(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Have you ever read a book so fun, so imaginative, so clever that you wish you'd written it yourself? That's pretty much how I feel about invisible i, the first book in Stella Lennon's new series (I'm definitely book-crushing over here). If you haven't heard of Lennon, there's a good reason: she doesn't exist. The name encompasses a group of YA authors (including Laurie Faria Stolarz and Peter Silsbee) who will alternate writing the books in this series. Invisible i is by Melissa Kantor, who's penned popular YA novels like If I Have a Wicked Stepmother, Where's My Prince? (my review is here) and Confessions of a Not-It Girl. Its September debut launched a unique, interactive fiction experience called The Amanda Project. Readers can follow the mystery in the books, then hop online for more clues, puzzles and fun. But, I'm getting ahead of myself ...

Invisible i concerns Callie Leary, one of the ninth grade's popular I-girls. Even though she doesn't consider herself model-beautiful like her friends, she's somehow part of their very in group. They can talk about everything - clothes, makeup, cute guys - well, everything except what's really important, like the fact that Callie's world is falling apart. How can she admit, even to her best friends, that her mom took off and her dad's drinking himself into a daily stupor? How can she tell the group, at least one of whom lives in a sprawling McMansion in the best community in town, that she's afraid she'll come home to no electricity, no food, no house? They wouldn't understand.

When Callie's summoned into the vice principal's office, she receives a shock: her friend, Amanda Valentino, is missing. As if that isn't strange enough, Amanda decided to spray paint the vice principal's car, implicate three other students (including Callie) in the prank, then disappear without a trace. Callie thought nothing about Amanda could surprise her - after all, the girl wore outrageous costumes, couldn't speak without quoting something, worked math problems like some kind of genius, and flitted around at all hours without any parental supervision whatsoever - but this really takes the cake. The weird thing is, as Callie and her supposed cohorts clean the paint off the VP's car, they all come to the same conclusion: Amanda must be trying to send them a message. But figuring out what that message is becomes a strange, frustrating quest. Is it possible that none of them really knew her at all? Clearly, the question they should be asking is not "Where is Amanda," but "Who is Amanda?" Clues keep appearing out of nowhere, but they don't seem to be leading anywhere.

As the search for Amanda consumes Callie, she knows she has to keep her interest hidden from the I-Girls. They would never understand her friendship with Amanda, a girl they'd quickly labeled "freak," and they definitely wouldn't get her desire to play Nancy Drew with super nerds Hal Bennett and Nia Rivera. The more Callie searches for her friend, the more she realizes how much she misses the free spirit who, she's realizing, made a huge impact on her life. Along with Hal and Nia, she's determined to answer the big questions: Who is Amanda Valentino? Where has she gone? What does she want from Callie, Hal and Nia? And most important of all: If she needs help, why doesn't she just ask?

I've been wracking my brain for anything I didn't like about this book and well, I got nothin'. The plot gallops along at a perfect pace with plenty of curves and cliffs to keep it exciting. It's not all action, though - the story has a surprising amount of depth. It delves into the importance of being true to oneself, not being too quick to judge, and looking behind the mirages so often created by wealth and popularity. All of the characters, even the most minor ones, come off as complex and intriguing. The author creates a very real, very absorbing story that just gets everything right. Kantor's got me dying to know: Who is Amanda Valentino? Sequel, come quick!

(To learn more about The Amanda Project, check out its website. You can get additional clues, hang out with other Amanda devotees, even write your own stories [some of which will be published in the subsequent books or in an online 'zine]. I don't know if I like the idea of story people hopping out of their books and into my computer, but it's an interesting concept. You'll definitely want to check it out. Oh, but read the book first - you'll be glad you did!)

Grade: B+

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for mild language and a teensy bit of innuendo

To the FTC, with love: This is another gem from HarperTeen. Thanks, guys!

You can tell I'm feeling all sentimental inside, because I really don't want to say anything bad about first-time novelist Heather Justesen. Judging from her photos and blog, she's like the nicest person in the world. This makes it so much harder for me to say this about her debut novel, The Ball's In Her Court, but the fact remains: Someone should have edited the heck out of this novel before it came anywhere near publication. I know. It's a harsh thing to say. And the two readers who reviewed the book on Amazon did not agree with me at all. So, here's the good, the bad, and the really, really ugly (in my humble opinion, of course); you can judge for yourself.

The Good: I like the premise of the book:

Computer programmer Denise DeWalt has an enviable life - she's got a loving adoptive family, a great job, fierce basketball skills, and now, a handsome, very interested man. Rich Jensen seems perfect; even though he's her boss, she finds herself attracted to his kind, easygoing manner. He obviously feels the same way, but Denise can't stop the panic that rises in her every time he tries to get close to her. If he only knew about her tumultuous childhood, he'd realize she's not the perfect Mormon woman he's seeking. If he knew what she'd been through, he would run away as fast as he can. Flashbacks and nightmares plague her every waking moment - if she can't stop them by facing her past, she could lose everything, including the only man she's ever loved.

