Breakaway by Kat Spears

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Breakaway

by Kat Spears

Kat Spears has done it again, written another story about love, friendship and family in the authentic voice of the American teenager.  

In this story, soccer is the center of these friends' life.  Chick, Mario, Jordan, and our narrator Jason all play on the school soccer team.  Jason, Mario and Jordan have earned their positions, their friend Chick got his spot because his friends won't play without him.

The story opens at the funeral of Jason's sister, Sylvia.  Jason is having a hard time coming to grips with his sister's death.  His sister's death has left him feeling like it should have been him, he doesn't have any real family now and yearning for a real family like Mario's.

Mario is dealing with his own issues, making some bad decisions.  As Mario drifts further away from his family and friends, his parents come to rely more heavily on Jason.

Jordan is different from his friends in that he comes from money.  He drives a nice car and belongs to a country club.  When he gets a new girlfriend, he starts to drift away from his friends.

Chick got his nickname from when he had chicken pox as a child.  He is not rich, does not have a girlfriend, and if it wasn't for Jason, he wouldn't have any friends at all.  He struggles with wanting to belong, to be included.  When his friends become so wrapped up in their own issues, it leaves Chick utterly helpless.

Spears has done an excellent job in creating characters that stay with you long after you've read the last words.  What teenager hasn't wrangled with finding their place in the world?  To connect to someone in a way that makes you feel loved?  People of all ages will be taken with Breakaway, and left with new friends in these boys.  Go ahead and pre-order today, you won't be sorry!

Se7en Second Delay by Tom Easton

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Se7en Second Delay

by Tom Easton

In this post-apocalyptic story, the country lives in sections of the haves and the have-nots.  Everyone wants to go to the First, to have a job, to live in comfort, but the First doesn't take just anyone.

Mila and Julian were headed to the first when an accident leaves her on her own.  She becomes an "Applicant" and is interrogated about what she knows, where she was going and what her motives are.  Trusting only what Julian has told her, she escapes from her captors.  On the run, the only advantage she has from high-tech monitoring is a seven second delay on her feed.

As the world watches, Mila must convince the world that she is not a terrorist, figure out what Julian was trying to tell her and manage to stay alive.  Se7en Second Delay is a faced paced read that will have you racing to the last page.  This story is a nice balance between a frightening future and the capacity to fight for what is right in the world.  

This book is suitable for middle school students to adults and would be a great asset to the school library collection.

Found Things by Marilyn Hilton

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Found Things 

by Marilyn Hilton

River is missing one of the most important things in her life, her brother.  No matter how many other things she finds, they can't replace Theron, her big brother.  

Hilton doesn't come out and tell us what happened to Theron; we know that there was a car accident, that he was suspected of drinking and driving, and that their father told him to never come back.  But River knows that her brother isn't a bad person and even if he did do the things people are saying, she wants him to come home.

Meadow Lark is the new kid in town.  Most kids tease her for being odd, but River likes Meadow Lark and they quickly become friends.  When Meadow Lark's father has to go out of town for work, she asks if she can stay with River's family.  Hesitant at first, eventually River's parents embrace Meadow Lark in a way that makes River feel as if she's not only lost her brother, but her parents as well.

The denouement of the story is an epic storm that has Meadow Lark, River and her parents in danger.  There are some things that are more dangerous than the threat of drowning; the threat of memory and heartbreak.

Found Things is a quick read about friendship and redemption.  It should appeal to middle grade readers.

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

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The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender 

by Leslye Walton

Sorrow: noun: a cause or occasion of grief or regret, as an affliction, a misfortune, or trouble.  Ava Lavender is a girl who was born with wings.  She leads a life haunted by her family's past and wondering why; why is there so much sorrow in her life?  Why was she born with wings?  What would it feel like to be a normal teenager?

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender will take you back to France, to the start of it all, the story of her great-grandparents.  Born in France, the young family decides to pursue the American dream and head to New York with their four children.  The only one to survive New York was Ava's grandmother, Emilienne.

Emilienne marries and moves West to start her family, but the sorrows continue and she is left with heartbreak, and, a young daughter, Viviane.  It seems as if Viviane is going to survive the Sorrowful curse, but alas, it comes for her as well.  After giving birth to Ava, will Ava be the one to find and keep love?  Will Ava have the power to break the cycle of Foolish Love?  Will Ava's wings help her to fly above her family's sorrowful past?

