In a world of extreme beauty, anyone normal is ugly.

The first book of a quartet written by Scott Westerfeld, Uglies stars a young girl named Tally Youngblood. She lives in a society where, at sixteen years old, everyone undergoes massive surgery to become Pretty. Pretties live the good life, never having to work, having fun all the time… and they look unconditionally beautiful.

Tally’s best friend Peris has already undergone the surgery and she can hardly wait to join him. She defies the rules by going into New Pretty town to see him and once she returns, she meets Shay, who, like Tally, is an Ugly. However, Shay doesn’t want to be Pretty. She wants to find the Smoke, a secret place where Uglies go. In the Smoke, no one has the surgery.

But Tally wants to be Pretty. She wants everything that being Pretty entails and so, when Shay leaves, she stays. And on the day of her sixteen birthday, she is faced with a choice: bring Shay back or be Ugly forever.

Uglies is an amazing, thought-provoking book. The plot is gripping and action-packed. There’s almost never a dull moment in the book. From Tally and Shay’s exploits, to Tally’s journey to the Smoke to what happens afterwards… Uglies keeps you interested throughout its entirety and that’s a great thing.

Tally’s character evolution is well-done and gradual. She struggles with her decisions and makes mistakes, as any other teenage would. She is a great character, and so are the ones that are gradually introduced as you progress into the book. The romance she develops later on is sweet and an important piece when it comes to her journey and what she has to do when she reaches the Smoke. It was not just that, though. Tally was used to finding only Pretties beautiful. The romance she develops is something that goes beyond looks and it’s quite endearing to see such a growth in her.

Another great thing about the book is that you’re rooting for Tally. You want her to make the right choices and you come to care about her. Her character, flawed as it is, does warm its way into your heart. I found the whole Pretty thing very disturbing. There was obviously some catch to it and I desperately wanted Tally to realize that.

When it comes to writing, Scott Westerfeld paints a rich picture of a post-apocalyptic world. Everything is clearly described and easy to imagine. Not to mention his vision is extremely interesting: cities are completely independent; no one eats meat or cuts down trees… It is thoroughly original and amazingly vivid.

Concept-wise, I thought Uglies was masterful. A society where anyone who is normal is considered ugly is just brilliant. The operation to be turned Pretty and the truth about it –  even more so. I was interested in this book ever since I read the summary, but it doesn’t just have a good concept: it’s also very well-executed.

To me, Uglies was a 1984 for younger people and I absolutely loved it. It ends in a cliffhanger and made me want to read its sequel as soon as I had the chance. It is that good.

It’s 1895, and after the suicide of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in England. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma’s reception there is a chilly one. To make things worse, she’s been followed by a mysterious young Indian man, a man sent to watch her. But why? What is her destiny? And what will her entanglement with Spence’s most powerful girls—and their foray into the spiritual world—lead to?

A Great and Terrible Beauty is a Gothic/Victorian novel set in the 19^th century. It follows the tale of a sixteen-year-old Gemma Doyle whose mother has just died under suspicious circumstances, circumstances which Gemma sees in a vision. She is then sent to a boarding school in London where she rooms with Ann, a plain girl who is only there due to a scholarship. Gemma and Ann, along with two other girls, Felicity and Pippa, travel to the realms and unravel their magic.

The book has quite a promising start, but as soon as Gemma goes to Spence, the action comes to a halt, which is quite a shame. For a while, all you read about is how the most powerful girls of Spence mock poor Ann and how they lure Gemma into a prank. You’re left wondering, for quite some time, why Gemma sees visions and when you find out why, it’s almost as side-thought. A great majority of the book is the girls’ exploring and the action only picks up towards the end. But when it does, the book ends, leaving you wanting to find out more in a sequel.

The biggest issue I found in A Great And Terrible Beauty were the characters. Gemma is mostly nice and willful, but I felt like she was the only character who had something inside her head. Ann is an ugly, chubby girl and all she wants is to be pretty. Pippa is the opposite – beautiful – but as shallow as they come. Pippa’s whole world revolves around finding true love and that’s it. And then there’s Felicity, the Admiral’s daughter, who thinks she’s the queen of the world but deep down all she wants is her father’s approval.

The friendship between Gemma and the other three girls was one-sided. All through the book, Ann, Felicity and Pippa were clearly using Gemma for her magic and they stupidly turn on her the first chance they get. It angered me no end that these girls, who say over and over again that they are the dearest of friends, would betray each other every chance they get. This friendship is supposed to be one of the main aspects of the book and it is a let-down because the girls are all so jaded.

As for romance… there is some in the book and it’s well done, but it’s not something central – so, if you’re going in expecting a riveting love story, then you should pick a different book.

There are very good things about A Great And Terrible Beauty, though. The book is terrifically well-written. The prose is fluid and the descriptions are quite nice. It’s also very accurate historically, from clothes to customs to the way people talk. For instance, women are only supposed to learn what they need to please a husband, a thought that was quite common in the 19^th century, and some of the girls (not all) fight against this stereotype. It’s not a feminist book, not by a long shot, but it’s not chauvinistic either. It has a balance about it, and that balance fits.

