Newest Teens Reviews
Teens
Such Wicked Intent (Victor Frankenstein) by Kenneth Oppel
Such Wicked Intent takes us to a few months after the shocking conclusion to Victor Frankenstein's alchemical attempt to save his brother's life in This Dark Endeavour. The Dark Library has been burned and the entire family is trying to move on. Elizabeth is secretly considering joining a convent. Henry is making plans to travel abroad with his merchant father. Victor's parents are trying to come to terms with everything but his mother is finding it particularly difficult. Full review...
The Blessed by Tonya Hurley
Three girls all find themselves in the emergency room at Perpetual Help Hospital on Halloween. Agnes - the hopeless romantic -- has just tried to take her own life. Cecilia -- the runaway rocker -- found drowned, face down in a puddle. Finally, Lucy -- spoilt rich party girl -- overdose. These three girls have never met each other before, and have nothing in common, until they all meet the mysterious Sebastian. He brings the girls together, and gives each of them what they have been searching for. But in the fight for his heart, will they lose something more important? Full review...
Tarzan: The Jungle Warrior by Andy Briggs
Rokoff, the world’s most notorious hunter is in Africa, to snatch a baby gorilla from its family. When he does so, it’s left to Tarzan to chase across several countries to rescue the youngster, Karnath. But there may be danger closer to hand – can all of the wild man's friends be trusted? Full review...
Cassie's Crush by Fiona Foden
Cassie falls head over heels for the new boy at school from the first moment she sets eyes on him. The only problem is, her crush makes her so nervous she can barely even pluck up the courage to say hello, let alone ask him out. With a bit of help from her friends, can she convince Ollie she's the girl for him? Full review...
Rebel Heart (Dustlands) by Moira Young
Saba has retrieved her brother Lugh, kidnapped by the Tonton, but at great cost. She's haunted by dreams of Epona, the friend she killed during the battle so that she wouldn't fall into enemy hands. Lugh is clearly damaged - affected by captivity in ways he just won't discuss. And she misses Jack, who has gone to tell Molly that Ike is dead, with a deep, inconsolable desperation. Travelling through the Waste is difficult, made even more difficult by the ghosts that haunt Saba's dreams. Halting at the camp of a seer, the party is reunited with Maev, who brings terrible news. Not only is there a price on Saba's head, and a terrible new leader for the Tontons, but Jack has changed sides and joined the enemy... Full review...
Gods and Warriors (1) by Michelle Paver
Oh, I'm so glad this series has finally arrived! Paver's Chronicles of Ancient Darkness about Torak and Renn and Wolf is my absolute favourite middle grade sequence of recent years. Michelle has a such a way of writing. Her books are identifiably children's books - there's no diluting attempt at crossover fiction. Her research is impeccable but she uses it to flavour and colour her stories, never to be didactic. She writes from the point of view of animals but is never twee and anthropomorphic. Her characters - human and animal - are truly alive; vital and colourful and, as in all good children's books, called upon to show extraordinary courage. There's a little bit of magic but not enough to get in the way of the story or the characters, and it's all in keeping with prehistoric, superstitious societies. Full review...
Dark Thread by Pauline Chandler
Kate is an artisan weaver, like her mother. But she is so full of grief and guilt that she can't even think about returning to her craft. Because Kate's mother died in a road accident and Kate thinks it was all her fault. And, all of a sudden, everything gets too much - the kindly-meant but oppressive sympathy - and Kate collapses. She wakes, still at the mill, but in a long-past time. Here, Kate must learn to weave the dark threads of her life into its overall picture. Until she does, she can't return home... Full review...
Love at Second Sight by Cathy Hopkins
Jo is tired of being 'Miss Tag Along' as friends Effy and Tash hang out with their boyfriends. Jo has never had much luck in the love life department. Yes there's Owen, Effy's brother - but though they get on so well, and are so perfect for each other (according to everyone else) Jo's never really felt that special something with him, that spark. Full review...
A Witch in Love by Ruth Warburton
Anna has sworn off magic since she accidentally bewitched Seth into falling in love with her. He's convinced the spell has been lifted and his feelings for her are genuine - but she's not so sure. Anna might want to be finished with magic, though - but it keeps leaking out. When a visit to her old home reveals that someone placed a powerful spell which was the reason she didn't discover her abilities until coming to Winter, she's left wishing she knew more about her family history. As if that wasn't enough, the Ealdwitan are still taking an interest in her and she's also being threatened by a group of 'outwiths' who appear to have found out her secret... Full review...