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender might be a young adult novel, but it will appeal to readers of all ages.  Tragic, lyric, sensual and overall optimistic, The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender should be at the top of your summer reading list.

The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler

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The Book of Speculation

by Erika Swyler

This is the story of a family that is haunted by loss.  Siblings Simon and Enola have both tried to find their way after the death of their parents.  Their mother died in a drowning and their father died of a broken heart.

Simon, a librarian, lives in the family home that is crumbling into the sea.  He has lost his job, is in love with a woman he has know all his life, but can't quite connect to, and feels a terrible guilt for not being able to save the house, his sister or his job.

Enola, taking after their mother, has joined a traveling show, reading Tarot cards.  She is often depressed and only occasionally contacts her brother.  When she arrives back home, she brings with her a boyfriend covered in an octopus tattoo.

When Simon receives an ancient book from an antiques dealer, he becomes obsessed with solving the puzzles of the book.  Why was this book sent to him?  What does it have to do with his family?  Is his family cursed?

The story is told from a fresh perspective, and what lingers long after I have finished, is how the house and the book are just as important characters as Simon, Enola, Alice and Frank.

The Book of Speculation reminds the reader that secrets are dark shadows that creep into your life when you aren't expecting them or ready for them.  This dark book makes you yearn for a bright spring day, a cool ocean breeze and a frank discussion with your siblings!

Noble Warrior by Alan Lawrence Sitomer

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Noble Warrior

by Alan Lawrence Sitomer

When we last left McCutcheon Daniels in Caged Warrior, he was being whisked off to a new life under the witness protection plan.  Leaving Kaitlin and his new school behind, he was hoping to save his sister from his hoodlum father and the gang he runs with, the Priests.

Life has been safer for Gemma and their mother, but McCutcheon is haunted by the memory of Kaitlin and all that he left behind.  Having been recruited by the FBI as a teen agent, McCutcheon once again has to choose between his new life and the possibility of going back to Kaitlin and his old life.

This time McCutcheon agrees to infiltrate the prison where his father is incarcerated.  His mission?  Assassinate the leader of the Priests.  His motivation?  If he doesn't, Kaitlin will pay the price.

Torn by wanting to be a better man than his father or the Priests and needing to save Kaitlin at any cost serves as the tension in the novel.  How far will he go to save the girl he loves?  If he takes another man's life, does that make him as heinous as the Priests?  Does anyone have his back?  Who can he trust?  Can he trust himself?

The fast pace of Sitomer's new novel will keep you turning the pages.  The ending will have you waiting anxiously for the next saga in the life of McCutcheon Daniels.

Notes:

The novel does contain graphic violence that might not be suitable for younger children.  Keep that in mind if you are purchasing for middle grades.

The Witch Hunter by Virginia Boecker

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The Witch Hunter 

by Virginia Boecker

The year is 1558 and young Elizabeth is a witch hunter, a damn good one at that.  Orphaned at an early age, she and her friend Caleb found a home working for the king and bringing in witches; to be burned at the stake.

When Elizabeth herself is arrested for being a witch and thrown into prison, she's sure Caleb will come and rescue her.  What she never could have imagined, the world's most notorious wizard, Nicholas Perevil, has come to her rescue instead. 

At first she hopes that by turning in Perevil, she'll reclaim her spot as esteemed witch hunter, working for Lord Blackwell.  But what she comes to discover is that Lord Blackwell is not all that he seems to be.  

After her rescue, she meets other witches and wizards who live together with Perevil, including a handsome and charming healer named John.  Add to that, Nicholas Perevil is dying, and Elizabeth seems to be the one thing that can cure him.  

Will she find a home with this infamous group of witches and wizards?  Will Caleb come and find her and bring her home?  Which world will she pick.

***I thoroughly enjoyed this story of bravery and witchcraft!  My only complaint is that Elizabeth is accused of witchcraft because she is found with herbs that help end pregnancy.  She needs these herbs because she is a courtesan to the King.  This is a serious issue that is not addressed in the book; it is glossed over and only referred to.  The seriousness of this issue belies the levity of the story.  I'm not sure how Boecker could have married the two, but I wish that her crime was something more along the lines of herbs to make you stronger or trying to make a love potion.