ARC Review: Through the Zombie Glass (White Rabbit Chronicles #2) by Gena Showalter

Inspired by the childhood classic Alice in Wonderland, this harrowing and romantic story features teen zombie slayer Alice Bell who has lost so much—family, friends, her home. After a strange new zombie attack, Alice fears she may be losing her mind as well. A terrible darkness blooms inside her, urging her to do wicked things. The whispers of the dead assault her ears and mirrors seem to come frighteningly to life. She’s never needed her team of zombie slayers more—including her boyfriend, Cole—than she does now. But as Cole strangely withdraws and the zombies gain new strength, Ali knows one false step may doom them all.

From Goodreads

Alice Bell has been through a nightmare in the last few months. Coming to grips with the fact that your dad wasn't nearly as crazy as you thought because the monsters he was constantly protecting his family from really are real, losing said family all the same, & discovering your true purpose as a slayer would shake anyone. Ali is resilient though. While still settling into her new surrounds with Grams & working around the clock between school and slaying, Ali is still managing to enjoy time with her friends and most importantly Cole.

But there's always a rabbit hole waiting just around the corner for the smart-mouthed heroine. The zombies are becoming bolder & so the slayers follow suite. Unfortunately that boldness leads to accidents. When Ali begins to have cravings for violence and attacking her friends, they all know something's wrong. The clock is ticking & right when she needs them the most, those most capable of helping her are pulling away, especially Cole. 

This was another wonderful installment in the White Rabbit Chronicles series. You've all read my rants & raves about Gena Showalter's other works, so it comes as no surprise that this book is just as riveting as the rest. Her ability to breathe such life into these complex & mysterious characters is something that has always mesmerized me.

We pick up not long after we left the gang in Alice in Zombieland. That being said, things quickly continue on as we hit the ground running with zombie fights & drama. School does not play nearly as large a roll in this book as the first one because it's no longer needed as the buffer between Ali & the slayers. As a full-fledged slayer, with some awesome abilities, Ali is a force to be reckoned with on the field and off. Her personality squares off regularly with Cole's in a sort of dance. Everyone else seems to play off of their vibe for the most part.

I have to say that the storyline got very interesting this go around. Since we already have the back story and are up to speed, we got to spend a lot more time learning about the characters and their histories in and outside of slaying. With a few new players on the board, things heat up romantically and plotwise quickly. 

The most incredible thing though is the multifaceted way that Gena can write her characters. Everyone has an alter ego in this book, a sort of different front they put up depending on who/what they're dealing with at the moment. It becomes crucial to the reading to pay attention to those clues because they'll lead you to the right answer. Otherwise you might find yourself really surprised by what's going on.

With witty dialogue that keeps you flipping from page to page and just enough steamy romance to qualify as PG-13, Through the Zombie Glass continues down the path of awesomeness! Be sure to check it out when it drops onto shelves September 24!

ARC graciously provided by Around the World ARC Tours

ARC Review: TMI by Patty Blount

Best friends don’t lie.
Best friends don’t ditch you for a guy.
Best friends don’t post your deepest, darkest secrets online.

Bailey’s falling head-over-high-heels for Ryder West, a mysterious gamer she met online. A guy she’s never met in person. Her best friend, Meg, doesn’t trust smooth-talking Ryder. He’s just a picture-less profile.

When Bailey starts blowing Meg off to spend more virtual quality time with her new crush, Meg decides it’s time to prove Ryder’s a phony.

But one stupid little secret posted online turns into a friendship-destroying feud to answer the question:

Who is Ryder West?

From Goodreads

Bailey & Meg are having a rough patch. At some point during every friendship this happens & more often than not it's over another relationship. The twist in this plot is that Meg doesn't trust Bailey's too-perfect boyfriend, who doesn't even exist! That's right, while having never met him in person and spending all her free time with him electronically, Bailey doesn't see that Meg is just trying to protect her from the unknown. 