Grymm by Keith Austin
Mina and Jacob are step siblings. Unwilling ones. Mina thinks Jake is a mummy's boy. Jake thinks Mina is weird and witchy. In fact, the only thing these two can agree upon is that they both dislike new baby Bryan even more than they dislike one another. And who could blame them? Not only does Bryan take up all the attention of both parents, but he's also a colicky baby who cries from morning 'til night. And when he's not crying, he's farting and pooing and polluting the air with the foulest of smells. So when Dad takes a three-month contract at a mine on the edge of the Great Desert, neither Mina nor Josh are pleased to learn they'll be spending their summer in the back end beyond. With each other. And Bryan. Full review...
The Wizard of Crescent Moon Mountain by Oldman Brook
Greybeard is the wizard of Crescent Moon Mountain and when we first meet him he's expecting guests at his home. The first to arrive are three dwarfs, Wattlespalf, Gendralf and Igralf and whilst they might not be the most becoming of creatures they have expertise with some unusual weaponry. Not long afterwards they're followed by Forrester and Stryker. The two young men arrive in human form but the reality, as we'll find out, is that they're shape-shifters. The six thought that the gathering was complete but they're joined by two elves as a result of a dramatic rescue mission. That the two boys survived the snows which surround the wizard's house is surprising enough, but elves have been extinct for thousands of years and Finn and his younger brother Beezle arrive through an accident in time. Full review...
Whisper by Chrissie Keighery
Demi is starting a new school. It's a nervous time whenever this happens - but the reason she's moving is because an attack of meningitis 18 months ago left her profoundly deaf. She's learnt to sign, she's learnt how to deal with the problems that crop up every day - but will she ever learn to accept who she is now? Full review...
Silenced by Simon Packham
Soon after the death of his best friend and comedy double-act partner Declan, Chris loses the ability to speak. The rest of his class are initially sympathetic but quickly turn on him – with the exceptions of new boy Will, and Declan’s ex-girlfriend Ariel. Can Chris find his voice – and tell someone what actually happened on the night that Declan died? Full review...
Soonchild by Russell Hoban
Sixteen-Face John needs all sixteen faces to cope with his many fears. He's an Inuit shaman but all that shaman stuff got a bit too much - especially considering the fear thing - and so these days in the North, he spends more time drinking Coca Cola and watching TV than he does shamanising. It's less anxious that way. But there's a problem. John's wife, No Problem, is pregnant, and their Soonchild is refusing to come out. John must go on a dream journey to rescue the World Songs if Soonchild is ever to be born. Full review...
Goliath by Scott Westerfeld
This is 1914 and there is a World War going on, but this is not the WWI we know of. While a lot of it concerns allies and enemies in common with our reality, disagreement also surrounds one's nature and attitude to technology - Clankers have mechanical, industrial inventions, while Darwinists have more natural help, from huge flying whale-type creatures down to lizards taught to personally deliver voice messages that mimic the sender, and fleets of attack bats and birds. On one such zepellin-type beast is Austro-Hungarian Prince Alek, caught up in the war against his will by his parents' death, and his best friend, about whom he actually knows far too little. He knows even less of another passenger it picks up - a scientist in electricity and mechanics, who says he is giving his ultimate prize - a machined weapon mighty enough to cease the war for good - to the Darwinists... Full review...
Between The Lines by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer
Delilah is a teenager who probably should have moved beyond fairy stories, but there’s one in particular that has her hooked. Between the Lines – a book within a book – is a classic story of a prince searching for true love and battling all sorts of dragons and demons on the way, and for Delilah it’s the perfect escape. Plus, the handsome hero, Prince Oliver, doesn’t hurt. Like Delilah he’s growing up without a father (though this matters far less to him than it does to her) and like Delilah he can feel something of an outsider, a little bit different from everyone else around. One day, as Delilah is reading the story for the umpteenth time, she gets the odd feeling that Oliver is talking back to her from the pages. But could there really be a whole other world that goes on between the pages when the book is closed, are they all just characters acting out the script of the story but different people when the spotlight is off, and is there a chance that, between the lines, there’s a lot going on that is not for readers to know about? Full review...
Spy for the Queen of Scots by Theresa Breslin
Jenny is not only a lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots; she's also one of her oldest and closest friends, brought up with her at the French court during Mary's long betrothal to the Dauphin. Jenny is fiercely loyal to Mary and so, when she overhears a whispered conversation about poison, she decides to turn spy for her queen. The French court is full of plotting and spying but, when Mary returns to Scotland after her young husband dies, Jenny discovers the warring clans of Scotland present her mistress with even more danger. Full review...
