DEAD IS SO LAST YEAR by Marlene Perez – REVIEW

 

Sandpiper – May 4, 2009

The Giodano sisters are back from a summer vacation in Italy and things in Nightshade are as strange as ever when they get back.

The first thing Daisy wants to do when she gets home is see her boyfriend, Ryan.  She has missed him and can’t wait to get over to his house.  Daisy is disappointed to find out that he is at football practice, but heads over to the school anyway.  She is very surprised by what she sees.  Ryan has really buffed up in the weeks she’s been gone and so, it seems, has most of the other football players.

Since there are still several weeks left in summer, Daisy decides she should get a job.  She notices that Slim’s has a Help Wanted sign in the window and with her love of cooking, she feels this would be a perfect fit.

After leaving work one evening, she notices someone digging in the dumpster in the alley.  Strangely, it appears to be her missing father.  After other strange appearances in town, the Nightshade City Council comes to the conclusion that Doppelgangers are on the loose causing havoc in town.

Daisy and her sisters have to figure out what is going on in town.  Is there something strange causing the football team to get super strong in such a short time?  Who is creating the Doppelgangers?  Is Mr. Giodano really back or is he a Doppelganger too?

DEAD IS SO LAST YEAR is a fun conclusion to a cute trilogy.  Marlene Perez has a knack for writing with user-friendly, non-intimidating language.  The only drawback is you definitely need to read the trilogy in order.  So, readers, take heed – read DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK then DEAD IS A STATE OF MIND and finally DEAD IS SO LAST YEAR.

Dead Is So Last Year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROM DATES FROM HELL, HELL WEEK, and HIGHWAY TO HELL by Rosemary Clement-Moore – REVIEW

Last week a friend of mine loaned me the Maggie Quinn: Girl v. Evil series.  Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop.  They are funny and interesting.

 

Delacorte Books for Young Readers – March 13, 2007

Maggie Quinn is a high school senior who spends her time taking photos for the yearbook and writing stories for the school’s newspaper.  She is completely content with staying under the radar in order to avoid coming into contact with the Jocks and the Jessicas (the girls that seem to run the school).  Everything is working out just fine until she snaps some incriminating pictures of the Jocks bullying one of the bigger geeks of the school. 

Soon, after her creative photo rescue, Maggie starts having disturbing dreams.  She has ignored her dreams for a long time and has tried to forget the fact that she has psychic abilities.  But with someone or something picking off the Jocks and the Jessicas one-by-one, she is going to have to start tapping into her mojo.  With the help of her Grandmother and a new friend named Justin, Maggie starts to put her powers to work to solve the mystery.

Maggie Quinn is a delightful main character.  She is quick witted, sarcastic, and cynical and her one-liners will have you rolling.  Check out a couple of entries back for my “Say It Again” Saturday post where I listed a few of my favorite lines from PROM DATES FROM HELL.  You’ll want to pick up the sequel as soon as you finish.  Also, there is a Buffy the Vampire Slayer connection –  The Prom where Buffy saves the prom from the devil dogs has a similar feel.

 

Delacorte Books for Young People – August 26, 2008

Maggie made it out of high school alive so what does she decide to take on next?  Sororities!  Maggie decides to go through Rush, undercover, in order to get her foot in the door at the college newspaper.

With the hectic schedule of a new college freshman, participating in Rush, and trying to figure out what is going on with her sort-of boyfriend Justin, Maggie is burning the candle at both ends.  But it isn’t until she realizes that she is losing time that she starts to worry that something of an evil nature is at work. 

Maggie was lucky enough to survive high school and the prom, but can she survive a sorority? 

HELL WEEK is an interesting story, but it lacks some of the humor that was so enjoyable in PROM DATES FROM HELL.  If you watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer and liked the episode, Reptile Boy, where Buffy goes to a frat party with Cordelia and gets chained in the basement to be sacraficed to the lizard demon, then you’ll like HELL WEEK.

 

Delacorte Press – March 10, 2009

Maggie and her best friend, Lisa, decide to head to South Padre Island for a normal Spring Break.  Just because they battle demons and save the world on a regular basis doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be able to have some normal teenager time, right?  Wrong!

