Book Review: The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow

The Scorpion Rules has a unique and enjoyable premise, however at times the storytelling got a little confusing.

The world is run by an artificially intelligent being, Talis. In order to deter wars, each nation's leader must send an offspring as a hostage. These offspring are taken to a Precepture where they are educated but captive. If their country goes to war, the child is executed.

Greta is the Crown Princess of the Pan Polar Confederacy, one of the largest nations. There is a worldwide water shortage, so the Pan Polar Confederacy guards its supply and is likely to go to war to protect it. Greta is sure she will soon be executed. A new government is formed, so a new kid comes to the Precepture, Elian. Elian's country is next to Greta's vying for the same water. He's not cooperative and disrupts the routine. Not only is Elian tortured for his behavior, the rest of the kids must suffer too because they are supposed to help him learn to cooperate.

They don't escape. That's what you think is going to happen. So that's not it, which I found refreshing in itself.  But all hell breaks loose, and it changes everything for these kids. I'm not really going to say any more than that.

For as bad as the water shortage is, it doesn't seem to affect the Precepture very much. Yes, they mention not taking showers, and it never rains. But they have lush gardens and livestock, so they must be using water. My favorite part of the book is the beginning when we are introduced to the characters and their world. The scientific aspects were also very interesting, and sci-fi buffs will certainly appreciate that aspect. After "all hell breaks loose" I thought the story got a little muddled, sometimes going too fast so that I felt I needed more information. I didn't always understand the motivations of the characters and the reasons they made the choices they did.

But the story is fascinating and leaves room for a lot of thought and discussion. And it's also a bit brutal at times, so be warned. Something very significant happens at the end that makes me think the next installment of Prisoners of Peace will be very different than The Scorpion Rules.

I liked it. I just lost some of the details that might have made The Scorpion Rules exceptional.

Published by Margaret K. McElderry, September 22, 2015
eARC obtained from NetGalley
384 pages

Rating: 3/5

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Book Review: Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson @raecarson

Walk on Earth a Stranger is a perfect book for me. I absolutely loved it.

Leah's life is turned upside down when she finds her parents both murdered in their small home in Georgia. It's 1849 and many people are racing to California to make their fortune in gold.

Leah has a secret. She's able to feel when gold is near. The sense gets stronger the closer she gets to the gold. Nice ability to have, huh? When Leah's uncle comes to take her away and "use" her, she runs away. Her best friend left for California a short while ago, and she wishes she went with him but now hopes to catch up with him. She must disguise herself as a boy since it would be impossible to be a girl travelling alone. Fortunately Leah has been trained by her father to hunt, muck out the stalls, and any other work to keep their household running.

Leah (now Lee) goes through much hardship but makes some interesting friends along the way to California. Walk on Earth a Stranger never has a dull moment. The heat, cold, wet, stampedes, mountains, rivers, cholera, and danger from Indians made these people true pioneers. Many lost their lives, including some of the characters in this book. It was hard work; they were always tired and much of the time they were hungry and thirsty.

The writing just flows magically. I felt like I was along with Lee in her travels. I hated some characters so much that I wanted to throw the iPad across the room (I refrained.) The magical gold-finding ability just adds to the story but never overpowers it.

I was concerned about a cliff hanger, since this is a planned trilogy (Gold Seer Trilogy), but this episode ties up the immediate plot line. We know there's more to come, and I can't wait for the next book. I think it's probably going to be a while.

Fans of historical fiction should not miss Walk on Earth a Stranger. Don't let the magic cause you any hesitation. Fans of magical books will enjoy this one too, especially if you enjoy historical settings. I can't wait to shove this one at my teens.

Published by Greenwillow, September 22, 2015
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
448 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Stacking the Shelves - One Historical Fiction

I received one book this week. My favorite, historical fiction. Can't wait to get to it.

