is likely their parents are traditional in their thinking and customs. The American born children grow up in America and hear about their parents' struggles, but it is not the children's story.

Highly, highly recommended, American Panda is a MUST read. Grades 8 and up. Some profanity.

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

Adult Thriller: Wendell Black, MD

Wendell Black, MD
by Gerald Imber
Bourban Street Books/HarperCollins Publisher
2014
416 pages
ISBN: 9780062246851

Praise from the publisher's web site:

“Wendell Black, a middle-aged police surgeon for the NYPD, evolves into an action hero reminiscent of John McClane, Bruce Willis’s character in the Die Hard series, in plastic surgeon Imber’s well-written first novel.”

— Publishers Weekly

       

“A high-stakes debut…. The scenes are filled with clever language and rich descriptions…. A heck of a story, with a hero who deserves a series of books.”

— Kirkus Reviews

 

 

Fiercely crafted prose and an exciting premise will have readers racing to finish this  intriguing novel. Readers will struggle to  figure out who the good guys are and who the bad guys really are.

 

Wendell Black is a doctor who works for the New York Police Department. He does a little of everything--he stops by and makes hospital rounds to see how wounded or sick cops are doing, he sees sick police officers and places them on sick leave or gives them the  green light for duty. On a flight back to New York, Dr. Black is called upon to revive an unconscious passenger. He fights for her life, but the woman cannot be resuscitated. The police are called in when the body is taken into custody at the Medical Examiner's office. They find that the  passenger is not a female after all but a man who has had a recent breast implant operation. The implants are not normal; they are filled with heroin. The narcotics investigators call in Dr. Black for an interview.

This is no ordinary drug case; Alice Sheppard,  Black's "girlfriend" and co-worker  introduces him to a doctor she met in London--Farzan Byarshan. Byarshan tells Black that he suspects the dead passenger was a mule for a terrorist sect. When Dr. Black takes this  theory to the police, they don't buy it. Narrowly escaping an attempt on his life, Black suddenly has all sorts of company:  MI-6, the feds and Homeland Security and New York's finest  jump into the fray.

 Alice suddenly vanishes after the murder of Byarshan, and  police suspect her. They question Dr. Black again, but he denies knowing Alice's whereabouts.

Imber uses his knowledge of police work and his years working in medicine to create a believable story that will instill fear in the minds of all readers. The smuggling ring and the bio-terrorism threat are possible and plausible  in a post 9/11 world.

Readers who enjoy police/detective novels by writers Ed McBain and Elmore Leonard will love Imber's new hero Wendell Black. Here is hoping that Wendell Black will appear in  a series.

Highly recommended for adult readers and mature high school readers. Mature subject matter.

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)

Novel in Verse: Serafina's Promise

Serfina's Promise
by Ann E. Burg
Scholastic Press
2013
304 pages

Available October 2013

(image from author's website)

Poignant, beautiful, and precious, Serafina's Promise tells the story of extreme poverty and hardship through the eyes of eleven-year-old Serafina. Serafina longs to play games and run around with her friends but her family needs her to haul water several times a day. Her Manman and Gogo depend on her. There is no one else to do all the chores. Papa works in Port-au-Prince, miles from their home.

Serafina dreams of going to school to learn how to write and read. She wants to become a doctor and save sick babies, like her little brother who died. She knows she has to convince her parents that she must go to school. There is no money for school uniforms or pencils, but Serafina decides that she will work for the money somehow.

A flood destroys their village and their home. They have lost everything but they still have each other. Serafina's dream is put on hold until the family clears land and rebuilds. A series of tragedies does little to hinder this young girl's spirit, and Serafina begins to realize her dream.

Written in verse (similar to Out of the Dust by Hesse), Serafina's Promise is an easy read for reluctant readers and sure to please those readers who love poetry. Young readers will gain insight into a country they may never have known about--Haiti--with its poverty, hunger, and tragedy. Ann E. Burk is donating a portion of her royalties to Haitian People's Support Project and Pure Water for the World.

Highly, highly recommended for middle grades 4-up. Add this to any collection of free verse and poetry.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the arc 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)

Classic Gothic Tale with a New Twist: Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters

Dr. Frankenstein's Daughters
by Suzanne Weyn
Scholastic
2013
250 pages

Twins Giselle and Ingrid discover that they are heirs to a fortune--their mad father, Dr. Frankenstein was so tormented, he shunned his famly and friends--dying alone but leaving the girls a castle on a small island and a large inheritance. The girls travel to the island north of Scotland, seeing their inheritance for the first time. They stand aghast at the condition of the castle. It has fallen to ruin, but Giselle intends to bring it back to its formal glory. Ingrid--always the scientific one--discovers her father's journals dating back to his early university years. She reads one after another--obsessed with knowing more about her father's work and his state of mind.

Ingrid is attracted to their eccentric reclusive sickly neighbor, too, and Giselle worries about their strange friendship. Ingrid thirsts for knowledge and for education, but being a product of her times (1815)...when women did not go to university...she has to sneak around and disguise herself as a man in order to attend anatomy lectures. Her friend Anthony "borrows" an anatomy book for her to study.

The castle hides secrets and Ingrid finds the key to her father's laboratory. What will Ingrid do in the name of love? Where is the monster that her father created and then spent his life escaping? What dark secrets does Giselle herself hide?

Fans will love this Gothic horror/love story. I was rooting for sister Giselle and disturbed by Ingrid. Plot twists then had me thinking differently.

Suzanne Weyn is a masterful storyteller who handles an old story with ease. The plot is told from each twin's viewpoint as each sister writes her diary entries. The cover has Gothic appeal and will have teens clamoring for their own copy.

