These Shallow Graves tells the tale of Jo Montfort, a New York socialite attending Miss Sparkwell’s School for Young Ladies. She is the editor of the school newspaper, the Jonquil, which typically covers riveting, groundbreaking topics such as the proper way to brew tea and advice on how to fade freckles. Jo is determined to…
It seems to be an unwritten rule of the current young adult market that you can’t be the star of one of these books and have good parents. This is especially true if you are in a futuristic novel. Danica Grayson of Glitter has two truly awful progenitors whom she wisely plans to escape before…
The premise of Glitter – a story set in a time with residents of the Palace of Versailles dressing and acting as if it’s the 18th Century – intrigued me. The author’s website describes the book as “Marie Antoinette meets Breaking Bad” and I suppose that’s an apt description, as our heroine – and I…
I picked Shutter for review primarily because of my recent experience with Holding Smoke by Elle Cosimano. I was deeply impressed by that story of a young juvenile offender and the girl who helped him solve the mystery behind his incarceration and I was hoping this story would be more of the same. But while…
One of the hardest things about reviewing is grading a book with strong writing that for some reason leaves you cold. Bright Smoke, Cold Fire is such a book. Normally, I love books that put a different spin on classical literature, and stories featuring lovers from rival clans is one of my favorite tropes. But…
After I DIK’d My Life Next Door by this author, I immediately went after her other books. Happily, What I Thought Was True possesses much of what I enjoyed reading that book, including a strong setting, likeable protagonists, and an intense story without teen drama. In some ways, like its respectful portrayal of a sexually…
One of the amazing things about the novel Gone with the Wind is that the book is intensely popular in spite of the fact that many dislike heroine Scarlet O’Hara. I would agree that Scarlet is hard to like, at times hard to understand and never comfortable to be around; yet she is an enduring…
Did you read the first book in the Royals trilogy, Paper Princess? I have good news for you: Broken Prince is just as addictive and compelling and its ending is just as frustrating! Love, blackmail, betrayals – Broken Prince has all those and more. Happy ever afters? Not so much. When the book concludes, you’ll…
This is the second in the author’s Custard Protocol series, following up on last year’s Prudence. This time, in addition to the usual silliness I adore, we also get some bittersweet moments as Prudence Alessandra Maccon Akeldama – or Rue to her friends – faces serious issues with her birth parents. If you haven’t read…
Most readers probably recognize Sherry Thomas as an author of superb historicals. The Burning Sky, set in an alternate world that intersects somewhat with 1880s England, marks her first foray into YA. I enjoyed the characters and the world created for them, and this book would definitely go on my DIK shelf. Our heroine, Iolanthe…