Book Review: Queen of Shadows

Title of Book
Author
Maas, Sarah
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

Queen of Shadows is the fifth book in the Throne of Glass series. It begins soon after Aelin Galathynius, the rightful Queen of Terrasen returns to Rifthold planning to kill the King of Adarlan. To do this and reclaim her birthright Aelin must go up against of an evil that is not of her world. As the plot thickens, there are more complications than Aelin can count.
Meanwhile, one of Aelin's closest friends must battle his own enemy; an enemy that lives inside him and controls him. This book is a great addition to the series, carrying on its legacy of great characters and fast-moving plot.
Queen of Shadows keeps many of the incredible characters from the previous books, and introduces many new ones. I thought that the internal struggles of these characters made this book even better. (If this was a movie, I would probably rate it PG-13 for some violence and a little romance.)
Reviewer Grade: 9

Reviewer's Name
Hailey K.

Book Review: The Crown of Midnight

Title of Book
Author
Maas, Sarah
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

The second book in the Throne of Glass series, The Crown of Midnight is a fantastic addition to the series. This book continues a few months after the Throne of Glass leaves off. Celaena Sardothien has been working for the King for a few months without any word from Elena. Although her job requires the King's trust, Celaena is far from loyal. She is always secretly plotting, planning. As a romance that Celaena never imagined starts to blossom, she realizes that there is more going on in Adarland than meets the eyes. Because Celaena is trying to not only protect those she loves, but also hide her own deadly secret, it is hard for her to do anything for the suffering people around her. This book is a great addition to the series, introducing the true conflict and clarifying many things from the last book. Celaena is still a great character, funny, proud, and clever, and truly unpredictable. I loved this book, and would recommend it to anyone that enjoyed the first installment in the series. The Crown of Midnight has a perfect balance of romance, action, and political intrigue. Full of new insights to Celaena's character, this book will pull you in and keep you reading long into the night. I would like to note that this is definitely a young adult book, and has some content that maybe not everyone is comfortable with. That being said this book is a great read and I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys reading fantasy.

Reviewer Grade: 9

Reviewer's Name
Hailey K.
Awards

Book Review: Hold Me Like a Breath

Title of Book
Author
Schmidt, Tiffany
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

Hold Me Like a Breath by Tiffany Schmidt tells the story of Penelope who is untouchable because her body destroys her platelets which causes her to bruise easily. Penelope's Family is in the black market for organ transplant, this makes Penelope's life more dangerous than it already is. All Penelope ever wanted was to be treated like everyone else, but when a brutal act thrusts her into New York alone and scared she finds there are bigger threats than bruises. This book tugged on my emotions, and made me feel what loss is like. I picked this book because a good friend of mine recommended it to me and I would recommend this book to people who like suspense and romance.
Reviewer Grade: 8

Reviewer's Name
Gabrielle F.

Book Review: The Last True Love Story

Title of Book
Author
Kiely, Brendan
Rating
3 stars = Pretty Good
Review

A Teen Book. Seventeen-year-old Hendrix is left to care for his Gpa, who is losing his memory due to Alzheimer's, in a senior facility. All his grandfather wants is to go home to Ithaca, New York, to remember his deceased wife, before he forgets her completely. Corrina, also seventeen, was adopted from Guatemala. She's a musician, feeling crowded and suffocated by circumstances in LA. One night, they decide combine forces, steal a car and Gpa and head for New York. The adventure is one of friendship, but mainly one of learning to love. Language and mature situations.

