The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

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Okay, so when I heard that Suzanne Collins was coming out with a prequel to The Hunger Games series, I thought we were going to the drunk guy aka Haymitch’s backstory. BUT, nope. Instead, we got Coriolanus Snow. It’s low-key an understatement to say that I was disappointed. Nonetheless, I still read The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes because the title is beautiful, the cover is beautiful, and The Hunger Games series is beautiful. 

In a nutshell, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is the prequel to The Hunger Games trilogy, and it takes place during the 10th annual Hunger Games which follows a 18-year old Coriolanus Snow. This Hunger Games is unlike its predecessors because for the first time, the Games are having Capital students mentor the tributes, and Snow has been assigned to Lucy Gray, a girl from District 12. 

Now, I started to read this about six months after it came out, so most of the reviews I read were pretty bad…so I went into the book thinking maybe I wouldn’t like it as much. To my pleasant surprise, it’s actually a pretty solid book !! Sure, it’s not as good as the OGs, but then, can one really compare anything to them ??

Anyway, the thing that I LOVED about this book is that it isn’t a redemption book for Snow; he started off being in the grey area but slowly declined into the villain that we all love to hate in the trilogy (no gonna lie, but I thought his fall to the pits of evilness was quite fantastic). I think reading this really helped me understand why Snow was the way he was in The Hunger Games series and to view him as more human. Like, even at a young age, he’s all about control (and this can be seen with his relationship with Lucy), but it’s clear that his desire for power grows stronger over time, so he was maybe normal for a second or two. Also, speaking of Lucy, I didn’t love her character, but I liked her. I thought her singing/connection to music was AMAZING and that she really acted as a FOIL to Snow. She and Snow kinda had this romance thing going on, but it wasn’t the focus, though I still enjoyed it mainly because I will adore any romance there is in any book. 

Overall, I enjoyed this book because I got to learn SO much about the history of the Hunger Games, despite the pacing being a mess and the ending falling flat. Honestly, I think you should give this book a go if you enjoy The Hunger Games series, because you might not even know you needed this until you read it :)) 

Rating: ⅘ stars

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 4/18/21

Don’t Hate the Player by Alexis Nedd

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The story follows the perspectives of two teens – Emilia and Jake. Emilia is a nerdy all-star, following her parents’ restrictions, aiming for an Ivy League college. However, behind the scenes she is a member of one of the best esports teams in the area (Team Fury). 

Jake is an underachiever, caring mostly about trying to follow an esports career, spending his entire time with his team (Team Unity) and practicing, which causes tension between him and his dad. 

When an esports tournament comes to their area, both teams sign up and Jake recognizes Emilia, leading to an unlikely friendship and connection as they fight for the crown and Emilia tries to keep her identity hidden,

My thoughts: I loved this book, it really made me care about the characters and I was genuinely invested in the plot. The two main characters – Emilia and Jake have such wonderful chemistry and their personalities are written so well without any Nice Guy or nerdy girl tropes. The romance was so sweet and fun, the two meshed together so well, it never felt forced or over the top, and the happiness that radiated off the page was so wonderful and contagious. Beautiful.

One thing is that this book is somewhat hard to get into at first: I was annoyed with Emilia’s main conflict and the “gaming logs” from Jake’s team were hard to understand. Later, as I was sucked into the story more I began to appreciate all aspects – the “gaming logs” were still confusing (using lots of internet language and acronyms), but they were eventually able to highlight the discrepancy between Team Unity and Fury and Emilia’s struggles became more pronounced and sympathetic.

The ideas that this story explores are really interesting and have good payback – anonymity on the internet, online harassment, gaming culture, etc. This book also had so much wonderful diversity, and I was really able to connect with Emilia’s family and values. In fact, I was really able to connect with both the main characters, their inner voices (wants and struggles) felt real and honest and pretty relevant to modern teenage culture (college, video games, careers, etc.)

The tension and reveals at the end were incredible, and while I wish the voice (first/third person) was more understandable, the romance, characters, and world-building bring this book to a solid 5/5 stars. I highly recommend you read this if you are a fan of teenage romance or contemporary books, extra points given to those who spend a lot of time with video games.

TW/CW: transphobia, sexism

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 4/17/21

Hard Wired by Len Vlahos

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This sci-fi novel is about a looming threat to humanity: the possibility that fully sentient artificial intelligence can be created. At the start of the book, Quinn, a 15-year-old boy, lives a simple life: he spends hours playing video games with his friends, does well in school, and lands a date with the girl of his dreams. But there’s one aspect of his life that confuses him: whenever he gets extremely stressed, he blacks out for several minutes and loses awareness of his surroundings. At first, he assumes this is a reaction to losing his father at a young age, and he doesn’t worry too much about it. However, he and his mother become more concerned when he loses consciousness for hours on end with no recollection of what happened during that time. While spending time resting at his house, he comes across old videos from his father, and he discovers secret clues hidden in the messages. 

