The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers. To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.
Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the center of those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control. But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

The Silvers hold the highest ranks in society; they are privileged, rich, and beautiful. Mare, however, is a Red; she steals money for her family and they work for the Silvers or are sent to war. Mare has some ideas about how to steal more money to help her family in a desperate time, but these go awry. Instead of being executed or punished, she finds herself in a job at the palace, thanks to a compassionate man she meets on the street. But it turns out that working in the palace isn’t a stroke of good luck after all.

There is a fantastic ensemble of characters in this book, from the cruel and snobbish Silvers, to the bitter and enraged Reds. Nobody is happy in this society where there is constant war and attacks on both groups. There is an added element of technology with most of the Silver King’s guard consisting of sentinels, security, and soldiers. We have the King, the Queen, their two sons, and the rest of the royal court. They are privileged and have been trained by the best. Their powers are strong and used on everybody, and there are not many secrets in the Palace.

Mare is trained for a higher position in the court, which strengthens her powers. She is mostly hated by the royal family, but seems to have found a friend in Maven and a love interest in Cal; both are Princes and both want change. There is as much focus on the characters as there is on the world building. With the addition of technology and powers, the battle and training scenes are fantastical and large, with some taking place in arenas. There are many people that get hurt, die, and there is a constant paranoia that you can never trust anybody.

The narration is all told from one perspective: Mare’s. There are plenty of action scenes and the characters are unrelenting and set in their ways. When there is powerful magic involved, it can be intimidating and challenging. Mare has just discovered her powers and everybody around her has been trained since birth, leaving her reliant on anybody who seems trustworthy. We get a fully rounded world with its history to draw us into the story.

Having recently read the Selection Series by Kierra Cass, and Pawn by Aimee Carter, I often found myself trying to compare the stories. Red Queen stood out among the others due to the greater detail in the world building and the complexity of the unravelling story. There were fun plot twists, along with a couple of shocking ones that have driven me crazy because I want to read more. I was impressed with the way this story was put together and I was flying through the pages of the last third of the novel to see how it ended. It’s a bit sci-fi and a bit fantasy, with battling kingdoms and servant standing against their rulers. Red Queen was an entertaining story that I definitely recommend you read.

If seventeen-year-old Skylar Evans were a typical Creek View girl, her future would involve a double-wide trailer, a baby on her hip, and the graveyard shift at Taco Bell. But after graduation, the only thing standing between straightedge Skylar and art school are three minimum-wage months of summer. Skylar can taste the freedom—that is, until her mother loses her job and everything starts coming apart. Torn between her dreams and the people she loves, Skylar realizes everything she’s ever worked for is on the line.

Nineteen-year-old Josh Mitchell had a different ticket out of Creek View: the Marines. But after his leg is blown off in Afghanistan, he returns home, a shell of the cocksure boy he used to be. What brings Skylar and Josh together is working at the Paradise—a quirky motel off California’s dusty Highway 99. Despite their differences, their shared isolation turns into an unexpected friendship and soon, something deeper.

Hardcover, 400 pages  Expected publication: February 3rd 2015 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

This story makes for a great summertime read: hot weather, long boring days, and fun parties at night. The setting of Creek View is a small town where everyone knows everything about each other. People date, break up, hook up, hang out and in Skylar’s case, work… a lot. Skylar doesn’t drink or do drugs; this sets her apart at times from her friends at parties as the “straight-edger”. She lives in a trailer park with her mother and her best friend Dylan has a baby. This is what she knows, her life is full of friends and family, and for the most part, is comfortable. That is, until her future plans of college seem unclear and she begins doubting everything.

Although the summary does portray the story,  we also get some of the book from Josh’s perspective, and it’s not in a traditional way. He gets a page every here and there and written more like a diary passage than regular narration. Josh and Skylar know each other from before he left, she even got close to his brother. But something is different about Josh when he returns home, and it’s not just the fact he lost a leg in the war. His whole persona has changed, and over the summer they get to see those changes in each other.

Overall, the story is more pensive than full of humuor. It deals a lot with big issues like sex, careers, and future goals. Both Skylar and Josh are in very defining points in their lives. She is torn because she her future goals are no longer realistic. Josh is angry and suffers post war nightmares. They find a friendship, and lean on each other for comfort.

What I really enjoyed about this story is their slowly developing friendship and them getting to know each other for who they are now; who they have become since life’s decisions hold so much more weight in their futures. I recommend this book to those that enjoy contemporary romance. There is great character development and a couple of steamy scenes!

Rebecca Hardwick wants nothing more than to start a family with her husband. But when a series of tragedies occur, she is left unable to have children by natural means.

Jane Nurelle is in an abusive relationship filled with beatings, drinking and drugs. But when she learns of her pregnancy, she is determined to turn her life around, even if it means resorting to violence.

