Title: THE TESTING
Author: Joelle Charbonneau
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
Release Date: June 4, 2013
Number of Pages: 336
Source of Book: ARC from bookseller in anticipation of author visit

Keep your friends close
and your enemies closer. Isn’t that what they say? But how close is too
close when they may be one in the same?

The Seven Stages War
left much of the planet a charred wasteland. The future belongs to the
next generation’s chosen few who must rebuild it. But to enter this
elite group, candidates must first pass The Testing—their one chance at a
college education and a rewarding career.

Cia Vale is honored
to be chosen as a Testing candidate; eager to prove her worthiness as a
University student and future leader of the United Commonwealth. But on
the eve of her departure, her father’s advice hints at a darker side to
her upcoming studies–trust no one.

But surely she can trust
Tomas, her handsome childhood friend who offers an alliance? Tomas, who
seems to care more about her with the passing of every grueling (and
deadly) day of the Testing. To survive, Cia must choose: love
without truth or life without trust.

First Thought: Oh my goodness!

SO good! An engrossing, thrilling, intriguing, suspenseful story set in a well-built future world.

I really enjoyed reading THE TESTING. I was engrossed it in from the start. At first, I was a little worried that it would be too reminiscent of THE HUNGER GAMES and DIVERGENT, but as I got into it, I realized that it was completely it’s own creation of this world, while maybe feeling like an homage to those great dystopians that have come before it.

It was so hard to put THE TESTING down. Joelle Charbonneau wrote a well-paced plot, and once I got to certain parts throughout, it was impossible not to keep reading so that I could find out what would happen and who would survive. I very much liked the main character, Cia, and was pulling for her throughout the book. She is smart, while still being young and sometimes making decisions that made me want to yell at her, but her intelligence and insights are what keep her going. In a game of who can you trust, she learns to really think through all situations, but that doesn’t mean she figures all of it out. In a contest of who can make a great leader, it is difficult to know exactly what the officials might be looking for, but staying true to oneself and one’s upbringing can always been seen as the right path. Cia’s path is not easy, her decisions are not easy, her ability to live with herself after what she has to do to survive will not be easy, but she stays true to herself which is an admirable quality.

The world-building was done well in giving the reader enough information when necessary, but also keeping us guessing about some things. The scenes of explanation are smoothly entrenched in what is happening in the story and propel the plot forward, but also give us enough insight into how things might have come to be this way. The overall idea behind The Testing is so smart, and so manipulative, and scary at the same time. I just hope all of the characters that I have come to like will make it through this series.

And, yes, there is an element of romance, but in a brutal contest that is set up to kill off candidates who are not worthy, and a system that is set up to make you question the ulterior motives of everyone around you, and in a world in which all may not be as it seems, how can one be sure of anything that happens during The Testing or trust one’s own memories? That remains to be seen.

Final Thoughts: I’m calling it now – I think this is going to be the next big dystopian series…it will at least fill that hole left behind from the end of the The Hunger Games and the upcoming end of the Divergent series.

Title: DUALED
Author: Elsie Chapman
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Release Date: Febrary 26, 2013
Number of Pages: 304
Source of Book: ARC from publisher at NCTE

You or your Alt? Only one will survive.

The
city of Kersh is a safe haven, but the price of safety is high.
Everyone has a genetic Alternate—a twin raised by another family—and
citizens must prove their worth by eliminating their Alts before their
twentieth birthday. Survival means advanced schooling, a good job,
marriage—life.

Fifteen-year-old West Grayer has trained as a
fighter, preparing for the day when her assignment arrives and she will
have one month to hunt down and kill her Alt. But then a tragic misstep
shakes West’s confidence. Stricken with grief and guilt, she’s no longer
certain that she’s the best version of herself, the version worthy of a
future. If she is to have any chance of winning, she must stop running
not only from her Alt, but also from love . . . though both have the
power to destroy her.

Elsie Chapman’s suspenseful YA debut weaves
unexpected romance into a novel full of fast-paced action and
thought-provoking philosophy. When the story ends, discussions will
begin about this future society where every adult is a murderer and
every child knows there is another out there who just might be better.

First Thought: So much suspense! Could not stop reading until I found out how it would end.

DUALED was an intense, kill or be killed, fight to the finish. I had to keep turning pages to know what was going to happen with West and which Alt would survive the final confrontation. The basis of this world where each is born with an Alt and gets “activated” sometime between 10 and 20, and then has only 30 days to hunt down and kill the Alt, or be killed, or both be destroyed after the time ends lends itself to a ticking clock of suspense in the background driving the momentum of the whole story.

In a world full of killers and surrounded by guns, are you the hunted or the hunter, or both at the same time? Which one will be smarter, stronger, or just luckier in the end? When 50% of the population must be killed off, can you ever feel safe with your family and friends, or know that they’ll stay around? All of these drive the plot of this story in this dystopic future, which I want to know even more about.

We’re given glimpses into the world, and how it came to be, and what might be outside, and what led to them being there, and who might be against the way they live…which makes me so glad there is a sequel coming in 2014 so we can find out what happens next. Although I figured I knew how the story would have to end, that didn’t stop my heart from pounding, my gasping out loud, or my yelling at the characters to stay safe and smart and not give up. I enjoyed spending this time with West and Chord, and although it was frightening at times, it was a well-developed world that was created down to the tiniest details of how things operate for idles vs. actives vs. completes.


Final Thoughts: So glad there’s going to be a sequel to this “HUNGER GAMES to the nth degree meets…something” world of this story.

Title: PIVOT POINT
Author: Kasie West
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: February 12, 2013
Number of Pages: 320
Source of Book: ARC from publisher at NCTE

Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier . . .

Addison
Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is
faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes.
It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought.
When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has
to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the
paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is
staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as
it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the
future proves it’s not.

In one potential future, Addie is
adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high
school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands
her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in
school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When
Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s
unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she
holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which
reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live
without.

I loved this book so much. It’s fresh and original and unexpected. It’s an amazing book that was entertaining and engaging. It has characters I wanted to be friends with, lines of text that I read repeatedly because I wanted to soak up and remember them, a uniquely original world built upon a science fiction/supernatural base that reads like a contemporary, a layered storyline being told of two divergent paths that are interrelated, twists that kept me on my reader toes, and a writing voice that I connected with and felt comforted by and made me want to keep spending time enveloped in this prose. PIVOT POINT is the debut novel by Kasie West (who is repped by Michelle Wolfson, the same agent as Kiersten White and Daisy Whitney, whose new books I also love), and it is one that I think teens are going to love. I know I did. This is the kind of book that left me still thinking about it the next day wondering what was happening in those character’s lives next and wanting to go back and reread it again right away.

One of the details Kasie West included that I really loved in PIVOT POINT was the way that Addie loves books so much, and all kinds of books, but real paper books. There are many times throughout the story it comes up, and it made me happy to read it each time. Addison also has the kind of personality that I love in my main characters – a little bit spunky and sassy, with an intelligence and caring behind all she does. Her attitude is great, and there were many moments throughout where I laughed out loud at something she said. In regards to gym class in a new school: “Nobody should be forced to do physical exercise on Mondays.” Him: “My bookcase is all yours.” Her: “I’ve just decided those are my five favorite words in the world.” And many, many more that I wanted to hold onto to remember on another day. *All lines quoted from an uncorrected proof.

Another element that is incredibly strong is the twistedness of the plot and the way the two directions the story goes are interwoven together. The links are there to see how it might go with either choice in the same situations, and the alternating chapters stop at just the right point every time. There is a history to this world that is intriguing and fully thought out, but that still seems to have more to discover. There is also a depth to this story that delves into the true repercussions of choices we make and the path to get to what we may want might not always be easy. It’s about figuring out who is meaningful and necessary in her life, and what she can do to keep them there. And I can’t talk about this book without mentioning the boys. Duke and Trevor both have their charms, and they were written in such a way as to make the reader adore both of them, and not be sure which way you want the story to go yourself. Which is exactly how we should be feeling because that’s how Addie would be feeling. I also claim this book has one of the best first kiss scenes ever, but everything stays clean enough that I could hand it to my middle school students without a concern. In fact, I think they’ll love it, too.

This is the kind of book that leaves you contemplating at the end because either choice has its good sides and its bad, so it’s hard to know which one you’d want the character to choose. It does end with a definite decision and ending; however, I found out there will be a sequel, so I’m very excited to get to spend more time with these characters in this world and read more of this fresh voice in YA. Please go get PIVOT POINT in February, or preorder it now, and read Kasie West’s debut novel. You won’t be sorry.

Title: ALTERED
Author: Jennifer Rush
Publisher: Little, Brown
Release Date: January 2, 2013
Number of Pages: 336
Source of Book: ARC requested from publisher

When you can’t trust yourself, who can
you believe?

Everything about Anna’s life is a secret. Her father
works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and
administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below
their farmhouse. There’s Nick, Cas, Trev . . . and Sam, who’s stolen Anna’s
heart. When the Branch decides it’s time to take the boys, Sam stages an escape,
killing the agents sent to retrieve them.

Anna is torn between following
Sam or staying behind in the safety of her everyday life. But her father pushes
her to flee, making Sam promise to keep her away from the Branch, at all costs.
There’s just one problem. Sam and the boys don’t remember anything before living
in the lab—not even their true identities.

Now on the run, Anna soon
discovers that she and Sam are connected in more ways than either of them
expected. And if they’re both going to survive, they must piece together the
clues of their past before the Branch catches up to them and steals it all
away.

I had no idea what to expect when I opened ALTERED by Jennifer Rush; I just knew that the summary sounded really good. I had just finished two other incredible books, so I was hesitant to start one I hadn’t heard much about yet for fear I would be disappointed, but I had no reason to be worried with ALTERED. I was hooked on this heart-pounding story from the first page. Once I started, I didn’t want to stop reading. This was a one day read for me because it was so action-packed and surprising that I just wanted to keep going to find out what was actually happening until the very end. ALTERED has all the best of the medical alterations sci-fi intrigue, secret organization, on-the-run types of stories, with a uniquely interesting backstory of how these boys and Anna got there.

ALTERED is an addictively good, completely intriguing story. I loved the journey I was taken on from the start of learning about the lab, to the escape, to being on the run, to the mystery of their past, to the unexpected reveals, to the relationships built and broken and repaired, to the place the characters are left at the end. Jennifer Rush has given the reader an exciting blend of family drama, relationship building, hot boys, guns and weapons, action-packed fighting sequences, mystery, suspense, and outmaneuvering of the organization chasing them. There were several scenes when I literally gasped out loud. The whole group of core characters has a dynamic that is endearing, and their interactions are so engaging. Love those boys! ALTERED is a twisty novel full of gasp-worthy moments, action, loveable characters, and a little bit of a romance to tie it all together.

I’m so glad to hear that there will be another book following this one! There is a definite ending, so I wasn’t sure because it could have been that this story is complete, but it is left at a spot that had me hoping there would be more time with these characters and more to discover at this point in their story. I’ll be anxiously awaiting the follow-up book from Jennifer Rush to spend more time with Anna, Sam, and the boys!