For Review:

Wolf by Wolf, by Ryan Graudin from NetGalley

Hope you had a great book week. Let me know in the comments so I can add to my list. Thanks for stopping by. Be sure to visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews. Come back soon!

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Book Review: I Crawl Through It, by A. S. King

A. S. King is quite possibly my favorite YA author. But I Crawl Through It is just a bit too weird for me.

Hmmmm....I really don't know where to begin. There are several narrators, all unreliable. We have one character who thinks she's two separate people. One is building an invisible helicopter. One turns herself inside out. All of them are dealing with issues from their past in the best way they know how. The parents are mostly dysfunctional too.

And that's really the message in I Crawl Through It. It's about coping. And understanding. And helping each other.

Someone is calling in daily bomb threats to the high school, so it's impossible to have a normal school day. An old man in a bush gives away letters for kisses. I'm not really sure what happened in the book. I don't think that's the important thing. The writing is excellent and it's a quick read. I just don't think it has wide appeal.

I'll still read anything King writes, but I Crawl Through It won't be at the top of my recommendation list.

Published by Little, Brown BFYR, September 22, 2015
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
336 pages

Rating: 3/5

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Audio Book Review: The Girl With All the Gifts by M. R. Carey @michaelcarey191

The Girl With All the Gifts is basically a zombie book. And a good one! Don't get me wrong, The Girl With All the Gifts isn't your typical zombie book. There are characters to relate to -- even zombie characters -- and the normal humans aren't very likable.

Melanie is special. She doesn't really understand why, but she's kept isolated in an underground facility. She's strapped to a wheelchair - immobilized - and taken to the classroom with other children like her every weekday. She has several teachers, but her favorite is Miss Justineau. She loves Miss Justineau.

I can't really say much about the plot. You don't understand what's going on with Melanie and these other kids at first, and that's intentional. It just adds to the tension. The reader slowly realizes that the outside world is gone. There are hungries and junkers out there. And Melanie is very lucky to be in here. Or is she? Melanie's "safe" world is shattered (along with everyone else) and she becomes part of an unlikely group fighting for their survival.

The strength of The Girl With All the Gifts is the strong emotions I felt for the characters. Miss Justineau is so sweet and caring, but I really didn't like her. Most of the time she's unreasonable and makes stupid (deadly) decisions. For a while I thought I liked the evil Dr. Caldwell better, but not really. She's warped in her own way. Admittedly, their situation is stressful and desperate which doesn't bring out their best.

The concept behind the "end of the world" is also fascinating, and to my unscientific mind seemed plausible. The ending may not be what the reader hopes for, but I enjoyed the irony.

The narrator, Finty Williams, does a great job. The Girl With All the Gifts is set in Great Britain, so her British accent is appropriate. Some of the characters sounded a bit alike, but it wasn't difficult to figure out who was speaking.

Anyone who enjoys dystopian/zombie/thriller books will enjoy The Girl With All the Gifts, including teens. I'm still thinking about this one, and that's always a good sign.

Published by Orbit, Hachette Audio, 2014
Copy obtained from the library
416 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review: Lock & Mori by Heather W. Petty

Lock & Mori totally captivated me with its characters and an intriguing mystery.

Lock is Sherlock Holmes. Mori is Moriarty - a girl. Lock & Mori takes place in the present, and they are both in high school and meet during Mori's theater class. Lock, of course, is interested in investigating a crime, so he takes Mori to the park where there has been a murder and he wants Mori to investigate with him.  Mori thinks she will turn Lock down, but it doesn't end up that way. The case gets personal.

Mori's home life is awful. Her dad is a drunk since her mother died of cancer, and he beats on Mori's brothers at times. It turns out Lock's mother is sick, a fact that is just thrown out, but never followed up. But we do interact with Mycroft, Lock's brother.

Lock and Mori are both very intelligent and their banter adds a lot to the story. They also end up in a pretty serious romance, which was handled well, but not necessary. It bothered me that Mori wasn't more honest with Lock, but I appreciated how Lock handled the reveal.

