Anna and the French Kiss

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (NY: Dutton, 2010).

Anna's all set to enjoy her senior year in Atlanta, but then her dad decides she should go to boarding school. In Paris! She doesn't want to leave her best friend, or her job at the multiplex theater, or Toph, the guy she's been crushing on and who seems to have noticed her--finally! But her father insists, and she quickly finds herself alone in her dorm. Luckily her neighbor rescues her from a crying jag and introduces her to friends, including the immediately entrancing Etienne. Yes, he has an older girlfriend, but surely all his attention means something. Plus, Anna has to step outside her comfort zone and learn to explore a foreign city.

This is a great summer read. The romance is well developed with a dishy boy and a smart, funny heroine, and the setting is magnifique, of course! Highly recommended for ages 13 & up. Sexual situations, alcohol.

Queens of All the Earth

Queens of All the Earth by Hannah Sternberg (Baltimore: Bancroft, 2011) [reviewed from e-galley supplied by publisher via netgalley.com].

Inspired by Forster's Room with a View, Queens of All the Earth tells the story of a troubled young woman standing on the brink of her life and coming to terms with the disorder she'll have to face while on a trip to Europe. The novel quickly draws the reader into Olivia's perspective as she has a nervous breakdown on the day she is supposed to move into her dorm to begin her college career at Cornell. Her older sister Miranda tries to coax her out of her catatonic state to no avail, and even after months of rest and therapy, Olivia is still fragile. Miranda decides a change of scene in the form a trip to Barcelona will recharge Olivia. Traveling does not phase Olivia while it completely stresses Miranda who wants to control every detail. Olivia doesn't mind that their hostel accommodation is a large, co-ed room rather than the private room her sister reserved. When Miranda complains, loudly, a kind older gentleman and his broody teen son offer to switch. Miranda reluctantly agrees and does not like feeling obligated to these strangers. Olivia feels immediately drawn to the silent, broody son. Miranda befriends a bossy know-it-all named Lenny who confirms that the man and his son Greg are odd--apparently because the father is a minister and the son is quiet. Miranda also finds a sympathetic ear with Marc, who claims to be a future priest from Peru.

Sternberg's captivating descriptions of Barcelona and its impact on Olivia's mind unfold in metaphors of sunlight and physical discomfort, a somewhat surreal combination well suited to teen angst, even in the extreme form Olivia has. The poetry of e.e. cummings also infuses the novel, in the chapter titles and quotations in the text. The reasons for Olivia's breakdown become clearer as she contemplates her distant, academic mother, her older sister who is attempting to compensate for their mother, her recently dead father who left not long after she was born, and her own path as she has muscled her way toward a goal that might not even be hers without giving herself time to grow up. Her trip abroad ironically brings her closer to her true self and she is capable of making choices of her own rather than those others would push on her. Her relationship with Greg marks a new beginning for her, though Sternberg fails to develop it well and, in fact, the novel ends abruptly. Indeed, it ends so abruptly that I immediately reread Room with a View to see how it ended--much more satisfyingly, to be sure!

Overall, while Queens of All the Earth begins strongly with captivating, lyrical prose and a promising arc, it ultimately falls flat. It leaves too much undeveloped and shuts down right at the point where it should open up, especially given the portals it introduces in the first few chapters. Fine for ages 13 & up, it would make a good companion for a class studying Room with a View.

Delirium

Delirium by Lauren Oliver (NY: Harper, 2011).

Magdalena is counting the days till she has the procedure that will protect her forever from contracting the dreaded amor deliria nervosa. She knows it can kill people--her own mother proved incurable and actually committed suicide rather than submit to another attempt to alter her resistant brain. Lena's older sister tells her that the procedure will make all her days easy, an endless stream of calm with a suitable mate selected just for her. Still, Lena is nervous about the evaluation that comes a few months before the actual procedure. Her best friend Hana claims to not be worried, but even she makes a cryptic remark about knowing happiness right before they enter the laboratory. Maybe it's that comment or just the atmosphere, or her own doubts about what she might have inherited from her mother, but Lena stumbles during the evaluation, giving answers she knows will give her a low mark. Then there's an interruption...the rebels living in the Wilds outside the city have somehow herded cows into the facility, and Lena catches a glimpse of a boy with hair the color of autumn leaves who winks at her from the observation deck above the evaluation room as the mayhem ensues. Lena's remarks may go unrecorded since she'll have to retake the evaluation, but she thinks the boy may have heard what she said.

He's also seen her before, when she and Hana run through the streets. Suddenly Lena is doing things she never would have dreamed of doing in the past. She and Hana break into the grounds of the lab, trying to see how the cows got in. The boy, Alex, is a guard there and Lena again feels a tug of attraction to him. Their romance, played out against the precepts of this dystopian society that has essentially outlawed love, develops with all the delicious intensity of the forbidden. Although you know this can't end well, you will still cry at the end.

Awesome read, especially for fans of Westerfeld's Uglies series and Collins's Hunger Games trilogy. Sexual situations. Ages 13 & up.