Through an unlikely series of events, these two women come face-to-face with a notable scientist who has perfected a way for couples to have biologically matched children through the process of human cloning. But his service comes at a price…and the women share more in common than they ever thought possible.

Surrogate is an unforgettable tale of life, love, revenge and maternal instinct.

Published October 14th 2014 by DarkFuse 

 *OLDER READERS WARNING*

This is another title from DarkFuse horror novella releases. It includes the story of two very different women and a suspicious husband. With a touch of science fiction, it makes for an entertaining and quick read.

After being the victim of a random shooting while gardening, Rebecca is left unable to have children. When her therapist mentions surrogacy through cloning, she begins to feel hopeful. Her husband is critical as Rebecca is vulnerable and it’s an expensive procedure, yet they decide to proceed.

When Jane runs away from an abusive relationship, she gets into an accident and wakes up years later in an unusual room. She will do anything to find out what happened to her and how she ended up there.

Their lives end up crossing and the cloning company has some questions to answer. What I enjoyed about this story is the perspective on cloning. It’s always been an interesting topic to me and I enjoyed this take on it. Jane was a very pleasant surprise for me as she is strong, a bit crazy, and I loved her!

The Vours: Evil, demonic beings that inhabit human bodies on Sorry Night, the darkest hours of the winter solstice.

When Reggie reads about the Vours in a mysterious old journal, she assumes they are just the musings of an anonymous lunatic. But then her little brother, Henry, begins to act strangely, and it’s clear that these creatures exist beyond a madwoman’s imagination. Reggie finds out what happens when fears come to life.

To save the people she loves, Reggie must learn to survive in a world of nightmares. Can she devour her own fears before they devour her? The Devouring is an engrossing tale of terror that will have you wondering: what if your worst fears became your living nightmare?

This book is very much a psychological thriller. You go inside the mind to battle the insecurities and doubts that the Vour has taken control of. It creeps inside you, makes you feel that there is no escape, and builds walls filled with horror that stop you from pushing it out. You then sink into yourself until you’re gone.

There is so much more I want to say, but am also struggling not to say too much. The book has fantastic, easy to relate to, and, at times, funny characters. It also has great pacing and constant fear building throughout the story—you won’t want to put it down.

Simon Holt is a genius when it comes to scaring the pants off you. I was entertained, I will be having nightmares, and I definitely will be picking up the rest of this series immediately. This story left me saying OMG! It made my skin crawl and put my senses into overdrive. There was one page in particular where I even read it with one eye closed and the other barely open. I needed to find out what happened next, but I am so grossed out by they spiders that it gave me shivers. From that page on, I read with voracity. I knew that there was no way I was going to bed until it was finished.

Pick this one up! It’s a young adult novel, but it is creepy; if you are prone to nightmares, you may need to beware. I feel like writing to all major motion pictures and pushing this book. I would love to see it as a movie! I am speechless and all I have to say is WOW!

Who’s the real victim here? This tense and gripping exploration of cyberbullying and teen suicide is perfect for fans of Before I Fall and Thirteen Reasons Why.

Late at night Tori receives a random phone call. It’s a wrong number. But the caller seems to want to talk, so she stays on the line. He asks for a single thing—one reason not to kill himself.

The request plunges her into confusion. Because if this random caller actually does what he plans, he’ll be the second person connected to Tori to take his own life. And the first just might land her in jail. After her Facebook page became Exhibit A in a tragic national news story about cyberbullying, Tori can’t help but suspect the caller is a fraud. But what if he’s not? Her words alone may hold the power of life or death. With the clock ticking, Tori has little time to save a stranger—and maybe redeem herself—leading to a startling conclusion that changes everything…

Hardcover, 224 pages  Published August 12th 2014 by Simon Pulse  ISBN  1442499567 (ISBN13: 9781442499560)

I flew through this book in a very short time. Tori, the main character, had me feeling conflicted throughout the whole story. She is facing a day in court for a bullying case and the possibility of some real consequences, but she just does not feel like she is guilty. Her family is upset and solemn and everything around her is off. Her brother is pissed, and Tori is angry. Unexpectedly, on the night before her hearing, she gets a phone call with a request: a random caller wants a reason to not kill himself.

My favourite character in the story is the random caller. He is upfront and sometimes rude, but what does he have to lose? He’s planning to die anyway, and he doesn’t actually think anybody would have a good enough reason to stop him going through with his plan. Coincidentally dialling Tori’s number turns the night into turmoil.

The reason I would recommend this is due to the way that Tori’s realisations come about through the story. We get to see her going back and forth as she deals with what has happened. We see denial and regret, along with anger and emotional breakdowns, as she works her way through her feelings. Sometimes I felt mad at her, and sometimes I agreed with her and empathised with how tough it can be in such a situation. It really was a thought-provoking story that I’m glad I read.