Coming from similar heartaches rooted in paternal abandonment, these two each have their own obsessions and must learn to trust one another with their advice when it comes to the guys in their lives. But one little slip threatens to destroy the minute progress they've made towards rebuilding their relationship. Can it all be saved or are some things better just left alone?

I have to say that while this one didn't "wow" me, it was passable. I really enjoyed Bailey being a geekier girl with popular girl tendencies. It gave her more personality than I was expecting. Meg was tough to deal with at times. She was very broody & difficult, but her artwork, her passion, really made me give her a chance.

What really didn't work for me where the absentee parents. This is a disturbing trend in YA, and maybe in familial relationships in general, but it just allows way too much to go on and paints parents in a bad light. I know we all rebel against our parents at some point in time, but that isn't even necessary when they're too busy to care. Another thing that bugged at me were the obvious "daddy issues" that these girls have. They fall under the stereotypical paths of behavior in response to that void. It made me respect the girls a little less that they were so hung up on this stuff and ignoring the wider implications.

The dialogue, mannerisms, & behavior were quite engaging through the whole narrative. Even the filler characters helped round out this story a bit more. We learn a lot through observation & these other characters helped with that. Sadly the catty behavior & underwhelming climax left me feeling a bit disjointed. It really felt like there was either something missing or something still to come. While not a must read, it's a good filler if you want a broody, angsty read.

ARC graciously provided by Around the World ARC Tours

ARC Review: The 100 by Kass Morgan

In the future, humans live in city-like spaceships orbiting far above Earth's toxic atmosphere. No one knows when, or even if, the long-abandoned planet will be habitable again. But faced with dwindling resources and a growing populace, government leaders know they must reclaim their homeland... before it's too late.

Now, one hundred juvenile delinquents are being sent on a high-stakes mission to recolonize Earth. After a brutal crash landing, the teens arrive on a savagely beautiful planet they've only seen from space. Confronting the dangers of this rugged new world, they struggle to form a tentative community. But they're haunted by their past and uncertain about the future. To survive, they must learn to trust - and even love - again.

From Goodreads

ARC graciously provided by Around the World ARC Tours

After 300 years of solitude on a spaceship orbiting Earth, the time has come for an expedition to examine the toxic Earth conditions. Due to strict breeding laws & limited supplies, the laws have been tightened so much that young people are being executed at age 18 for the smallest infraction. Now, to make better use of those already sentenced to death, 100 have been selected to travel "home."

Clarke & Wells are the only ones officially sentenced to this task, Bellamy brazenly joins the trip through a hostage situation to save his sister, & Glass was fortunate enough to escape the trip and rejoin society. Following each character individually, the reader is presented with current events & flashbacks to how they landed in their present predicaments. Love, confusion, hatred, & heroism all play an important role in the survival of those who landed & in their futures. No one has been on Earth in 300 years, so why does it feel like something never left?

This was an at-times thrilling, but mostly tempered, science-fiction that I enjoyed. There was a lot going on in each chapter between the current situation & past experiences to keep you on your toes. But there wasn't necessarily and heart-pounding action to help things flow. This story was more driven in a Lord of the Flies way where we watch these kids struggle to continue their doomed existence.

I thought it was a great plot device to have 3 of the characters planetside while one got to remain in the "lap of luxury." It gave a great contrast that I think would otherwise be lost on the reader since we don't spend much free time on the ship with the other characters. What I didn't expect was to enjoy the relationship dynamics as much as I did. While there was definitely a lot of "wrong side of the ship" action going on, the personalities of these characters really blended well.

While I would have liked this to have a tidy ending, alas it is a series beginner so there is a massive climax that is kind of predictable but unique enough to give the reader pause. It'll make for an interesting intro to the next book.

What I didn't know when I got this book was that it had been tapped as a show premiering this fall on the CW. I think it could work very well as a show since it has so much potential. I'm not much of a fan of the crowd they seem to be running with for the show, but it I think I'll give it a shot. Check it out!