Highly, highly recommended grade 7-up. No language. Romance, a few kisses, gruesome laboratory.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for my library from the Scholastic Book Fair. This title is on middle school book fairs. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Sci-Fi Pick: When We Wake

When We Wake
by Karen Healey
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
304 pages

check out the book's playlist

Available March 5, 2013

Compelling and sleekly sick (in a bad way), When We Wake is a nightmarish view of the near future that will make readers think about the future of science, medicine, politics, and government intervention in citizens' lives.

Tegan Oglietti is having a great day. She's off to a rally with her politically inclined pals and new crush Dalmar. But what starts off as a promising day ends with Tegan's death! She is hit by a sniper's bullet and dies at the rally.

Tegan wakes up 100 years later in a controlled experiment. She has been chryonically frozen for the past 100 years. Her past is gone--her friends, her boyfriend, her parents, her home. She longs to talk to someone her own age. She begs the doctors to let her live a "normal" life. There are some people who aren't so pleased that Tegan has survived. They consider her an illegal alien--someone who immigrated illegally to Australia. The citizens believe she doesn't belong in her own country.

Operation New Beginnning is the government's attempt to save the future's soldiers. Tegan will make this possible, the doctor explains. Tegan is allowed to move in with Marie (the doctor) and begin to attend school. Her life is anything but normal as for her own safety she must always travel with bodyguards. There is danger everywhere.

Tegan and her friends discover the government's terrible secret. Operation New Beginning isn't just about freezing someone. It's got a darker side, and Tegan wants to uncover its dirty secrets and show them to the world.

How far will the government go to hide its secrets? Will it kill off its own Living Dead Girl? Tegan is forced to make a tough decision to save Marie's life.


Recommended grade 7-up. I liked that each chapter name was a Beatles song like "Yesterday," "Revolver," and "The Ballad of John and Yoko," and that Ringo is Tegan's favorite Beatle.

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)

Dystopian Pick: Unwholly

Unwholly
by Neal Shusterman
Simon & Schuster
2012
402 pages

Disturbing, chilling, dark, and sickly dystopian, Unwholly is a tour de force. This is the second book in the Unwind series, and Shusterman is superb!

Captivating but broken characters carry the plot along. Unwholly is set in the not so distant future where medicine can cure just about anything. Parents who can no longer “parent” turn to a system that can take their errant teen off their hands. The kids get shipped off to a facility where they are unwound, or basically taken apart and sold for parts. One arm here, one eye there, one spinal cord over there. Of course, the parents think they’re doing the right thing—allowing their broken teen to live on in many other people. Imagine, a blind boy getting new eyes, a cripple walking, a car accident victim given another limb. What a great program, the parents think.

Some teens are able to escape and form a resistance movement. Led by the Akron AWOL, or Connor Lassiter, the teens live in the Phoenix desert holed up in an airplane graveyard. Connor is getting nervous. He knows the Juvies, sadist cops who turn in Unwinds, know about the graveyard and know that there are hundreds of kids living there. Why aren’t they making a move, Connor wonders. Why are they leaving us alone, he asks. When he finds out there’s a traitor in his own camp, he realizes that the kids may have to make a run for it.

Risa, Connor’s sometime girlfriend, is captured and becomes the face of Proactive Citizenry—the organization responsible for thousands of teens’ unwindings. Not only that, Proactive Citizenry has a new project on its hands—it’s produced the very first artificially developed human Camus. Camus is a scientific and genetic miracle to behold. He is made from over 100 different Unwinds and was developed to show the public what the future holds. Cam falls in love with Risa but she turns on him; he promises he will never let her go; he will search for her forever.

The camp is compromised and the kids are in for a huge fight. Just when Connor and Lev think it’s over, they see the milk of human kindness. Unwholly sets up nicely for book 3—where some important questions will be answered and the plot will UNWIND (pun definitely intended).

Shusterman belongs in the ranks of sci-fi giants George Orwell and Ray Bradbury. Unwholly is wholly great! I raced through this book, and teens will, too. Don’t pick this one up unless you’re ready to stay up until the wee hours.

Highly, highly recommended grades 7-up. No sex. One g-word.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for my library. 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)

YA Pick: Revived

Revived
by Cat Patrick
Hachette Book Group
2012
336 pages

Daisy remembers very little of the crash…one minute she was on the bus with her classmates; the next minute she is living a new life. Twenty-two of the children died but were “revived” through secret technology and a program designed to keep them safe and study them. Every time Daisy “dies,” she and her “parents” have to find a new city to live in with new identities. If they stay, they compromise the program. Too many people asking too many questions would blow the cover of one of the most outrageous medical and ethical scandals.

Daisy’s real parents are told that their daughter died. Her new parents are actual handlers in the program and unrelated to Daisy. She likes Mason who has a kind heart and seems to genuinely care about her; she is less thrilled about mother Cassie who is cold and distant.

The overseer of the program is known only as God –the all-powerful and all-seeing. He determines the fate of all his subjects and their handlers. When someone gets out of line, God decides if they will be “revived.” No one has ever met him in person; they obey his commands on the phone.

When Daisy moves to Omaha, she makes friends with siblings Audrey and Matt. For the first time she finally has friends and she wants to put down roots and never have to move away again. Life is never perfect, and it’s not long before she finds out her new friend Audrey is dying of cancer; if only Daisy could use the revive medicine to save her. Daisy decides to risk it all to help save her friend’s life.

Can Daisy trust her secret with her new friends? What will happen to the program if the public finds out about it? What will happen to Daisy?
Revived is an interesting ya novel and will resonate with teens who loved The Adoration of Jenna Fox and Genesis Alpha. Readers may want to know the character of Audrey a bit better; she is barely introduced before she is sick. The relationship between Matt and Daisy is sweet and tender; Matt needs a shoulder when his sister is sick.

Recommended grades 7-up. No language. No sex.

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