Best Teen & Young Adult Fantasy Romance
Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is selected out of hundreds of girls to take up residence in the tree-top harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal prince. - Books For Tomorrow ★★★★★. _________________________________________. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series. It completes in Book 7: A Break of Day, and the characters embark on entirely new adventures from Book 8: A Shade of Novak. The more you read the more you fall hopelessly in love with the story and every single character - even the evil ones." "Bella Forrest whisks you away to the Shade, which is constantly transforming as the series progresses. "By the time I finished the book, I was hooked and I knew this was a series I wanted to read. There is a lot of twists, internal conflict, drama intertwined with an underlying love story of survival." Great story line, interesting and complex characters , and a fun take on vampires! "This book was everything I wanted Twilight to be: a suspenseful vampire romance with a strong heroine and a handsome male supporting lead ." " Bella Forrest transports you into a story with many defining moments and an unlikely set of heroes. In a narrative world overrun with supernatural creatures full of angst, A Shade of Vampire puts a new spin on a crowded genre." "...a sexy vampire twist, an unforgettable romance that sizzles from start to finish. - YA Book Season "I can't even remember the last vampire romance I read that I loved as much as this one." The plot is intriguing, the characters are great, and the ending will leave you left begging for more!" "Watching the relationship between Sofia and Derek blossom was fascinating ... A Shade of Vampire has set some high expectations for me."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"For some reason this story ended much to quickly for me."
"I don't like boy meets girl and they live happy ever after."
"Love love loved it."
"This really wasn't my cup of tea."
"I'm reading the second one now, so it wasn't too bad 😑. I'm a big nerd when it comes to reading and read just about anything I can ey my hands in, but I especially love teen books so I'll keep reading these until they really suck or until the series ends."
"Eighteen year old Sophia is kidnapped from a beach in Cancun and her long time best friend Ben when he goes looking for her later the same evening; only to have their lives changed forever."
"I love this book and can't wait to read the second ( twice as long, yayy!! )."
"Sofia is just as boring, bland and two-dimensional as Bella Swan, and Derek is a Cullen clone. A few girls are taken with Sofia to be part of Derek's harem, and Sofia shows some concern for them, but they are just there to make Sofia look caring in Derek's eyes and serve no other purpose to the story. While standing before Derek, all scared, Sofia takes one of the other girls hands to comfort her and that for some unknown reason is some great symbol of Sofia's compassion and humanity. There is even an almost exact scene from twilight where Edward plays the piano for Bella in this book where Derek plays the piano for Sofia because apparently an interest in classical music is supposed to make him seem cultured and noble. Sofia and Derek are bland characters with no personality traits besides their one defining trait. Derek is brooding and hates being a vampire and wants to hang on to his humanity, and Sofia is the symbol of that humanity. We're supposed to hate Derek's brother because he objectifies Sofia and leers at her and makes it known he wants to do naughty things to her then suck her dry—yet Derek goes off and feeds on people and Sofia doesn't bat an eye, in fact she COMFORTS him after he gets upset about it the first time (doesn't stop him from doing it again). Sofia's tale, like Bella's, starts with showing us that Sofia is a special snowflake with a "debilitating weakness" that is masked as a strength because she survives despite it. We're led around by the hand and told Sofia is this, Derek is this, and because of that they are some Romeo + Juliet couple, when in truth they have zero depth, zero personality, and the story is bland, boring, predictable and simply awful."
Combining Richard Howard's translation with restored original art, this definitive English-language edition of The Little Prince will capture the hearts of readers of all ages. It's a wonderfully inventive sequence, which evokes not only the great fairy tales but also such monuments of postmodern whimsy as Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities . The author pokes similar fun at a businessman, a geographer, and a lamplighter, all of whom signify some futile aspect of adult existence. Yet his tale is ultimately a tender one--a heartfelt exposition of sadness and solitude, which never turns into Peter Pan -style treacle. Such delicacy of tone can present real headaches for a translator, and in her 1943 translation , Katherine Woods sometimes wandered off the mark, giving the text a slightly wooden or didactic accent. The result is a new and improved version of an indestructible classic, which also restores the original artwork to full color.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"So let's try to counter this right off the bat and move my ratings to the top of the page: The ratings: Le Petit Prince: 5 stars. English translations to date: Wakeman/Foreman: 4.5 stars. Woods: 4.25 stars. Howard: 1 star. Schwarz: 1 star. Testot-Ferry: 1 star. In 2000, the Richard Howard translation of The Little Prince was released to supercede the original of Katherine Woods from 1943. When a publisher comes to one to translate such a classic how does one ever turn them down and say the last translation was good enough! I grew up on Katherine Woods' translation and prefer it over the Howard, but I must admit, when I look at my French copy, the Woods too has some elisions in translation. During the farewell from the fox, she translates: "It is the time you have wasted for your rose that makes your rose so important." Howard translates: "It's the time you spent on your rose that makes your rose so important." Literally this translates far more meaningfully and philosophically than either of the Woods or the Howard as "It is the time which you have lost for your rose which makes your rose so important." I am not sure why both of them would dilute the original like they have, for it has surely been diluted from what St. Exupery wrote and intended, but the Woods translation is very close to St. Exupery's text and meaning and brings a layer to think about beyond merely "spent" time. Then these translators do other things. I recently found another translation of which I was unaware, from Alan Wakeman, 1995 (hardcover), illustrated from