The Crystal Princess By Kimberly Norton

Reading Hammock’s Rating:	5 out of 5
Category:	Fiction
Fiction Genre:	Fantasy
Title:	The Crystal Princess
Author:	Kimberly Norton (@witchofcrystal)
Author Website:	http://kimberlynorton.tateauthor.com/
ISBN-10:	1617395471
ISBN-13:	9781617395475
Publication Date:	February 2011
Publisher:	Tate Publishing (@TatePublishing)
Format:	Paperback | Digital
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Synopsis:

Kelly lives the life of a typical teen in the suburbs of Southern California with her football star boyfriend and loyal best friend. It's her senior year, and she's looking forward to her eighteenth birthday. But her life totally changes when she's abducted by her birth family, a family she didn't even know existed. Meeting her mother and two sisters for the first time is almost too much for her to handle. Kelly learns she is a witch born from a coven of witches with special powers. She's called back to help her family fight the evil, power-hungry witch, Victoria, and the Wizard Council, who want to destroy all that Kelly's family holds dear before the Immortality Ceremony, a ceremony that will seal the girls' fate and powers for all eternity. To make things even more complicated, Kelly falls in love with an Indian named Max White Bear. But because of a longstanding tradition, their relationship is a hard sell to the chief of the Indian tribe. With the war between good and evil looming, Kelly must find the strength to harness her magical powers and summon The Crystal Princess inside her. Kimberly Norton lives in the foothills of California, with her husband and two young children. She volunteers at her children's school, and her spare time is devoted to her passion for writing.

My review:

I was very pleased to review a copy of “The Crystal Princess” by Kimberly Norton.  This story is about a typical teenage girl, Kelly, who has just started her senior year.  The day before her eighteenth birthday, Kelly’s birth family kidnap her, turning her life upside down.  It is soon revealed to Kelly that she is a witch and must learn to use her powers to fight against the evil witch, Victoria, who yearns to destroy Kelly’s entire family.

Since this is a short book, only 121 pages, Norton carefully crafted each page.  She quickly dives into the story and starts the action within the first twenty pages.  This face-paced quality is maintained throughout the story with Norton’s frequent use of dialogue.  The main character, Kelly, is a very three dimensional person, as Norton’s casual writing style brings the reader into Kelly’s thoughts.  I also loved the cover of this book, as it not only appeals to Norton’s audience of Young Adult readers but also incorporates important figures from the story, in an interesting way. 

I am looking forward to reading more great books by up-and-coming author Kimberly Norton.  I would recommend this book to everyone, especially to the readers that like fantasy and discovery novels.

iBoy by Kevin Brooks

	Reading Hammock’s Rating:	3 ½ out of 5
	Category:	Fiction
	Fiction Genre:	SciFi
	Title:	iBoy
	Author:	Kevin Brooks
	Author Website:	http://www.myspace.com/kevinbrooksauthor
	ISBN:	0545317681
	ISBN-13:	978-0545317689
	Publication Date:	November, 2011
	Publisher:	The Chicken House
	Format:	Hardcover | Paperback | Digital
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Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Tom Harvey was an ordinary Londoner until an attack that caused fragments of an iPhone to be embedded in his brain, giving him incredible knowledge and power, but using that power against the gang that attacked him and a friend could have deadly consequences.

My review:

I began reading iBoy because I was intrigued to learn about Tom Harvey, the book’s protagonist, who obtains brilliant powers when the pieces of an iPhone lodge into his brain.  The concept for this book is fascinating.  Tom’s newfound powers drew me into the novel but, unfortunately, the plot let me down because I never felt fully immersed in Tom’s life.  In my opinion, great novels cannot rely only on a great concept—they also need a great plot.  In iBoy, the plot was not as spectacular as the idea behind it. 

I particularly liked how Brooks decided to incorporate the modern day item of an iPhone into his story.  We can all relate to the iPhone and this opens up a world of opportunities, which I felt Brooks did not use this to his advantage.   The plot simply did not work with the concept because the author did not give us more moments when Tom is actually using some of the capabilities of an iPhone, such as texting and searching the web. 

In sum, I generally liked Brooks’s refreshing concept but found, to my disappointment, that he did not adequately carry it through.  I would recommend this novel to readers who enjoy fantasy and technology but warn them not to have high expectations.  