ARC Review: These Broken Stars (Starbound #1) by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone. 

Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help. 

Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off staying here forever?

Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.

The first in a sweeping science fiction trilogy, These Broken Stars is a timeless love story about hope and survival in the face of unthinkable odds.

From Goodreads

Star-crossed doesn't even begin to encompass the magnitude of difference between Lilac & Tarver. These two are from whole different universes! Well, not really, but as far as their personalities and backgrounds go it's essentially true. The only child of multi-billionaire & industrial tycoon, Lilac has lived a life of privilege, that has come with a dear cost. Unable to actually become close with any guy, she has built up a wall of self-sufficiency and snobbery. But Tarver, the boy war hero, is rather impervious to her rebuffs.

When something goes horribly wrong mid-hyperspace, these two find themselves in an escape pod that crash lands on a mysterious planet. Soon enough these two find that while they were the sole survivors of the crash, they didn't take into account what already inhabited the planet. Only & hoping for rescue, these two must work together to ensure that they can be found when help finally arrives. If it ever does...

What an incredible story! I definitely came to this story with a pre-conceived idea of what I thought would happen and how the characters would behave. It pleases me to report that I was wrong on both accounts. I certainly did not see most of that coming at all. We don't really get a lot of back story on either of our protagonists & that suits me just fine. We get enough of the basics with out all the nagging, unnecessary details. I found it fitting that we knew as much about the characters as they knew about one another because it allowed for more freedom in the discovery of those details.

While it seems like an obvious straightforward tale of ship crash & survival until (presumed) rescue, the twist in this tale lies within the secrets of this planet. They crash on a terraformed planet that should be extremely colonized & well-established. All they are confronted with are monstrous creatures & an uneasy feeling that seems to get more severe the closer they get to the downed ship. The writing allows the reader to come to terms with what's happening and builds suspense as we move forward into the unknown with the characters.

My favorite part of this book is the fact that it could be a stand alone novel. I went in believing that it was a stand alone and was not disappointed. There were a few unanswered questions, but nothing that I couldn't accept if it were truly the end. Since it isn't the end, I am greatly looking forward to the next installment were we will presumably learn more about the protagonists' new lives & just what exactly happened on that planet.

Anyone else excited about these prospects?

ARC Review: PODs by Michelle K. Pickett

Seventeen-year-old Eva is a chosen one. Chosen to live, while others meet a swift and painful death from an incurable virus so lethal, a person is dead within days of symptoms emerging. In the POD system, a series of underground habitats built by the government, she waits with the other chosen for the deadly virus to claim those above. Separated from family and friends, it's in the PODs she meets David. And while true love might not conquer all, it's a balm for the broken soul. 

After a year, scientists believe the population has died, and without living hosts, so has the virus. That's the theory, anyway. But when the PODs are opened, survivors find the surface holds a vicious secret. The virus mutated, infecting those left top-side and creating... monsters. 

Eva and David hide from the infected in the abandoned PODs. Together they try to build a life--a new beginning. But the infected follow and are relentless in their attacks. Leaving Eva and David to fight for survival, and pray for a cure.

From Goodreads

The virus sneaked up on the human population like a predator stalking its prey. Despite the sudden onset on the lethal virus, the US government was prepared to shelter some of the population. Naturally the best and brightest in their fields would be given top priority in the PODs while only 50,000 of the remaining population could be saved. Eva was fortunate. As an only child she only lost her parents & her friends when she reported to the POD that she would call home for the 12 months the scientists believed it would take for the virus to die out.

Being cooped up in a small living space for such an extended period of time has an effect on her. She develops friendships, excels at her pre-determined course of study, & despite being dead-set against it, manages to fall in love with David. After 15 months, the two are separated into different survivor camps. When everything else has been ripped away, just how far are these two willing to go to ensure that they can continue to nurture their romance?