St. Exupery by Michael Foreman. Wakeman (he says in the preface), started translating in 1979, not under contract, but simply because he was not satisfied with the Katherine Woods' translation. Wakeman's translation is pretty accurate. He translates "blé", the colour of the little prince's hair, as "corn." Wakeman seems to have never spent any time by a corn field to know that, unlike the fox who lives there, so Wakeman does not get that his quirky translation allusion is a stretch in reminding one of the little prince's hair colour. Foreman's illustrations are what is special about this Wakeman translation. But where Foreman has really excelled is in introducing 8 beautiful full page or double page paintings of the little prince and the pilot: comforting the little prince when he was sad, walking with the little prince in his arms when exhausted to find water, sharing his drawings with the little prince, running with his revolver to kill the snake if he could... whole new enhancements to the story, bringing more forward the relationship that it was, not just story-telling about the little prince. The Woods translation is still head and shoulders above the new ones, except for the Wakeman. The Foreman illustrations with the Wakeman translation I think makes it even better. The Woods translation hardcover is now a collectors item and can often be very expensive and harder to find in the U.S. The Howard translation, both hardcover and softcover (blue cover), both with color illustrations (and some black and white), is easily available at a quite reasonable price. I cannot vouch for the paperback version, publications of which often get cheap and sometimes are done with black and white illustrations only, like the Katherine Woods paperback and the Testot-Ferry translation (see below and see my review of Michael Foreman's Arthur High King Of Britain for more.). The ratings: Le Petit Prince: 5 stars. English translations to date: Wakeman/Foreman: 4.5 stars. Woods: 4.25 stars. Howard: 1 star. Schwarz: 1 star. Testot-Ferry: 1 star. P.S. The Testot-Ferry translation is awkward. There are better (more accurate) translations and more richness and layers of meaning in the Wakeman and the Woods translations, which are missing and awkward in the Testot-Ferry, and which such a classic piece of literature deserves. St. Exupery’s birth family appears to have approved of the Wakeman translation, but St. Exupery’s wife Consuelo (and now her family), I believe, own the copyright, and my guess is, have a pretty strict and exclusive agreement with Harcourt Brace in North America."
"In 2000, the Richard Howard translation of The Little Prince was released to supercede the original of Katherine Woods from 1943. Then Howard modernises Katherine Woods' rendition, "cry" with his "weep" during the departure from the fox. I am not sure why both of them would dilute the original like they have, for it has surely been diluted from what St. Exupery wrote and intended, but the Woods translation is very close to St. Exupery's text and meaning and brings a layer to think about beyond merely "spent" time. The colors have been filled in like old cellular film animation, and are just flat, losing St. Exupery's delicate drawing and watercolour washes. The drawing of the fox in his lair has completely lost all the grass that was so delicately drawn by St. Exupery. Here the baobab trees and the weeding of Asteroid B-612 are now set against the dark background of space, not the daylight of the originals. Their approach to translation, like Howard's is unforgivable, and is another reason this book too should absolutely just sit on the rubbish heap until someone re-does it properly. The book itself is charming: tiny, hardcover, with gilt page edges and a ribbon marker. I recently found another translation of which I was unaware, from Alan Wakeman, 1995 (hardcover), illustrated from St. Exupery by Michael Foreman. He worked in his favourite retreat by the sea, overlooking the Golfe de Giens, which turned out, from the beginning discovery in 1993 of St. Exupery's sunken plane, to overlook the crash site in the sea where St. Exupery was lost. Nice, and with a layer of fate the Schwarz's miss, but which Woods captures, albeit a bit more clumsily with "in danger of speedy disappearance." Technically correct, but an odd choice usually considered much more a secondary meaning to the more common one of "wheat." The tassels, while colour correct, are overwhelmed in a corn field, especially from a fox's point of view, by all the green and are not really seen either. The line work and watercolour is far more skilful than St. Exupery, but extraordinarily faithful, and retains that childlike naiveté. All drawings have been given color, which brings a satisfaction absent from some, even in the original publication, where for example, I have been sorely tempted to pull out my own paint box for the little prince watching the sunset. The Woods edition appears to be available economically as a paperback (white cover, usually pre-2000 publishing date), but with no color illustrations. The Howard translation, both hardcover and softcover (blue cover), both with color illustrations (and some black and white), is easily available at a quite reasonable price. The Schwarz translation is available in England and Canada easily, but hard to locate and has very poor notes on amazon.com. The Wakeman/Foreman collaboration (hardcover) can still be found used, in good shape, economical, for now, but also as a very expensive collectors item. You will learn more about life and language and different cultures in doing so than in many larger weightier, more adult tomes and our children will too from this timeless story with so many layers and such depth in its simplicity. I have also discovered there is enough of the Irene Testot-Ferry translation (Wordsworth) on the amazon "read inside" feature to render an opinion on it too. A recent comment elsewhere prompted this post script: If you have a Cuffe translation of The Little Prince it too is very rare and likely will never be re-printed. St. Exupery’s birth family appears to have approved of the Wakeman translation, but St. Exupery’s wife Consuelo (and now her family), I believe, own the copyright, and my guess is, have a pretty strict and exclusive agreement with Harcourt Brace in North America. Which means yes, the Katherine Woods version is still available in England where it is beyond HB’s taste and control, thankfully."
"I read The Little Prince for the first time about 20 years ago and it came back into my life a month ago."
"Extremely helpful to have the CD along with it; I love listening to the French version."
"It is impossible not to love this sweet classic, so saturated with heart and wisdom."
"The Little Prince is a classic that is always fresh."
