A great YA dystopian re-telling of The Odyssey
921001
A great modern re-telling of The Odyssey with believable, diverse, and complex characters--including some great LGBT characters, which we don't really see enough of in YA. It was a short read. Definitely worth it. Check it out if you are a fan of dystopian YA books.
1637387
Matched is an entertaining entry into the crowded YA dystopian genre.  It's fast pace and engaging characters make this a great choice for any young fan of this genre and it's relative lack of violence, it's G rated romance and it's many faceted story line mark it as an especially good choice for middle schoolers.

When Cassia finds out she's been matched with her childhood best friend Xander, she is thrilled.  In the "Society" girls are matched after their 17th birthday, usually to boys they have never met.  This is done all in the interest of maintaining the health and well being of the Society.  Everything is planned out from your match, to children, your vocation, what you eat, what you wear, and even your leisure time.  All is decided by the officials in charge.  At first Cassia does not see a problem with this, but when an error occurs in her matching process, she begins to doubt....

The author did a fantastic job of creating this alternate society, with much attention paid to detail.  There are many things here that will cause the reader to stop and consider their own lifestyle.  Perhaps the most intriguing to me was the Society's decision to burn books, music and all elements of culture except for the ones on the prescribed lists of 100.  So they had the 100 books, the 100 songs, the 100 paintings, even the 100 history lessons.  They had determined that our culture was too cluttered.  It is elements such as this that really add to the author's vision of a Society that has such ultimate control over it's people.

Cassia and Ky are fantastic characters and it is their romance that supplies most of the tension in the book.  Seeing Cassia grow from a girl who follows the government rules to a girl who decides to rage against the machine was effective and gratifying.  I could feel her anguish, her confusion and finally her steadfast resolve.  She is a fabulous character that any young girl will relate to.  Ky is the perfect man of mystery and as Cassia's feelings for him grow from the abstract to the concrete, he becomes increasingly more vibrant and realized.

This is a compelling story, and while I often get tired of every book being an intro to a series, I am glad there will be more to Cassia's story.  She is a character that has something vital to say who I think will speak to many young girls.  I didn't give this one five stars because there were a couple of plot points that left me wondering, but they were not significant enough to dampen my enthusiasm for a very entertaining read that I will be recommending often.
3570005
I'm a fan of YA fiction, especially when it has a fantasy/Sci-Fi theme. I was really looking forward to reading this book, because of synopsis as well as all the good reviews it has received, and I have to say that I wasn't disappointed. This was one of the best YA dystopian sequels that I have read! I couldn't read it fast enough.

Michelle Lynn has created a unique and believable dystopian society. The main characters, Gabby and Dawn, two sisters, are likable, authentic, and extremely different personalities. The book switches back and forth between the sisters perspectives, which I loved, since you were able to see get a grasp of their chaotic world through very different eyes.  Brains vs Brawn, Book girl vs Athlete, Quiet vs Outspoken, I loved how distinctive Dawn and Gabby's personalities were.

Dawn of Rebellion has a little bit of everything. Action, romance, family issues, political problems, and covers a bunch of moral issues that our current society faces.  The book is full of suspense, fast-paced, and easy to read. The writing is spot on and the characters highly developed! I love romance, and it didn't take me long to start rooting for the sisters and their love interests. The ending, while not giving anything away, was a cliffhanger! Aaaaah!!! I can't wait to read book two!

Overall, an easy 5 Stars and Two thumbs up!
498075
I loved this book! Kristen Pham has given us a truly original idea that stands out among novels with a futuristic dystopia. She also offers a fresh take on the young female hero/anti-hero. The main character, Joan, is the kind of girl I want to be (or at least be friends with). The plot is so engaging and well-paced. The characters are compelling and I'm eager to discover how they evolve throughout the series. This book is excellent for readers of all ages and particularly captivating for young adult readers. I can't wait to find out what happens next!
1698514
Review of the Characters:

Percy Son of Poseidon, Demigod and our protagonist. Percy was an admirable kid, brave and loyal true and true. He was also brash and stubborn (a lot like Harry Potter) but they were realistic flaws that led him and his friends into realistic problems. Realistic demigod problems anyway. For the first novel, the author did a great job with establishing a distinct voice for Percy, we get a sense of who he is from the very first page. I look forward to seeing more of him throughout the series.

Grover I really loved Grover, probably because out of all the characters he was the one that grew the most. He learned to face his fears. With a person like Percy its hard to keep up but Grover not only did but supported his friend the entire way through. I absolutely adore how passionate he is about his cause (his life mission is to find the lost god Pan and restore Earth to the way it was before pollution). He was a great balance to Percy and I hope has more appearances.

