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On the Loose by Jenny B. Jones

On the Loose by Jenny B. Jones

Posted on by J.C.

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Title: On the Loose (A Katie Parker Production, #2)

Author: Jenny B. Jones

Published By: Sweet Pea Productions (2014)

Synopsis: Six months into her stay with her foster parents, Katie Parker is finally adjusting to her new family. But when a tornado rips through the town of In Between, nothing is ever the same. When her foster mom, Millie, is diagnosed with cancer, Katie begins to doubt if God really does care. What will happen to Katie? Could she possibly have to leave In Between and the family she’s come to depend on? Things spiral even further out of control when Katie juggles a malfunctioning best friend, Spring Break plans, and holding the attention of her own Prince Charming. It’s going to take more than a glass slipper and some fairy dust to fix Katie’s problems. But will help come in time? (Taken from Goodreads)

Review:

This book was hysterical and hilarious. Katie Parker is the best teenager ever. She is full of smart comments, sarcasm, and otherwise funny things that had me laughing every other sentence. Yet, her thoughts seem very realistic—like an average teenager. She has gone through so much, and though her thoughts may have some negative sarcasm, she is great at looking on the bright side (though she’d never admit it). Katie is truly an amazing person and character and my only sadness is that she is only a fictional character—she seems real enough to be a real person!

I could talk all day on the characters. Frances was a great best friend for Katie, encouraging and yet still realistic. I hated Angel so much, probably more than Katie herself did, and I was yelling at Katie for not doing something about it. Of course, when she finally did do something, I was cheering her on. I loved Maxine, then I didn’t like her at all, then I liked her, then I was so mad at her, but in the end I knew she had a good heart. Katie is lucky to be in such a good family.

The teenage drama written in was well done as well; while there was mild teenage romance, it was nothing more serious than a crush (though I don’t know exactly what you’d call Frances’s situation). It was hilarious but realistic and you can’t help but side with Katie.

Negative Content:

Though there is nothing directly inappropriate for young audiences, an older audience (12+) would be more likely to truly appreciate this work.

Overall:

What else is there to say? This book was amazing and incredible and awesome. One of the best books I’ve read this year.

Rating: 5.0

Recommended to: Ages 12+!

 

Has Anyone Seen Jessica Jenkins? by Liz Kessler

Has Anyone Seen Jessica Jenkins? by Liz Kessler

Posted on by J.C.

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Title: Has Anyone Seen Jessica Jenkins?

Author: Liz Kessler

Published By: Candlewick Press (2015)

Synopsis: Jessica Jenkins is missing…

Jessica Jenkins has always thought she was a perfectly ordinary girl, until the day that part of her arm vanishes in the middle of a Geography lesson! Her best friend Izzy is determined to help Jessica realise what a great opportunity the power to turn invisible could be, but where has her new ability come from? Does this mean she’s a superhero? And, when her friends are threatened, can Jessica use her superpower to help? (Taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

This book was just a classic fantasy story, in my opinion. The main character discovers she has some magical power, then (rather than freaking out or telling her parents) goes out and uses it to have some fun, like pranking people. Then she discovers the secret behind the power, and suddenly is out on an epic journey to 1) locate these other superpowered ones and 2) to stop the world from evil.

See what I mean?

None of this to say I didn’t like this book. In fact, I quite enjoyed it. It was fast-paced, intruging, and completely, one-hundred-percent fantastical, but what else can you expect from Liz Kessler?

However, this book was extremely unrealistic. Well, of course nobody can turn invisible. Let me explain my definition of “unrealistic”: Even when a book is a total fantasy that could never occur in life, I prefer when it is written well enough that you come away almost believing it could. The suspension of disbelief I believe in the correct term.

This book, from the very first sentence to the last, was through-and-through fantasy. For example, Jess never told her parents about her power, but she had no issue telling her friend, a weird boy, and the most popular girl in class. She’s following around dangerous people, sneaking into other people’s houses, and rescuing kidnapped people, all without any—ANY—adult involvement. When she gets a message saying her friend has been kidnapped and is being held for ransom, she says, “We must save him!” rather than go to the police. Not that any of this is wrong, it’s just the elements that further prove my unrealistic theory. Normally I wouldn’t have a problem with the realism or unrealism in a fantasy—normally, I guess I’d overlook it—but in this case, it started out being written as if it were a real story. While in other books you know from the start they aren’t meant to take place in real life, this book seemed like it was, and then, when it turned into a full-fledged fantasy, I just kept looking for those signs of realism and instead found impracticality.