Reviewer's Name
Vickie Sherwood

Book Review: The Iron King

Title of Book
Author
Kagawa, Julie
Rating
5 stars = Bohemian Rhapsody Awesome!
Review

Meghan Chase has never been normal. She lives on a pig farm. Her father disappeared when she was just six. She is forgotten by everyone, even her stepfather. But as she nears her sixteenth birthday, extremely strange things begin to happen to her. First, she sees a mysterious stranger watching her, and her best friend, Robin, becomes strangely protective. Then, her half brother, Ethan tells her about the monsters that are always watching him.
Megan is soon drawn into a world that she never could've imagined. A world of magic, faeries that would kill you in an instant, and unbreakable pacts: The Nevernever. It is there that she realizes that her whole life has been a lie.
This book is a fantastic novel with tons of action, humor, and romance. The characters are well developed, and fun to read about. Many of the characters are from other stories such as Puck, King Oberon, the Big Bad Wolf, ext. I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who likes books with fantasy, humor, and supernatural themes. It is the first book of an originally four book series (the author has added additional books with different characters as the focus of the story). There is, I believe, some slightly questionable language and topics, not to mention romance, so if that bothers you this might not be the book for you. Overall, this book is amazing, and very character driven, and I recommend it to lovers of The Mortal Instruments, and Julia Kagawa's other books.
Review Grade: 9

Reviewer's Name
Hailey K.

Book Review: P.S. I Like You

Title of Book
Author
West, Kasie
Rating
3 stars = Pretty Good
Review

Lily is a hopeful songwriter who is struggling in chemistry. After her teacher bans her from having her notebook in class, she writes on the desk instead. This sparks an ongoing conversation through notes with an unknown pen pal. As the letters continue, more and more personal information is shared, and more feelings surface inspiring Lily to write lyrics. With a typical cast of characters – the best friend, the mean girls and boys, the crush(es) – P.S. I Like You isn’t anything too different from many of the other cute, light romances, but it’s still a quick, enjoyable read.

Reviewer's Name
Becca
Genres

Book Review: The Selection

Title of Book
Author
Cass, Kiera
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

America Singer has been forced to enter in a competition to win Prince Maxon's heart. There's only one problem: she's in love with someone else. Marked by a brutal social class system, America either has the option to marry within her class or above it. She cannot marry her boyfriend Aspen Ledger, who is a class below her. So, she must enter "The Selection" to compete with a number of other girls for Prince Maxon's hand. Although the characters and plot were complex, I felt this book was lacking something - perhaps the conflict wasn't quite strong enough? I still recommend it for its excellent world-building and characters. (I'd rate this PG-13 for minor language and some romance)
Reviewer Grade: 9

Reviewer's Name
Gillian P.

Book Review: Marked

Title of Book
Author
Cast, P.C.
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

Marked by P.C and Kristin Cast is genius. The story follows a young girl named Zoe whose life is turned around. After dumping her alcoholic boyfriend and living with her loser step dad, Zoe is turned into a vampire who must attend The House of Night, a school for students like her. She soon finds that being a vampire isn’t so bad. This story is a 4/5, and I recommend it to anyone willing to read, however it does include some mature things so if you are not able to handle swearing, or any other such things the book is not for you.
Reviewer Grade: 7

Reviewer's Name
Emily T.

Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars

Title of Book
Author
Green, John
Rating
5 stars = Bohemian Rhapsody Awesome!
Review

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is a perfect 5/5. 16 year old Hazel Grace wants to be normal when she meets Augustus Waters, someone who is anything but normal. The book drew me in with its beautiful love story. Not only that but it also with its realistic views on the world. The author is surprisingly good at getting into a teenage girl’s young mind. Everyone should read this book, you will never get bored when reading it.
Reviewer Grade: 7

Reviewer's Name
Emily T.

Book Review: Shiver

Title of Book
Author
Stiefvater, Maggie
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater is about a girl named Grace and a boy that is half human, half wolf named Sam. This story is about their adventure together, as they try to find a way to make Sam a full human. I would rate this book a 4 because I loved how surprising the ending was, but it was a little slow in the middle of the book. I picked this book because my language arts teacher recommended it to me. I would recommend this book to people who like the book Twilight.
Reviewer Grade: 8

Reviewer's Name
Gabrielle F.
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