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When Cole Ryan tours the Tower of London, startling images swamp her mind.  The vision is so vivid, so real that it feels almost like a memory.  Which isn't possible, of course.  The 16-year-old has never been to England before and she's certainly never time-traveled back to the days when beheadings were a common form of punishment.  An overactive imagination—that's the only explanation.  Except that lately, Cole's been haunted by other images.  Everything she sees and touches seems to trigger fuzzy memories of places she's never been and things she's never experienced.  If it's not just her imagination, then the only other possibility is that she's going stark, raving mad.  

Enter Griffon Hall.  Cole's mesmerized by the gorgeous 17-year-old, but she's absolutely dumbfounded when he explains what's happening to her—Cole, he says, is Akhet.  Like him.  These special people not only remember the lives they've lived in the past, but they're tasked with using the wisdom they've gathered over many lifetimes to do good in the present.  Cole wants to dismiss the explanation outright—it's crazy—but everything Griffon says feels true.  She doesn't want this strange ability, but she can't figure out how to make it go away either.  The only way she can really understand it is to embrace it.  

The more Cole remembers, the more apprehensive she grows, especially when her memories seem to warn of danger from her past encroaching on the present.  Cole doesn't know who to trust, especially when she makes a shocking discovery about Griffon.  But how much faith can she put in her murky visions of the past?  Are they reliable?  Is Griffon?  With her life on the line, Cole has to decide what to believe, whom to trust, and how to proceed in a world that is growing increasingly dangerous.

After reading—and loving—C.J. Omololu's first book, Dirty Little Secrets, I couldn't wait to see what the author would do for an encore.  When I read a description of Transcendence, her sophomore effort, I was a little ... surprised.  The plot sounded so generic, so overdone, that I couldn't help but wonder if I really wanted to waste my time on yet another ordinary-teenage-girl-discovers-she-has-supernatural-abilities-and-is-really-a-vampire/angel/werewolf/mermaid/demon hunter/etc.  Since I like Omololu's writing, I figured if anyone could make a stale premise original, it would be her.  And I was right.  Sorta.  The story still felt very familiar, but the writing, at least, seemed above average.  Still, the plot didn't blow me away and I didn't feel any big, cosmic connection to the characters.  The twist at the end did catch me by surprise, so that was nice.  Other than that, though, Transcendence lacked the originality and the heart to really grab me.  I wanted a story as powerful as Dirty Little Secrets and, unfortunately, didn't get it.  Is Transcendence worth the read?  Sure, just don't expect anything you haven't seen before.

(Readalikes:  Every other book in the contemporary-YA-with-a-little-paranormal-thrown-in genre)

Grade:  B-

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  PG-13 for language (no F-bombs), violence, scenes of underage drinking/partying, and sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

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When Jack Branch is offered an obscene amount of money to babysit two kids for a couple of months, the soon-to-be high school senior is elated.  Summer jobs aren't exactly plentiful in his city, especially not the kind that pay more than minimum wage.  So the situation is a little ... strange; the money makes it worth it.  If Jack can build up a nice, big nest egg, he'll be able to move out and join his girlfriend at college the minute he graduates high school.

The situation really is bizarre: Jack will be watching two orphans—siblings Flora (age 8) and Miles (age 10)—who live on a remote island with only their housekeeper.  Without t.v. or Internet access on the island, the kids need some entertainment.  Jack's it.  Their uncle hires him to organize sports and games for the kids so they can get some physical exercise while awaiting the arrival of Flora's full-time tutor and Miles' return to boarding school.  While it all seems straightforward enough, Jack's shocked at the kids' uncle's insistence that he not be contacted concerning the children no matter what.  It's only when Jack starts to experience the strangeness of Crackstone's Landing and its only occupants that he begins to understand why ...

The Turning, a new YA novel by Francine Prose, is a short, spine-tingler about things that go bump in the night (and sometimes during the day).  It's an eerie adaptation of Henry James' The Turn of the Screw, kind of a ghost story and psychological thriller, all rolled up into one.  Told through the letters Jack writes to his girlfriend, Sophie, the story traces his quest to understand what's happening on Crackstone's Landing as well as his growing confusion about his own sanity.  While I didn't love the book, it's definitely a creepy little read that'll be perfect for teens on the hunt for Halloween reads that are scary without being totally terrifying.

(Readalikes:  I should be able to think of lots of similar stories, but I'm coming up blank.  It does remind me a bit of And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie and of the movie The Shining, which is based on a Stephen King novel I haven't read yet.  Any other ideas?)

Grade:  B-

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  PG-13 for language (no F-bombs) and scary scenes

To the FTC, with love:  I received an ARC of The Turning as well as a finished copy (which I donated to my local library) from the generous folks at HarperTeen.  Thank you!  