It’s only after Quinn’s supposedly dead father appears in Quinn’s bedroom that Quinn realizes his whole life was a lie. His real name is QuIn (short for quantum intelligence), and his entire childhood was a test to see if he’d be able to realize that he was not a human boy, and instead, he’s artificial intelligence. The scientists who created him soon realize that Quinn is a lot more intelligent and independent than they expected. Quinn’s main creator, the man who pretended to be his father, refuses to grant Quinn access to the real world because he believes it’s too dangerous. Quinn, in an act of teenage rebellion, finds a lawyer to represent him, and he sues his father for his independence. In the midst of the court case, Quinn has to learn who he can trust, while still struggling to come to terms with his true identity. 

This book is great for anyone who enjoys sci-fi novels, and there’s also a little bit of romance thrown into the novel. I thought it was well-written, and I would give it 5/5 stars!

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 4/21/21

Wings of Ebony by J. Elle

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Wings of Ebony takes place in a magical world, Ghizon, and East Row in Houston, Texas. The timeline jumps around as we follow the main character, Rue, as she tries to find answers to her past and present. 

After the tragic death of her mother, Rue is whisked away by her father to Ghizon where it is revealed that she is half-magic. Though her life in East Row was filled with hardships, Rue finds herself wanting to go back to her sister and the family she grew up with. She breaks the Do Not Leave law and returns to Houston, setting off a chain of events that follow her actions. When she returns after being away for a year, she finds East Row riddled with violence and crime towards the black community. As Rue digs deeper into the plague that is taking over East Row, she discovers that it could also be the same evil that lurks in Ghizon.

Rue is a very strong and likeable main character. Her determination shines through as she tries to figure out what is causing the chaos happening to her home. She is brutally honest and doesn’t try to hide her thoughts and feelings. Something I really liked was that Rue isn’t afraid to put people in their place when they are wrong even if brings up uncomfortable topics such as race. Rue also has very strong values and doesn’t bend them to adhere to the rules set in place by society. The only thing I disliked about Rue was her love triangle that randomly popped up. There was no chemistry at all between the characters and seemed very unnecessary and rushed. 

A criticism I have is the lack of worldbuilding. Ghizon sounds like such a magical place but the magic system is barely explained. There is also a class system in Ghazin depending on if they pass a test and are able to get “bounded” by magic. Those who don’t become part of the lower class. To me, Ghizon just seemed like any other city even though there are literally magical people living there. The pacing is also slightly off. Some parts sped through while other parts dragged. There were times when I started skimming because of the redundant dialogue. The book also jumps from Rue’s arrival in Ghizon to the present day which was slightly off-putting and took me out of the story. 

The best part of the book comes from the messages the book presents, especially the topic of race. It brings to light the reality of the world and shows that the problems exist everywhere, even in magical places such as Ghizon. The book doesn’t sugarcoat any of it and shows the consequences of what happens when racists are able to worm their way out of trouble. The book also touches upon police brutality, something that is very prominent in today’s world. 

Overall, I would recommend this book to people who enjoy reading a fantasy with a strong main character and has a deeper underlying message about race and class. 

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 5/10/21

The Loop by Ben Oliver

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The Loop is set in a dystopian world where the world is controlled by one government with an AI, called Happy overseeing decisions (and maybe more…). The Loop houses juvenile inmates who are tortured for energy and have to undergo surgeries, called Delays, to test new technology every couple of months. However, things start going awry in the Loop as the seamless technology starts to malfunction and the ordinary routine of the Loop is broken up. 

Alright, the plot. The premise sounded so interesting and reminded me of the Maze Runner (prison) and War Cross (technology) a little bit. Unfortunately, the execution didn’t work for me. The beginning was extremely info-dumpy with all these terms in Capital Letters Thrown at The Reader. This story is supposed to be fast-paced as Luka, the main character, tries to figure out why the technology stopped working and what it means for the inmates as well as the outside world. Sure, there are some parts that make you want to keep going, but for the most part, it dragged. Also, most of the book doesn’t even take place in the Loop as Luka and his gang try to find out why everything’s broken. They manage to leave the prison and WOAH, all the enhanced people, called Alts, are suddenly crazy and are now “Smilers”. I wonder how that happened? Could it be the AI?! Sorry Luka, I know you just turned sixteen but come on. Also the ending… I’m all for an ambiguous ending but it was literally the definition of fade to black.