The author’s take on the magical world is different, but it’s almost not exploited enough. Hopefully, Libba Bray will make use of the great magical world she’s created in the second book. To finish it up, the plot twist towards the end makes you want to read more. I found the book fun and the end was good enough for me to want to read the sequels.

This is an entertaining novel and if you’re into historic young-adult novels with a twist for the magical, then this book is for you. Even if you’re not, it’s intriguing enough for you to give it a shot.

Paperback: 416 pages

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children’s;

Language English

ISBN-10: 0689875355

ISBN-13: 978-0689875359

“In a world where people born with an exceptional skill, known as a Grace, are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of a skill even she despises: the Grace of killing.”

The first installment of Kristin Cashore’s Seven Kingdom’s saga tells the story of Katsa, a woman who is unnaturally apt at killing. The book starts off with the heroine fulfilling a mission for the Council, an underground organization founded by her, in which she has to retrieve an old man from another country. However, what at first seems a simple plot, unravels into a complicated ploy.

Graceling’s story unfolds at the right pace. Certain things that, in the hands of another author would probably drag on and on, in Kristin Cashore’s hands take up just the right amount of time. Her timing is remarkable and so is her sense of plot development.

Cashore’s writing is surprisingly fresh, evocative and nearly hypnotic. She doesn’t over describe; whenever she paints a picture, she describes it clearly and cleanly, which I find to be a blessing nowadays. She is intricate in her prose without being overly so, and it makes the book so much more pleasant to read.

Then, there are the characters. Katsa is very relatable, even though she is blessed with such a destructive power, and isn’t an overpowering force of nature. Even though Grace isn’t born just to kill – I’m not going to say anymore so as to avoid spoilers, – she can do little else besides it, making her a flawed, realistic persona. There are also parts when Katsa’s otherwise unstoppable Grace is a weakness. The author explores her gift fully, both the good and the bad side of it.

I also loved Po, who was also “Graced”, and he added a measure of calmness in contrast with Katsa’s impulsiveness. These two are the main characters, and my favorites, but the secondary characters are equally well-written. The cast is amazing and you can see every single one of its elements serves a purpose. Without them the story wouldn’t have worked out.

I found the romance in the book to be well thought-out and heart-warming. It takes time to develop and when it finally does, it makes sense. It isn’t just a man and a woman being thrown together. They really care about each other and it’s a beautiful thing.

The end is satisfying without compromising the personalities of any of the characters. It’s quite an accomplishment, and so is this book. It’s a great, fulfilling read that you just can’t put down.

I really loved Graceling, with its amazing cast and fantastic writing. I look forward to reading more books by Kristin Cashore and hope she continues on being as amazing as she was this time around.

  Publisher: Gollancz (22 Jan 2009)

  Language English

  ISBN-10: 0575084502

  ISBN-13: 978-0575084506

“This is the way the world ends – not with a bang or a whimper, but with zombies breaking down the back door.” Nineteen-year-old Remy King is on a mission to get across the wasteland left of America, and nothing will stand in her way – not violent marauders, a spoiled rock star, or an army of flesh-eating zombies.

Set in a post-apocalyptic landscape, Hollowland tells the tale of Remy who, upon escaping a zombie attack at the quarantine station she had been living in, heads out into the world to find her younger brother Max. With her is Harlow, another survivor of the attack and on the way they meet Blue, a doctor, and Lazlo, a once-famous musician.

This is the basic premise of Hollowland, and I was slightly disappointed that it mirrored so many other horror stories. One thing that kept popping into my head was the movie 28 Weeks Later and I found many similarities among the two: the teenage protagonist, the younger brother who’s immune to the virus… These are only two, but there are many more.

However, despite the plot not being the most original one, the main character – Remy – stands out. One thing that particularly surprised me was that Remy is ruthless when she needed to be. Her goal is to find her brother and she doesn’t let certain feelings such as pity get in the way. If she has to leave someone behind for the sake of her brother, she’ll do it and that really impressed me.

Another thing that stood out in Remy’s character was that she had plenty of common sense. She has to survive and she is smart about it; she doesn’t go about wasting ammo and doesn’t trust strangers immediately. At times, she was a bit too capable, but it still works.

The supporting characters were a bit of a letdown. Harlow struck me as a shallow girl, Lazlo was the obvious love interest, Blue is basically just a doctor who never loses his temper… I’m almost tempted to call them “cardboard”, but I came to care about them halfway around the book. The romance (albeit I always take romances set in a zombie apocalypse with a grain of salt) was heartwarming and, in a way, reflected the despair one would feel when the world ends.

The writing in itself is pretty fluid and not overcomplicated. The action scenes are well-done and easy to picture. They were also pretty much inventive in the way Remy used things around her as weapons so that she didn’t waste ammunition.

With a strong, capable lead, and an ending that makes you want more, Hollowland is a fun, action-packed read that will satisfy anyone in the mood for a post-apocalyptic adventure.

Publisher: CreateSpace (September 28, 2010)

ISBN-10: 1453860959

ISBN-13: 978-1453860953