This was a decent zombie-esque book. I've read several great ones in recent months (As the World Dies series, Newsflesh series, & the Razorland series) so the bar is set pretty high. What I liked so much about this one was that the focus wasn't on the virus or really even on the zombies. This was truly about the main couple's experience as the government takes control and plays God with its citizens. This shifted focus allows the reader to really imagine the experiences that the characters are facing throughout the book. 

While I wasn't all that impressed with the character development (they were very stereotypical of the hero & heroine in any given story) I was impressed with the interactions between characters. It's kind of hard to make the idea of 9 people & an infant being enclosed in a small space for 12 months appealing. Yet things kept moving forward. Michelle K. Pickett spent just the right amount of time on every scene. Nothing was too dragged out & nothing felt too rapid. The pace of the book was well timed so that the reader had time to mentally catch up with everything that has taken place in what appears to be such a short window of time.

Something I wasn't expecting going in to this book was the amount of steamy romance scenes. David & Eva are quite hot & bothered for one another and make no attempts at hiding their desire. Lots of making out & heavy petting are detailed with vague words of implied naughtiness without every crossing the finish line. It's actually quite astonishing when you think about the fact that this whole book probably takes place over the course of almost two years and yet our dynamic duo never manages to seal the deal. I'm not quite sure whether to be impressed or confounded by that fact.

What I will say is that it's a pretty good book all things considered. Some of the grammatical flaws & minor plot holes I'm sure will be picked up in the final revision stage. I'm most excited about the fact that the sequel has already been contracted for a November 2014 release, but don't let that scare you off. I would be just as content if the book ended right where it did because you get the sense of completion. It doesn't need to continue, but I'm intrigued to see where it goes from where it left off.

Have you heard about this one? What are some of your favorite zombie-esque books?

ARC generously provided by Around the World ARC Tours

ARC Review: The Vow by Jessica Martinez

No one has ever believed that Mo and Annie are just friends. How can a guy and a girl really be best friends?

Then the summer before senior year, Mo’s father loses his job, and by extension his work visa. Instantly, life for Annie and Mo crumbles. Although Mo has lived in America for most of his life, he’ll be forced to move to Jordan. The prospect of leaving his home is devastating, and returning to a world where he no longer belongs terrifies him.

Desperate to save him, Annie proposes they tell a colossal lie—that they are in love. Mo agrees because marrying Annie is the only way he can stay. Annie just wants to keep her best friend, but what happens when it becomes a choice between saving Mo and her own chance at real love?

From Goodreads

I believe most of us would agree that there is at least one person in our life that we would do absolutely anything for. I know for a fact that I have at least 3 people like that in my life. That's partially what drew me to this story. While I can't imagine a situation where I would have to go to the illegal lengths that these two did, I can completely understand doing something so extreme for someone you care so deeply about.

To say this story didn't go exactly how I thought it would is an understatement. Based on that synopsis above, my brain had already formulated what it thought would go down in this book. I was pleasantly surprised to find myself so very wrong about what takes place. There is more to this story than that synopsis lets on & I'm not sure how I feel about that. 

Mo & Annie aren't just best friends. They have a profound bond that defies normal relationship definitions. As a kid, I had a friend like that. No one really got us and just how well we fit together; but what makes their relationship so different is how they were bonded. It took tragedy & an accident to mesh these two together. Those two events not only happened to them, but they fundamentally changed them and continue to affect their character development throughout the entire story.

I really loved the flow of this book. It volleyed between their viewpoints giving us unique insights into just what they were experiencing & how they were processing what was going on around them. It was through this view that we begin to see behaviors & actions change in each person from the other's point of view. I really enjoyed seeing how they related to one another and those around them because the whole book is based on their relationships.

Just as important as their perception, were those of other people. Between family, friends, co-workers, & potential love interests, everyone has their own opinion about what's really going on. These interpretations are just as important to the development of the plot and characters because they do affect the way Mo & Annie make their choices. The setting also played a minor role in shaping the scope of the story. As an immigrant from the Middle East, placing Mo in a small, rural, "all-American" town paints a specific picture for what these teens are going through with their decisions.

