Science Fiction

Within a corrupted society where children battle to the death in the annual Hunger Games for entertainment, lives a bold young woman named Katniss Everdeen. Katinis loves her little sister more than life itself. So when her sister PrimRose Everdeen is drawn for the Hunger Games, Katniss does the unheard of and volunteers and tribute in place of her sister. Katniss volunteered without hesitation so when she is sent to the capital along with the other selected person for her district Peeta Mellark she is prepared to fight. She knows that she is going to be sent right into the games and that she has to win it and come out alive to look after her sister. Along the way with the help of her bow and arrow she becomes one of the most unlikely candidates to perform so well in the games, her underdog ness strikes the outside world in hope and in rebellion. This book is by far one of the best that I have ever read, it is so riveting and engaging and has not only action
but romance. I have read every book in the series and I loved every page of it. I would recommend this book to anyone. It is by far one of my top ten favorite books.

Within the dystopian of Wormwood lives Vega Jane, a strong and very independent woman. When Vega was young, she saw her mother leave the village. No one had ever left Wormwood. Why would anyone leave there wasn’t anything outside of the town? However, Vega knew that the leaders of Wormwood were lying to her. The elders/leaders told her that her mother was dead and that no one survives leaving Wormwood. Vega knew she had to figure out the truth, she was at the end of her wits. She was tired of the constant scrutiny she was under for being a girl, she didn’t have a voice and she wasn’t respected by the men in Wormwood. Vega was really set into action when her friend Quentin Hermes goes missing but leaves clues behind to find her. Determined to uncover the truth to her towns dark past, she follows the clues left behind leading her closer to the truth. This book, while it was not my favorite, had a cool plot and was easy to follow.

The Fifth Wave by Ricky Yancey is an awesome and thrilling book, that dives into a world in which aliens exist. The human race at the brink of extinction must learn to fight and hide in order to survive the invasion. A young teenager Cassie, has lost her mother and father and now must find a safe place to live and return to her younger brother. But when Cassie finds herself in the midst of a battle with a “silencer”, what they call the aliens, she fears she might not make it. Then a strange and mysterious man from a nearby farm saves Chloe after she was shot by the “silencer” and nurses her back to health. In order to find a way to protect her younger brother and stop the silencer’s invasion Cassie must trust this suspicious farm boy, who looks almost identical to the silencer that shot her. This book has not only has a lot of action and intrigue but has a sweet turn of events within it. It kept me glued to each page and I could not put it down. I would definitely recommend this book, it's one of my favorites!

It’s odd for me to read the third book in a series and be confronted with
problems that I usually see by the fourth book. So far, I’ve been on board
with the whole Shadow series as it focuses on an interesting character in the
form of Bean. For two books, I’ve read about Bean’s survival, made all
the more thrilling by the antagonist Achilles. Of course, during Ender’s
Shadow and Shadow of the Hegemon , the series picked up plenty of side
stories and sub-plots. This is what ruined Shadow Puppets for me: the focus
wasn’t on Bean and Achilles, but rather on advancing the story of all these
sub-plots.

Now, don’t get me wrong, Shadow Puppets has a lot of interesting events.
It’s just that it was so entertaining to read about Achilles in the
previous books, and he’s relegated to a bookending motif for this book. We
don’t get to see him directly interact with others, instead of having the
main characters always wondering how he’ll react to their attempts to trap
him. This kind of “telling” instead of “showing” really rubbed me the
wrong way and made the climax of this story (let alone the first three books)
feel quite anticlimactic.

I do appreciate some of what Card does with these well-rounded characters,
and I want to see what happens next with a world in such turmoil and
turnover. And yet, with how unfocused this book was, I don’t know if I want
to get my hopes up for the next books in this series. After all, the central
conflict of the previous two books is now behind Bean, which makes me wonder
what could replace such a heart-pounding game of cat-and-mouse. There are
plot threads to follow into the next book, but I could probably predict what
happens just based on the foreshadowing contained in this book.

An unfocused and slightly anticlimactic conclusion to one of the best
antagonists, I give Shadow Puppets 3.0 stars out of 5.

I’ll admit that reading The Fifth Season had a bit of a learning curve for
the Broken Earth series. Not only did I have to learn about the vastly
powerful magic system based on rocks (and other rock forms), but I had to get
used to a second-person point of view (POV). Jumping between timelines with
similar characters who had different names was a bit confusing, but I was
able to figure it out by the end. Fast forward to the sequel, The Obelisk
Gate, and most of my qualms with the first book were smoothed over or solved
outright.