On the way, on a dark and lonely highway, they run over a dead cow that is laying in the middle of the road.  The fuel tank on Maggie’s Jeep is ripped open which leaves her and Lisa stranded in the middle of nowhere.  Luckily, a nice cowboy drives by and gives them a lift to the nearest town to get some sleep and find a mechanic to tow her Jeep in the next day.

Once settled in Dulcina, TX, Maggie realizes that the cow she ran over isn’t the only animal that has been killed lately.  Dogs, goats, calves, and now cows are being torn apart by unknown predators.  Some people say its because of the drought and the coyotes getting more bold, but others say it is the el chupacabra – a creature with blood red eyes, scales on its back, and razor-sharp teeth.

As long as they are stuck there anyway, Maggie and Lisa decide they may as well see if they can figure out what is going on in the sleepy town.  As they research the history of the town and meet some of its founding members, it becomes clear that the big “E” is at work again and this time Maggie needs the help of the “big gun” if they are going to make it out alive. 

HIGHWAY TO HELL is just as good as the others in the series, but like HELL WEEK, it doesn’t have the same amount of humor as PROM DATES FROM HELL.  Rosemary Clement-Moore did a great job of creating the side characters in Dulcina.  She makes it so easy to picture the locals in your mind. 

For up-to-date information, visit Rosemary’s website.

Prom Dates from Hell
(Maggie Quinn:
Girl vs Evil, Book 1)

Hell Week
(Maggie Quinn:
Girl vs Evil, Book 2)

Highway to Hell
(Maggie Quinn:
Girl Vs Evil)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EVERMORE by Alyson Noel – REVIEW

 

 

St. Martin’s Griffin – February 3rd, 2009

Ever has survived the unthinkable.  She is the lone survivor of the automobile accident that took the lives of every member of her family – including the family pet.  Since her “near death” experience, she hasn’t been the same.  Not only is she battling with feelings of guilt for being alive, she now has psychic abilities.  She can read minds and nothing is secret anymore.  In order to block out the noise that constantly surrounds her, she keeps her iPod cranked to dangerous levels, hoping to distract herself.

Her self-isolation naturally leads to a lack of friends.  Only Haven and Miles, outsides in their own rights, keep Ever company at school and on occasional weekends.

One day flows into the next, until a new boy shows up at school.  Damen causes quite a stir with his amazing good looks and charming personality, but there is something strange about him too.  Damen silences the noise in Ever’s head.  Whenever he talks, he is all she hears.  Whenever he touches her, everyone around her seems to disappear and a warm, tingly feeling creeps up her body.  This would be great if Ever felt she could trust him, but something just doesn’t seem right about him.

Ever must come to terms with her life while dealing with a mysterious woman that seems to have a connection to Damen.  Ever refuses to learn more about her psychic abilities and would rather them just disappear, but in trying ignore them, she puts herself in danger.

Can Ever find a way to live with her abilities and is Damen worthy of her trust?  Read EVERMORE by Alyson Noel to join Ever on her journey through the Immortals Series.  The second novel, BLUE MOON, will be available August 2009.

 

 

 

Evermore

 

VIBES by Amy Kathleen Ryan – REVIEW

 

Houghton Mifflin – October 6, 2008

Kristi can read minds.  This may sound cool, but she doesn’t get any enjoyment out of it.  For the most part she just hears people thinking:

1 – how strange everyone thinks she is.

2 – what guys think about when they look at her large chest.

3 – her mother wondering why Kristi avoids her.

Kristi’s life took a dramatic turn two years ago.  Her father left, her best friend moved up the popularity ladder and left her behind, and Gusty, the boy she was totally in love with, made it pretty clear he didn’t want anything to do wit her.  Pretty much the only thing that gives her any pleasure is listening to operas, designing and making her own clothes, and her cat, Minnie.  She has worked herself into a nice, comfortable rut.

Several things happen at once that shake up her world.  Her father comes back from Africa, a new boy enrolls at school and appreciates her creativity, and Gusty turns out to be her partner for a huge school project. Everything she thinks she knows comes into question.