Fans of mystery, especially Sherlock Holmes, should be pointed to Lock & Mori. It seems like these characters could handle a series, but I don't know about any plans. It is a quick, engaging read that will appeal to a lot of teens.

Published by Simon & Schuster BFYR, September 15, 2015
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
256 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: One, by Sarah Crossan @SarahCrossan

Sarah Crossan does an exceptional job putting the reader inside the head of a conjoined twin in One.

There's just a lot you don't think about when it comes to the issues that conjoined twins face. I first became more away of this when I read The Girls, by Lori Lansens (which I still highly recommend.) Grace, our narrator, is trying to be a teenager. Her sister, Tippi, is always with her, since they are literally joined at the hip and share their lower body.

At the beginning of the book, their parents are having financial difficulties and tell the girls they must go to school instead of being home schooled. This is quite a change for them. But they end up making a couple of friends and they actually enjoy school, engaging in some typical teen activities.

Their father has lost his job and spends much of the time in an alcoholic stupor. Their younger sister wants nothing more than to dance, and she's taken a job teaching so that she can pay for her studio time. Grace and Tippi feel very guilty, because it's their medical bills that are sucking up all the funds.

Another issue is that Grace has become attracted to their friend, Jon. But the girls have agreed they can't fall in love. Their health becomes the foremost concern, and that's all I'll say about that.

Don't let the "written in verse" part keep you away. One reads very easily, keeps your attention, and is very quick. One is a heartwarming, emotional story that will keep you thinking long after you've turned the last page.

Published by Greenwillow, September 15, 2015
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
400 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Stacking the Shelves - Impulse Requests

Just a few that caught my eye...

For Review:

I'm From Nowhere, by Suzanne Myers from Edelweiss

The May Queen Murders, by Sarah Jude from Edelweiss

Shallow Graves, by Kali Wallace from Edelweiss

Seems like I'm on a mystery binge! I'd love to hear about what you all got this week. Leave me a link. Thanks for stopping by and make sure to visit our hosts, Team Tynga's Reviews.

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Book Review: Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between by Jennifer E. Smith

I didn't really get into the entire premise behind Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between. However, Smith's writing and characters, as usual, kept my interest.

Clare and Aidan are leaving for college on opposite sides of the country, and the entire book takes place on the last night before they leave. They've been together for two years. Clare thinks they should break up because long distance relationship are too hard, and they need to experience college on their own.  Aidan isn't so sure.

Clare has made a list of places to go and things to do on their last night, so they start off with that.  The evening doesn't go smoothly. They meet some friends who have their own things going on. I picked up on Stella's issue early on. They stray from the list after an encounter with Aidan's father.

These characters are interesting and Smith's style is so easy to fall into. I read Hello, Goodbye and Everything in Between in a matter of hours.

I just didn't think this issue was worth all the fuss. Not that it matters what Smith writes about -- I'll read it. But this was kind of lame. Or I'm too old. I would have just said, "Try it out and see what happens. You can always break up later." Seems so practical to me, and I didn't understand why someone didn't say that. Yes, they explained why they didn't want to do that, but it's a lame excuse. You can still go out with friends and have a lot of fun when you are away at school even if you have a boyfriend.

I also wasn't a fan of the ending. The wrap up was very quick and in an epilogue. Not enough for me. So, Hello, Goodbye and Everything in Between isn't my favorite Jennifer E. Smith book, but I'm not going to stop reading and recommending her books to all my high school kids.

Published by Poppy, September 1, 2015
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
247 pages

Rating: 3.5/5

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2015 EBook Challenge - Post Your September Reviews Here

Here's the sign up page for the 2015 EBook Challenge if you are interested.

You can see my progress for the year on my 2015 Reading Challenges page.

You can link up your August reviews here.

You can link up your September reviews below:

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