Nightshade -- Alexandra Lopez

 

Nightshade

by Andrea Cremer

Reveiwed by Alexandra Lopez

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she would be mated to the alpha wolf, Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything- including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice.

I loved the lore they used for werewolves; however I was too keen on our Heroine Calla. She was clichéd, falling for a human at one of the worst times. She falls for a human she saved, which was a big no-no. But overall I loved the side characters; they seemed better developed than Calla. Maybe because I’m not too fond of romance, but it didn’t seem believable. From what I tool was that Calla loved him. She said it was meant to be. The romance was forced and the book would have done better without it.

 I liked Ren better than Shay. Ren was a jerk, but he knew what was important. His views were twisted, but he had conviction and that’s what I liked most about him. He was just boring; there was nothing interesting about him. Then now that I think about it, maybe that’s why she loved him. Shay was different, he was human after all. He was normal, something Calla would never be, or at least experience. Still, Shay was boring, nothing would change that.

Perfect Chemistry- Review by Sarah Gnefkow

Perfect Chemistry

by Simone Elkeles

***** Stars

Brittany Ellis is the most popular girl in the school. But underneath her life isn't so great, she has to keep up the image that her school life, home life, and family life is all perfect. In chemistry class she is partnered with the schools bad boy, Alex Fuentes. He is in a gang and has the image of doing drugs, getting arrested, and selling but just like Brittany he really isn't what he seems. Alex decides to make a bet with his friends that he can get with Brittany, he does this with no hesitation. But what Alex didn't realize was that Brittany was much more than money and being perfect, he discovered that her life was anything but that. Soon the bet he had made with his friends has turned into much more than he'd expected. They will have to face the reality of getting past the stereotypes and judgments of their families and fellow peers to be together. But will love be enough?

I loved this book, and a lot of my other friends did too! I did not want to put this book down at all and when I wasn't reading it I was always wondering what was going to happen next with Brittany and Alex. The book was written with alternate speakers, it would switch paragraphs back and forth between Brittany and Alex's point of views. I never wanted this book to end. The only thing that I was disappointed with about this book was the way it ended because I wanted to know more about what happened with them! All in all I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes excitement and romance.

Ever -- a review by Amy Lyon

Ever

By: Gail Carson Levine

* star

From the author of bizarre romances comes yet another. Ever is the story of the Akkan god of wind, Olus following his fascination with humans and interacting with a certain family, out of his territory. This family’s most important member, at least in Olus’s eyes, is Kezi, the daughter who weaves exceptionally. Unfortunately, her father makes a promise to their god that if his wife becomes well, he will sacrifice the first person to congratulate him on his wife’s returned health. Not being able to handle the possible death her aunt, Kezi congratulates her father before her aunt can, forfeiting her own life. Olus is disbelieving, but determined to change her supposed destiny. Thus ensues the frantic race against time to make her immortal before her mortal life ends.

While I enjoyed Levine’s Fairest, I didn’t think this confused jumble could be considered a novel. The summary grabbed me, but the story itself didn’t live up to it. Her idea had potential; it just was not executed well. There was a lot of rambling nonsense about destiny and love, not much substance to this story. This book was far too frou-frou for my tastes, even being a romance. I was disappointed and I wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone over the age of ten.

Amy L.