The Syrena need to ensure their survival and to do that they have sent their prince, Galen, to land to seek the rumored girl who can communicate with sea life. When Emma, that unaware and rumored girl, literally runs into Galen while on vacation at the beach in Florida, they immediately feel connected, but Galen’s twin sister, Rayna, ruins the mood. Rayna is not convinced Emma is the girl they are looking for but after a dangerous encounter with a shark and after that, wave after wave of incidents, Galen is convinced she is the one the Syrena need. He only has to make her believe.

Anna Banks wrote Of Poseidon from both Galen’s and Emma’s points-of-view. While I enjoyed being in both of their heads, the tenses threw me off. I cannot think of another book that I have read that did something like this. Emma’s point-of-view was in the first person present tense, which is common. But Galen’s point-of-view was in the third person present tense, which I found odd because usually the third person is paired with the past tense. I am not sure what Banks’ motives were for writing the characters this way, but I just found it hard to follow Galen’s parts…at first. More on that in a bit.

I cannot write much about the plot because the synopsis does not reveal much and I do not want to spoil it for anyone. I can say that one minor thing that bugged me was that over and over Galen and Rayna thought and/or talked about how much they hate humans, yet they interact closely with two humans and felt compassion for others, so I was not really convinced and found myself wondering why that was insisted upon when it did not seem to be true.

Alright, by now, a lot of you are probably thinking that I disliked this book. Not true! The hating humans thing was minor and yes, the tense thing was bigger because it slowed me down, but I really enjoyed the story! I regret that I have so many notes on Of Poseidon that I cannot share without spoiling things for you, because I think those would show you better how much I enjoyed it.

For the first few chapters, Galen’s unconventional point-of-view/tense thing distracted me from getting into the story, but after that I started to get used to it (or I was able to ignore it) and I was able to focus on the story properly.

Of Poseidon is really good and sucked me in to its pages. I almost felt like I was in the same places that the characters were, but as an invisible viewer. Even thinking about it now, my brain can call up the images of the sea and Galen’s house and the  experiences that made me feel like I was there.

I enjoyed the love story and the sleuthing because who does not love a good love story and while it was happening Galen and Emma were trying to find answers that would have satisfied everyone’s wants.

The ending completely threw me and shocked me because I followed the same false trails that the characters did. It gave me chills and goosebumps and I wanted to keep reading even though that was impossible because even this book is not officially out yet, so it will be even longer to wait for the second. Yes, there is a cliffhanger. A huge one! 

While the medium of Galen’s voice distracted me at first, the Of Poseidon’s story quickly overpowered all of that and drew me in deep. I am excited for book number two because I have to know what happens next!

Recommended for those fourteen and up who enjoy young adult fantasy having to do with mermaids Syrena and books with twists that crash over you like an unexpected wave. If cliffhangers are not your thing, you may want to wait until book two comes out, but that could be a looooong time since Of Poseidon releases in twelve days.

Kate and Vincent survived the imminent numa threat in Paris as well as their own doubts about their blossoming relationship, but now they are dealing with a more long-term issue: how can they both ease Vincent’s compulsion to die for others when Kate realizes the potential lives that could be lost if Vincent does not act on his instincts?

Meanwhile, all has been quiet on the numa front and it has the revenants antsy. They send for reinforcements to fill in for Charlotte and Charles and amp up the safety measures in preparation for an unforeseen potential numa attack. Rumor indicates the numa have a new leader and it puts everyone jeopardy.

What a follow-up! I am telling you now, if you enjoyed Die For Me, you will want to buy Until I Die immediately! 

Until I Die begins in less than a month after the end of Die For Me. Kate is feeling guilty about Vincent’s agreement to try not to die, so he begins to search for a solution. Hating to feel useless, Kate also tries to find an ideal solution to their predicament by searching through her Papy’s old books.

Charles and Charlotte were still around, just not easily accessible, as they had to temporarily move because of Charles’ mistakes. Two new revenants were introduced in their stead: Arthur and Violette (who both lived in the fifteenth century). Jean-Baptiste and the others particularly desired Violette’s expertise on the numa and their activities.

One very minor thing bothered me: Kate’s research turns up very interesting results, but it seemed too convenient.