One of the things I enjoyed about The Obelisk Gate was the increase in the
scale of the magic system. Including the moon in these calculations makes
perfect sense considering the nature of the orogeny magic. I also appreciated
how the story seemed to focus on a single POV, which made for a more intimate
experience as we followed only one or two individuals instead of four. Now
that I was used to the second-person writing style and the character it
described, it didn’t bother me as much as when I read The Fifth Season.

While The Fifth Season set up the world-building for this trilogy, The
Obelisk Gate’s only weakness is that it finally set up the climactic plot
for the third book. Sure, there was plenty of character development and
intriguing twists in the plot in The Obelisk Gate, but they all seemed to be
hinting at something much more significant that wouldn’t take place in this
book. I do appreciate an excellent three-act structure, so this slight
weakness can be seen as merely an artifact of the second book in a trilogy.
In fact, because it was more focused, I liked this book more than its
predecessor. After all, it’s a strong concept with solid execution.

A focusing and foreshadowing of the Broken Earth series, I give The Obelisk
Gate 4.5 stars out of 5.

Jerry Aubin finishes the Ship Series in spectacular fashion. In Resurgence, Aubin ties up the series beautifully and answers all of the questions that have kept readers fascinated from the very beginning. Zax must finally face what he started and defeat the true enemy of the ship, Alpha. Resurgence will keep you on your toes with its whirlwind plot that will captivate you from the start. Like all of its predecessors, Resurgence does not disappoint with its plot twists and adventures. I highly recommend this book for any middle or high school aged reader.

"The Towering Sky" by Katherine McGee tells the story of five teenagers in 2119. Living in a futuristic Manhattan tower in which your floor displays your power, a mystery/romance story is bred. This book was perfectly okay. The writing wasn't half bad, and the characters ,well half-baked, were not unrealistic or arrogant. However, as reading this book, the third and final of a series, without reading the first two, was extremely confusing. At first I had not realized that this book was part of a trilogy, and thought the writing was purposefully confusing. Though I don't know if this book would make more sense after reading the first two, the pacing was quite fast, though the plot moved slow, which created a strange vibe while reading. In general, I would not recommend this book. However, if you have read the first two and liked them, go ahead and give it a go.

Fahrenheit 451 follows the story of a fireman, Guy Montag, who lives in a dystopian society. His job as a fireman is to locate all books around the city and burn them. Books are banned from any individual and is considered to be an inferior type of entertainment in comparison television, which are more supported by the public. As Montag continues to burn more books throughout his job over time, he deals with a variety of external factors that changes his brainwashed and disillusioned perspective to considering books and their significance to society. Being a firemen in this dystopian society, Montag must deal with a plethora of barriers that are blocking his way before he can truly understand the importance of books and to keep them.

Fahrenheit 451 is an intriguing book that takes a different approach in a dystopian society. Instead of implementing a militaristic and governmental style, Bradbury uses firemen which encapsulates a unique and captivating plot line. Fahrenheit 451 demonstrates a story that everyone can enjoy, especially for those who enjoy reading dystopian novels. Bradbury effectively relates character development of Montag to the series of events that occurs. This coherent relationship that virtually happens side-by-side further produces a sense of immersion for the reader.

Personally, I enjoyed Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 novel. It is considered to be one of his best, and most iconic books that he has written to date. I highly recommend any average reader to consider reading Fahrenheit 451. The book is not too long, but it will still produce an immense amount of quality and satisfaction in the end.

The Ship Series continues to be phenomenal in Rendezvous. Rendezvous not only continues the thrilling adventures of Zax after twelve years after being Culled, but also continues to develop the story of Adan and his creation of his massive spaceship to save humanity. Aubin adds a whole new level to the depth of the Ship Series with his exploration of the Ship's history while still staying true to the original story. Full of plot twists, Rendezvous will leave you fascinated and reaching for the next book in the series. I highly recommend this book for any middle or high school aged reader.

Maximum Ride is probably one of the most interesting and exciting books I have ever read. The novel starts with a group of children living in a house on their own, the one who watches out for the younger children is sixteen year old, Maximum Ride (Max). The children are not like other normal kids though; they can all fly. When the kids were younger they were all kidnapped by scientists and were experimented on. While they were experimented on they were given genetically attached wings. The children all escaped with the strength they all had together but now the scientists want them back. They can fly and they are stronger than most humans and they each have
individual powers unique to only them and they are not easy to find. The scientist also created what Max and the other children call “Erasers”, which are genetically mutated humans half wolf, half human with the sole purpose of finding the missing flying children. The novel follows Max and the children on their journey to freedom. I honestly think that there is something for everyone to enjoy in this book: romance, science fiction, action and adventure. I love this book and would highly recommend reading it.