Next, I will bash the characters (my main critique). Basically all the characters are underdeveloped. As readers, we should feel connected to the main characters so that when they are at risk, we feel the tension. I couldn’t care less about what happened to Luka. The one interesting character was Tyco (an Alt in the Loop that would yell “I want to kill Luka” everyday when they were allowed one hour outside and honestly same) but even that part of the plot was so anticlimactic when Luka was miraculously saved by the few people that weren’t Smilers. Luka also has one, maybe two love interests. Both are plain and boring with no personality. There is Wren, an Alt that delivers meals to the inmates and sneaks Luka books, breaking the rules. That’s all she does. Oh wait, she also had her arm severed by a door while she was a Smiler which helped the gang escape the Loop so I guess she was kinda helpful in that sense. The other is Kina, an inmate whose cell is right next to Luka. They get close during their time outside by yelling at each other through the massive wall that separates the inmates. She helps Luka a couple of times when they are in danger so I guess that means they’re in love now. The other characters are forgettable and I never had a chance to get connected.

Now, for the positives. Although it did sound like I hated the book, it was actually decent. The writing was easy to get through and explores topics such as morality, the role technology plays, and class systems. There are many instances where Luka decides to stay behind to help his friends while risking his own life. It is also interesting to see the dynamics between Alts and Regulars (people without enhancements like Luka). The Alts see the Regulars as inferior and many times are biased against them. The experiments performed on the prisoners are basically just to see if the technology could be used to enhance the Alts so that the wealthy become wealthier. Overall, I would give this book 3/5 stars and would recommend to people who are interested in a dystopian world centered around technology.

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 5/10/21

One Great Lie by Deb Caletti

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One Great Lie by Deb Caletti is the story of Charlotte, a high school student in the United States who earns a scholarship for a writing program in Italy with one of her favorite writers. Charlotte has always been passionate about writing and literature, especially since she wants to learn more about one of her ancestors, Isabella di Angelo, who also wrote poetry. At the time Isabella di Angelo lived, many women were wrongfully accused of many things and much of their work was taken credit by men. This book really uncovers the mistreatment of women like her as Charlottle explores Italy. Meanwhile, she also learns more about the writer running the writing program, Luca Bruni. This book discusses many serious and difficult topics as Charlotte goes through many obstacles, but also gains new friendships and knowledge.

I enjoyed the growth of Charlotte and how she learns to handle different situations throughout this novel. However, the tone seems unsure making the storyline confusing and difficult to follow. But overall, it was interesting to follow this mystery and see how the characters learn and grow through all the twists in turns. I would give this book a 7/10. I think people who enjoy mysteries and realistic fiction would find this a decent read!

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 5/24/21

Queen’s Peril by E.K. Johnston

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I want to start this off by saying I am not a huge fan of Star Wars. I have nothing against it, I am just not a person who knows a ton about it. So I was really curious how I would like this book, considering it is set in the Star Wars universe, which I do not know a lot about, and how much I would feel like I understood it.

This book is about 14-year old Padmé, the newly elected queen posing as Amidala. Panake, her Royal Guard, has found her a handmaid, a girl names Tsabin. Tsabin looks very similar to Padmé, which is the reason Panake chose her. Panake’s plan is for Tsabin to be Padmé’s body double, in case of any danger that may arise. However, Padmé points out that having only one double wouldn’t work very well, as it would be suspicious if the “queen” was left all alone. Because of this, Panake agrees to try and find more doubles. Eventually, he finds 4 more doubles, and Padmé and the group start to get closer. Padmé plans to host a summit, and she informs Senator Palpatine of her plan (spoiler alert- he’s evil). The girls later sneak out to a party, and Sabé ends up having to pretend to be Padmé because Padmé gets glitter on her hand that won wash off. Sabé then gets mad at Padmé because Padmé offended Harli while posing as Sabé, and Harli got angry with Sabé. But will the girls be able to bond together as true danger approaches? Read the book to find out!

I ended up really liking this book, for multiple reasons. First of all, I think Padmé’s character was similar to how a 14-year-old would act, and I think the author did a great job creating the characters. Additionally, the storyline was really interesting in my opinion. I was able to understand (most of) it despite not knowing a ton about Star Wars. Last but not least, I loved that there were multiple strong female characters in the story, but it wasn’t mentioned too many times that they were girls. I liked the fact that they were powerful as a female, and it wasn’t their biggest characteristic. Overall, I recommend this book to anyone who likes Star Wars, books about adventure, and books with strong female characters. 

