Tenth Grade Bleeds: Chronicles of Vladimir Tod
I'm a fan of this series and would recommend it to anyone looking for a good vampire story (minus the romance). Though there is some romance, it definitely isn't the main focus of the story. If you haven't read the Vladimir Tod series before, start with the first book, Eighth Grade Bites.
In this 3rd book of the series, Vladimir must say good bye to his uncle Otis who has been in town protecting him. Now on his own, Vlad is being stalked by two vampires and a nosy schoolmate. One vampire wants him dead and the other wants Vlad's father's journal. Vlad is also struggling with his growing need for human blood...from the source, and growing apart from his best friend Henry. Will Vlad become a killer vampire or will he be killed by his vampires stalkers? Lots of conflict and action in this one!
Oh My Gods by Tera Lynn Childs
Phoebe has her future all planned out for her, attend her senior year of high school in California with her best friends and then graduate and go to USC together. She even has a lock on a cross country scholarship there. Unfortunately, her mother returns from a trip to Greece engaged with plans to move her and Phoebe there. Devastated, Phoebe reluctantly leaves Cali behind and hopes to do well in her studies and running at her new Greek school. But once she gets there she finds out that the school is full of teens who are descendents of Greek gods and goddesses. And they have special powers. They even look down on her for not being a descendent. Without special abilities will Phoebe be able to make friends and keep her goals in academics and running? Read the book to find out, I enjoyed it immensely and especially recommend it to track or cross country runners. There's even a sequel called Goddess Boot Camp.
Gorgeous by Rachel Vail
You don't have to have read the first book (Lucky) in this Avery sister trilogy to follow along with Gorgeous. Each book can be read alone, as each tells one of the sisters' stories. This one follows Allison who feels like the ugly unlucky one in her family. Things start to change for her when she trades her cell phone to the devil in exchange for being gorgeous. Suddenly, old friends are jealous and boys start to notice her. However, things get out of hand when devil starts taking over her phone and she pays the price for being gorgeous.
Salem Witch Tryouts by Kelly McClymer
This is a fun light read that will appeal to girls. It follows Prudence Stewart and her family as they move from Beverly Hills to Salem, Massachusetts. They move because Prudence, her mother, and brother are all witches. While they lived in Beverly Hills, they did not practice magic and pretty much lived normal lives. When Pru's brother began to manifest his magic powers, their mother decided it was time for the kids to go to witch school in Salem. So off they went. While Prudence used to be one of the top students and cheerleaders at her old school, she suddenly finds herself struggling to learn magic and barely making the cheer squad in Salem. She meets a few people who help her along the way and also a couple who get her in trouble. This is the first book in a trilogy, so there were a lot of loose ends yet when the book ended, but it was a fast funny read and I recommend it to girls 12+.
Demon Chick by Marilyn Kaye
Got the advance reader copy of this book last week and read it very quickly. It's an interesting fast paced story about a girl whose soul was sold to the devil by her mother. Her soul now belongs to a demon guy from hell. He's a pretty average guy and hell doesn't end up being too bad other than being terribly boring. Luckily he helps her navigate her way through hell and even sends her back to earth to investigate her mother's other evil plots. Very intriguing and original. This book comes out in the fall, so look for it then!
Suzi Clue: The Mystery of the Prom Queen Curse by Michelle Kehm
Though the cover makes the book look like it's for kids, Suzi Clue is actually an awesome mystery book for teens. It follows Suzi, a freshman girl with a unique fashion sense and pink stripes in her hair. Suzi's locker is next to popular GiGi's. GiGi is the lead candidate for prom queen until someone locks her in the gym basement and plants spiders in the pom pom bag. GiGi emerges with spider bites on her legs and a threat written on her locker. Soon the other candidates for queen find themselves in similar predicaments and the school is abuzz with word of a prom queen curse. Suzi loves a good mystery, so of course she decides to solve it and save prom.
I really loved this mystery because Suzi was a very realistic character who is witty and smart. As she gathered the clues, I tried to solve the mystery, but luckily there were enough twists and turns that I didn't find out until the very end when Suzi finally did. Recommended for ages 13+
Dead Connection by Charlie Price
Murray can talk to the dead. All of his friends are dead. He hangs out in cemeteries and keeps them company. The cemetery caretaker’s daughter Pearl sees him sometimes and tries to befriend him even though he looks crazy. A local teen has gone missing and the cops are having trouble finding out what happened. Murray starts hearing her talk to him in the cemetery. But it doesn’t make sense, because no one know where she is or if she is still alive. Together, him and Pearl try to solve the mystery of the missing girl. A great mystery book with a twist!
Chibi VampireChibi Vampire is a manga series about a girl vampire. Except there's a twist...instead of feeding off people's blood, she gives blood to people. And this blood makes them feel refreshed and full of life. Her mother shuns her because of her difference, but her siblings try to teach her how to use her special talent for good. In the first volume, she meets a new student who she has a strong urge to bite, so she tries to avoid him at all costs. Things get difficult when he gets a job at the same restaurant where she works. This is a fun manga that has about 13 volumes out so far. This is great for people just getting into graphic novels.