"I will be reading this to my children as soon as they are able to sit through a chapter book."
In A Shade of Blood , Bella Forrest transports you deeper into a unique, enthralling and beautifully sensitive story. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series . "She draws you in and then keeps your attention by taking totally unexpected twists and turns in the story that all work together for dynamic reading !" " You can feel their pain, frustration, love, their struggles, and I think this is why I'm so captivated by Bella Forrest's books." "This whole world you've created just keeps capturing me and drawing me in for more, much like a vampire on the hunt for fresh, warm blood." "The Shade is dark and terrifying, yet beautiful and intriguing, a place that I just can't stop thinking about ."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I'm currently obsessed with this series and found out yesterday there's at least 56 books (a certain amount of books are for each story with a photo attached to show the number of books per story) and I'm on book 3 and I've ordered 4 and 5."
"Sofia's last words to Derek was "Please don't hurt them"...Sofia returns to The Shade now knowing how to get there because Dereks Twin sister gave Sofia some of her memories, which led her right back to Derek..Viv got caught and Derek and all of The Shade had a very touching Death Ceremony for her...jumping ahead of myself lol...Sofia walks in on Derek as he is tearing the throat out of one of her friends,and talking off his clothes to have his way with her..She is very angry and conflicted where he is concerned...I know Derek's brother Lucas is a bad ass but I feel for the guy, because he thinks he should be ruling The Shade and not his brother..Lucas has tasted Sofia's blood and tried to rape her...That being said he cannot get her out of his mind and has left The Shade in fear for his life, because he know's Derek will kill anyone who hurts Sofia...I cannot say enough about this series but I REALLY DO NEED THE REST OF THE SERIES LIKE THIS YEAR!!!!!!"
"2 character bombs were dropped in this book sure to make huge explosions in book 3."
"I also didnt like how things were between Sofia and Ben once they returned to their "normal" lives. Ben didnt deserve Sofia and reading his POV made me dislike him even more. He was selfish and bitter and I almost wish some of his parts could have been omitted but that wouldnt have made such a great story. Sofia was fiesty and didnt take crap from Derek even when he had his fangs out. It is not your typical "lovey dovey" vampire story, its so much more."
"I enjoyed this book from beginning to end!"
"Bella Forrest was very kind to provide me with a free copy of the book for an exchange of an honest review on Goodreads. I fell in love with the characters and I was soooooo disappointed when the book REALLLLY started getting super good--it ended."
Best Vampire Romances
In A Shade of Blood , Bella Forrest transports you deeper into a unique, enthralling and beautifully sensitive story. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series . "She draws you in and then keeps your attention by taking totally unexpected twists and turns in the story that all work together for dynamic reading !" " You can feel their pain, frustration, love, their struggles, and I think this is why I'm so captivated by Bella Forrest's books." "This whole world you've created just keeps capturing me and drawing me in for more, much like a vampire on the hunt for fresh, warm blood." "The Shade is dark and terrifying, yet beautiful and intriguing, a place that I just can't stop thinking about ."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Read the 1st one in one night, bought the 2nd one the second night and finished it by the end of the weekend too. All in all, I like this series alot and may just end up "loving" it by the time I read more!"
"Good read, has some surprises and a few twists."
"Sofia is faced by a choice, whether to choose love and life with Derek in his world or choose freedom in hers…. My heart broke for Derek when Sofia chose a life in the human world and left Derek. It was the only way for her to realize how much she really needs him to be happy. But I still wish she hadn’t gone – to a reader the separation of the main characters seems like such a waste of words – ALL you concentrate on is waiting for the couple to get back together…. Bella Forrest was able to make to wait interesting though. Who did he have to fight for to be a better person once the person he wanted to be better for was gone?"
"First her dad who abandoned her is head of the hunters to kill vamps and her mom is the maslens whatever she is."
"I liked that the first book was written from the point of view of multiple characters throughout so the reader could get a better grasp on what was going on in the story."
"I'm still interested in the series and will most likely read the rest because I did enjoy the story as a whole."
"I love the characters in this series."
"This one is a whole lot of whining between all characters, which can make it seem like you are reading about some immature children."
Best Teen & Young Adult Romance eBooks
Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is selected out of hundreds of girls to take up residence in the tree-top harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal prince. - Books For Tomorrow ★★★★★. _________________________________________. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series. It completes in Book 7: A Break of Day, and the characters embark on entirely new adventures from Book 8: A Shade of Novak. The more you read the more you fall hopelessly in love with the story and every single character - even the evil ones." "Bella Forrest whisks you away to the Shade, which is constantly transforming as the series progresses. "By the time I finished the book, I was hooked and I knew this was a series I wanted to read. There is a lot of twists, internal conflict, drama intertwined with an underlying love story of survival." Great story line, interesting and complex characters , and a fun take on vampires! "This book was everything I wanted Twilight to be: a suspenseful vampire romance with a strong heroine and a handsome male supporting lead ." " Bella Forrest transports you into a story with many defining moments and an unlikely set of heroes. In a narrative world overrun with supernatural creatures full of angst, A Shade of Vampire puts a new spin on a crowded genre." "...a sexy vampire twist, an unforgettable romance that sizzles from start to finish. - YA Book Season "I can't even remember the last vampire romance I read that I loved as much as this one." The plot is intriguing, the characters are great, and the ending will leave you left begging for more!" "Watching the relationship between Sofia and Derek blossom was fascinating ... A Shade of Vampire has set some high expectations for me."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I love this book."