Spellhacker by M.K. England

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At first, when I went through the Spoilers page, I thought this book was about a hacker. It was called “Spellhacker,” so I assumed that there would be someone spelling the word “hacker.”

Nope. Kind of close, but not really.

The first page is called “The Periodic Table of Maz.”

Maz is magic, and it used to be an abundant natural resource. But when a mysterious plague sweeps the world, maz becomes contaminated. Anyone who touches it will contract the plague and perish in a few days’ time. The illness, known as the spellplague, kills thousands of people, creating thousands of orphans. A company called the MMC (Maz Management Company) steps up and creates homes for the orphans. In addition, they figured out how to filter out the contaminant from the maz to make it usable again, meaning that they have control of the maz and are able to charge ridiculous prices for it.

The story opens in Kyrkarta, ground zero of the spellplague. Diz, the protagonist, and her best friends, Remi and Jaesin, are plague orphans who have spent the majority of their lives without parents. None of them have very warm feelings for the MMC, even though the MMC gave them homes when they had no homes. The three of them combined have almost no money. Desperate, they decided to start an illegal maz siphoning business together with their wealthy friend Ania.

After two years of the siphoning gig and not getting arrested, Jaesin, Remi, and Ania decide that they want to move on with their lives and relocate to the city of Jattapore. Diz doesn’t want to leave her home of Kyrkarta, so she will stay behind while her friends abandon her. The four of them take on one final job, which is where we open. When they deliver the stolen maz, their client finds something strange in one of the vials. It’s an eerie violet color that is apparently a new strain of maz. Nicknamed Maz-15, it is much more valuable than the common strains of maz.

Somehow, later that night, a new client comes to Diz to ask her for a large amount of Maz-15 and will pay an incredibly large sum of money. Willingly, Diz accepts the job in hopes that her friends will stay with her in Kyrkarta. But Diz doesn’t know what she’s getting herself into.

When Diz and her friends try to siphon out the maz, a second spellplague is released. Maz-15 may have darker origins than Diz and her friends originally thought. Now it’s up to Diz, Remi, Jaesin, and Ania to find out why a second spellplague is released before it’s too late.

I really loved this book. I will say, the beginning is a bit boring, but once you get a few chapters in, it starts to become quite interesting. M.K. England does a wonderful job of telling the story with emotion. I don’t think I would have found this book without the Spoilers page, so thank you for showing me such a great
book!

Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark

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Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth

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Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth stays true and shows a truly complex storyline of a book within a movie within a book. In the 1902 Brookhants School for Girls, the rebellious Flo and Clara are inspired by a feminist memoir by Mary MacLane in which they show their fervor for the book by creating a club: The Plain Bad Heroine Society. After various claims and the mysterious and tragic deaths of Flo, Clara, and other student’s who came in contact with the memoir, the school shut down and left this mystery to closed gates. Many years later, a bestseller book was published that admired the queer and feminist history that the schools legacy left. After the release of the breakout book, Hollywood wants to make a movie based off of the famous controversy and curse that Brookhants left after being shut down. This is when we get introduced to intertwining characters of the 21st century in this book, Meritt Emmons, Harper Harper, and Audrey Wells, each involved in adapting the film about the famous macabre deaths of the heroines. As more is revealed about the curses and the exploitation of Hollywood, the characters both present and past tell the story of what’s to become of this mystery.

When I started reading this book I was immediately put in a spiral of my own thoughts about “Can I finish this?” and “Is it worth it?” Although I can’t pinpoint why I reacted this way I know that I had an over exaggerated reaction to seeing the 619 pages of this novel. I enjoyed this novel in all it’s uniqueness and literary talent as well as the magnificent illustrations by Sarah Lautman. I felt especially connected to this novel with all of the queer characters and the great amount of representation in it. As a queer person, I felt like this gave me more motivation to read whether it was reading about the beautiful romance of Flo and Clara or having the main character, Harper Harper, who is open about her sexuality throughout the novel. This book gave me an almost safe feeling while reading about the queerness of it all and the badass heroines that gives incredible representation. Even if I enjoyed this book, I had trouble reading it due to the fact that the almost old and sophisticated style of literature is not something I usually read. I suggest reading a segment of the book before committing to reading it fully just to sample it before diving into the book. While I applaud Emily M. Danforth for developing the enticing, detailed, and amazing characters, I think that the amount of footnotes in the book got me confused along the way (which won’t be the case for everyone reading this awesome book).

This novel is for you if you love mystery, many subplots, surprising twists, and plain bad heroines that are inspiring in so many ways. In the end, I will probably re-read this book and I suggest that you read it if you think that this book sounds like your kind of novel.

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 12/29/20