Spoiler Alert Mini Review: A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston

A Thousand Nights
Coming October 2015

Synopsis:

Lo-Melkhiin killed three hundred girls before he came to her village, looking for a wife. When she sees the dust cloud on the horizon, she knows he has arrived. She knows he will want the loveliest girl: her sister. She vows she will not let her be next.

And so she is taken in her sister's place, and she believes death will soon follow. Lo-Melkhiin's court is a dangerous palace filled with pretty things: intricate statues with wretched eyes, exquisite threads to weave the most beautiful garments. She sees everything as if for the last time.But the first sun rises and sets, and she is not dead. Night after night, Lo-Melkhiin comes to her and listens to the stories she tells, and day after day she is awoken by the sunrise. Exploring the palace, she begins to unlock years of fear that have tormented and silenced a kingdom. Lo-Melkhiin was not always a cruel ruler. Something went wrong.

Far away, in their village, her sister is mourning. Through her pain, she calls upon the desert winds, conjuring a subtle unseen magic, and something besides death stirs the air.

Back at the palace, the words she speaks to Lo-Melkhiin every night are given a strange life of their own. Little things, at first: a dress from home, a vision of her sister. With each tale she spins, her power grows. Soon she dreams of bigger, more terrible magic: power enough to save a king, if she can put an end to the rule of a monster.


Spoiler Alert reviewer: Heather

1=No. Just, no. 2=It's OK. 3=I liked it. 4=I really liked it. 5=It was EPIC!

The Book Itself
How well designed was the plot? 4
How vivid was the setting? 5
How believable were the characters and the dialog? 5
How well did the book hold your interest? 5
How well did the author's language add to the book? 5
How well did the writing match the books intended audience? 4

Worldwide
Rank this book's mass appeal. 5
How readable was this book? 5
How pleasurable will reading this book be to most teens? 5

Personal
How highly would you recommend this book? 5
How likely are you to read something else by this author? 5
How memorable was this book? 5
How did you feel about the ending? 5
How creative was this book? 4

Marketing
How well does the cover match the story? 5
Rank the jacket blurb. 4
Rank the title. 4
How well does the title match the story? 4
Stopping point in the book? Finished

Tell us what you thought of the book overall:

In one word: Magical

Tell us what you really did not like about this book: Really wasn't feeling the "thousand" part, more like 2 months

Pick 5 words to describe this book: Fairy tale for young adults

Spoiler Alert Mini Review: The Murdstone Trilogy by Mal Peet

Murdstone Trilogy
Coming September 2015

Synopsis:

Award-winning author Philip Murdstone is in trouble. His star has waned. The world is leaving him behind. His agent, the beautiful and ruthless Minerva Cinch, convinces him that his only hope is to write a sword-and-sorcery blockbuster. Unfortunately, Philip - allergic to the faintest trace of Tolkien - is utterly unsuited to the task. In a dark hour, a dwarfish stranger comes to his rescue. But the deal he makes with Pocket Wellfair turns out to have Faustian consequences. The Murdstone Trilogy is a richly black comedy from an author described by one American critic as 'the best writer you've probably never heard of'.

Spoiler Alert reviewer: Victoria

1=No. Just, no. 2=It's OK. 3=I liked it. 4=I really liked it. 5=It was EPIC!

The Book Itself
How well designed was the plot? 1
How vivid was the setting? 5
How believable were the characters and the dialog? 2
How well did the book hold your interest? 2
How well did the author's language add to the book? 5
How well did the writing match the books intended audience? 3

Worldwide
Rank this book's mass appeal. 3
How readable was this book? 1
How pleasurable will reading this book be to most teens? 1

Personal
How highly would you recommend this book? 1
How likely are you to read something else by this author? 1
How memorable was this book? 1
How did you feel about the ending? 1
How creative was this book? 1

Marketing
Rank the jacket blurb. 1
Rank the title. 5
How well does the title match the story? 5
Stopping point in the book? Finished

Tell us what you thought of the book overall:

In one word: Melodramatic

Tell us what you really did not like about this book: Style of writing

Pick 5 words to describe this book: Lost opportunity; droning; rambling; dull

Spoiler Alert Mini Review: We'll Never Be Apart by Emiko Jean

We Will Never Be Apart
Coming October 2015

Synopsis:

Murder.

Fire.

Revenge.

That’s all seventeen-year-old Alice Monroe thinks about. Committed to a mental ward at Savage Isle, Alice is haunted by memories of the fire that killed her boyfriend, Jason. A blaze her twin sister Cellie set. But when Chase, a mysterious, charismatic patient, agrees to help her seek vengeance, Alice begins to rethink everything. Writing out the story of her troubled past in a journal, she must confront hidden truths.

Is the one person she trusts only telling her half the story?


Spoiler Alert reviewer: Madison

1=No. Just, no. 2=It's OK. 3=I liked it. 4=I really liked it. 5=It was EPIC!