"Wow this book was really good."
"I don't like boy meets girl and they live happy ever after."
"Love love loved it."
"This really wasn't my cup of tea."
"I'm reading the second one now, so it wasn't too bad 😑. I'm a big nerd when it comes to reading and read just about anything I can ey my hands in, but I especially love teen books so I'll keep reading these until they really suck or until the series ends."
"Eighteen year old Sophia is kidnapped from a beach in Cancun and her long time best friend Ben when he goes looking for her later the same evening; only to have their lives changed forever."
"Sofia is just as boring, bland and two-dimensional as Bella Swan, and Derek is a Cullen clone. A few girls are taken with Sofia to be part of Derek's harem, and Sofia shows some concern for them, but they are just there to make Sofia look caring in Derek's eyes and serve no other purpose to the story. While standing before Derek, all scared, Sofia takes one of the other girls hands to comfort her and that for some unknown reason is some great symbol of Sofia's compassion and humanity. There is even an almost exact scene from twilight where Edward plays the piano for Bella in this book where Derek plays the piano for Sofia because apparently an interest in classical music is supposed to make him seem cultured and noble. Sofia and Derek are bland characters with no personality traits besides their one defining trait. Derek is brooding and hates being a vampire and wants to hang on to his humanity, and Sofia is the symbol of that humanity. We're supposed to hate Derek's brother because he objectifies Sofia and leers at her and makes it known he wants to do naughty things to her then suck her dry—yet Derek goes off and feeds on people and Sofia doesn't bat an eye, in fact she COMFORTS him after he gets upset about it the first time (doesn't stop him from doing it again). Sofia's tale, like Bella's, starts with showing us that Sofia is a special snowflake with a "debilitating weakness" that is masked as a strength because she survives despite it. We're led around by the hand and told Sofia is this, Derek is this, and because of that they are some Romeo + Juliet couple, when in truth they have zero depth, zero personality, and the story is bland, boring, predictable and simply awful."
Best Teen & Young Adult Paranormal & Urban Fantasy Romance eBooks
Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is selected out of hundreds of girls to take up residence in the tree-top harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal prince. - Books For Tomorrow ★★★★★. _________________________________________. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series. It completes in Book 7: A Break of Day, and the characters embark on entirely new adventures from Book 8: A Shade of Novak. The more you read the more you fall hopelessly in love with the story and every single character - even the evil ones." "Bella Forrest whisks you away to the Shade, which is constantly transforming as the series progresses. "By the time I finished the book, I was hooked and I knew this was a series I wanted to read. There is a lot of twists, internal conflict, drama intertwined with an underlying love story of survival." Great story line, interesting and complex characters , and a fun take on vampires! "This book was everything I wanted Twilight to be: a suspenseful vampire romance with a strong heroine and a handsome male supporting lead ." " Bella Forrest transports you into a story with many defining moments and an unlikely set of heroes. In a narrative world overrun with supernatural creatures full of angst, A Shade of Vampire puts a new spin on a crowded genre." "...a sexy vampire twist, an unforgettable romance that sizzles from start to finish. - YA Book Season "I can't even remember the last vampire romance I read that I loved as much as this one." The plot is intriguing, the characters are great, and the ending will leave you left begging for more!" "Watching the relationship between Sofia and Derek blossom was fascinating ... A Shade of Vampire has set some high expectations for me."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I love this book."
"Wow this book was really good."
"I don't like boy meets girl and they live happy ever after."
"Love love loved it."
"This really wasn't my cup of tea."
"I'm reading the second one now, so it wasn't too bad 😑. I'm a big nerd when it comes to reading and read just about anything I can ey my hands in, but I especially love teen books so I'll keep reading these until they really suck or until the series ends."
"Eighteen year old Sophia is kidnapped from a beach in Cancun and her long time best friend Ben when he goes looking for her later the same evening; only to have their lives changed forever."
"Sofia is just as boring, bland and two-dimensional as Bella Swan, and Derek is a Cullen clone. A few girls are taken with Sofia to be part of Derek's harem, and Sofia shows some concern for them, but they are just there to make Sofia look caring in Derek's eyes and serve no other purpose to the story. While standing before Derek, all scared, Sofia takes one of the other girls hands to comfort her and that for some unknown reason is some great symbol of Sofia's compassion and humanity. There is even an almost exact scene from twilight where Edward plays the piano for Bella in this book where Derek plays the piano for Sofia because apparently an interest in classical music is supposed to make him seem cultured and noble. Sofia and Derek are bland characters with no personality traits besides their one defining trait. Derek is brooding and hates being a vampire and wants to hang on to his humanity, and Sofia is the symbol of that humanity. We're supposed to hate Derek's brother because he objectifies Sofia and leers at her and makes it known he wants to do naughty things to her then suck her dry—yet Derek goes off and feeds on people and Sofia doesn't bat an eye, in fact she COMFORTS him after he gets upset about it the first time (doesn't stop him from doing it again). Sofia's tale, like Bella's, starts with showing us that Sofia is a special snowflake with a "debilitating weakness" that is masked as a strength because she survives despite it. We're led around by the hand and told Sofia is this, Derek is this, and because of that they are some Romeo + Juliet couple, when in truth they have zero depth, zero personality, and the story is bland, boring, predictable and simply awful."