When I read the synopsis of Justesen's book on her publisher's website, it intrigued me. Both the adoption and foster care issues appealed, especially since issues like those are rarely addressed in LDS fiction. I love it when authors trade cookie-cutter perfect Molly Mormon heroines for characters who are more true-to-life. It makes for far more rounded, interesting story people. Since Justesen and her husband have fostered 15 children, she definitely has an insider's view of the foster care system. It shows in this book.

The Bad: Did I mention the editing? It's not so much the misspellings and typos that bugged me as the content. The story's in desperate need of condensing, shaping, and tightening. It reads more like a first draft than a final version. Flat characters need to be fleshed out; run-on sentences, paragraphs and pages need to be whittled down; and all the dull telling needs to be transformed into vibrant showing. I think its length could also be cut down by half. It dragged on so long that I kept telling my husband, "This book just doesn't end." A good editor would have a field day with this book. I wish one would have, because The Ball's In Her Court could have been a much more engrossing, effective novel.

The Really, Really Ugly: There's a HUGE coincidence in the ending of the book that just made me roll my eyes. The "surprise" is not just contrived, it's obviously, ridiculously contrived. Not that I was loving the book up until that point anyway, but still ... ugh.

The Upside: Since this is Justesen's first novel, we can expect her to improve, right? I believe there's a sequel to The Ball's In Her Court coming out soon. Also, my opinion isn't the only one out there (It's not? Really?) - you can get different perspectives by reading reviews here, here and here. Finally, I haven't been feeling really well this morning, but the book trailer gave me a much-needed laugh. It's hysterical. Sorry, but it is.

I know, I know, I'm a terrible person.

My friend and I are planning to attend the LDS Storymakers Conference this April. Do you think I'll survive? I have a feeling I'm going to be beaten up by an angry mob of LDS authors. In my defense, I can only say that it's never my intention to ridicule any book or author. I always try to "grade" books fairly, pointing out both the book's positives and negatives so that readers can judge for themselves whether or not it's the kind of book they want to read. I've gained a reputation as an honest reviewer who tells it like it is (just call me Dr. Phil) - I don't want to let down my readers, so that's exactly what I do. Always remember that my opinion is not the only one out there (Really? It's not?). My real aim for this blog is to promote books and reading. If I've learned anything, it's that no two people are ever going to read the same book the same way. To each his own, I always say.

Authors, you can take comfort in the fact that you've got a published book to your credit and I don't. Plus, you know where I'll be come the end of April. I'll be the one in body armor.

Grade: C-

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for mature themes

To the FTC, with love: I got this book for free from Cedar Fort. Obviously, that didn't influence my opinion of the book.

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

(Note: While this review will not contain spoilers for Deadly Little Lies, it may inadvertently reveal plot elements from its predecessor, Deadly Little Secret. As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order. You wouldn't want to miss anything!)

Sixteen-year-old Camelia Hammond hasn't quite gotten over the trauma of being stalked and abducted by her creepy classmate, Matt. The fact that he's in faraway Louisiana - even though he should be in jail - should allow her to rest easy. But, she can't. Ben, her psychometric kinda boyfriend, took off and she misses him desperately. Things at home are strained because of Camelia's Aunt Alexia, who seems to be tottering on the brink of insanity. Plus, Camelia's stalker seems to be back. Either that, or she's as crazy as her aunt.

When Ben returns to school, Camelia's ecstatic. She needs to talk to him, be close to him, but he refuses to touch her, insisting it's better if they spend time apart. Except it's not. Camelia's lonely, confused and frightened. Strange things are happening - it's almost as if Ben's psychometry is rubbing off on her. Or maybe PTSD is causing her brain to go haywire. Whatever it is, it's freaking her out. The only thing that can calm her is sculpting at Knead, the pottery store where she works. Adam, Knead's attractive and very interested new employee, makes her laugh, something she hasn't done much of lately. Compared to Ben's intensity, Adam's a welcome - not to mention good-looking - distraction.

And if Camelia ever needed a distraction, it's now. The creepy notes, weird premonitions, and a general feeling of being watched, are making her jumpy. Her friends, her school counselor, even Ben, tell her to let it go, that it's probably someone's sick idea of a joke. Why, then, does she feel so afraid? The voices in her head are warning her - about impending doom or her increasingly fragile grasp on reality, she's not sure.

While the stalking, the premonitions, and the hint of more psychos on the loose should make Deadly Little Lies as freaky as Deadly Little Secret, it doesn't exactly. The second book has more depth (especially with the inclusion of Alexia's diary entries), which makes it a different kind of creepy. It's just more ... shivery than scary (except for the almost-end, which is, indeed, freaky). I liked the development of Camelia's character in the newer book, as well as the fact that Lies is "cleaner" than Secret, but I didn't love Ben in this one. His wishy-washiness annoyed me as much as it did Camelia. I wasn't wild about the ending of Lies either, but that's small potatoes in the grand scheme of things. The books draw me in and keep me reading. And that's saying a lot these days.

Grade: B

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love: Yeah, yeah, I got this for free. Disney/Hyperion sends me review books all the time. Some I like, some I don't. The grades I give are based solely on a book's merits.