Annabeth I love that there is a strong female like Annabeth depicted in childrens literature. She was more than a match for Percy and save the trio from trouble many times. She had a strong presence throughout the novel and Im so happy with the decision she made at the end of the book. I cant wait to see what the author has in store for this character.

Review of the Story:

Im a bit biased because I LOVE greek mythology. Ive always been fascinated with it so give me a book with a thousand allusions to it? Yeah, Im going to enjoy it. The author did a fantastic job weaving the mythology into the story without overwhelming the character. I never once felt like I was reading a textbook on the subject so he gets points for that. The idea of Camp Halfblood is so fun and original. It also leaves potential for numerous opportunities and that is where the real genius lies in this book. The adventure was entertaining (silly at times) but definitely a fun read.

Review of the Writing:

Ive read a lot of young adult novels but this was the only book where I was left feeling like it was too young for me. The fact that a god would leave giant spider robots threw me off, it just didn't fit the character and seemed like it was added in only to appeal to kids. I mean, it is aimed at middle schoolers but so is Harry Potter and for me The Lightning Thief was missing that element that transcends ages. Besides the juvenile writing though, the author did a great job shaping his story and aligning it with greek mythology. Camp Halfblood was well fleshed out and Im sure it will star in childrens dreams for years to come.

Rating:

A fast and entertaining read, The Lightning Thief is an exciting novel that will take you on a wild adventure. If you like childrens novels then I highly recommend this book as itll leave you eagerly anticipating the next in the series.
3298192
We are finally here, The Voyage of Odysseus - The Odyssey of Homer retold in a modern style.  This is the one that I have been waiting for since I first met Eperitus back in the King of Ithaca.

This is book 5 in The Adventures of Odysseus series, needless to say, I enjoy Glyn Iliffes writing.  There is something special about how he has taken this ancient sage and made it fresh, exciting and new.

The Odyssey is probably the best known work of Homer.  I can only imagine that it is a daunting task to retell this story and keep everyone happy.  In my opinion, Glyn Iliffe has once again worked his magic in breathing new life into this epic tale.  He has made the trials of Odysseus tangible and real.  Through Eperitus, we see the real decisions made by the King of Ithaca, the good ones and the bad.  The Epic Hero of Homers Odyssey had become a real man, one who makes mistakes that cost good men their lives and cost him the faith and confidence of his men.

I thought that this was going to be it; that I would see Odysseus arrive home to his wife and son.  From day one I wondered what would happen to Eperitus.  Does he get back to Ithaca?  Does Eperitus get his happily ever after?  But no!  Glyn Iliffe has another book up his sleeve.  When an author makes you care about the characters this much and makes you crave the next book, he is doing something right.

*4.5 Stars
1700730
In Beths world society is broken into castes of numbers ranging from One to Twenty. If you are a One you live underground in the mines doing physical labor while the Nineteens and the Highest, Twenty, live lives of luxury above ground leading the masses. The world is no longer habitable after dangerous sun radiation scorched the earth. The remaining humans live inside three terrariums, essentially radiation-proof bubbles of life, or deep underground.

Beths family is ranked as sevens which means they cultivate plants inside the terrarium but live underground with the other lower numbers. At the age of ten the people in their society take a test to see which number they are and Beth is placed as a number Four, demoted to cleaning. While she is cleaning one of the Higher Ups offices one day, she discovers an invitation to the Solstice Party which changes her perception of their society forever.

That night her home is raided and a mysterious man tells her that her assigned number was wrongthat she is supposed to be placed higher but her test was sabotaged in order to keep her in with the lower ranks as a rebel spy. They call themselves the Zeros. And that is only the start of her questioning the society she lives in and what the world was like before the Earth burned.

I loved the world-building in this novel. Billingsley obviously spent an enormous amount of time detailing everything that would happen if the sun destroyed the planet. Each small detail was a treasure to read and I felt like I was a part of the world thirty pages in.

That being said, the pace was a little slow from the start. But, once you get past the initial details, it is worth it. Beth is a character who comes to realize her worth over time and grows into a strong leader triumphantly in the end. Thats what I look for in a YA heroine.

Probably what I enjoyed most about the novel were the eccentric characters that were incredibly unique to this story. While the dystopian YA genre has many recycled character arcs, The Burning Song was unique in that it focused on her discoveries and finding herself as opposed to being wrapped up in an all-consuming romance. It was refreshing.