Needless to say I really enjoyed this book. While I think there were a few subplots that could have been better explored, in the grand scheme of things I thought it was right on the money.

Friend is Not a Verb

After being kicked out of his girlfriend's band, and out of their relationship, Henry "Hen"Birnbaum is kind of down on his luck. Since his now ex-girlfriend and their band were the major basis of Hen's social life, he finds himself in a pathetic situation where he vegs out on tv with his crazy next door neighbor Emma. All the hum-drum that is his life changes when his sister, who disappeared a year earlier, magically reappears. Maybe life after his break-up won't be so bad after all.

Notice the length of my explanation of the story's plot. That should definitely signify how much this book disappoints the reader. Hen had moments of hilarity and silliness that I found charming at first, but when page are page are filled with (side thoughts) and juvenile humor the book loses its charm. This turned out to be a very whiny, plodding book. I felt like I really had to search to find the story and even then I wasn't sure I was on the right track.

I found Emma to be the only redeeming thing in this book. She seemed real to me in a way that the other characters lacked. Honestly, I don't know any parents who wouldn't even bat an eyelash when their missing daughter suddenly returns. They were such cardboard "oblivious parents" I wanted to scream. The writing itself wasn't terrible, but I am not a fan of books that rely heavily on pop culture references. While I know that I get the references, not everyone does and I don't think it's fair to alienate those who don't get the jokes.

All in all this was a poorly laid out book with some serious issues. I think this book felt very thrown-together and that, with a little more adding and editing, it would have been alright. As always, this is just my reaction to the book, so be sure to give it a shot it you enjoy an uneventful read. There is an audience for every book; I just wasn't part of this book's audience. Good luck!

Book received from Around the World Tours

Swoon at Your Own Risk by Sydney Salter

Polly Martin has no problem attracting guys. Her problem lies in keeping them. In the last year alone she has won and lost Jack, Gareth, Sawyer, Hayden, and Kurt. Some of them were very brief relationships (does hooking up on a trip constitute dating?) and some were a little longer. The main thing they all had in common was that Polly chose to emulate whatever her current guy was interested in. Thus landing her a summer job working under Sawyer at a lowly cowboy-themed water park, unsure of what she really wants, unsure of who she really is, and swearing off guys.

On top of all her dating drama, Polly worries about the fact that her mother has to take a part time job as a food angel to help pay the bills, her grandmother (the love advice columnist Miss Swoon) is moving in with them, and her decimated relationship with her father and little sister. Even with all this going on, Polly still manages to catch the eye of geek turned hottie Xander Cooper. Will she be able to wrestle her own issues into submission so she can enjoy Xander or will Polly simply retreat and hide?

Swoon at Your Own Risk is an odd little story that jumps around a lot. Not only do you jump from stories about ex-boyfriend #1 to ex-boyfriend #5, but there is also some seriously extra nonsense. There was so much drama going on between family members, friends, and co-workers that I was having trouble keeping up. Many of the characters I thought were minor, turned out to be pretty important to understand the plotline and then others that were given some serious spotlight fizzled.

The writing was fine and I really did enjoy a) the column entries from Miss Swoon, b) the blog articles from a co-worker (I've only seen a blog used effectively in one other book, Stalker Girl), and c) the poetry-like snippits from Xander's journal. All of these pieces added depth to an otherwise shallow story. I have to admit that many of the events seem improbable at best. I honestly can't believe that someone can get so many "extra chances" to improve performance at a job. Sorry.

In general, this was a fluffy read that was only mildly enjoyable. If you like drama and gossip, this book is good for that, but not really much else.

This book was graciously provided by Around the World Tours.

Queen of Secrets by Jenny Meyerhoff

Queen of Secrets by Jenny Meyerhoff was supplied by Around the World Tours and is set to be released June 22, 2010.