Best Paranormal Vampire Romance
In A Shade of Blood , Bella Forrest transports you deeper into a unique, enthralling and beautifully sensitive story. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series . "She draws you in and then keeps your attention by taking totally unexpected twists and turns in the story that all work together for dynamic reading !" " You can feel their pain, frustration, love, their struggles, and I think this is why I'm so captivated by Bella Forrest's books." "This whole world you've created just keeps capturing me and drawing me in for more, much like a vampire on the hunt for fresh, warm blood." "The Shade is dark and terrifying, yet beautiful and intriguing, a place that I just can't stop thinking about ."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Read the 1st one in one night, bought the 2nd one the second night and finished it by the end of the weekend too. All in all, I like this series alot and may just end up "loving" it by the time I read more!"
"Good read, has some surprises and a few twists."
"Sofia is faced by a choice, whether to choose love and life with Derek in his world or choose freedom in hers…. My heart broke for Derek when Sofia chose a life in the human world and left Derek. It was the only way for her to realize how much she really needs him to be happy. But I still wish she hadn’t gone – to a reader the separation of the main characters seems like such a waste of words – ALL you concentrate on is waiting for the couple to get back together…. Bella Forrest was able to make to wait interesting though. Who did he have to fight for to be a better person once the person he wanted to be better for was gone?"
"First her dad who abandoned her is head of the hunters to kill vamps and her mom is the maslens whatever she is."
"I liked that the first book was written from the point of view of multiple characters throughout so the reader could get a better grasp on what was going on in the story."
"I'm still interested in the series and will most likely read the rest because I did enjoy the story as a whole."
"I love the characters in this series."
"This one is a whole lot of whining between all characters, which can make it seem like you are reading about some immature children."
Best Teen & Young Adult Epic Fantasy
Perfect for fans of Lord of the Rings, the New York Times bestselling Inheritance Cycle about the dragon rider Eragon has sold over 35 million copies and is an international fantasy sensation. Gifted with only an ancient sword, a loyal dragon, and sage advice from an old storyteller, Eragon is soon swept into a dangerous tapestry of magic, glory, and power. A #1 New York Times Bestseller. A #1 Publishers Weekly Bestseller. A Wall Street Journal Bestseller. A Book Sense Bestseller.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I am really enjoying this story!"
"This is a great book with a great universe and a very interesting storyline."
"My son enjoyed this book."
"I'm not reading this with the expectation of LOTR level of writing."
"My son loves reading this collection."
"Great read."
Best Teen & Young Adult Fairy Tales & Folklore eBooks
Clara’s favorite story tells of three orphaned infants—Clara, who was brought to Auntie by a stork; Maren, who arrived in a seashell; and their best friend, O’Neill, who was found beneath an apple tree. One day, Clara discovers iridescent scales just beneath her sister’s skin: Maren is becoming a mermaid and must be taken to the sea or she will die. Set in 1870 on and around Llanfair Mountain, Pennsylvania, this delightful fantasy novel introduces the reader to Clara and Maren, sisters adopted around the same time by a woman (“Auntie”) known throughout the village for her cures. The story follows their adventure to the sea and the unexpected perils they face on the journey as their caravan burns down and they are “rescued” and then held captive by a group of traveling performers. When Clara notices that Maren is developing scales and needs to spend more and more time in water, she realizes that her friend is turning into a mermaid and that no potion or magic will halt the change. VERDICT Noble's treatment of the mermaid theme is fresh and original, and even her minor characters are beautifully depicted.—Kathleen E. Gruver, Burlington County Library, Westampton, NJ.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I gave this book a 4 because it was predictable but it was also a fun read!"
"Sisters Clara and Maren grow up happily with their Auntie on a small cottage high on a mountain. They help Auntie with her healing potions and she tells them fantastical stories, including their favorite of how Clara was brought to Auntie by a stork and Maren arrived on a stormy night in a giant seashell, while their best friend O'Neill was found beneath an apple tree. Along the way they encounter evil and battle personal doubts, love, jealousies, and selfish love, as neither O'Neill nor Clara want to let Maren go to the sea. In reality Clara and Maren are adopted sisters, but in their hearts and minds they are sisters born."
"Along the way, there are trials that must be faced before the sisters realize that no matter how much they don't want to part, there is no denying the difference of their natures."
"It is a perfect fairy tale, filled with the right amount of old time romance, adventure, mermaids and carnivals!"
"After all the turmoil of reality in todays world, I needed this bit of fantastical adventure to soothe my soul and mind.. A great story about a sibling bond where family means more than blood relatives."
"I read this book straight through in one sitting."
"I love this story!"
"It felt like the ending was rushed and the characters didn't really follow the arch they had been built on...it didn't really make sense to me."
Best Teen & Young Adult LGBT Romance
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING LOVE STORY SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE! “[A] wise, wildly unique” ( Entertainment Weekly ) love story from the New York Times bestselling co-author of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist and Will Grayson, Will Grayson about a teen who wakes up every morning in a different body, living a different life. “A story that is always alluring, oftentimes humorous and much like love itself— splendorous.” — Los Angeles Times. A has been body jumping for as long as he can remember, and he has learned to not leave behind any trace of his presence--until he meets Rhiannon. For the first time in his life, A feels a true connection with another person. Levithan handles their romance with great aplomb, building to a poignant and beautiful ending that took my breath away. Amazon Exclusive: Day 5909 , a Story by Author David Levithan Every morning, [the book's main character] A wakes up in a different body and a different life. An Essay from the Author: A Similar Kind of Love Song Recently I was reading an interview in OUT magazine with Romy Madley Croft, the lead singer of the band the xx. Croft, talking about coming out, told the reporter, “If I was singing about a guy, I would probably be singing a similar kind of love song, really.” And I was struck that the same thing applied to my writing—especially with my new book, Every Day . Because I found that, no matter which body A was in, I was singing a similar kind of love song. Some of the most interesting ones have been from people who were surprised that they, non-gay or non-male, identified so deeply with the love story. (I almost want to put it as a tip on my website, for all those students who write to me telling me their teacher has assigned them to identify the central theme in my work. Writing A made me realize that this is one of the more helpful questions you can ask about love—if I were truly myself, only myself, and not a gender, and not a sexual orientation, and not a race, and not any other external designation . This is the great conflict in the book, and informs one of the questions I posed to myself as I wrote it: Does love indeed conquer all? Again, I come back to that phrase “a similar kind of love song.” I like that she doesn’t make them the same.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It is unique and completely different than anything I have ever read and yet also makes you feel like you are A, and you feel the struggles A is going through and the choice to make the right decisions or the wrong decisions."