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

I'm used to people asking me what I'm reading.  Happens all the time.  But, I can honestly say that I've never gotten that question from a young boy (one I didn't birth, anyway).  I had to chuckle when I saw this kid sneaking covert glances at the cover of my book—A Mutiny in Time by James Dashner.  When I showed it to him, he gasped.  "Is that like, a new 39 Clues book?"  he asked.  I told him the Infinity Ring series was like 39 Clues, but not the same.  To which the skeptical youth replied, "It really looks like a 39 Clues book."  I proceeded to give him a point-by-point compare/contrast lecture on the differences and similarities between the two series (I didn't, really).  Maybe I should have though, because I could tell the kid remained unconvinced.  He really believed I was holding out on him.  The encounter made me smile, not just because of the boy's hardheaded refusal to accept the fact that Scholastic might really be publishing a new 39 Clues-ish series, but because I could see the naked book hunger in his eyes.  If I had been closer to finishing A Mutiny in Time, I swear I would have handed it over to the kid, just because I love putting shiny new stories into the hands of eager readers.

If you, like this boy, doubt my book smarts, let me tell you for sure and certain—the Infinity Ring series is not a 39 Clues spin-off.  It's a brand new adventure series.  Yes, the books are the same size and shape as the 39 Clues ones and yes, each volume will be written by a different children's author.  Like 39 Clues, the Infinity Ring also has an online game that lets you interact with the story even more.  I'm sure there are even more similarities, but since I haven't actually read any of the 39 Clues books (Shhh—don't tell the kid), I don't know what they might be.  

How about this—I'll give you a little plot summary and you can decide for yourself:

Junior high school students Dak Smyth and Sera Froste are best friends and fellow geniuses.  One day, they decide to sneak into the lab of Dak's scientist parents.  There, they discover the Infinity Ring, a gadget that seems to be designed to catapult a person backward and forward in time.  Theoretically, anyway.  The device doesn't actually work.  That is, until Sera gets hold of it.  With her super brain, she manages to make the gizmo work, a feat which astonishes the adult Smyths.  Not to mention freaks them out, because now that the invention is functioning, it's bound to bring them all kinds of unwanted attention.  Which is exactly what happens.  Several different organizations want the Infinity Ring so badly that they're willing to do almost anything to get it.  In order to save Dak's parents, who are now lost somewhere in time, Dak and Sera agree to help the Hystorians, an ancient group whose members are tasked with fixing moments in history that have gone awry.  Mending these little errors turns out to be no small job.  Are Dak and Sera up to the challenge?  Or will the Smyths be lost in time forever?

Although there's nothing especially original about A Mutiny in Time, it's still a fun, fast-moving adventure that's going to keep young readers entertained while teaching them a little history at the same time.  I would have liked better developed characters, snappier dialogue and some surprising twists and turns, but, yeah, I guess I'll have to wait for the next few books in the series to get that.  Overall, I'm not blown away by the series start.  It's got potential, though, so we'll see where it goes ...

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of other time travel series for kids, like The Magic Treehouse books by Mary Pope Osborne [although the Infinity Ring series is geared toward a little bit older readers])

Grade:  C+

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  PG for scenes of peril

To the FTC, with love:  I received an ARC of A Mutiny in Time as well as a finished copy (which I donated to the library at my children's elementary school) thanks to the very generous folks at Scholastic.  Thank you!  

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

When Alison Kraft's 9-year-old son chooses a fishing expedition for his special birthday trip, she's less than thrilled.  The third grade teacher would prefer almost anything to hanging out in a rustic lodge on a remote island in the middle of Lake Superior.  Knowing how important the trip is to Jimmy, Alison decides to take one for the team.  When she sees just how primitive the accommodations really are, Alison's ready to bolt.  Even if she wanted to leave, though, she couldn't.  The last boat off the island has gone and a storm is already setting in.  Like it or not, Alison's there to stay.

Meanwhile, a quartet of violent criminals is stranded on the choppy water in a malfunctioning boat.  When they spot the fishing lodge, they see a place to wait out the storm and maybe find themselves a new mode of transportation.  The fact that the lodge is filled with fishermen/women is of no real consequence—collateral damage can't always be avoided.

Seasick and miserable, Alison's locked in the bathroom when the criminals storm the lodge.  With everyone else tied up, it's up to her to stop the ex cons from killing everyone in sight.  But how is a school teacher with no survival skills supposed to do that on a remote island in the middle of a storm?  And, even if she can defeat them, will she ever be rid of them?  Or the terrible memories from a family fishing trip turned deadly?

The weird thing about Primal, a debut thriller by D.A. (Deborah) Serra, is that the story ends almost before it begins.  While it's fairly riveting while it's happening, all the big, life/death action happens in the first third of the book.  By about Chapter Seventeen, I figured Primal must be a novella because the story was basically over.  I was wrong.  It is, in fact, a full-length novel.  However, since the story reaches its climax around Page 100, the last 160 pages of the book get very dull and very predictable.  Some plot rearrangement would have made this a much better novel because, really, it has pretty good bones.  A good editor could have reworked the whole thing into a decent thriller.  As is?  Meh.  The first 100 pages kept me entertained, but the rest just seemed to drag on and on and on.  Serra needed to build the story up better, make me care more about the characters, move the climax to the end of the book, and then keep the intensity up throughout the entire story because that is how you craft a can't-put-it-down thriller.  

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:  C-

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  R for language, violence and sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love:  I received an e-copy of Primal from the author via the good folks at Premiere Virtual Author Book Tours.  Thank you!