Other than that, I was more than satisfied with this riveting revenant sequel. Until I Die had a big twist at the end as well as lots of revelations throughout its pages. Ending on a bit of a cliffhanger, readers will nevertheless fall in love with Kate and Vincent and all the rest all over again in Until I Die.

Recommended for fans of Die For Me and young adult readers fourteen and up everywhere who enjoy paranormal romance. Minor violence.

Seventeen-year-old Emily Morgan is an air elemental, but thankfully for her, she is not a pure elemental which means she does not have much power. It is a good thing too. The ones with too much power are rarely, if ever, safe…for others and themselves.

But when Emily takes a summer job only to find that fellow senior and extremely powerful earth elemental, Michael Merrick, frequents the place, she is both excited and fearful. Michael is good-looking and the total brooding type, but he and his family are her family’s mortal enemies.

She should stay away from him. It could never work out between them with her family on the warpath. But their attraction is too hard to ignore.

I read Elemental after reading Storm. While it is not necessary, I recommend that you read Elemental first. I only read Storm first because I was trying to get it done to post the review during its release week (which I did) and I felt like I was racing the clock (which was my own fault for losing track of time haha). Otherwise, I would have switched the order because things that happened to Michael and Emily appeared in passing more than a few times throughout Storm and so I already knew what was going to happen. I just did not know what happened during the beginning and the journey to get there, which definitely colored my view of this fifty page novella. 

Like Storm, Elemental has two points-of-view: Emily’s and Michael’s. This is something I really like in novels because 1) I think young adult books need more male perspectives and 2) I really enjoy the pairing of a female’s and male’s point-of-view. I also really enjoyed getting to know Emily and for that matter, really getting to know Michael because he is almost a different person in Elemental. I really understood him more after reading it. It also really showed how there are always two sides to every story, but it was also frustrating because most of the characters in both books only want to know their sides. Only time and three more books in the series proper will tell if a resolution comes to pass. I am all too ready for that journey!

Elemental provides a concise yet more in-depth view of Michael and introduces the reader to Emily. It was very bittersweet and beautiful for me because I read Storm first.

Recommended for fans of Storm and those fourteen and older who are interested in a new young adult series that features male perspectives with the paranormal twist of controlling the elements. One instance of minor violence.

KTeen has made Elemental available for free at all the major eBook retailers until 6 May 2012. KTeen asks for readers to use the #Elemental hashtag when posting about books in this series.

Werewolves are real - and everyone knows about them. Mackenzie’s best friend, Amy, was killed by a white werewolf and Mac’s dreams and waking moments have been haunted by it ever since. Amy gives Mac cryptic information in her dreams while the Trackers come to Hemlock to weed out those who are infected with lupine syndrome.

Mac decides to look into the details of Amy’s murder after she learns that everything and everyone has been keeping secrets from her: the town, Amy’s boyfriend Jason, their good friend Kyle, and even Amy herself.

She will learn secrets that will betray everything she knew and that will make her feel like she is losing Amy all over again.

Hemlock is a poisonous plant and I found it to be a fitting name for this town that becomes a place of grief after Amy’s murder and then turns into a place of poison when Mac learns of all the secrets and betrayal that were kept from her.

Hemlock began with a terrifying dream Mac has that was very real for Amy, followed by the funeral. Then the story proper started.

I was surprised and pleased when I learned that the whole world was aware of werewolves. I have found it rare and in fact I can only think of one young adult series that does that as well: Christine Johnson’s Claire de Lune books. These books could not be more different though.

I really liked Mac. She was at once sure of herself and stupidly brave when it counted, yet she also suffered from low self-esteem. I felt bad for her, trying to hold everyone together while she was falling apart inside. I liked her older cousin Tess as well, who was her legal guardian.

Kyle was awesome even though I did not approve of some of his decisions, especially the one at the end. He would definitely be the guy I would choose though.

I liked Jason as well, but not as much as Kyle, because he was so self-destructive and he made bad decision after bad decision. But I absolutely felt for him as well.

The side characters all play interesting roles. Serena and Trey Carson and Tess’ boyfriend Ben, and various Trackers all had more to them than I suspected at first.