"I’ve been meaning to read this for ages and figured it was finally time to now that there’s a movie based on it coming out!"
"You just had to live.. My book club have this as the book for the month and I'm pleased to sat it was an exceptional choice. This book shows the value and the enormity of unconditional love as A has to love Rhiannon up close, from afar, from within.. Then for the everyday constant that is Rhiannon to love something that she has to see beyond the eye and most likely just FEEL.. Is amazing.."
"A spends the day in that body, and then the next day whoever is the rightful owner of the body returns to their life and continues on with no memory or awareness that they were "possessed" the day before, while A moves onto the next body. What's especially crazy is that it could be a male body or it could be a female body, so A has no real gender identity. A's main priority is to slide under the radar so that no one will suspect that anything is amiss with the person whom A has "possessed" for the day. Otherwise, it's too painful to wake up the next day in a new life knowing the life s/he was in yesterday is dead and gone and utterly unretrievable. A is always an outsider, and you see A longing desperately for the type of family life and human connection that so many of the bodies s/he inhabits get to enjoy, even while studiously attempting to avoid emotional entanglement with any of the people who flitter in and out of A's life."
"If you want a fantastic story with a fascinating concept and a compelling main character, this is definitely the book for you."
"Great book for both teens and adults."
Best Teen & Young Adult Contemporary Romance
Insightful, bold, irreverent, and raw, The Fault in Our Stars is award-winning-author John Green’s most ambitious and heartbreaking work yet, brilliantly exploring the funny, thrilling, and tragic business of being alive and in love. — Entertainment Weekly “This is a book that breaks your heart—not by wearing it down, but by making it bigger until it bursts.”. — The Atlantic “A story about two incandescent kids who will live a long time in the minds of the readers who come to know them.” —People “Remarkable . reminds you that sometimes when life feels like it’s ending, it’s actually just beginning.” —Parenting magazine “John Green deftly mixes the profound and the quotidian in this tough, touching valentine to the human spirit.” —The Washington Post “[Green] shows us true love—two teenagers helping and accepting each other through the most humiliating physical and emotional ordeals—and it is far more romantic than any sunset on the beach.”. — New York Times Book Review “In its every aspect, this novel is a triumph.”. — Booklist , starred review “You know, even as you begin the tale of their young romance, that the end will be 100 kinds of awful, not so much a vale as a brutal canyon of tears. You laugh, you cry, and then you come back for more.”. — Markus Zusak , bestselling and Printz Honor–winning author of The Book Thief “ The Fault in Our Stars takes a spin on universal themes—Will I be loved? Will I leave a mark on this world?—by dramatically raising the stakes for the characters who are asking.”. — Jodi Picoult , bestselling author of My Sister’s Keeper and Sing You Home “John Green is one of the best writers alive.”. — E. Lockhart, National Book Award Finalist and Printz Honor–winning author of The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks and We Were Liars.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"So many interactions between Gus and Hazel are interactions which, plain and simple, just would not happen between real, emotional, scared, awkward, virgin teenagers, let alone ones with cancer who have been socially cut off for much of their lives." After treatment, many of us find the things most teens (and sometimes adults) are worried about are trivial. And, it is emotional and scary, but we learn to tell it like it is, without the normal fluff and awkwardness. They try to keep the family together and functioning, in spite of the effects of treatment, fevers and midnight trips to the emergency room, 3 weeks of the month spent in isolation, jobs in jeopardy, birthdays and holidays interrupted, not to mention talks that parents never want to have with their child. My mom said their jobs become about doing whatever it takes, travelling all over the country (which is very common), researching new studies, and new medicines, all to help us survive and thrive with grace and dignity. It is also their job to prepare, if treatments don't work, to help us die with just as much grace and dignity."
"Green wrote this sad, tragic, yet beautiful story, it brings tears to my eyes."
"Both Hazel and Augustus suffer with some form of cancer, they have been robbed a joyous childhood, fun and games replaced by painful treatments and operations. I was not fond of the beginning,but Augustus tenacity won me over and the reader will fall in love with Gus's loyalty and companionship as deeply as Hazel. Together, Hazel and Augustus carve out a pocket of time to discover the sweet perfection of loving a person so much life seems meaningless with out them. This book reminds us that we are all here for a reason, no matter how much time we have, or what we accomplish, rich or poor, successful or not, that a rut in the road of life has been created with a lasting impression that will be there forever."
"It is a story about living with a disease, through the eyes of a teenage girl. It was also one of those books that as you near the end, you hesitate to read more because you really don’t want the story to end."
