Review: Circle of Silence
Title: Circle of Silence
Author: Carol M. Tanzman
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release Date: July 24, 2012
Format: eBook from Netgalley
The biggest story of my life could be how it ends
It’s my turn to run a Campus News crew, and I’ve put together a team that can break stories wide open. And Washington Irving High has a truly great one to cover, if only we can find a lead.
A secret society has formed in our school. It announced its presence with pranks: underwear on the flagpole, a toilet in the hallway, cryptic notes. A circle of silence keeps the society a mystery. No one knows its members, agenda or initiation secrets—until a student lands in the hospital understrange circumstances.
I will blow this story wide open and stop others from being hurt… or worse. And while my ex, Jagger, might want to help, I don’t trust him yet. (And, no, not because of our past together. That is not important to this story.)
But whether you find me, Valerie Gaines, reporting in front of the camera, or a victim in the top story of the newscast be sure to watch Campus Newsat 9:00 a.m. this Friday.—from Goodreads
The reason this book appealed to me was two fold: 1) I have a master’s degree in journalism (writing, not broadcast) and 2) I’m sort of in love with HBO’s The Newsroom. So when I read the descriptive copy of this on Netgalley, I was all, IT’S THE NEWSROOM, BUT SET IN HIGH SCHOOL. YAY!
And in a lot of ways, that’s exactly what this is. Valerie Gaines is a determined, driven, has-her-shit-together kind of high schooler. She knows she wants a career in broadcast, and that she wants to go to Syracuse (which is where I went for grad school, so holla!), and that she wants to win a Student Broadcast Emmy.
So when a secret society turns up at her Brooklyn high school, it seems like the perfect opportunity. By breaking and following the developing story, she’ll get the Emmy, into ‘Cuse, and will be an up-and-comer with some buzz surrounding her.
And that’s all well and good. But it turns out that the secret society, MP, is a little more sinister than they originally seem. And people end up hurt.
In theory, I really like this. But in reading it, I felt like the story was very anti-climactic. I think of the things I didn’t like about it was that the [SPOILER ALERT, Y’ALL. AVERT THINE EYES IF YOU GET ANGRY ABOUT SPOILERY THINGS.] leader of MP, who has a few chapter from his point of view, is never revealed. I really wanted to find out who that character was and what their motivations were. And, I suppose in a way, it’s creepier if the person and their effed-up-ness is left anonymous. But, I really wanted there to be a “big reveal” of who exactly the leader was. Alas.
What was also possibly working against me is that I have not read Dancergirl, the prequel to this book. I don’t feel like my reading of this suffered that much, but I think there are probably some ah-ha! moments with characters that are in both books that were lost on me.
Overall, Circle of Silence is a realistic thriller about a girl whose determination and curiosity get her in over her head. So, if you’re looking for something that features a strong female character, journalism, and some really unhappy, mask-wearing high schoolers, then this book is for you!
Review: Pushing the Limits
Title: Pushing the Limits
Author: Katie McGarry
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release Date: July 24, 2012
Format: eBook from Netgalley
No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with “freaky” scars on her arms. Even Echo can’t remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.
But when Noah Hutchins, the smokinghot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo’s world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.
Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she’ll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.—Goodreads
Hi friends.
You see that cover up there?
IGNORE IT.
I know it’s hard to do. But still. Ignore it.
Not that this isn’t a love story. It is. But it’s not a fiery, hormone-ride of a book about lusty teenagers making out in the hallway and dry-humping each other to an inch of their lives.
Okay, maybe there’s some of that going on, but it’s *not* what this book is about.
Pushing the Limits completely bowled me over. And bawled me over. If you get nothing else from this review, know this: THIS BOOK IS AMAZING AND WILL MAKE YOU CRY.