Speaking of the Trackers, they hunted down the infected and were supposed to send them to government-run internment camps, but Kathleen Peacock implied through her characters that the Trackers sometimes killed werewolves and humans who might get in their way.

There was also a less influential counter group called the RfW - Regs for Werewolves. It was a national network of activists who lobbied for increased werewolf rights.

Between the humans and werewolves, I noticed an “us and them” mentality as Mac described them. The masses wanted to persecute all of the werewolves while a few, like Mac, just wanted the bad ones to pay for what they have done while treating the good ones like people rather than animals.

This was definitely a theme throughout the book, but the majority of Hemlock was about Mac digging into Amy’s murder and learning things she might have preferred to have kept buried. But in the end, it was better to know.

Hemlock was a paranormal murder mystery and thriller with a mostly satisfying conclusion (the mostly has to do with one of Kyle’s decisions) and the promise of more to come.

Recommended for readers sixteen and older who enjoy paranormal and werewolf books and who want a fresh take on the genre. Some language, murder, and drugs and alcohol.

Araby Worth’s world has been rocked by a devastating plague. Everyone who can afford them wears plague masks with special filters that keep out the contagion. Life is suddenly about death and dying rather than living. Araby and her friend April, among others, listlessly float along by hanging out at the Debauchery Club in skimpy dresses and lots of make-up with plenty of alcohol and drugs at their disposal to erase their memories for a few hours. Every time she sets foot in the club, she sees Will, but it is only when April’s brother, Elliott, trades her drugs for secrets that Araby’s life starts on a new path that involves both boys and one that may change her outlook from one of death and decay to one of survival.

I had been anticipating reading Masque of the Red Death for awhile and while it did not disappoint, it did not live up to my expectations. (Edit, 24 April 2012, 5:16 PM EST: That means, my expectation was a five star book, when it turned out to be a 4 star book for me. My ratings can be found on Goodreads.)

I looked around Bethany Griffin’s website when I finished reading and I want to make it clear that Masque of the Red Death is a re-imagining, not a re-telling, and while I have never read Edgar Allan Poe’s version (I really need to!), I know this is true. I also want to make it clear that you do not need to read Poe’s version to enjoy Griffin’s re-imagining.

The setting was bleak, of course, but very interesting. I followed Araby through each chapter, moving along with a dreamlike - almost nightmarish - quality. I do my best not to mention anything that does not appear in synopses, so I just want to share that Araby experiences a huge betrayal and there is also a huge twist for some other characters.

I enjoyed the dreamy/nightmarish quality of Masque of the Red Death. I could feel the despair of Araby’s world and I cared about what happened to her. I felt like I could trust her, unlike April or Will and Elliott, who I all distrusted for different reasons, but who I also really liked.

Recommended for young adult readers sixteen and up who enjoy books based on Poe’s work as well as steampunk books. Debauchery ensues, but not as much as you think.

Young Isabel lives in Spain during the time of Torquemada and the Inquisition, but neither make her afraid. After all, her family is well-to-do, her father one of Ferdinand and Isabella’s physicians, and the Catholic faith is all Isabel knows. Until her parents arrange a marriage for her with the cold-hearted Luis and the betrothal preparations allow her to meet a Jewish person for the first time; a boy her age named Yonah. Between that and the whispers of Luis’ servants, Isabel learns about her family’s Jewish roots. When the Inquisition catches up with Isabel’s father, she knows she cannot sit idly by while he endures the unthinkable in prison, so she plans on getting him out and keeping her whole family safe.

The Last Song takes place over the duration of a year of Isabel’s young life, from age fourteen to fifteen. Told from the first person, the book explores Isabel’s coming of age during the frightening Inquisition and her enlightenment about her family’s past and how it changes her and allows her to grow as a person.

Eva Wiseman’s The Last Song was a likable enough novel and it does explore the horrors of the Inquisition and the lives it changed and destroyed. Isabel was a likable character as well and the the plot was good, but it was not overly remarkable for me.

Recommended for those interested in reading about the Spanish Inquisition in young adult form and those who want a quick historical read. Ages fourteen and up. Some non-graphic violence; more the affects after the fact.