Kristi is a fantastic character.  Her hilarious, sarcastic attitude and witty remarks will leave the reader giggling out loud several times throughout the story.  You’ll want everything to work out for her.

Amy Kathleen Ryan does a great job capturing the insecure feelings of a solitary teenager.  The progressive high school, Journeys, is a wonderful backdrop for this unique story.  Click here to visit the author’s website for contests and great writing advice.

 

 

 

Vibes

 

FAIRY LUST by Cyn Balog – REVIEW

EDITORIAL COMMENT: As of January 2009 the title changed to FAIRY TALE. The cover stayed the same except for the new title.

Morgan and Cam have always been together. Their fun and easy friendship naturally transitioned into a comfortable and loving relationship. Everything is perfect. They seem to be a match made in heaven. They even share the same birthday and Morgan and Cam have been planning a big sweet sixteen-birthday bash for months.

A week before the big event things start to change. A stranger named Pip moves in with Cam and there seems to be secrets surrounding the reason for his appearance. Morgan begins to get a glimpse of what is going on when Cam drags her into an empty classroom at school and reveals a pair of wings ready to burst out of their encasement on his back.

Cam is a fairy. He is the heir to the throne of Otherworld and the Fairy King wants him back to start preparing for his future. This isn’t how Morgan saw her life at all. How is she going to spend the rest of her life with Cam if he is a fairy? More importantly, how is she supposed to plan and enjoy a sweet sixteen party when it’s the same night Cam is supposed to go over to Otherworld?

Cyn Balog has done something interesting. She has written a wonderful fairy story, but we get to experience it through Morgan’s human point of view. The characters are loveable and the story is unique. Fans of Melissa Marr’s WICKED LOVELY and Cassandra Clare’s MORTAL INSTRUMENTS series will definitely want to read FAIRY LUST.

 

DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK by Marlene Perez

 

Daisy Giordano is the youngest in a family of powerful women.  Her mother is a well-known psychic and often helps the police with difficult cases.  Her oldest sister, Rose, can read minds and Poppy, who is a year older than Daisy, has the ability to use telekinesis.  Daisy feels left out since she is the only one in the family that doesn’t have psychic powers.

The Giordano sisters live in Nightshade, CA, a town known for being strange, but when Samantha Devereaux, the queen bee of the school, shows up after summer break with a new style, things really start to get weird.  Teenage girls are being attacked all over town and Daisy starts to believe that a vampire might be the culprit.  Daisy is sure that the key to solving the mystery lies with Samantha.  Daisy enlists the help of her best friend, Ryan, and begins to get to the bottom of the problem.

DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK is the first of a new series following the Giordano sister and their creepy hometown.  The story is simple and predictable, but still very enjoyable.  The sequel, DEAD IS A STATE OF MIND is coming out in January of 2009 and a third in the series, DEAD IS SO LAST YEAR, is also planned.  If you enjoy stories with a little mystery, a little romance, and a lot of supernatural activity then DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK is for you.

 

DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK by Marlene Perez

Daisy Giordano is the youngest in a family of powerful women.  Her mother is a well-known psychic and often helps the police with difficult cases.  Her oldest sister, Rose, can read minds and Poppy, who is a year older than Daisy, has the ability to use telekinesis.  Daisy feels left out since she is the only one in the family that doesn’t have psychic powers.

The Giordano sisters live in Nightshade, CA, a town known for being strange, but when Samantha Devereaux, the queen bee of the school, shows up after summer break with a new style, things really start to get weird.  Teenage girls are being attacked all over town and Daisy starts to believe that a vampire might be the culprit.  Daisy is sure that the key to solving the mystery lies with Samantha.  Daisy enlists the help of her best friend, Ryan, and begins to get to the bottom of the problem.

DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK is the first of a new series following the Giordano sister and their creepy hometown.  The story is simple and predictable, but still very enjoyable.  The sequel, DEAD IS A STATE OF MIND is coming out in January of 2009 and a third in the series, DEAD IS SO LAST YEAR, is also planned.  If you enjoy stories with a little mystery, a little romance, and a lot of supernatural activity then DEAD IS THE NEW BLACK is for you.