A book review by Alison

In this third book of the Healing Wars Trilogy, the time has finally come for Nya to fight the Duke, but is she ready? After impatiently waiting at Jeater’s farm for any information regarding her sister or the Duke, Nya knows she must fight for it is the only way to save her family and her people. She then embarks on a journey to Geveg, in hopes to reach its inhabitants before the Duke. There, Nya finds herself surrounded by pain, people willing to fight and Gevegians, who would like to use her as a weapon. Suddenly Nya finds herself in way over her head. How is she supposed to fight the Duke and save her sister? Will Nya be able to rise up as the leader or will all of the Three Territories come crumbling down under the Duke’s rein.

Darkfall by Janice Hardy is the final installment in The Healing Wars Trilogy, which is a thrilling novel that will have readers guessing the ending until the final page is turned. Above all they will wonder, who will triumph, Nya or the Duke?

A book review by Jack

For over 50 years, Miss Peregrine’s and her peculiar children have lived inside their loop, hiding from the Monsters that threaten to turn them ordinary. Preserved in their youth, the children and their caretaker, never age. When a peculiar leaves a Loop, time will catch up with them and they will quickly age. This is what Jacobs’s grandfather does after he got tired of living inside the Loop and decided to try and fight the monsters. After raising a family, and living a nice long life, the monsters find him, and take away not only his peculiar ability, but also his life.

As his grandfather dies, he tells Jacob to “Go to the Island… find the Bird. In the Loop. On the other side of the old man’s grave. September third, 1940” (p.33) Puzzled by these words, Jacob embarks on an adventure to find out about his grandfathers mythical childhood. Soon, Jacob and his father find themselves on “… the Island”, a remote place, off the coast of Wales. After exploring the island and the ruins of Miss Penegrine’s, Jacob suspects that the children are not alive any more. As he continues to explore, Jacob gets dragged into the Loop of Miss Pengrine, September 3, 1940. Inside this loop, he finds all the peculiar children of Miss Peregrine. But as a terrible danger threatens Miss Peregrine and her children, Jacob must choose between his family in the present or his friends from the past.

Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children is Ransom Riggs first novel. It will please any young adult boy or girl, who is interested in suspenseful mysteries. Despite the unusual cover picture and the similar ones that lie within the pages, Miss Peregrines Home for Peculiar Children is not a scary book and it can be read after the sun goes down without giving the reader nightmares.

A book review by Jack

For years, the universe has been at war with the Mogadorians, a tribe of fierce monsters who will stop at nothing to complete their gruesome tasks. Finally, the war has come to the planet of Lorien, and the Mogadorians quickly destroy the peaceful planet. With the planet in ruins, the ten ruling Elders, put the fate of Lorien in the hands of nine Garde, who have been gifted with extraordinary talents, and their wise guardians. These eighteen Loric aliens left for Earth, in hopes that they can help Lorien survive. Now, years later, the Mogadorians have found and killed three of the nine Garde, and they are now after Number Four.

John Smith is not a normal kid, but instead a member of the Garde. He is a high school student who is always on the move making it impossible to settle down and make new friends. Not only is John an extraterrestrial from the planet of Lorien, he is Number Four, the next Garde on the Mogadorian's killing list.

When John Smith receives his third scar, warning him of another dead Garde, he and his guardian, Henri, pack-up and move to the isolated town of Paradise, Ohio. Here, John tries to fit in, and by doing so, he meets the geekish, Sam Goode, and the beautiful, Sarah Hart; soon the three of them form an unlikely bond and become close friends. Intrigued by their friend's strange story, Sarah and Sam vow to help him in any way they can. But in the little town of Paradise trouble soon finds them.

What will happen to the fate of John Smith? Pittacus Lore does a great job drawing the reader into fantastic story. This book will please anyone; boy or girl, young or old, who is a fan of adventure and/or science fiction novels. I am Number Four is the first book in what looks like a fantastic new series.

A book review by Alison

Gone, vanished; ceased to exist. These are the words that Nin uses to describe what happened to her brother, Toby. One day, she wakes up, and instantly noticed something was off. Usually her pesky bother was up early making noises throughout the still and quiet house, but she soon finds that he and his stuff are nowhere to be found. Asking all around, she finally concludes that no one can remember the annoying brother she now misses, and if that isn't bad enough, the kidnapper who took Toby is coming after her too. Suddenly, no one recognizes Nin, and she too has vanished from the memory of her loved ones. As the story unfolds, she finds herself on the run from the captor and in a place called the Drift. The Drift is filled with magical creatures that are slowly being killed by a terrible plague. Suddenly Nin finds herself battling enemies as she gets closer and closer to her brother and uncovering the ancient secret of the seven sorcerers. But will her rivals be able to stop her from saving the person she loves most, while keeping a prehistoric secret buried forever? Seven Sorcerers by Caro King is an exciting novel for anyone interested in a fun mystery, intertwined with old magic.

A book review by Jack

One August night, a Reporter from a small town newspaper sits down with El Gato, a World Cup winning goalkeeper and listens as El tells the story of his life. The evening begins with El describing his childhood in the jungles of South America, the place he once called home. In El's town, all the boys played soccer after school. When the boys got together, they each gave themselves nicknames of the great soccer players they saw on TV. El was given the unfortunate nickname of La Cigüeña, which means the stork, who is best known for having lousy footwork. In his discouragement and despair, he quit the game at age 13 and began spending time exploring the jungle. On his first trip, he came upon a 'mystical' clearing, and in that clearing, he finds a ghostly spirit called The Keeper. For two years, El is taught by The Keeper everything he needed to know about the game of soccer. Sadly, in El's village, it is mandatory for all boys turning 15 to join the men in working at the local logging camps, and El was no exception. On their days off, he began playing soccer again with other workers from the camp. In doing so, he was able to show off the skills he learned from The Keeper and attracted the attention of the head coach of the San Juan Soccer Team. El goes on to describe his life as a young emerging soccer star and all the exciting events that occur as he is sent from San Juan to play on major European teams. As the morning began to dawn, El and the Reporter watch the replay of the Would Cup game that he won for his team in an intense shoot out. As El spoke about what it felt like to be part of successful team he discovers how much the spirit really taught him back in jungle when he was just a boy. He also learned of the astonishing truth about who The Keeper really is.

A book review by Alison

How would you feel if you found out, after recovering from an accident, that in order for you to live, your dad has filled your body with an illegal substance? That’s how life is for 17-year old Jenna Fox, who has just awoke from a year long coma and is still recovering after living through a car crash that doctors didn’t expect her to survive. Jenna is made up of an illegal substance called Bio Gel that goes undetected and replaces body parts that are no longer functional. Jenna has lost everything, her organs, tissue, blood cells, and nearly all of her brain. The Adoration of Jenna Fox, by Mary E. Pearson tells a story of someone who has forgotten everything, and then slowly begins to remember. But along with her returned memories come questions. Questions that people don’t want her to know the answer to. Jenna must struggle to learn about who she really is, as she is forced to remember the terrible accident.