The Book Itself
How well designed was the plot? 4
How vivid was the setting? 4
How believable were the characters and the dialog? 5
How well did the book hold your interest? 4
How well did the author's language add to the book? 3
How well did the writing match the books intended audience? 4

Worldwide
Rank this book's mass appeal. 4
How readable was this book? 5
How pleasurable will reading this book be to most teens? 4

Personal
How highly would you recommend this book? 4
How likely are you to read something else by this author? 3
How memorable was this book? 4
How did you feel about the ending? 4
How creative was this book? 4

Marketing
How well does the cover match the story? 3
Rank the jacket blurb. 3
Rank the title. 3
How well does the title match the story? 3
Stopping point in the book? Finished

Tell us what you thought of the book overall:

In one word: Unique

Tell us what you really did not like about this book: Lack of character description (it NEVER described the main character)

Pick 5 words to describe this book: unique, interesting, strange, different, mysterious

Spoiler Alert Mini Review: Illuminae by Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Illuminae
Coming August 2015

Synopsis:

This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.

Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.


Spoiler Alert reviewer: Kyra

1=No. Just, no. 2=It's OK. 3=I liked it. 4=I really liked it. 5=It was EPIC!

The Book Itself
How well designed was the plot? 5
How vivid was the setting? 3
How believable were the characters and the dialog? 3
How well did the book hold your interest? 2
How well did the author's language add to the book? 5
How well did the writing match the books intended audience? 3

Worldwide
Rank this book's mass appeal. 2
How readable was this book? 3
How pleasurable will reading this book be to most teens? 2

Personal
How highly would you recommend this book? 4
How likely are you to read something else by this author? 5
How memorable was this book? 5
How did you feel about the ending? 5
How creative was this book? 5

Marketing
Rank the jacket blurb. 4
Rank the title. 5
How well does the title match the story? 4
Stopping point in the book? Finished

Tell us what you thought of the book overall:

In one word: Intellectual

Tell us what you really did not like about this book: that it took awhile to get into

Pick 5 words to describe this book: interesting, thought provoking, sad, unique

Spoiler Alert Mini Review: A History of Glitter and Blood by Hannah Moskowitz

A History of Glitter and Blood
Sixteen-year-old Beckan and her friends are the only fairies brave enough to stay in Ferrum when war breaks out. Now there is tension between the immortal fairies, the subterranean gnomes, and the mysterious tightropers who arrived to liberate the fairies.

But when Beckan's clan is forced to venture into the gnome underworld to survive, they find themselves tentatively forming unlikely friendships and making sacrifices they couldn't have imagined. As danger mounts, Beckan finds herself caught between her loyalty to her friends, her desire for peace, and a love she never expected.

Spoiler Alert reviewer: Savannah

1=No. Just, no. 2=It's OK. 3=I liked it. 4=I really liked it. 5=It was EPIC!

The Book Itself
How well designed was the plot? 5
How vivid was the setting? 4
How believable were the characters and the dialog? 5
How well did the book hold your interest? 5
How well did the author's language add to the book? 5
How well did the writing match the books intended audience? 4

Worldwide
Rank this book's mass appeal. 4
How readable was this book? 5
How pleasurable will reading this book be to most teens? 4

Personal
How highly would you recommend this book? 5
How likely are you to read something else by this author? 3
How memorable was this book? 4
How did you feel about the ending? 3
If you did not finish, how did you feel about the beginning? finished it
How creative was this book? 5

Marketing
Rank the cover (only if the final cover version has been released).
How well does the cover match the story? 4
Rank the jacket blurb. 3
Rank the title. 3
How well does the title match the story? 4
Stopping point in the book? Finished

Tell us what you thought of the book overall:

In one word: Unique

Tell us what you really did not like about this book: First few chapters confusing; no character development until later

Pick 5 words to describe this book: Fast paced, original, different, fantasy, adventure

Zeroboxer by Fonda Lee

Reviewed by Will M.
Grade 12

Who needs gravity? Zeroboxers don't. In this futuristic landscape, Earth is no longer the only habitable planet, Martians are real and outer space is no longer so far away. Valtego Station is nothing more than a tourist attraction in spaces's vast landscape but to Carr Luka it is his second home.

Carr Luka was born on planet Earth whose inhabitants are called Terrans, used more as an insult then a common practice. Carr is one of the few zeroboxers that hail from Earth, but he is also one of the best. But Carr has a sercret that he doesn't even know about. Carr doesn't realize what has happened until is too late. Now he's in big trouble. Can Carr find a way to clear his name, or is everything he worked so hard for meaningless?


The author portrays Carr as a compassionate, yet tough individual. He has vowed to protect Enzo, an underpriviledged pal from Earth. He is both trusting and skeptical. He believes those close to him, but he is wary of those who are not. Carr is also extremely ill tempered and prone to explode in a hurricane of violence, especially at the proposal of bad news. Overall Carr is an intriguing character that keeps you entranced in the book, only putting it down once you have finished.


This book is a must read for anybody who likes a good piece of fiction. It has something for just about everybody: romance, action, suspense, and adventure. This book is beautifully woven together and you almost feel as if you're there, in a trance even. Zeroboxer is a must read indeed.