Esther "Essie" Green is ecstatic to be a sophomore on the cheerleading squad! She's been dreaming of getting to do this for quite some time and believes that it will help her place in the high school hierarchy immensely. She's starting to learn her place when she gets a shock: her cousin, Micah is on the football team. As if that's not bad enough, Micah is quite staunch in his religious beliefs and wears his kippah even while playing football. Essie is mortified, until she realizes that no one knows they are related. She decides to keep that a secret, so it won't hurt her chances of moving up in station.

As the school year progresses, the football team members continue to pick on Micah for being "weird" and even manage to toilet-paper his house. Essie doesn't know what to do with herself. On the one hand, she has gained popularity and even attracted the attention of her longtime crush Austin, but at what cost? Is getting to be popular and feeling overly-cherished more important than standing up for what's right?

I really wanted to like this book. I really did. I went in thinking that this was an interesting premise (especially with the religious element) and that I could really get behind it, but I found this book lacked a lot. The characters were very... predictable. Almost cliché actually. There didn't seem to be any real emotion behind the characters' actions other than jealousy and guilt.

While I did enjoy watching Essie grow as a person, I felt it took way too long. The story was just dragging along waiting for her to finally make up her scattered mind about what she wanted to do. Micah was the only character that I felt I could really relate to and that I cared about at all. Essie was just too flippant and self-absorbed, up until the end. The cookie-cutter friends were pretty much absent and I felt like they were just filler as no significant action really happened with them.

If you want a simple, light, predictable read, then this is great for that. There were some funny moments and there were some intriguing thoughts, but there was no real depth. Questions are answered almost immediately, so there is very little suspense. Give it a shot though, you may like it better than I did.

My Invisible Boyfriend by Susie Day

My Invisible Boyfriend by Susie Day was supplied by Around the World Tours and is set to be released April 1, 2010.

Heidi is accustomed to being odd-girl-out. With parents who like to flit across the country in search of the next struggling school in dire need of their assistance, she is used to being the new girl who never quite fits in. Fortunately, at the latest stop she has managed to find a gang of kids quite like her. That is until after summer vacation.

Heidi comes back expecting that everything will pick up where it left off, but the party changes everything. At the annual "let's get rid of our stashes so they aren't confiscated" party, Heidi turns down a guy. Automatically her friends assume that she is seeing someone; and just so she doesn't feel left out, she doesn't correct them.

So she makes up an amazing sounding guy, complete with an online profile. Everyone tells her how amazing he since, this motorcycle-riding, Shakespearean sonnet-writing Romeo. He's so amazing, that her friends start contacting him for advice about everything; including what to do about Heidi. As if your friends not liking you as much as you thought they did isn't bad enough, someone has discovered the truth and is threatening to uncover her secret. Heidi is now thrown headfirst into the truth. She must decide whether her friends deserve to hear the truth from her or if she just doesn't care anymore. Her lies are about to catch up to her and there's nothing she can do about it. Or is there?

Sadly, this book was not as great as I thought it was going to be. Heidi was just too wishy-washy for my tastes. She is triumphing over her friends one minute and then moping about her sad existence the next. Her character did not really elicit any feelings from me other than annoyance and frustration. I felt she had so many opportunities to clear herself, but never took them because they weren't easy. Not exactly the kind of message I want to send out.

The plot kind of sluggishly moved forward for me. There was no real hook anywhere. I tried very hard to find some redeeming quality anywhere and I continually came up empty-handed. The shallowness exhibited by these kids was just beyond my level of tolerance and I really wish they had been slightly less predictable. This was just not a good book for me. I hope one of you has better luck!

Beautiful Dead: Jonas by Eden Maguire

Darina is seeing ghosts. Literally. Her recently deceased boyfriend Phoenix is following her around. The doctors say it's normal to see someone you love, who has recently died, in places that you associate with them. So why does she see him where he has no business being?

Darina stumbled upon the old farmhouse while out for a drive to clear her head. Not only does she find Phoenix there, but she also finds the three other kids form their high school who have died this year and a few others. They are the "Beautiful Dead." These people have unresolved issues and have been chosen to come back, with phenomenal powers, for one year to clear any misgivings they have with the human world.