Negative Content:

None.

Overall:

I did enjoy this book. It was fun, imaginative, fantastical, and a quick read, and I’d recommend it for anyone looking for a fun fantasy novel. You won’t be disappointed.

Rating: 3.0 

Recommended to: Anyone looking for a fun fantasy novel!

 

 

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Posted on by J.C.

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Title: Fish in a Tree

Author: Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Published By: Nancy Paulsen Books (2015)

Synopsis: Ally has been smart enough to fool a lot of smart people. Every time she lands in a new school, she is able to hide her inability to read by creating clever yet disruptive distractions. She is afraid to ask for help; after all, how can you cure dumb? However, her newest teacher Mr. Daniels sees the bright, creative kid underneath the trouble maker. With his help, Ally learns not to be so hard on herself and that dyslexia is nothing to be ashamed of. As her confidence grows, Ally feels free to be herself and the world starts opening up with possibilities. She discovers that there’s a lot more to her—and to everyone—than a label, and that great minds don’t always think alike. (Taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

This was such a beautiful book!

The author is such a good writer. The pages and chapters flowed so wonderfully and the story was perfectly paced; as I traveled along with Ally, it never once felt drawn out. This story was gorgeous, simply following Ally in a few weeks of her life as she learns that she isn’t as dumb as she thinks, and that things can get better just by asking for help. The messages were portrayed with excellence, straight-out, but not too much in your face.

The characters were so amazing and so relatable: anybody, young or old, will come to love Ally by the end of this book. And not only that; you love Keisha for her quirkiness, and Albert for his smarts, and you hate Shay right along with Ally. Travis, Ally’s brother, was written well too, a good role model for Ally and still his own character.
Ally as a character was so relatable and easy to love. She seemed so real, as if I would shut the book and then go out and find her in everyday life; in fact, it’s hard to believe she’s only a fictional character. I loved following her around her everyday life, through good times and struggles, as she tries to find her way throughout the world.

Negative Content:

None

Overall:

I cannot think of anything I disliked about this book. Beautifully painted, this is a book you won’t regret reading!

Rating: 4.0

Recommended to: Ages 10+

Mindscape by M.M. Vaughan

Mindscape by M.M. Vaughan

Posted on by J.C.

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Title: Mindscape (The Ability, #2)

Author: M.M. Vaughan

Published By: Margaret K. McElderry Books (2014)

Synopsis: Everywhere that Christopher Lane turns, he sees the face of the boy he killed. There is no escape from the guilt, not even on his return to Myers Holt—the secret London academy where he and five others are being trained to use their mental powers, their Ability.

But now that the threat of Dulcia Genever has been dealt with, his friends are too busy working for the police, entering the minds of some of the country’s most dangerous criminals, to sympathize. Chris’s teachers are already concerned enough about him, especially when Chris starts to wonder if the boy may not be a figment of his imagination after all.

Meanwhile, alone in Darkwhisper Manor, Ernest Genever is enjoying watching Chris’s torment. Yes, he will keep his promise—Christopher Lane will die—but not until he has watched Chris lose his mind waiting for Ernest to appear. For, if nothing else, Dulcia Genever did teach her son one valuable lesson: Revenge is a dish best served cold. (Taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

This book was very bewildering.

While the storyline as a whole was well developed, action-paced, and complete with fun characters, the ending completely threw off everything. Despite the fact I loved the first book and yes, this book definitely lived up to my expectations coming off of The Ability, I did not like this one as much as the first.

A sequel to The Ability, Mindscape follows Chris and all his friends as they journey through the last few months they have their Ability, helping the police solve crimes and learning to control their powers even further. The issue? Chris is being haunted by Ernest, the brother of the boy he accidentally killed. Chris can’t get over himself for such a fatal mistake, but what’s even worse is that Ernest can’t get over it, either. In fact, he’s made a vow: Christopher Lane will die.

The storyline approaching the ending was all well and fine, and I would have probably liked it well enough had I actually found the ending decent. I find myself judging books by their endings, and though this one wasn’t the worst I have seen, it wasn’t exactly amazing. What I found most upsetting was this book had so much potential to have an incredible ending; instead, the ending was cheesy, predictable, and let’s just say, CLIFFHANGER! It seemed to me like the author was trying to end the book on a slightly mysterious note: with a little bit unknown to keep the reader guessing, but yet with still enough satisfaction to feel good coming out of the read. Well, to me, that wasn’t what it was. Too much mystery, too much suspense, too many unanswered questions, all appearing at the last chapter; not to mention the actual ending was so abrupt, I turned the page expecting another sentence and there was none. It seemed to literally end right in the middle of a paragraph.

