Tell Me Three Things (Reviewed by Hita T. '23)

Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There are three things that Jessie Holmes is trying to come to terms with. One, her mother dies. Two, she moves in with her dad and his new fiancé (who he met online) to Los Angeles. And three, she keeps receiving messages from Somebody/Nobody (or "SN"), who claims to be her virtual guide in Wood Valley High School. Jessie can’t decide whether it is a hoax or if she can trust SN to help her.
Taking a leap of faith, Jessie begins to rely on SN. Over a series of emails, and later on, text messages, they become close allies. As time progresses, Jessie can’t help but want to figure out who SN really is in real life. She eventually narrows it down to three boys who could potentially be SN, but the real question she faces is, “Which one of them is SN?”

Buxbaum pulls the reader through the novel with flawless narration, quirky and witty characters, and smile-inducing moments. Well-paced, humorous, and engaging, Tell Me Three Things will pull readers who love YA novels and light mysteries.

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Nemesis by Brendan Reichs (Reviewed by Sofie K '20)

Nemesis by Brendan Reichs
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Every two years, Min dies.

It's always the same man, time and time again. He appears sometime on her birthday, kills her, then she wakes up the next day as if nothing happened. She doesn't know why, or what Noah, subjectively the town's most attractive (and rich) boy, has to do with it, but it happens. On top of it all, a giant asteroid called the Anvil is threatening to destroy Earth... in like a week.

I really wanted to like this book. I hadn't seen this premise too often before in books, so it seemed that it would live up to the hype. But it just didn't make sense. The twists came out of nowhere (they were barely hinted at), so they felt super jarring, and the storyline with the asteroid seemed really separated from the plot. When Reichs tried to tie it all together at the end, it just felt really forced. It's overall not a terrible plot, it just seemed disappointing compared to what it could have been.

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Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton (Reviewed by Anya W. '20)

Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A cleverly built, intricately weaved world sets the stage for our peek into the life of a desperate gunslinger in a world that has no patience for women with minds like hers, and no future for people born in places like her homeland. Hamilton seamlessly accomplished what must have been an incredibly difficult narrative feat: creating a character coldhearted enough to survive the vicious sands of her homeland, but also one human enough to still create interest and sympathy within readers. While quite a few cliche YA twists could be seen coming from a mile (or a couple chapters) away, Hamilton manages to overcome them in a page turner rife with themes not quite so common in her genre, from the fact that family isn't always there for you, to the limits of humanity, and that kindness is not always the keystone to living.

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Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi (Reviewed by Ms. Pelman)

Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Told in alternating points-of-view: Penny, a college freshman and Sam a drop-out who works at a coffee shop. Penny is navigating her first year away from her mom (it's just the two of them, and their relationship is close, but rocky), and chasing her dream of becoming a writer. Sam is nursing a broken-heart, while trying to make ends meet. In fact, his life is kind of a mess and he's just trying to keep it together. The two are introduced by Penny's roommate because the two have a complicated family history. When Penny finds Sam on the street during an awkward and distressing moment, she helps him out. From then on Penny becomes Sam's "emergency contact" and their 'round-the-clock text conversations will alter their lives forever.

Funny and heartfelt; engaging and entertaining, Emergency Contact will appeal to readers who enjoy the snappy, witty dialogue found in John Green novels, and the characters you come to love in Rainbow Rowell books.

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Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett (Reviewed by Anya W. '20)

Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Sancia Grado is quite possibly the best thief in Tevanne. Not in the least because of what exactly the metal plate in her head can do--but it's safer not to talk about that. She's still not quite sure how stealing a box from one merchant house turned her into the most wanted person in Tevanne, and the only one capable of communicating with the powerful artifact that has the entire city foaming at the mouth.

Gregor Dandalo is the only living son of the family controlling another one of Tevanne's four merchant houses and trying his best to bring order and law to the commons: the only part of the city not controlled by the merchant houses. It seems like a stroke of excellent luck when he manages to find the thief who blew up half the docks stealing from a merchant-house safe. Then, he spots the assassins and well, things get complicated.