Like most Dystopians, the connections between the fictional and reality were easy to drawthe wealthy legitimately trapping the poor underground, unable to break through a physical barrier being the most vivid in The Burning Song. In the same way Suzanne Collins asked us to observe the wealth and spectacle of The Capitol, Billingsley forces us to correlate vanity and oppression in the Higher Ups and compare them to contemporary society. As Billingsley said in one of her blogs, the reason we are drawn to Dystopian is because focusing on a group of people in a strange or broken-down social system allows for a clearer view of societal problems that impact us all.

Then end left me wanting more with huge questions left to be answered. Cannot wait for the second installment.
3271844
I actually had a senior in high school recommend this book to me and I am so glad he did.  The dystopian future is often done, but this one is a pretty unique vision and full of pop culture references that any '90's kid will love - even if they aren't familiar with the minutiae.  I am far from a video game nerd myself, but have many video game playing friends and was familiar enough to get most of the references to some extent.  The best part of this book, for me, was the adventure aspect - just non-stop excitement and mystery, but it also offers a pretty fascinating commentary on our society and where it might go.  VERY excited to hear Spielberg is probably making the movie soon :D
4059031
It's designed as YA -- that's fine, although I couldn't help but think that the neat match-up of the number and ages of boys who arrived in Odyssey to the number of girls who arrived in Castaway Planet was a bit too fortuitous.  That said, I'm buying the pair of them in hard cover for the middle school where I volunteer (for myself, I got them on my Kindle), to go along with Dave Freer's YA books, Weber and Lindskold's Stephanie Harrington set, and other efforts I make to get a new generation to read science fiction.
3508706
I'm a YA junkie who's loved some of the big dystopian franchises lately and this first installment of Laura Campbell's series is a great faith-based addition to my library. Characters are interesting and varied and the story is believable and captivating. The writing style reminded me a bit of Ally Condie. Would recommend for any age.
2585050
Young Fabal is waken by his mother Keeyla in the middle of the night and she leads him on a daring escape from their protected village into a post-apocalyptic wilderness. The Elite claim Tallas is the only safe place in this ravaged world, but life might be harsher inside with the vicious Mediators running things. Fabal's father Doogan is captured but Keeyla continues on with her son in search of his grandfather. Both monsters and Mediators lurk in the dark. Can they survive in this perilous land?

Tallas is a wonderfully written YA dystopian fantasy. The world building is brilliant. Tallas is this haven in a chaotic world full of fascinating mutants and terrifying monsters. It's a mystery as to what exactly happened, but that's the draw of it. The history of the village itself tells like an ancient legend even if Tallas isn't that old. This world holds all sorts of possibilities for many stories.

As interesting as the world is, it's the cast of characters that make this a great read. Fabal might be small and young, but he's brave. He's definitely his father's son. Doogan is a smart man in a tough situation. I could never guess exactly what was going to happen next. Keeyla is his perfect complement. I also loved Fulvio, Smelt, Swan, Knox, and Tibbles. And there are bad guys a plenty. Loathsome and just plain downright detestable.

I recommend this to young and old readers alike! An original dystopian tale that holds you from start to finish.
3006615
I really enjoyed this book. I loved that it was both dystopian and supernatural at the same time.  The main character, Dephon, is said to be in ninth grade, but through much of the book, I pictured him a bit older.  I say this to mean that if you are afraid this book is too YA, it doesn't have that immature feel to it. It does, however make you want to read more of the series, when Dephon really comes into his own.  The only thing I struggled with was that the transitions between past and present were not structured well.  I would have preferred to switch back and forth a bit more often because at times it felt like I was reading two books because I would forget that the other storyline was happening.  The integration of the stories as it neared the end went well but in the middle, the sections in each time frame were simply too long.  I was engaged in this story from start to finish, and I would definitely be interested to read other books in this series or by this author.
i received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
4901059
Cover Thoughts-
In the book there are many interesting creatures beyond the walls of Meritropolis. The cover exhibits what I assume the bion, half bull-half lion animal combination, looks like. It's diffidently the most significant animal combination of the story and looks fantastic on the cover.

First Thought-
Dystopian novels are by far my favorite to read, Meritropolis sat perfectly on the top of my TBR pile, and I knew without a doubt that Meritropolis would be one of the greatest page turners that I have read this year.