"Legend" by Marie Lu

	Reading Hammock’s Rating:	5 out of 5
	Category:	Fiction
	Fiction Genre:	Dystopian
	Title:	Legend
	Author:	Marie Lu
	Author Website:	http://marielu.org/
	ISBN:	039925675X
	ISBN-13:	9780399256752
	Publication Date:	November 29, 2011
	Publisher:	Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
	Format:	Hardcover | Paperback | Digital | Audio
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Synopsis:

Born into an elite family in one of the Republics wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a military prodigy committed to her country.

Born into the slums of the Republic’s Lake Sector, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal.  From different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered.  And Day becomes the prime suspect. 

Now, caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival while June tries to desperately avenge Metias’s death.  But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together and the sinister lengths to which their country will go to keep its secrets. 

My review:

  

I am pleased to say that this is another one of the novels that I was able to bring home from the Book Expo of America (BEA) in May.

“Legend” revolves around a dystopian America where one’s fate lies in a test, called, the ‘Trial’, that every child is required to take at the age of ten.  June was the first and only individual to ace the Trial and was moved into the Republic’s best college four years ahead of her cohorts. 

Meanwhile, another character named Day failed the Trial and became the most infamous criminal in the Republic.  Adding onto the mystery surrounding Day is that no one even knows what he looks like. 

One of aspect of the novel that I like the most is the fact that the main characters, June and Day, differ in background but still share similarities, such as their ability to find ways to get into trouble.  I also loved how the author, Lu, bounced between the perspective of Day and June each chapter.  This really works in “Legend” because it adds a whole new dimension to the story and allows the reader to really see the lives of the two main characters.  The changing between characters in this novel helps the reader imagine Day and June’s starkly different lives without any explanation or narration.  In other words, Lu shows us the story of “Legend” as opposed to just telling the story, making this a vivid read.  Very often, I stop reading a book when there is too much ‘telling’ and not enough ‘showing’.

I absolutely recommend this novel to everyone and I think that it deserves to be a best seller.  If you are still not sure if you want to pick up this book, I think “Legend” is a perfect match for people who have enjoyed reading dystopian other novels such as “Divergent” by Veronica Roth (see my earlier review http://readinghammock.blogspot.com/2011/10/divergent-by-veronica-roth.html.)

Divergent By Veronica Roth

Reading Hammock’s Rating:	4 ½
Category:	Fiction
Fiction Genre:	Science Fiction
Title:	Divergent
Author:	Veronica Roth
Author Website:	http://veronicarothbooks.blogspot.com/
ISBN-10:	0062024027
ISBN-13:	9780062024022
Publication Date:	May 2011
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Format:	Paperback | Hardcover | Digital | Audio
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Synopsis:

In a future Chicago, 16-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomaly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.

My review:

I have been reading this novel on and off for a couple of weeks but I barely finished a small portion of it.  Whenever I picked it up, it didn’t spark my interest to keep me reading.  Yesterday, I picked it up again and I finally got into the story.  The story beings very slowly.  The author allows the reader to look into Beatrice’s dystopian world, filled with five factions—Abnegation, Candor, Dauntless, Amity, and Erudite.  Beatrice has lived with her family for 16 years in the Abnegation faction-- the faction of selflessness.  However, at the age of 16, she considers her options at the Choosing Ceremony, and betrays her family by picking a different faction than she was born into.  Beatrice chooses the Dauntless faction, the faction of bravery and fights for one of the ten spots available in this faction. If she fails, she may become an outcast, and a person that does not belong to any of the five factions. 

After patiently chipping away at the beginning for weeks, I finally grasped enough of the story that made this book “unputdownable.”  Roth uses vivid descriptions to help the reader understand Beatrice’s world.  Although the beginning is slow, it sets up the story for the rest of the novel and is vital to understand the roles of each character and faction. Once you pass beyond the initial breaking of the ice, “Divergent” is a heart-racing story that builds deep tensions to keep the reader wondering what will happen next.  However, be warned, you may be unsatisfied with the ending since you’ll have to wait until its sequel comes out next May to see how Roth continues the story. 

