The Ravens by Kass Morgan and Danielle Paige

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Ever wondered what would happen if a sorority had magic and a mystery to solve?- this is your book.

The Ravens follows the narratives of two witches, Scarlett Winter and Vivi Devereaux, as they attempt to save their coven, the Ravens, from a mysterious past secret knocking at their door. Scarlett Winter is a powerful witch in her own right, despite always having to prove herself to her family, with a boyfriend, Mason, who after a summer of freedom does not want the same suburban life Scarlett has set out for them. Scarlett is set to become the president of the Ravens just as her sister and mother had been, but a dark secret threatens to take everything away from her. Vivi Devereaux on the other hand, has moved around her entire life with her kooky mother and has never had enough time to make friends or any sense of community for that matter. Vivi has no idea that she is a witch, but when she arrives on campus at Westerly College, she will discover her community and what she will do to protect it. 

I had an absolutely thrilling time with this story. I loved Scarlett and Vivi in all of their many flaws- what can I say, I love an enemies to friends storyline. The sorority initiation games were so much fun to read, though not so much for the characters, because it felt like I was watching the games from Monsters University- remember that move? The side characters were all well rounded with distinct voices and personalities. I especially loved when the story arrived at the magic system which is semi-based on tarot cards (which I purchased after reading this book in my own hopes of becoming a witch because my letter from Hogwarts never came) and the collective power of the witches performing magic together. There were several different plotlines happening at once which I enjoyed because it is realistic to real life in that sense that people are living their own lives, trying to figure things out, and then come together in the end with all of the information. The only thing that was not my favorite was the chapters ending on a cliffhanger but then switching narratives, so by the time the book got back to the plotline you had just been reading you’ve just ended on another cliffhanger and you’re not as interested as you were about what was happening before. Or the cliffhanger would just be resolved quickly with too perfect a bow. The ending though was also just [insert chef’s kiss here]; absolutely perfect for all of the characters.

-Review by Teen Advisory Board Member, 6/2/21

Girls Save the World in This One by Ash Parsons

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In my lifetime as a fellow bookworm 📚🐛 I haven’t read many survival YA books and basically close to zero books that have zombies in them. So, when I read the synopsis of the book, I knew I got to read it ASAP. I mean, there’s nothing more that I enjoy reading than strong female friendship groups, especially if the said friendship group has to save the entire world from an army of zombies when all hell breaks loose at the TV show convention they’re attending.

The thing that stood out to me in the book is the trio of friends (June, Siggy, and Imani) constantly supporting each other through the ups and downs. It was honestly a DELIGHT to read, and I was constantly rooting for them. Like, I want to have their type of friendship in my life, lol. #squadgoals

However, the thing I had issues with was the book’s writing style. Personally, I like my dialogue and actions to be pretty evenly balanced, but in this book, there was a bit too much of the characters “doing”. Honestly, it makes sense why this book had more “doing” because of all the action-packed events, but it was kinda a drag at some points. Also, there’s Hunter. To be frank, I think the romance in this book (June and Hunter) was completely unnecessary and took away from the actual book, which was a surprise to me because I love romance books…I guess it wasn’t my cup of tea in this case 🤷‍♀️

So, to sum it all up, this was a quick read with great MCs, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I definitely think that other people might really love this book…it just wasn’t for me since I think it could have wayyyy more potential. 

Rating: ⅗ stars

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

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