After her mother’s death, seventeen-year-old Arabella Sharp moves in with her lady grandmother in her Kensington home. Abbie’s grandmother suggests that she perform some charity work in order to better appreciate her new life of luxury, so Abbie volunteers at Whitechapel Hospital assisting poverty-stricken women and children. Her grandmother’s plan backfires; rather than volunteer for a week and then enjoy leisure activities, Abbie chooses to continue working, genuinely enjoying the work. But work at Whitechapel Hospital becomes dangerous when Jack the Ripper strikes, brutally murdering patients of the hospital.

Amy Carol Reeves wrote Ripper in the first person from Abbie’s point-of-view. The beginning of each part of the book quoted appropriate lines from Jane Eyre, which endeared me to it even more.

I kept trying to guess who the Ripper was throughout the whole novel. I thought it could be William Siddal, one of the young physicians, because he seemed a little dangerous. Then I thought maybe it was Simon St. John, another young physician, because he was the least likely. Then I thought it could be Max Bartlett because he was even more dangerous. I even suspected Dr. Bartlett and Inspector Abberline from Scotland Yard. The point is, everyone was suspect in Ripper and Reeves’ writing was so engrossing that I was looking for Jack the Ripper in every male character.

There were definitely some shocking parts in Ripper that just made me want to scream or shout. Also, I would advise readers to not read parts of this book at night or in the dark like I did. Although Ripper is an excellent book, it is not good for bedtime reading!

As Reeves revealed more and more, I really appreciated how cleverly she wove everything together. There was even a little Tudor reference, which always makes me giddy! What she put together here is so fascinating and the epilogue indicates that more will come.

Ripper is a big historical mystery based on a gruesome time in London history that will keep readers guessing with one big difference: the reader learns the identity of Jack the Ripper.

Recommended for young adult readers sixteen and older who enjoy historical fiction and murder mysteries. Obviously, there is some violence.

Kate spends her first summer away from the Underworld in Greece with James. But her sabbatical barely begins before she is caught up in a feud that goes back for millennia. 

The Goddess Hunt is a short story meant to not only give the reader a bit of information through a side story, but to tide the reader over between The Goddess Test and Goddess Interrupted. The reader also gets the chance to hear Kate’s voice again, but with the addition of Henry’s and Pollux’s voices.

The backstory is that Pollux and Castor, the Gemini twins, were duped by Zeus. Pollux is Zeus’s son, but Castor has a different father and is mortal. Pollux pleaded with Zeus to allow Castor to share his immortality and being clever, Zeus agreed by allowing them to alternate days in the Underworld and above. Pollux thought that meant they would be together, but Zeus had other intentions.

The story begins millennia ago when Pollux broke Castor out of the Underworld and they have been on the run ever since. Now it falls to Kate to sort out their dilemma despite their distrust of her as Henry’s wife.

I enjoyed The Goddess Hunt. There are so many myths I have never heard of and the one about the Gemini twins is one of them, even though, *gasp*, I am a Gemini! So the story held extra interest for me and I loved getting a glimpse of what Kate did during her first six months away.

Recommended for fans of The Goddess Test and mythology.

Samantha Kingston is a good girl who has made some poor choices in her life that stem from her lack of popularity in elementary and early middle school and her now popular state. She has a popular, sought-after boyfriend, three popular best friends (Lindsay, Ally, and Elody), and anything else she could want as a senior in high school. Friday, February 12 is just another awesome day in her awesome life until it turns out to be her last.

But then, miraculously, she gets a second chance. Then a third, a fourth…reliving the last day of her life seven times gives her the chance to figure out the circumstances of her death and what she could lose.

In February, I downloaded the free Story Teen Crush sampler for Kindle and in between books, I decided to, well, sample. Lauren Oliver’s Before I Fall was first on the sampler and the only sample I have gotten through so far. I kept thinking the sample would be short but it kept going for like five chapters and I.could.not.stop.reading. Samantha and her friends, Lindsay, Ally, and Elody, get into a terrible and likely fatal car accident, yet everything suddenly stopped and Sam woke up in her own bed…on the tragic day she just lived through.