Review-
First off, my favorite part of the series is the character development. Every character has their own unique voice and you can hear it perfectly in your head. Charley has one of the highest scores but he is far from perfect. Joel points out many times in the book where Charley's anger gets the best of him, but somehow it makes his score go up. Just from this you can assume that the scoring process that is supposed to tell how much you can provide to society is flawed. To me, it looks like the scoring is based on what type of leader or soldier you can be. Orson, the leader of Meritropolis, is that enemy that everyone loves to hate. The further I got into the book the more I felt for Orson and the more I hated him. Its a complicated feeling. Sven, Charley's best friend, begins the story a light-hearted, care-free kind of guy. Then, he becomes a little bit...creepy. Charley makes many new friends and creates a group of ragtag low and high scores all set on destroying Orson and his system. Little do they know that someone even scarier than Orson will be the end of Meritropolis. Even though Meritopolis is filled with action and adventure, there is also a little bit of a romance between Charley and his new friend Sandy. I agree that Meritropolis is comparable to The Hunger Games. I can picture Meritropolis being a movie just like the latest great dystopians Maze Runner, Ender's Game, and The Hunger Games.

Overall Readability-
Honestly, if you are interested in dystopians like I listed above then Meritropolis is a great read for you. It's easy to read the voice of every character and get lost in world of Meritropolis.

My Final Thought-
2014 is coming to an end. So, I can say for certain that Meritropolis is in my top 10 for best reads of 2014. It has the ending that leaves you sitting there desperately searching for the release of next installment in the series.

5 out of 5 Haunted Roses
1146887
Emma's world is rapidly changing all around her. After a tragic trip to Florida she starts finding odd abilities and strange occurrences, including the appearance of a beautiful boy she can't help but be drawn to.

Em's life is about to get even more surreal as she delves deeper into her new beau, Galen's background and world while exploring her own new and unusual growing powers.

Of Poseidon's elegant cover surprises you with a funny quirky story as refreshing as an ice cold lemonade on a hot day. After all the dark dystopian and urban fantasies that have been my main fiction fix of late, Of Poseidon was a nice fun YA romance, full of potentially embarrassing laugh out loud moments. The story was a bit transparent in places but I still thoughly enjoyed this book. The dual POVs really gives you a well rounded look into Galen and Emma's budding romance. Banks also takes stale stereotypes to create a few amazing new ideas for some fresh world building.

With a little bit of hilarious, loads of fun and flirty romance, there's a lot to like about Of Poseidon. If you're looking for the perfect light summery beach read then add Of Poseidon on the top of your summer reading list.
4731940
Book of a Thousand Days is a delightful, compelling tale with a female protagonist you can't help but cheer for. The narration centers around Dashti, and Hale does a fabulous job weaving in world building without a data dump, and using character voices to bring subtext.

I loved the mythology of this- it takes place in central Asia, near the Steppes (yay diversity!). It never explicitly says this, but the detail is there. It walks a line between historical fiction and fantasy, but retains a fairytale-retelling charm (it's a retelling of Maid Maleen). And did I mention the magical realism aspect?

It's sort of a coming of age, with adventure and romance thrown in. If you liked Disney's Mulan, you'll love this. I definitely recommend it for fans of YA, fans of Asian mythology, fans of strong female characters, and anyone who enjoys a fairytale retelling.

I also recommend the audiobook version, done by Full Cast Audio, which sounded more like a radio play and was utterly engrossing.
3582897
I wasn't sure what to think when I first picked this book up.  The cover is, of course, absolutely stunning, but the first few chapters left me feeling a little disenchanted.  I forged on though, determined to finish and ended up really enjoying the story.  This is light YA sci-fi at its best.  There isn't too much garbling on about space ships or how such and such technology works.  Instead, we get to focus on how the earth might actually react if alien exchange students came to town and focus on a romance that actually makes sense when it happens!  For once in a young adult novel, we get to see the characters actually falling in love.  Very refreshing.  I've already ordered the sequel.

If you like this, you might like
1. Acid by Emma Pass
2. The Fire Wish by Amber Lough
3. The Seven Wicked: First by C.M. Stunich
3342965
Loved it!  This book, which is sure to be the first in a series, includes fantastic world-building.  The societies and characters are vivid, engaging, and sucked me right in!  So many of the diverse individuals won me over, and had me feeling like I also had something at stake in the action (so much action!  Stealth, battles, diplomacy, thievery, growing pains, and a touch of love).

Overall, I loved this book, these characters, and this world.  I absolutely want more of each of them, and would recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of YA fiction that includes action, adventure, warring factions, family drama, coming of age, a little romance, and a bit of dystopia.