The Outsiders By S.E. Hinton

Reading Hammock’s Rating:	5
Category:	Fiction
Title:	The Outsiders
Author:	S.E. Hinton
Author Website:	http://www.sehinton.com/
ISBN-10:	014038572X
ISBN-13:	978-0140385724
Publication Date:	1967
Publisher:	Puffin Books
Format:	Hardcover | Paperback | Audio
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Author Synopsis:

        According to Ponyboy, there are two kinds of people in the world: greasers and socs. A soc (short for "social") has money, can get away with just about anything, and has an attitude longer than a limousine. A greaser, on the other hand, always lives on the outside and needs to watch his back. Ponyboy is a greaser, and he's always been proud of it, even willing to rumble against a gang of socs for the sake of his fellow greasers--until one terrible night when his friend Johnny kills a soc. The murder gets under Ponyboy's skin, causing his world to crumble and teaching him that pain feels the same whether a soc or a greaser.

My review:

The story is told from the perspective of Ponyboy and I was able to connect with him at the beginning of the plot.  He is a member of a “Greaser” gang, which consists of the poorer people in society.  I easily became attached to Ponyboy because of Hinton’s focus on his emotions.  One could recognize that Ponyboy has a deep love for his gang of “Greasers.”  The gang’s support and love for each other helps Ponyboy and his brothers, Darrel and Sodapop, overcome the death of their parents.  nHinEven though I immediately became attached to Ponyboy, one could also feel the emotions of the other characters, even those who were less important to the story.  This is vital to capturing the reader’s attention since many novels leave out the emotions of secondary characters, especially if the story is told from the perspective of just one character.  I have also noticed that some authors tell the story from the perspective of two characters in order to convey their thoughts.  What I found most remarkable in Hinton’s writing is her ability to write this novel from the perspective of just one character, while also providing insight into how other characters are feeling. 

Hinton uses rich descriptions for introducing new characters which helped me feel closer to understanding Ponyboy’s world. Hinton vividly describes characters’ eyes as a technique to describe their personality.  For example she describes Dally’s cold personality by telling the reader about his icy blue eyes.  Through Hinton’s fresh writing style, colorful descriptions and attention to miniscule details, I became engrossed in the characters’ struggles.

This was daring story about a young boy in the midst of life threatening fights, struggles to find his place in life.  I would recommend this novel to anyone who is looking for a change of pace from their usual genre.  Even though I am a science fiction fan this was an exciting read and I would even consider reading it again.

Jumper by Steven Gould

Reading Hammock’s Rating:	3 1/2
Category:	Fiction
Fiction Genre:	Science
Title:	Jumper
Author:	Steven Gould
Author Website:	http://eatourbrains.com/steve/
ISBN-10:	031285272X
ISBN-13:	978-0312852726
Publication Date:	August, 1992
Publisher:	Tor Books
Format:	Hardcover | Digital | Paperback | Audio
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Author Synopsis:

Davy Rice has a unique genetic trait: he can teleport. To survive, Davy must learn to use and control his power. 

My review:

After watching the movie “Jumper”, based on Steven Gould’s novel, I decided to read it so that I could explore which medium better conveys the unusual plotline.  “Jumper” is a story about a seventeen year old boy named David Rice, who discovers he can “jump” away from his drunken, abusive father to seek sanctuary at the local library.  Since David can move from one place to another, to wherever he desires, he runs away from home to explore the world.  I was quickly drawn into the novel because the overall concept of being able to teleport oneself is intriguing and I was also curious to see what David would do with his power. 

David uses his teleporting ability to target “jump” sites throughout the world.  In the process, he learns that his long lost mother died in a terrorist attack.  David is determined to avenge her assassin.  He is targeted by The National Security Agency because of his unusual “jumping” activities.  They are intent on capturing him to examine his unique capability.  When David’s beloved girlfriend, Millie, is captured by the National Security Agency, he struggles to choose between revenging his mother’s killer and saving his girlfriend. 

In the novel, the author focuses on David’s internal struggles whereas in the movie, many new characters are introduced in order to create an action packed plot.  Although I somewhat enjoyed this novel, it did not reach my expectations after watching the movie.  At times, Gould’s entangled plotline confuses the reader while the movie better resembles a fast paced science fiction story. 

Gould cleverly builds his story around the concept of teleporting, or as he explains it, “jumping” from country to country and city to city, in just seconds.  Although David has a power only attainable in dreams, Gould’s casual and personal tone allows the reader to feel as though they are David, and can “jump” anywhere in the world.  Throughout the story Gould expresses David’s exhilarated feelings mixed with the turmoil of his shattered family life. 

I think that in order to enjoy this book, one has to love the genre of science fiction.   Overall, Gould had a captivating idea but did not execute it as well as he could have.