I expected it to be a story of two effed up kids—one a cutter and one a “bad boy”—but that’s not it at all. Echo and Noah (SIDE NOTE: What is with the popularity of that name right now? I mean, it’s a great name and all, but SERIOUSLY. Noahs are in over-abundance right now.) are two teenagers whose lives have been irrevocably changed by situations that were outside of their control. Echo and Noah are both smart, charismatic, attractive, funny, talented—things that most teenagers want to be. But because of the cards that have been dealt them, those innate traits that lend themselves to popularity are drowned by the pain and confusion and anger they deal with every day.
And you guys. Pushing the Limits is maybe the most raw and real book I’ve read in a long time. Echo and Noah’s shared pain, sorrow, and frustration was tangible and really informed their relationship, which evolves from a counselor-sanctioned nuisance into a full-fledged romance. And though they seem like a mismatched pair, the truth is that they are perfect for one another because they understand and have the ability to support one another as they work through their respective situations and come out of it as better, healthier, stronger people.
But that doesn’t mean their relationship is easy.
And y’all. Noah Hutchins. It might take awhile, but he will grab your heart and never ever let it go. Just . . . be prepared.
But it’s not just the Noah and Echo who make this book great. The secondary and tertiary characters—mostly high schoolers, but also parents/teachers/adult figures—feel very real. The high schoolers cuss and drink and do drugs and party and have sex and are insanely selfish. The adults put too much pressure on their kids, or, conversely, don’t give a shit what their kids do.
I think what really struck me is that every character is selfish. Which is really just the natural state of being a human—you want to be happy because you feel that it’s your birth right, and even if your intentions are to be a good friend or an understanding, but firm parent, what you really want is for a person to act the way you want them to. In Pushing the Limits, each character does and acts and says the things they need to, and even if it has a negative impact, the author never blames that person. The characters stand on their own, and it’s up to the reader to judge. I really dug that.
Also, if ABC Family or The CW doesn’t option this book as a TV show, then they are bonkers. (Seriously, literary scouts, GET ON THIS. Just make some sort of contractual provision that Katie McGarry be a script supervisor. Because if a studio screwed this one up, I would be THE ANGRY.)
Overall, this book is really incredible. If you’re looking for a contemporary that will challenge your thinking, make you cry sob, and introduce you to characters that feel like they could walk out of the book into real life, then Pushing the Limits is the ticket.
Review: The Demon Catchers of Milan
Title: The Demon Catchers of Milan
Author: Kat Beyer
Publisher: Egmont USA
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Format: eBook from Netgalley
Mia’s ordinary life is disrupted in the most horrifying way possible when she is possessed by a hungry and powerful demon—and only saved by the arrival of relatives from Italy, the country her grandfather fled many decades ago. Now her cousins Emilio and Giuliano say the only way to keep her safe is for her to come back with them to Milan, to live, to learn Italian, to fall in and out of love, and to master the family trade: fighting all demons with the lore of bell, book, and candle. Milan is not what Mia expected, but it will change her forever, in this stunningly well-written novel about an American girl who, fleeing an ancient evil, finds her only salvation in her ancestral home.—Goodreads
This is not your typical YA novel.
The pacing, the character development, the themes, the events—everything about this book is languorous and leisurely. Which is interesting on two counts: 1) it’s about demon possession, which isn’t a topic typically associated with the word leisure, and 2) it’s set in Milan, a city that is famous for it’s slower-than-most-21st century places pace.
But, everything about this book works. Though the book opens with a completely creeptastic demon point-of-view, the rest of it is methodical, and deeply rooted in familial relations and self-discovery.
Again, not what I’d expect from a book about demon possession. But that’s what it’s about. It’s more of a look at a deeply loyal, incredibly respected Italian family of demon catchers—people who are not part of the Catholic church, but assist in performing exorcisms.
Though it’s a subject that is terrifying to think of, I didn’t find this book frightening. The approach is more of helping people, and the demons, so that they can both move on. Obviously that’s easier said than done, and it turns out that this particular family has a demon that is all kinds of out to get them. So much so that it possesses Mia, the American cousin of the Italian family.
So Mia moves to Italy to stay safe. The part of the book that I took issue with was how much the family kept from her. You’d think that if you’re a family of demon catchers, and a family member is possessed, you’d tell them everything you possibly could so that that person would be prepared to protect herself, if need be. But no. They insist that she study and read and learn Italian and not go outside by herself. It’s frustrating both for the character and for the reader.