Not to say anything directly in the ending was bad, and most people, I think, will find it satisfying, action-ridden, and suspenseful, but, unfortunately for me, I’m not one of those people. Instead, I’m one of those unusual teenage girls who actually bases her opinion on books regarding the quality of the writing, and in that case, I mostly found it very disappointing.

Besides the ending, though, I enjoyed this book for the most part. Chris’s character is so well done; probably the best done character in the books. Well, he’s the main character, of course he has to be well done—but to be honest, he was the only character I could actually relate to. There were a lot of characters in the series, and while there wasn’t too many (I easily kept track of them all), I did feel like most of them were characters simply thrown in there for the fun of it. I couldn’t truly connect to anyone outside of Chris, even though we did see a bit further development on Daisy. The issue, I guess, is that while the characters are written in a way as secondary characters are, they’re plotted in as main characters, and that makes them hard to relate to.

Negative Content:

None.

Overall:

As a whole, though, and excepting the ending, this was a good read, even though I wish the ending would have gone differently. I need to know what happens next! Write a third book, M.M. Vaughan!

Rating: 3.5

Recommended to: ages 10+

 

The School For Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

The School For Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

Posted on by J.C.

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Title: The School For Good and Evil (The School for Good and Evil #1)

Author: Soman Chainani

Published By: HarperCollins (2013)

Synopsis: This year, best friends Sophie and Agatha are about to discover where all the lost children go: the fabled School for Good & Evil, where ordinary boys and girls are trained to be fairy tale heroes and villains. As the most beautiful girl in Gavaldon, Sophie has dreamed of being kidnapped into an enchanted world her whole life. With her pink dresses, glass slippers, and devotion to good deeds, she knows she’ll earn top marks at the School for Good and graduate a storybook princess. Meanwhile Agatha, with her shapeless black frocks, wicked pet cat, and dislike of nearly everyone, seems a natural fit for the School for Evil.

But when the two girls are swept into the Endless Woods, they find their fortunes reversed—Sophie’s dumped in the School for Evil to take Uglification, Death Curses, and Henchmen Training, while Agatha finds herself in the School For Good, thrust amongst handsome princes and fair maidens for classes in Princess Etiquette and Animal Communication.. But what if the mistake is actually the first clue to discovering who Sophie and Agatha really are…? (Taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainai left me thinking two things:

Wow, that book was good. 

Wow, that book was confusing.

While the book overall was a very fantastical story set right in a very believable fairy-tale setting, many scenes were incredibly confusing. I found it very difficult—mostly in the second half of the story—to keep track of where characters where, what they were doing and why they were doing things. The plotline itself was fast-paced and brimming with adventure, fantasy, and magic, and generally this kind of thing is good: however, in this setting and this book, it felt like there was too much of it, which resulted in confusion.

The relationship between Agatha and Sophie was…interesting…and confusing. The beginning, the first half, was phenomenal, and I loved Agatha’s character so much and her heart to just make sure Sophie was okay, while Sophie seems to care only about herself. Over the course of the story, we learn the characters’ true beings—that Agatha, though she appears a witch, is actually a kind girl who only wants to help others; and Sophie, the girl we all think is gonna be the princess, turns out to be a wicked person who cares only about herself.

Or so it’s portrayed.

While I loved Agatha and found her written very well, I was rather in disbelief about Sophie.

For instance, I never really knew if she was evil, good, evil faking good, or good faking evil; even after finishing reading, I’m not that sure of her true intent. Also, despite the many many attributes of her character that suggests hidden cruelty, I found myself feeling sympathetic for her as she’s pushed through Evil School. I understand that it’s a fairy-tale world, but really, you put anyone—princess or not—in that evil place, and they’re going to come out a villain. Sophie, to me, seemed like a semi-decent girl who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

On the other hand, the author did an amazing job with Agatha. She was written so beautifully; I loved her heart to help her friend, even if it meant getting herself in trouble. I loved her intent, where she feels more at home at Evil with its dirtiness, but knows in her heart she doesn’t want to be evil. She was done so well, and I loved her.

