Ninth Grade Slays

Brewer, Heather. Ninth Grade Slays. NY: The Penguin Company, 2008. 274 pages. (Vampire Series)

Vladimir Tod is just starting high school
And, along with the normal pressures of being a freshman, he has to be on a constant lookout for a
Menacing vampire slayer hired to kill him. His best friend Henry’s cousin, Joss, who’s
Pretty much like Vlad in every single way is being a better friend than Henry. His Uncle Otis has
Invited his him on a trip to Siberia to hopefully help him hone his vampire skills. Will he ever
Reach his full potential as a vampire, and what about the
Evil vampire slayer on the loose? Join Vlad on sequel in the epic series ‘The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod’

Whoever said the sequel is never as good as the original has obviously never read this series. Heather Brewer is back with the second installation of her award winning series, ‘The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod’. Full of new characters, forming relationships, and a twist you’ll never see coming, this book is enough to appease the hunger of her entire fan club, formally known as the Minion Horde, and the rest of the world for that matter. This is the series for all you misunderstood children out there!

Reviewed by: the helpful purple butterfly

Beka Cooper: Terrior

Pierce, Tamora. Beka Cooper: Terrior. NY: Random House, 2006. 563 pages. (Fantasy Series)

Welcome to a world before legends were made. 200 years before Alana the Lioness and Aly the spymaster, there was Beka Cooper—a trainee of the Provost’s Dogs of Tortall, but life is not easy as a Puppy in the slums of the capital. Armed with only her wits, club, and an ability to hear the dead, Beka Cooper struggles to survive in a city full of murderers, pickpockets, and thieves with hidden agendas and dark schemes. When she uncovers a string of murders, Beka must convince her fellow Dogs to find the killer before he kills again.

The first of a new series, Beka Cooper, promises to entertain as much as any of Pierce’s other novels. Darker than many of her previous novels, Beka Cooper is filled to bursting with adventure, mystery, death, and a touch of romance as Beka speaks with the souls of the dead to chase down their killer. A welcome addition to Pierce’s Tortall stories, Beka Cooper promises to keep us entertained for several more years as her story unfolds in future novels. The only downside? The next novel in the series, Bloodhound, won’t hit shelves until 2009.

Reviewed by: Disreputable Dog

Trickster’s Queen

Pierce, Tamora. Trickster’s Queen. NY: Random House, 2004. 444 pages. (Fantasy Series)

Aly is back in the sequel to Trickster’s Choice. She returns with the Balitang family from exile to Rajmuat—the capitol of the Copper Isles—and finds herself thrown into the dangers and intrigues of court. The former king is dead and the kingdom is ruled by the regents, two equally ruthless rulers, who kill anyone who stands in their way. No longer a slave, Aly finds herself charged with protecting Dove and Sarai, two sisters with the blood of the ancient queens of the Copper Isles. Can she keep them alive long enough to see Sarai become queen of the Isles and end the reign of the regents? Read the second book of the Trickster’s Series and find out.

Trickster’s Queen was a wonderful conclusion to the two book series. Aly has come along way since being sold into slavery in book one, and it has been a pleasure following her continued adventures here. I was disappointed, however, when I finished the book, not because it had a bad ending, but because it was over. I can only hope that Tamora Pierce is not quite done with Aly Cooper and has something else planned for this wonderful character down the road.

Reviewed by: Disreputable Dog

Harris,Thomas. Hannibal Rising. NY: Bantam Dell,2007. 368 pages. (Horror)

Hannibal Lector saw his family's murder

An invisible wound formed in his heart

No way to show his feelings through words. There is

Nothing but silence as if his mouth was sewn shut.

In an unpleasant orphanage, he created violence

Because of his anger bottled up inside.

After a brawl with a fork, young

Lector is dismissed from misery to his new home

Revenge is what young Hannibal wants. Only revenge
Is performed in the most gruesome ways:

Slaying his victims piece by piece

It is his intention to find and dine on them

No grief or sorrow for whom he has killed. Now a

Grieving "child" turned into a cannibalistic beast...