And it kept happening. The first time the accident happened, I was reading quickly like I was tumbling down a hill - like a snowball rolling down a hill and it gets bigger and rolls faster. That was how I was reading each time I got closer to the time when everything stopped for Sam over and over again.. It was crazy and I knew I had to keep reading the book even though I had planned on reading something else.

Also, as I read, certain things about the story and the characters kept reminding me of the movie Mean Girls, but way harsher and less comedic. Sam and her friends were the mean girls although there was more going on there than that. There were also cliques and horrible pranks and readers would think that these kids would not do this stupid crap since their school’s nickname used to be Suicide High. But they did. And they partied hard because there was nothing else to do.

Real time thought from when I was reading:

It was really interesting to see the same day over and over again from different angles and to piece things together. Seven is a very significant number in religion and in more classical literature. There is a reason Lauren Oliver had seven chapters with Sam experiencing the same day seven times. Reliving the same day seven times with Sam was a new experience for me. I loved seeing the various sides of each character and the many way things could play out just by changing a few details. It was hard to hate the main characters, especially Lindsay, after learning more about them in that one day than I would have if each day was a new one. I actually pitied a lot of the characters, liked Sam, and wished and hoped really hard that everything would work out.

At 97% through Before I Fall, I started to realize what Sam might do and I felt my eyes go as big as saucers. Wow. I just - I finished Before I Fall late at night and I could not stop wondering about the aftermath. How would everyone else feel? I found myself studying each character in my mind and imagining what they went through after. I could not stop thinking about Sam’s bravery and I ached for everything that happened. Everything worked out - just not the way I thought it would.

Recommended for everyone - especially teens - but I really do not care how old you are. The story is exceptional, the characters are well-developed, and Before I Fall will keep you glued to its pages.

The new girl at Manderly Academy is unknown but everyone takes special notice of her because the empty spot she claims at the boarding school once belonged to Becca Normandy - a girl who went missing at the end of the previous school year. It is almost as if Becca never left. Her name is on everyone’s lips. Most believe she is pulling a stunt and will show up at any minute. Others think she was murdered. The rumors are rife and make the new girl’s life at the academy suffocating. Everything she does is compared to what Becca would have done.

To make matters worse, she is falling for Max Holloway. Becca’s old boyfriend. Actually, current boyfriend, if she is to believe her new schoolmates. Overshadowed by Becca’s constant invisible presence, will the others ever see the new girl as her own person? Or will Becca return and force her to fade further away?

I found New Girl to be very interesting, especially with the story-telling devices Paige Harbison used. The story alternates between the new girl who tells her story in the first person and Becca Normandy, the girl she took the place of, whose story is told in the third person.

Interestingly, Becca only attended Manderly for one year, the year before New Girl takes place. She was new to the school but she was completely confident. The new girl is only attending Manderly for her senior year and she is completely intimidated just by being new, and then even more so because Becca overshadows her without even being present.

Are you wondering why I have not told you the new girl’s name? That is because for the majority of New Girl, it is not revealed to the reader.

I cannot tell you how unsettling it was each time I finished a chapter and realized I still did not know the main character’s name. I knew a lot about her thoughts and feelings, but a big part of her was still missing. There were names everywhere: students, teachers, family, friends…the dog even had a name. I felt like a lot of her power was taken from her by never being named, by not having a place. Like she did not exist.

Yet everyone talked about Becca all the time like she was very much still present and had not disappeared. She had a name and a very real presence while the new girl had no known name and borrowed - and in some eyes had “stolen” - the presence from a girl she never knew.

New Girl is extremely clever. It has a wonderful writing style. I felt like I was a part of the story and I could see every place clearly. Wow. Paige Harbison’s writing style really pulled me in and engaged me for the entire book. The device of Having a nameless girl until the very end and the significance of who finally revealed her name was clever and poignant. Powerful. New Girl is a must read contemporary novel (with mystery and a hint of thriller) with incredible depth. It is brilliant.

Quotes that resonated with me (two of many) and were very poignant and fit the story exactly:

Recommended for everyone! Yes, there is some underage drinking, some language (especially the “f” and “b” bombs) and sex is alluded to many times (the deed is done but not described in detail), but New Girl is so incredible and deep and about so much more than that I would love everyone to give it a go.