The ending. It was strange, not to mention incredibly flummoxing. One page Sophie was good and on Agatha’s side; the next page she’s trying to kill her. One page you think, good, Good is going to prevail! and the next you think, Is Good actually Evil and Evil actually good? And I have no idea what the author was trying to accomplish by the ending scene and “who needs princes in our fairy tale?” but it came off very strange. I understand the concept of friendship, but it just did not come off the way it was intended to. Not to mention the thing with the School Master and Sophie! That just added to the weirdness and the confusion.

Negative Content/Notes: 

A lot of scenes in this book, though written with a juvenile sense, were rather creepy. There was no way of knowing what was coming next—which in this sense was not good—and the whole prospect of Agatha’s best friend suddenly trying to kill her because she’s her “Nemesis”(and then the next page desperately apologizing) was confusing and creepy.

Overall:

While this book’s writing style, plotline, themes, and set were aimed towards a more juvenile audience, lots of the scenes were either creepy or confusing, and like I’ve said, the ending was just weird. While I did enjoy the book as a whole, the things I disliked just outweighed the good things. I wouldn’t not recommend it, just don’t expect anything incredible if you do read it.

Rating: 3.0

Recommended to: Ehh…not sure I’d recommend it.

The Ability by M.M. Vaughan

The Ability by M.M. Vaughan

Posted on by J.C.

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Title: The Ability (The Ability, #1)

Author: M.M. Vaughan

Published By: Margaret K. McElderry Books (2013)

Synopsis: No one has any confidence in twelve-year-old Christopher Lane. His teachers discount him as a liar and a thief, and his mom doesn’t have the energy to deal with him. But a mysterious visit from the Ministry of Education indicates that Chris might have some potential after all: He is invited to attend the prestigious Myers Holt Academy.

When Christopher begins at his new school, he is astounded at what he can do. It seems that age twelve is a special time for the human brain, which is capable of remarkable feats—as also evidenced by Chris’s peers Ernest and Mortimer Genver, who, at the direction of their vengeful and manipulative mother, are testing the boundaries of the human mind.

But all this experimentation has consequences, and Chris soon finds himself forced to face them—or his new life will be over before it can begin. (Taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

This book was very, very well done! I loved the author’s writing style and the writing was very good. The plotline was extremely intriguing and the characters were well done. A mix of reality and fantasy, this is one book you won’t regret reading.

I enjoyed every bit of this book, from the first sentence to the last. Every chapter was packed full of action, mystery, and suspense, and once I started it was almost impossible to put down. The side characters at the school, if very well described, did fall a little flat, but Chris’s character development—as well as the development in the twins and in Anna—all made up for it. Chris was written fantastically, with a real feel and like you could really connect to him and relate to him. The whole mind-traveling thing was incredibly well done, every last detail described in a way that makes you wonder if maybe our brains actually are this way. If mind-reading was possible, this is, without a doubt, the way it would be. The book was written very believably, despite the element of fantasy.

On the downside, I felt this book was a bit drawn out, in the wrong places. While the plotline the story raced along, other, smaller elements, such as Chris going to a high-end store, or simply hanging out with his classmates, are drawn out to a point where I hurried through the pages to see where the story went next, not caring whether or not Chris liked the store or hated it. After the second long section explaining the horror behind Ms. Lamb’s class, I understood the point that she wasn’t very nice and rushed along, again, to see what happened after this.

Another thing is, I wish the author would have given us some more brief glances at time in the Think Tank, rather than Ms. Lamb’s class. While after just one scene we all get the point of Ms. Lamb, we are still in the fog and very curious—even after a whole chapter—about the Think Tank, which is written to be a very important element. It being written so, I wish the author would have spent more scenes on that, rather than emphasizing again and again on Ms. Lamb. Not that I didn’t like the constant Ms. Lamb scenes when I was reading—just now, looking back, I think I would have enjoyed Think Tank scenes a bit more.

Overall I definitely feel this book could have been a lot shorter and still made the impression it did.

Negative Content:

None.

Overall:

Despite the very few, minor things I disliked, I did love The Ability. I picked it up one night, read the prologue and suddenly couldn’t put it down; I spent every waking moment following either reading it or anxiously awaiting the moment I could get back to it. This was a true gem of a book, it is definitely a favorite of mine and I’ll look forward to re-reading it sometime soon.

Rating: 4.0 / 5.0

Recommended to: Anyone looking for a fun adventure!