Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Publication Date: December, 27th 2011
Source: ARC from NetGalley
Interest: Fantasy


Every Other Day is a new take on paranormal YA. What if Darwin had found a preternatural species of plant on his journeys? If that happened you would have Jennifer Barnes’ world in this book. People have been aware of the preternatural for over 200 years. They have studied them, but they still don’t know everything.

Kali turns into to something not human every other day. And on the days she isn’t human she needs to hunt and kill the creatures that kill humans. It’s not something that she can control; it’s not even something that she understands. She has been keeping her ‘other’ self a secret since it started happening when she was twelve. Then two unexpected things happen. The first thing is that she makes a friend, and the second thing is that there is a cheerleader in mortal danger and only Kali can save her. Suddenly, Kali has people in her life that she cares about and that care about her. The only problem is that when you care about someone, you want to protect them, and you want them to get to know you and for someone who has a secret life, that is a problem.

I really liked this book a lot until about 100 pages from the end. The story got a little crazy from there. It eventually ends ok, but I have to say I was a bit disappointed. I do hope there is a second book though. The world and the characters were both very strong, and I want to know where the story is going.



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Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Seanz

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Publication Date: February 21, 2012
Source: ARC from Baker and Taylor
Interest: Coming of Age

15 year old Aristotle is a late in life child for his parents. His twin sisters are grown with children of their own and his brother has been in prison for 11 years. His family doesn't talk about his brother - there's no pictures of him on the walls, they never even say his name, Ari doesn't even know why he is in prison. Ari's father served in Vietnam, but that's something else that is never discussed. It's no wonder that Ari tends to keep things inside.

Ari meets Dante at the local swimming pool. Dante is unlike anyone Ari has ever met. Dante talks about everything and is openly affectionate with his parents. Ari knows that he has a good life and should be grateful for what he has but he can't help but be frustrated by the questions he has that he can't ask his parents. Ari and Dante question how the world works around them and how they fit in it.

I really loved this book but while trying to write the above description I could tell that it's going to be a hard book to sell. While there are some big events that happen in the book, the story doesn't revolve around those events so I can't tell someone, "It's about a boy who is hit by a car and how he recovers." Yes, that happens and it's a big event, but it's just a small part of the story. Basically, it's a very real coming of age story. The novel covers about 2 years and it's about how these two friends learn about themselves and the world around them. It's about about 2 families that aren't hiding huge unspeakable secrets like substance or sexual abuse, but families that keep smaller secrets from each other to protect themsleves and each other.

While it's not a story about a love triangle between humans and paranormal beings or a story about the end of the world as we know it, it is still a very gripping story. I couldn't wait to see how Ari dealt with his emotions that were on a knife's edge between love and hate. I'm a little sorry that I read this book so early in the year because it has set a pretty high bar. I hope that I haven't just finished my favorite book of the year in the first week of February.



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The Girls of No Return by Erin Saldin

The Girls of No Return by Erin Saldin

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Publication Date: February 2012
Source: ARC from SWON's ROYAL interest group
Interest: Debut

Lida is not happpy about being sent to spend some time at the Alice Marshall School, a school set in the remote wilderness with the intention of rehabilitating troubled teen girls. She is not willing to get with the program and share what her "Thing" is, aka why she was was sent to the school. She tries to disappear into the background but finds that difficult to do when she finds herself torn between two girls who despise each other at first sight.

I was a little disappointed with this. There were a lot of reviews of it that mentioned how gripping and original it is. I didn't really see it. All the usual suspects were there: the lost and misunderstood main character, the tough girl, the girl that wants to be everyone's friend and the girl that is so cool that you know she's bad news.

I never really connected with Lida. She just seemed so weak and unable to stand up for herself - to the point of being annoying. Near the end of the book, she seemed to make a breakthrough and I was hoping that she would have some sort of "I am a worthwhile person" moment but, it never really happened.



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