Best Teen & Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Sofia's life takes a thrilling and terrifying turn when she is selected out of hundreds of girls to take up residence in the tree-top harem of Derek Novak, the dark royal prince. - Books For Tomorrow ★★★★★. _________________________________________. Note: Derek Novak and Sofia Claremont's story is only a 7 book series. It completes in Book 7: A Break of Day, and the characters embark on entirely new adventures from Book 8: A Shade of Novak. The more you read the more you fall hopelessly in love with the story and every single character - even the evil ones." "Bella Forrest whisks you away to the Shade, which is constantly transforming as the series progresses. "By the time I finished the book, I was hooked and I knew this was a series I wanted to read. There is a lot of twists, internal conflict, drama intertwined with an underlying love story of survival." Great story line, interesting and complex characters , and a fun take on vampires! "This book was everything I wanted Twilight to be: a suspenseful vampire romance with a strong heroine and a handsome male supporting lead ." " Bella Forrest transports you into a story with many defining moments and an unlikely set of heroes. In a narrative world overrun with supernatural creatures full of angst, A Shade of Vampire puts a new spin on a crowded genre." "...a sexy vampire twist, an unforgettable romance that sizzles from start to finish. - YA Book Season "I can't even remember the last vampire romance I read that I loved as much as this one." The plot is intriguing, the characters are great, and the ending will leave you left begging for more!" "Watching the relationship between Sofia and Derek blossom was fascinating ... A Shade of Vampire has set some high expectations for me."
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The plots are written in a way that draws you to continue reading until you've finished the entire book in record time, making one compelled to jump into the next without waiting."
"The next book gets a whole lot darker (like 50 Shades of Gray darker) so I decided to make up Derek and Sofia's future up myself, but they definitely solidify a relationship in this book and I was beaming by the end at the incredible kiss. 2) Cliff hanger about wither Sofia and Derek will stay together in the next book, but this book makes you think that she will stay together with the pretty awesome kiss."
"Sofia is just as boring, bland and two-dimensional as Bella Swan, and Derek is a Cullen clone. A few girls are taken with Sofia to be part of Derek's harem, and Sofia shows some concern for them, but they are just there to make Sofia look caring in Derek's eyes and serve no other purpose to the story. While standing before Derek, all scared, Sofia takes one of the other girls hands to comfort her and that for some unknown reason is some great symbol of Sofia's compassion and humanity. There is even an almost exact scene from twilight where Edward plays the piano for Bella in this book where Derek plays the piano for Sofia because apparently an interest in classical music is supposed to make him seem cultured and noble. Sofia and Derek are bland characters with no personality traits besides their one defining trait. Derek is brooding and hates being a vampire and wants to hang on to his humanity, and Sofia is the symbol of that humanity. We're supposed to hate Derek's brother because he objectifies Sofia and leers at her and makes it known he wants to do naughty things to her then suck her dry—yet Derek goes off and feeds on people and Sofia doesn't bat an eye, in fact she COMFORTS him after he gets upset about it the first time (doesn't stop him from doing it again). Sofia's tale, like Bella's, starts with showing us that Sofia is a special snowflake with a "debilitating weakness" that is masked as a strength because she survives despite it. We're led around by the hand and told Sofia is this, Derek is this, and because of that they are some Romeo + Juliet couple, when in truth they have zero depth, zero personality, and the story is bland, boring, predictable and simply awful."
Best Teen & Young Adult Historical Romance
The Infernal Devices, the Complete Collection: Clockwork Angel; Clockwork Prince; Clockwork Princess
All three books in the #1 New York Times bestselling Infernal Devices trilogy, are now available together in a collectible paperback boxed set. Enter the secret world of the Shadowhunters with this handsomely packaged boxed set that includes Clockwork Angel , Clockwork Prince , and Clockwork Princess . She is the coauthor of The Bane Chronicles with Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson and Tales from the Shadowhunter Academy with Sarah Rees Brennan, Maureen Johnson, and Robin Wasserman, as well as The Shadowhunter’s Codex, which she cowrote with her husband, Joshua Lewis.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I’ve been emotionally attached (in an unhealthy way) to these characters since I first read CLOCKWORK ANGEL. I knew Cassie would deliver something we didn’t expect, and I really feared she’d kill off all the characters at the end. It’s sad to imagine I won’t hear anymore about these characters I’ve grown to love so much. I’ve missed countless hours of sleep reading your stories, but I don’t regret one minute of it."
"Half way through the book, I realized what was going to happen when I found the tree and started reading. There's a lot of wrapping up and answers to questions from Infernal Devices as well as Mortal Instruments, so be prepared for a few heartbreaking scenes, as well as heartwarming. I know we see this in book two, but I thought it was an interesting fact, since we see in MI several times the mention that there is `no such thing as ghosts.'. I would not have asked for it to end any differently, even if it was a bit unrealistic how things worked out for most of the characters. There are a lot of things that will make more sense, since the Shadowhunter specifics are more detailed in City of Bones."
"I absolutely loved Clockwork Princess and felt like The Infernal Devices was a series that got better and better with each book and culminated in a fabulous ending. It picked up a few months after the second book left off and the Magister is still somewhere plotting against the shadowhunters, Tessa is still in love with Jem and Will and Charlotte is fighting to hold onto the institute. This book was so fantastic and I have never been happier about the ending of a series than I was with this one."