Unfortunately, the "Beautiful Dead" cannot do their work on their own. They have chosen to have Darina as their contact with the human world. She will be their eyes and ears and search out the wrong-doings keeping them on Earth. First up is Jonas. He died in a motorcycle accident that they town has labeled as his fault. Jonas knows better and so does the other person who was on the bike at the time. Can Darina unlock the clues in the little amount of time she's allotted? What does it mean if she succeeds? And what will it cost should she fail?

This fast-paced novel was a roller coaster ride from beginning to end. Honestly, a girl who can see and talk to those beyond the land of the living sounds very mundane, but the powers that they have and the fact that she is still influenced by them is unique. The "Beautiful Dead" don't want to intentionally harm anyone, they simply want to conceal their existence so that they can get on with their work and move on with their deaths.

Darina is quite fascinating to me because of her unique position. Her deceased boyfriend is "living" still, at least for another year, but yet she has to function in the land of the living with someone tugging her heart strings. She may appear weak at times, but I can't imagine the strain that she is under dealing with her reality. Most of the other characters remind the reader of the small town mentality that is prevalent when dealing with supernatural elements. Yet some can still surprise you.

I am looking forward to the continuation of this series and the next mystery that Darina must solve.

Stalker Girl by Rosemary Graham

This ARC was generously provided by Around the World Tours. Stalker Girl is set to be released August 5, 2010 by Viking Juvenile.

Carly is really a very sweet girl; she was just a little confused.

The representation of romantic relationships in Carly's life has always been a little off. Her parents married when they caught wind that her mother was pregnant and divorced not long thereafter and now her almost stepfather (since her mom never married him) is soon to be an ex- as well. This throws Carly's whole world into turmoil as she has to move out of the only real home she's ever known and go work at a summer camp since her mom doesn't trust to leave her at home with her soon-to-be ex.

While working in the kitchen trying to feed hundreds of hungry campers everyday, Carly meets the enigmatic Brian. The songwriter and bass guitar player for an up-and-coming band, Brian can't seem to stay away from Carly either. They spend as much time together as work and band practice allows and soon find themselves at the end of the summer. The guys, whose band (at the suggestion of Carly) is now called Ernestine is Everywhere after their beloved grandmother, are really taking off and so Carly and Brian will still be able to see each other in the city.

Soon though, Carly finds out how having Brian so close could give her even more troubles. As the band rose in popularity and started to really steam along, Carly couldn't help but notice all the female attention paid to Brian. In the end, her jealousy was just too much for him to handle and he dumped her. Unfortunately, with everything else in her life going wrong, Carly can't seem to let him go; and when a new girl walks into his life, Carly has to understand what she lost to. How far is too far though? Where is the line between innocent curiosity and malicious stalking drawn?

Needless to say, I was entranced by Stalker Girl. It was simply mesmerizing. It's done in 3 parts, which I think helped a lot with the stream of consciousness. In the first part, we catch up with Carly stalking the new girlfriend. In the second part, we are thrown back in time to witness how Carly came to meet Brian and how their relationship developed. For the third part, we are brought back to the present to face the consequences of Carly's actions. This set up really changed the way I viewed the situation. For the first part I thought she was bonkers, but in the second part I really felt I understood her actions and feelings. I found myself thinking, "Well that's not too bad. I might have done the same thing." The third part makes you face the reality and severity of the situation.

Carly tended to really whine a lot, but I think that was part of character. She was kind of stuck between wanting to be treated like a grown up, but wanting to act like a child. Insecurity, both in herself and her situation, played a major role. Brian was just an average guy. I can't say that I liked or disliked him, he was just kind of there. The storyline was not quite what I expected and I definitely didn't see the end coming. I was pleasantly surprised out how it all turned out. Hopefully we'll see more from Rosemary Graham in the future.