Signs of Love: Stupid Cupid by Melody James
Gemma is still stuck writing horoscopes for the school webzine instead of any real journalism – but that may be about to change, as she’s given the chance to work with an older student on an actual article. The only problem is, the older student is the seriously annoying Will – but putting up with him is a small price to pay for the chance to see her name in print. Of course, she’s already the star of the webzine in many ways – but her role as Jessica Jupiter is still top secret, so barely anyone else knows this. Can she use her column to sort out Savannah’s love dilemma in the same way she so successfully helped out Treacle in the last book? Full review...
My Brother Simple by Marie-Aude Murail
Kleber is just starting his second year of sixth form in Paris and is looking for a flatshare. For most boys, this would be an exciting time, full of possibilities. But for Kleber, it's problematic. He comes as a twosome with Simple, his older brother. Simple has learning difficulties and the boys' father, just remarried, had packed him off to a residential centre. Simple hated it there and Kleber suspected the staff of neglect. Despite being just seventeen, he's decided to take his brother on. Full review...
When It Happens by Susane Colasanti
Sara and Tobey are both in their last year of high school. Sara is fairly straight-laced but is determined to reinvent herself and win over the hunky Dave. Tobey is a musically gifted slacker with a crush on Sara. Told from their alternating points of view, When It Happens is a contemporary romance featuring an older pair of characters than most teen books and I was really looking forward to seeing them juggle the stirrings of love with the problems of planning for their future. Full review...
The Vampire of Highgate by Asa Bailey
Kathy Bilic can barely remember the sister she was separated from when they were tiny. An ocean lies between them – she’s been adopted by an American couple and Amber is living in London. When she hears that Amber has gone missing, though, and receives a mysterious package, she flies to London to see if she can help to find her sister. Full review...
City of Swords (Stravaganza) by Mary Hoffman
Laura's unhappiness is hidden away where no-one can see it. But she does have a release. She knows cutting herself is wrong, but the relief it provides is addictive. But Laura's secretive life is upturned by the discovery that she is a Stravagante - a person who can travel through time and space. Transported to sixteenth century Fortezza, she finds herself in the middle of a bitter battle for succession to the city's dukedom. The Stravaganti are supporting Princess Lucia but Laura also meets Ludo, the pretender, and is immediately drawn to him. And at home in Barnsbury, Laura's life is changing too, now she is a part of the time-travelling community. Full review...
Turf by John Lucas
Fifteen-year-old Jay is a member of the Blake Street Boyz gang. He and his best friend Milk spend their time selling drugs, marking their turf and dreaming about graduating from the gang's Youngers to its Olders. And in a world where something as insignificant as the choice of a chocolate bar can mean the difference between respect and contempt, it's not surprising that Jay treads very carefully. Every choice, no matter how small, is a statement. So when he is finally given the chance of joining the Olders, he can't afford to mess it up. But the task is murder. And suddenly there are no choices left... Full review...
Moon Crossing by Cathy Farr
Wil Calloway returns to Saran in the most unwelcome of circumstances. Tally, Lady Elanor's young sister, has been abducted by the evil Lord Rexmoore in an attempt to find the whereabouts of the Legacy. Tally doesn't know it, but that won't save her. So Wil has come to rejoin his Fellmen friends and mount a rescue mission. But it's not going to be easy. Gisella and Mortimer aren't talking. Seth is as accident-prone as ever. And Leon and his father are still deeply suspicious about Wil's part in Giles's death during the last Moon Chase. Full review...
Strong Winds Trilogy: Ghosting Home by Julia Jones and Claudia Myatt
We first met Donny Walker in The Salt-Stained Book as he and his mother Skye left their home on the outskirts of Leeds and headed off to the Suffolk coast. When his deaf-and-mute mother had a breakdown fourteen-year-old Donny was taken into care and the only good thing in his life was that he was introduced (almost accidentally) to sailing. He was a natural. The worst parts of his life were that he wasn't allowed to see his mother and no matter what he did he seemed to keep running foul of Social Services and a certain police inspector. Something was going on, but could Donny and his new friends work out what it was? And would his great Aunt, known as Golden Dragon, be able to help him when she arrived in her boat Strong Winds? Full review...