Breathers: a zombie's lament by SG Browne
is a bit of a horror story, but mostly a romantic comedy. It's about Andy, a middle aged zombie who reanimated after a grisly car accident. His wife died and his daughter was sent to live with her aunt. He wandered back home and now lives in his parent's wine cellar.
Being a zombie is a bit shameful for all involved. Andy can't speak because of his accident so he limps around town with a wipeboard over his neck. More often than not, he comes home covered in food and garbage people have thrown at him.
His parents are ashamed of him and hide him away when friends come to visit. Andy really only leaves the house to go to his support group meetings where you meet an interesting cast of characters, some who meet their untimely demise when breathers (aka living people) beat them and pull off their limbs. Rita, a suicide victim with stitches over her neck and wrists, soon becomes Andy's love interest though he struggles with his feelings because he still misses his wife.
Ultimately, this a funny and touching story about what it's like to be an outsider. This is a good read for 16+
Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman
Blake is at an amusement park with his friends. He is terrified of roller coasters, but agrees to go on one anyway. When he gets off the ride shaking, a girl comes up, asks him if he likes fast rides, and hands him an invitation. It gives an address and time for later that night. Well Blake decides not to go, but then he finds out that his brother took the invitation and ran off to this mysterious place, now he is laying lifeless in their living room. When Blake gets to the place his brother went, he has to rescue his brother’s soul by riding on 7 horrifying roller coasters that are based on his worst fears. This is fun fast read for fans of thrillers 12+
The Outsiders by SE Hinton
This is a classic book that was originally published in 1967 and was written by a 15 yr old girl named Susan (SE). It’s about two different groups of high schoolers who seem to always be at each others’ throats, the Soc’s and the Greasers. The book follow PonyBoy, a 14 yr old greaser whose parents have died. One night while out wandering around town, he runs into a group of soc's. PonyBoy is threatened for hanging out with a soc’s girlfriend. His friend Johnny panics and stabs and kills the guy. PonyBoy and Johnny go into hiding in an abandoned church where they lay low reading books and poetry. Soon they find out that there is more trouble brewing because of their fight. There's a lot of tragedy and violence that will hold your attention and keep you turning pages long after bedtime. Still one of the most popular YA books checked out today.
Brutal by Michael Harmon
a cute story about Poe, who is sent to live with her absentee father after her mother deserts her to provide aid in South America. The story follows Poe as she tries to get to know her dad and figure out why he left their family in the first place. Also, at her new school, Poe tries to stir things up by pointing out all the unfairness to school administrators. This causes some trouble as her dad is the school counselor. The main story revolves around Poe trying to protect her sort of friend Velveeta after he becomes the target of some vicious bullies.
The story was interesting, but I would have liked a little more character development with Velveeta and Theo. It was a fast read and will appeal to boys and girls age 13+
Heck: Where the bad kids go by Dale Basye
Milton is at the mall with his klepto sister Marlo, when she starts being chased by mall security. She was stealing again and secretly snuck some jewelry into Milton’s bag. When they are being chased, they run into the food court where there is a giant marshmallow statue of a polar bear. The school bully puts a stick of dynamite in it and it explodes. Suddenly, Milton and Marlo find themselves in Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go.
In Heck, they have to attend a school. The school is lead by a giant ugly lizard like woman who explains that after they attend school, the kids will be send to one of the rings of hell in which they fit best. Milton isn’t quite sure why he ended up in Heck except for his sister making him a thief, he had never done anything bad in his life. Well they navigate through Heck being forced to wear ugly clothes, eat awful foods, listen to terrible music, and take classes taught by Richard Nixon and Lizzy Borden. Milton and Marlo decide to plan their escape which includes finding their way through the sewage system of heck and somehow returning to earth.
This is one of my favorite books of the past year and I loved the authors creativity in creating the world called Heck. If you have a good sense of humor and imagination, check out this one.
The Juvie Three by Gordon Korman
"The Juvie three" are Gecko, Terence, and Arjay. They are all juvenile delinquents living in a halfway house in New York City. The house is ran by a reformed criminal named Healy. One day, while trying to break up a fight between the boys, Healy is knocked unconscious and awakens with amnesia. The three boys return to the halfway house and decide they are going to stay on the path Healy put them on, even if he isn't around to help them out. However, life starts to get in the way and with no one to check up on them, the boys find themselves being pulled into their old lives of trouble again.
This a great book for ages 13+. the characters seem very real and their life stories and adventures will keep you hooked.
Highway to Hell by Rosemary Clement-Moore
I am a big fan of this series because it will appeal to a wide variety of teens. Maggie Quinn has psychic abilities, but she is still just learning how to use them. She often encounters demons and other supernatural beings and she tries to figure out how to banish them from earth. In the previous books the demons showed up at the prom and in a sorority house. This time they show up in a small ranch town in Texas in the form of demon chupacabras. Now it's up to Maggie and her best friend Lisa-(who does wiccan-like spells) to help this town. There is a lot of action and many encounters with the demons. Also, it's a mystery in which the reader learns a lot about folk lore and the supernatural while Maggie tries to figure out what the demon is, why it's there, and how to fight it. Another great entry into this fabulous series