But, the up-side of the isolation is that Mia deeply bonds with the rest of her family, learning to speak, cook, dress, and live as they do. And it’s in her family that she discovers who she really is and who she aspires to be.
Overall, this book is steeped in history, has enough action to keep the pace moving, but also provides a reading experience that feels like you’re slowly growing with Mia as she discovers and learns and proves herself. So, if you’re looking for a read that is methodical and a bit creepy, definitely check out The Demon Catchers of Milan.
TGIF: Unexpected (Literary) Pleasures
My sister comes to visit me today!!!
*cue extra-awesome sister/Friday dance*
Unexpected Books: Which books did you have reservations about reading, but ended up loving once you did?
Saving June by Hannah Harrington
This is pretty much my go-to book about, like, anything. I effing love it. But! It’s about a teenager reeling from her sister’s out-of-nowhere suicide. I do *not* deal well with death. I don’t read death books. Nuh-uh. I just…can’t. But everyone I follow on Twitter was all like OMG THIS BOOK YOU GUYS OMG OMG OMG, and so I naturally had to know what they were talking about so I could butt in and feel like a cool Twitter kid even though it was a dreaded Death Book. But my drive to be a Cool Twitter Kid outweighed by dread for this book, so I read it. And it was good.
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
I pretty much lump War Books in the same category as Death Books, for reasons that I’m pretty sure are clear. And one summer I was on this kick to read Modern Classics. And there was this list of them, and as you can probably guess, many of them were War Books, which I trudged through and ended up having really graphic nightmares because of. And then I got to Catch-22 and I was like I CANNOT. So I didn’t for a long time. And then the goal-setting side of my brain started guilting the overly-sensitive side of my brain and somehow I bullied myself into reading it. And it was good. (Shockingly funny!)
Maus by Art Spiegelman
At think point you’re thinking, STOP IT. WE GET YOU NOW. TOTALLY UNDERSTAND YOU DON’T LIKE DEATH AND DESTRUCTION. Which isn’t totally true, because I really weirdly love Shiva the Destroyer and the Knossos Snake Goddess, which no one really understands exactly but she can’t be good if she’s a snake goddess. ANYWAY. I did not want to read Maus because not only is it about war and death, it is about THE HOLOCAUST, which I *really* don’t deal with well. And also, it’s a graphic novel.
At the time, I was required to read this for a college class and I thought the professor was nuts. We were in COLLEGE. Why were we reading a CARTOON BOOK? About the HOLOCAUST? Didn’t she UNDERSTAND just how SERIOUS the subject was?! GOD.
But I was too chicken to tell her I refused to read it on moral and ethical grounds because she was very revered in our department and I really wanted her to like me. (And she did. We bonded over Russian despots and Monty Python. It’s cool.) So I grudingly read Maus. And it was good.
And now I will stop taking up your Friday. I wish you blessings and sunshine and lots of time in pajamas and air conditioning this weekend. (I will be at Six Flags. In NEW JERSEY. So enjoy the pajamas and a/c for me, k?)
TGIF is a weekly meme hosted by Ginger at GReads!
Tune in Tuesday: Jason Mraz
I often find myself stuck listening to the same music over and over again.
Well, not “stuck.” I like the music I listen to. But I don’t always branch out because I’m so completely happy listening to the stuff I’ve been listening to for months that I don’t even think that it’s worth looking for anything else.
The last few months I’ve been gorging myself on The Head and the Heart, Of Monsters & Men, The Lumineers, Margot and the Nuclear So and So’s, and Milo Greene. And it’s been a satisfying time. I haven’t been feeling like I need to branch out.
And then the other day I was listening to the radio, only because I was in a hurry and decided I didn’t have time to turn on Pandora, and I heard this song.
And I’m in love with it.
Happy Tuesday everyone!
Tune in Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Ginger at GReads!
Bethany Larson 