Best Teen & Young Adult Romantic Comedy
An 18th-century romantic adventure for the modern age written by This Monstrous Thing author Mackenzi Lee — Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda meets the 1700s. But when one of Monty’s reckless decisions turns their trip abroad into a harrowing manhunt, it calls into question everything he knows, including his relationship with the boy he adores. Witty, dazzling, and intriguing at every turn, The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue is an irresistible romp that explores the undeniably fine lines between friendship and love. Austen, Wilde, and Indiana Jones converge in this deliciously anachronistic bonbon.” (Kirkus Reviews (starred review) ). Monty is a hero worthy of Oscar Wilde.” (Booklist (starred review) ). (Shelf Awareness (starred review)).
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I adore the relationship between Monty and his sister Felicity, but the romantic story in this book is that of Monty and his best friend Percy, whom he has loved from afar for years."
"The three main characters are fabulous, from the clueless Monty whom you want to slap one minute and kiss the next (and hug, cradle, and protect), his love and best friend Percy, to his sister Felicity who proves herself to be so much more than whom everybody thought she was."
"I read part of the book physically and listened to to part of it on audible."
"As I don't have patience and wanted to do something while waiting, I opened the Amazon Kindle app on my phone and began reading this book. I don't know why I haven't used this app until now (I've been reading e-books only from my Kindle) but it's amazing and I must say I read faster from my phone (that or the book was just too good). In any case, I had little knowledge about the action in the book as I did not read the summary, but I trust the goodreads ratings and my fellow YouTubers."
"I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the good characters seemed like people you would like to know, while the bad guys were truly unlikable."
"I picked up this novel hoping for adventure, scandal, and romance."
"Ah, Monty, Percy, and Felicity."
Best Teen & Young Adult Clean & Wholesome Romance
Collective loss, individual loss, loss of beauty, loss of life, loss of identity. This is a story of friendship that overcomes heartache, heroism that defies the common definitions, and a modern tale of Beauty and the Beast , where we discover that there is a little beauty and a little beast in all of us. Having grown up in the middle of wheat fields without a television, with only her books and her siblings to entertain her, she developed a strong sense of what made a good story.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I have labelled 'Making Faces' a melodrama as it has all the makings of one: a villain towards the end; a hero; a damsel in distress who needs rescuing from her lack of self esteem as well as from physical danger; plus sentimentality and even some over-played theatre from its characters at times. There's a bit on September the 11th and the invasion of Iraq, and if you are not overly offended by America's lean towards patriotism and her desire for warring retaliation, then you'll find the book cute and entertaining most of the way through."
"No love triangles or senseless dramas but real tragedies that make you look at the world just a bit differently."
"While I knew that some part of the story involved going to war, I had no idea it focused a lot on the events of 9/11. I personally did not know anyone affected by those events, but it is still heartbreaking and difficult to think about what happened. For those reasons, I usually shy away from watching movies/reading books that focus on that."
"It has me laughing and smiling at Bailey's enormous love of life and fun. Nevertheless, it was the strength of Harmon's prose that kept me captivated and in love with her characters and story."
"She broke my heart time and time again, while simultaneously rebuilding the simple joys back into life."
Best Teen & Young Adult Science Fiction & Dystopian Romance
This four-book set includes paperbacks of the three books in the #1 New York Times bestselling Divergent trilogy, plus the companion volume told from the perspective of the immensely popular character Tobias, all wrapped up in a dazzling keepsake box. Veronica Roth's debut is a gripping dystopian tale of electrifying choices, powerful consequences, unexpected romance, and a deeply flawed "perfect society." The four pieces included—"The Transfer," "The Initiate," "The Son," and "The Traitor"—plus three additional scenes, give readers a fascinating glimpse into the history and heart of Tobias, and set the stage for the epic saga of the Divergent trilogy. Veronica Roth is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, Four: A Divergent Collection, and Carve the Mark .
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This set includes the trilogy, along with the extra book titled, "Four". They couldn't stop talking about it, so I bought this series for them, and I even read it myself."
"The idea of having to wait to read the entire series because it isn't out yet is rather annoying, so I'd just rather wait then get obsessive over it. I finished this in a sitting... mainly because I just broke night and read through it until the end. I have been spoiled for some parts of the movie and some parts of the books thanks to Tumblr and Instagram, but still an amazing read... something I was not expecting."
"Originally posted on my blog: Tangled Up In Books. When dystopia is done right there is nothing like it in the world. All of the contemporary, paranormal, historical, even epic fantasies will never measure up to how I feel when I get lost in these worlds. I'm always afraid, almost doubly so when it comes to books that are surrounded by a lot of hype, what if this is one that disappoints me? The dystopian Chicago world that Veronica Roth has created is definitely unique, unlike any others I've read so far. It was interesting to learn a bit about the 5 different factions, a few more so than the others at this point, and also see how they interacted in a mixed setting like the high school in the beginning of the book. I'm not one for lying and dishonesty but sometimes letting someone off easy instead of brutal honesty just feels better. All the kissing of the boys and the swoons and the fluttering of the heart are all awesome, but when I read dystopia I want creative worlds and conflicts and action and uprisings, rebellions. I want everything to fall apart and I want to be stressing out wondering how in the hell these people are going to come back from everything that's happened. I am irrevocably in love with this series so far and you can bet once I type the last word in this review I'm picking up Insurgent, which is sitting right next to me, and you better not even think about disturbing me!"
"Romantic relationship of lead characters: I enjoyed the fact that although these characters are obviously attracted to each other, they do not fall into the puppy love/lust relationships all too often seen in books marketed to a younger crowd."