I would recommend this novel to anyone who likes horror and gore. I probably wouldn’t share this with my parents because they don't like gory novels. I would read another book by this author because he uses great detail in describing the actions and scenery around the characters. I think when Hannibal's family was murdered- especially his sister, Mischa- It was almost as if I waere feeling his pain with him because they were so close. I would give this book "gruesome" as a one word label because the gore and actions Hannibal Lector creates is what most of the book is about.

Reviewed by: GothicVampire13

The Book Without Words

Avi. The Book Without Words. NY: Hyperion Books, 2005. 203 pages.

In the year 1046 in Fulworth,
The old man, Thorston, stirred and stirred
With all his might
Hoping the mixture would bring new life.
Counting the stones carefully and looking for the res,t
A young girl;

he wanted nothing but the best.
Can he renew his life again?
Try as he might,

death came in time,

like an empty bucket
At the bottom of the well.

Once a goat,

into a crow,

to a goat once again.

At the church,

she took refuge at a place

Thorston can’t enter.
With the help from

wise old man,

he keeps her life

safe from harm.

I would read another book from this author because Avi wrights books so well that they make you feel like you're in them. I would recommend this book to any one who likes to read Avi’s books and who likes a fable of medieval magic.

Reviewed by: NoWhereMan

Wild Magic

Pierce, Tamora. Wild Magic. New York: Random House Inc., 1992. 299 pages.
(Fantasy Series)

Will King Jonathan have his kingdom, Tortall, stolen from him?
It will depend on strength, magical power, and the ability to think positively.
Lady Alanna, the King’s Champion, is separated from the castle.
Daine must save Tortall with her wild magic.

Magical gifts help the King’s people power over their enemies.
Animals try to help save the kingdom by listening to Daine.
Great battles, dragons, heroines, and the
Immortals have been released, a very bad sign for Daine.
Calling all readers interested in astonishing fiction books!

Wild Magic is the first book in the series, The Immortals. In this book is awesome! The details in this book help the reader really grasp what is going on. The reader has to have imagination because Daine’s wild magic, immortals, and the Gift are fiction. Tamora Pierce explains and describes what is happening and why. Tamora Pierce is a wonderful author who has written many series of fiction books. After you read one book, you have to read the rest.

Reviewed by: Buddy2759

Princess Academy

Hale, Shannon. Princess Academy. NY: Bloomsbury, 2005. 314 pages. (Fanatsy)

Princess Academy is more than a name;
In this book it's a school.
This is a story of a young girl,
At the age of fourteen,
Miri,
who lives on a mountain.

Each year Miri gets older
Like the winter that comes and goes;
She is afraid of one terrible day,
The day the lowlanders come to snatch her away.

She is scared to go where all girls,
But her sister
Must go for she is being taken to a
Princess Academy.

In the academy one will be chosen, who will it be?
That one special girl will marry a prince;
She’ll live in a palace and be quite content.

There is but a twist, the Academy princess,
A position most wanted,
That girl gets a gown of silver and pink
To wear to the ball

Oh, what the prince must think
Of that girl!

Now Miri wants to be chosen,
That is until another love had risen.
Now Miri must choose to stay a mountain girl
Or marry a lowlander prince.

The girl the prince wants
Is the girl be chosen.
The girl he wants must be one or another.

Though one last twist
Brings the story near a close:
Trouble's afoot for the prince never choose.
Will he be back or will he stay gone?
Read the book to find out and it won’t do you wrong...

I liked this book because it was an easy read and fun too! If you like action and fighting, this isn’t that book, but if you want friendship and loyalty, this is a great book. This book has a little action but not too much. It also is a fast read! Even if you don’t want to read this book, you should still pick up a book and read.

Reviewed by: MangaManiac

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Inkheart

Funke, Cornelia. Inkheart. New York: Scholastic, 2003. 534 pages. (Fantasy Series)

Inkheart has come to start of the
New “Ink” series. A book that
Kicks in some action when Meggie learns

Her father read aloud an evil ruler who became an
Embodiment within the pages of Inkheart.
As chaos rushes in her life, how will she ever find her mother
Resa, who has been taken a slave by Capricorn?
Turn the pages of the book to find out.

Inspiring, mysterious, courageous, kind, powerful, likeable, incredible, fantastic, awing, and sad because all of these words revolve around the words amazing.