Orso Ignacio, employee of the Dandalo merchant house, might have made a mistake when he bought an artifact from an excavation site without his employer's permission. Especially now that the key's been stolen and he has no hope of learning from the scrivings it contains. Hopefully, the thief Gregor has 'arrested' can get the key back in exchange for her freedom.

Bernice is a gifted scriver, and has no idea how she got caught up in fixing her bosses stupid mistake. At least the scenery's nice.

Bennett's novel is a study in intricate world-building, and he crafts a diverse cast characters, from heroes to villains to antiheroes, with compelling backstories and motivations all the while seamlessly weaves in ethical quandaries that dissect the foundations of each character. Although sometimes his writing became unnecessarily wordy, this book is an excellent starting point to a very intriguing fictional universe. My main issue is with the side characters. While some are nicely fleshed out, the background villains seem flat and evil for the sake of evil. The romance is also lacking chemistry and feels shoehorned in for no good reason, which is a shame, considering the amazing characters involved in the relationship.
-Anya W. '20

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Lovely, Dark, and Deep by Justina Chen (Review by Anya W. '20)

Lovely, Dark, and Deep by Justina Chen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Viola Li has a Plan. After the end of her first trip with her aunt, to Africa, she's working on several more bake sales to raise money for the causes she's written about. A few more of her scheduled vacations, and she'll have just the right resume for acceptance as a journalism major to her dream school in Dubai.
Except, as it turns out, sometimes the malaria vaccine can give you extreme, permanent, photosensitivity. Thanks to her professional disaster manager parents, Viola's entire life and all her plans for the future are permanently deconstructed within a week. All that's left now is figuring out how to cope.

Chen's novel is a good beach read, and typical YA. The romance, while not badly-written, is not particularly epic-it would have had the same impact as a friendship. However, her writing is excellent at evoking empathy within the reader, and breathes life into her main characters.
-Anya W. '20



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The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo (review by Anya W. '20)

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What's a girl to do when she's got too much to say and no one to pour it out to? Fill journal after journal with words turned into verse, spilling her story across pages for no eyes but her own. A diary of free verse is an indulgence Xiomara can allow, one not banned by the strict rules of her cold home, but what about a poetry club? A boyfriend? A crisis of faith? Covering for her brother? As the walls close in, Xiomara has to grow up and decide what's important, and how far she's willing to go to keep it.

Acevedo's freeform masterpiece is a touching and realistic portrayal of adolescence. She perfectly captures the mindset of someone on the verge of adulthood--the contrast between affection and suffocation day in and day out. -Anya W. '20

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Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust (review by Sofie K. '20)

Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"If they love you for anything, it will be for your beauty."

One kingdom, completely immersed in ice, the cruel outcome of an age-old curse. Two stories intertwined, each pivotal to the other. In one: a girl from the outside comes to power beside a widowed king, her glass heart colder than the eternal winter around her. In the other: a girl born and raised within the castle's walls, created out of snow in the image of the late queen. Her only maternal influence has been her outspoken yet stoic stepmother.

And only one can be queen.

But Lynet doesn't want the crown. Far from it, actually. She simply wants to find her own path instead of turning into the queen her father wants her to be. Besides, why would she want to take the crown away from Mina, who so desperately wants to rule over the warm, curse-free South she was raised in? Mina has everything: looks, power, composure. She makes a much better queen than the little girl who spends her free time climbing trees and stalking the new surgeon.

But life is never that simple, is it?

Girls Made of Snow and Glass takes the classic tale of Snow White and spins it in a completely new direction. For one, there are no dwarves, and Bashardoust gives Snow White--usually portrayed as a helpless child--a sense of empowerment that princesses in old fairy tales just weren't given. It's a fast-paced, emotional journey of self-reflection and learning what it truly means to love. - Sophie K. '20

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