Wentworth Hall by Abby Grahame
The year is 1912, and the Darlingtons of Wentworth Hall are a rich family who are going through some problems at the moment. The financial ones are bad enough, as are the secrets kept by various family members and servants, but it's the Sussex Courier column which seems to be based on the household which is the final straw. Will all of their mysteries finally be exposed? Who on earth could be responsible for writing it? The groom who wants to be more than a servant to the family's beautiful elder daughter, the French nanny with a secret, the new visitors who have riches of their own, or someone else entirely? Full review...
Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
Years ago, Taylor Edwards and her family would visit their old lake house by the beach for the summer. It was an idyllic setting, she had close friends there, and there was lots of fun to be had. Then she had a falling-out with best friend Lucy and an awkward moment with the boy she liked, Henry… and she hasn’t been back there in five years. This summer, she’s finally going back – because her dad is dying of cancer and wants to spend his last few months in a place he loves, surrounded by his family. Will she take the second chance to rebuild her relationships with the people around her? Full review...
All Fall Down by Sally Nicholls
It’s the summer of 1349. Isabel lives her young life as a villein, tied to the land which the family rents from the Lord of the small village of Ingleform in Yorkshire. Leaving is not an option. Life as a villein is hard, but nothing has prepared Isabel for the all-consuming Black Death decimating everything in its path as it sweeps across Europe. But when the plague runs riot across all of Britain, finally reaching her town, life there is devastaed. It seems the world will end in a wave of fear, pestilence and horror. Full review...
Mortal Chaos: Deep Oblivion by Matt Dickinson
Based on the concept that something as small as the beating of a butterfly's wings can set in motion an intricate series of interconnected events, involving people around the globe, Deep Oblivion narrates a day in the life of a security guard, a homeless girl, a fireworks expert, a cruise ship captain, a monk, a missionary, a brutal military commander, and a couple of professional thieves, all of whom are somehow linked. Those who are familiar with the series know that it ends with a massive pay-off, and you will not be disappointed by the chaos and destruction of the conclusion. Many characters die, and even among those who survive very few are left unchanged. Full review...
A Greyhound of a Girl by Roddy Doyle
Mary's life seems full of grief at the moment. Her grandmother, whom she loves dearly, is dying in hospital, and at the very moment when she needs the comfort of a good friend, her bestie Ava has had to move away. But unlike many young fictional heroines, Mary has a strong and loving family to support her, and it is with them that she shares this glorious adventure. Full review...
The Spook's Blood: Book 10 (Wardstone Chronicles) by Joseph Delaney
One might've thought that having bound The Devil in a massive underground pit and cut his head off, life would become a little easier for Thomas Ward, Spook in-training. Although the Fiend has undoubtedly been weakened, he has many loyal servants set on putting him back together so that he can reap terrible eternal vengeance on the few brave enough to fight him. While witch assassin Grimalkin, a dark and unlikely ally, evades the Fiend's minions and keeps his head separate from his body, it is up to Tom, Alice and The Spook to work out a way to destroy him permanently. But Grimalkin cannot run forever, and the Fiend's most powerful servants are encircling Tom and his allies, forcing them to fight with everything they have, just to survive. Full review...
The Glimpse by Claire Merle
Ana's Dad helped invent the DNA test that helps to divide Society into two categories: Pures and Crazies. Pures are people who are 'normal', and Crazies are people who carry genes for depression, schizophrenia and other mental illnesses. Having lived as a Pure all her life, when Ana finds out her test was wrong her world falls apart. Now, marrying Jasper, a Pure-boy, is her only chance of a normal life. But will Jasper still want her now she's a Crazy? Full review...
Seraphina by Rachel Hartman
The Comonot Treaty is approaching its 40th anniversary but the state of play between humans and dragons is still parlous. The people in Goredd still revile and distrust the dragons who walk among them in human form. For the dragons, humans are like cockroaches - easily crushed individually, but surprisingly resilient when they band together. Humans are impulsive, emotional. Dragons are impassive, logical. It's not an easy fit and the fragile peace is at risk after the murder of a Goreddi prince. Dragons are suspected of the crime. Full review...
The Seeing by Diana Hendry
It's 1956 when Natalie comes storming into the quiet seaside town of Norton and slap-bang into Lizzie's life. Natalie is from the wrong side of the tracks and reserved, well-to-do Lizzie is immediately drawn to this unconventional girl who wears her poverty and neglect like a badge of courage. As the two girls grow closer over the summer, Natalie reveals a shocking secret - her odd younger brother Philip has the gift of second sight and can see "left over Nazis" lying in wait, ready to start another war when the time is right. Natalie says it's up to the three of them to rid Norton of these LONs. Full review...