Reviewed by: Cloud27

The Invention of Hugo Cabaret

Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabaret. Scholastic Press. First printing edition. 2007. 653 pages. (Fiction/Graphic Novel)

Hugo Cabaret. Cold nights. Hollow streets. Stealing. Fighting. Movies. All apart of the very interesting Hugo who once lived with his uncle in their shattered old apartment in the walls of an old clock tower. Until one day he found the machine that would change his life forever. Meeting new people. Wishing old ones goodbye. What would happen to the young youthful kid with a whole life ahead of him? Would he disappear in to the world taking care of the clocks because his drunken uncle had died but no one found out until he started to rot? Getting the paychecks but not knowing how to cash them forced him to steal. He would soon to be put in jail or a foster home in the end, but Hugo wouldn’t let them find him. He would do all he could just to stay alive. In the end, it doesn’t even matter to Hugo because he found himself with a good family. All apart of the invention of Hugo Cabaret.

My thoughts of this book were that the author (Brian Selznick) not only created a picture in my head, but I felt like I was there in the streets with Hugo’s shoes clicking on the street as he slowly walked home after his day at the toy shop working off his debt to society. Also, he brought a sense of closeness together with the toy shops owner and his family after realizing that the toy shop owner was the famous movie maker first ever to create a moving picture. But unfortunately he had to stop because of his brother's car accident. I hope they make a sequel to this book. It would be interesting to read on into the world of Hugo Cabaret!

Reviewed by: BrownieLover101

Bound

Napoli, Donna. Bound. NY: Simon Pulse, 2006. 184 pages. (Fiction)

Xing lives with her fathers’ second wife stepsister, Wei Ping.

Both of her parents are dead, and she

Is forced to gather food and firewood.

Wei Ping is having her feet bound so she can find a

Nice husband to support them,

but they are running out of money so Xing Xing is sent out to

Garnish up some money for them, but what about her future?

Donna Napoli has single-handedly created one of the greatest retellings of a Cinderella story. It feels like every struggle Xing Xing goes through, you’re right their bearing that same burden with her. This book will have you dying to turn each page until you’ve reach the end, can’t stop flipping, and the book falls onto the floor. All must read this amazing story!

Reviewed by: the helpful purple butterfly

Lupica, Mike. Summer Ball. New York: Puffin Books, 2007, 245 pages. (Sports Fiction)

Right Way is where Danny…
Is headed for the summer.

Getting to know the other kids tough.

He won’t have to introduce himself…

To some old rivals from the opposing travel team last spring.

Will he buckle under the pressure, or will he rise?

A star in this sequel to Lupica’s earlier book Travel Team?

You will have to read the book and the one before to find out.

I thought this book was a good sequel to another good book. The bookdoes a great job of almost putting you in the game as you are reading. The descriptions to the events are fantastic. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a sports- fiction book.

Reviewed by: BlueHairCommity

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Lewis, C.S. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. New York: Macmillan,1950. 186 pages. (Fantasy Series)

The most amazing book I have ever read.
Humble Peter fights to save the land of Narnia
Edmond didn't believe there was a magical land in the wardrobe.

Lucy, the little sister, discovers Narnia,
In the wardrobe.
Only Aslan has the power to make spring return to
Narnia, no one else.

Tumnus gets turned into stone by the evil witch.
He turns back to a fawn when Aslan breathes on him.
Every creature in Narnia is involved in the battle for Narnia.

Wardrobe was the magical way to get to Narnia.
I loved the part where the evil witch got defeated.
Turkish delight was the luring treat.
Christmas gets banned from Narnia.
Help comes from the beavers.

Aslan, the bravest animal and a very strong lion.
Narnia had a spell cast over it so that spring could never arrive.
Dwarves are very evil in this story!

The Daughter’s of Eve,
Have you ever even heard of some of the creatures in this book?
Edmond.

White witch was very evil.
Adam and Eve: parents of Peter, Lucy, Edmond, and Susan.
Random winds come along to guide the way to Aslan.
Dwarfs are very small and pessimistic creatures.
Red fox was an evil snitch.
Over small time, the children’s age radically increased.
Bold and brave describes every person and creature in Narnia.
Edmond was the young brother who is almost as brave as Peter

An original review by LoudMouth