Halo

Halo by Alexandra Adornetto (NY: Feiwel & Friends, 2010).

What's the deal with all the angel books? Is it all part of the paranormal romance binge inspired by Twilight Inc.? Whatever it is, I've read a bunch and I have to say Halo, in spite of some shortcomings, is one of the best. First, Adornetto actually researched (gasp!) angels and employs the Catholic tradition rather than a hodgepodge of random angelology. The angels in this story have actually come down from heaven, where there is an actual God. And they want to help humanity by battling dark forces, though they take a remarkably long time to pinpoint the obvious demon, especially considering they're supposed to be ultraperceptive and have all these superhuman powers.

Gabriel, Ivy, and Bethany pose as three human siblings; Gabriel and Ivy are experienced and have had many missions on earth; Bethany is a relatively young and inexperienced angel, only seventeen years old. She is the most human of them, though they're all described as ethereally beautiful. They all have wings, too, that they have to hide under their clothes (as improbable as that sounds...). Once they've acclimated to earth, Bethany starts high school, and Gabriel teaches music there. Ivy spends her time doing good in the community. The emphasis on good works and community service is probably one of the highlights of the book--definitely an excellent message for young people. From her first day at school, Bethany is attracted to Xavier Woods, and the story revolves around their burgeoning romance, which of course has many stumbling blocks. Yes, they're chaste for the most part, but there is one (unfortunate, imho) scene where they get naked. And there is some (also unfortunate) discussion of why angels and humans can't have intercourse (it'll kill the human), and Bethany has to mull that over. The plot climaxes when the dark-and-scary new kid--guess who!--kidnaps Bethany, and Xavier and Gabriel have to come to the rescue. Naturally, the novel ends with a possible new enemy on the horizon so that there can be another book in which Bethany and Xavier have to fight demons and their baser impulses, as improbable as it is that an angel would even have them.

Despite these lapses, the story itself is entertaining and the romance engaging. Bethany's naivete provides some humor, as does Xavier's rambunctious family and the normal kids at the high school. Fine for ages 13 & up.

Graceling

Graceling by Kristin Cashore (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2008).

Killing and romance--a proven combo in YA fiction--triumph again in this thrilling debut novel from Kristin Cashore. And she does it without vampires or werewolves!

Graceling is set in a fantasy world of seven countries ruled by seven kings where some people are born with special gifts--called graces. Some graces are less useful than others, but once a person is known to have a grace--marked by the eyes becoming distinctly different colors, usually at a young age--he or she is sent to the king, who may choose to exploit that grace. Katsa, the king's niece, is a killer, and her uncle has been exploiting her grace to control his subjects for years. The strong-willed Katsa has also formed a secret Council that allows her to use her grace for good, for she frequently despises her uncle's commands, and this bit of rebellion helps assuage her conscience.

As the novel opens, Katsa and two of her fellow council members have traveled to another kingdom to rescue the grandfather of another king. No one is quite sure why he's been kidnapped, but he is old and infirm and needs help, so Katsa has set out on this mission en route to another official one for the king. It is imperative that she keep her unofficial work a secret from the king, who would become enraged if he knew that Katsa was using her grace for purposes he has not condoned. The mission goes well--Katsa is able to dispatch all the guards without killing them, her preferred method, and rescue the grandfather. The only glitch: she happens upon an unexpected person, a man graced with exceptional fighting skills who sends Katsa mixed messages. She opts not to kill him, though he would be able to identify her. This man turns out to be Prince Po, who is also seeking the grandfather--his grandfather! When they meet again, Po has sought the help of Katsa's king, and Po and Katsa become sparring partners, and eventually much more.

Throughout the novel, Katsa is honing her grace, coming to terms with her power, and deciding how best to deploy it. Katsa and Po embark on a dangerous mission that could alter the lives of everyone in the seven kingdoms, for the kidnapping of the grandfather was indeed part of a grand plan to conquer all the land. Cashore masterfully weaves the themes of control--on a macro and micro level--throughout the novel, as Katsa must not only learn to control her grace, but how to deal with others who are trying to control her use of it. There is also the control dynamic woven into the culture of the kingdoms--of kings controlling land and people, and men controlling the lives of women.

This is a fabulous, exciting, breathtaking novel with strong characters and themes--grand and rewarding on many levels. Highly recommended for grades 7 & up. Violence & mild sexual situations.

Another for Austen Fans

Me & Mr. Darcy by Alexandra Potter (2007)

After too many disappointing first dates, Emily Albright has decided to give up on men and stay home with her favorite book, Pride & Prejudice, permanently. She loves her job managing an independent bookstore in NYC and really does not need a man. Her best friend Stella argues that she should try a fun holiday get away in Mexico, and even books the tickets, but Emily insists that she's got other plans, and happens to pick up a brochure for a literature tour in England the same week. And then impulsively books the tour. Where she meets Mr. Darcy in the flesh. Yum.

This is a fun read full of parallels between Emily's life and the plot line of her favorite novel. It's all pretty obvious, and eventually Emily sees it, too. Nonetheless, Austen fans will love reading this one. Adults only!