Friday, August 21, 2020

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

Stevie Bell is extremely surprised when she is accepted into Ellingham High, a prestigious private school for people who are geniuses at what they do. Stevie feels out of her depth - she hasn't done anything important, but she's an expert on the kidnappings that had happened to the Ellingham family eighty years ago. When one of the students at her school dies mysteriously, and none of the facts seem to add up, Stevie jumps on the case.

I really enjoyed this novel. It was a well written mystery and very tense in some places. The author did a good job of creating this mystery, and also utilized flashbacks to when the Ellinghams were kidnapped to tell more of the story. The characters were all well fleshed out and believable, and the main character, Stevie, was likable. The mystery was very fun to read and think about. However, the story ended off unfinished - but it is continued in a sequel. Overall, I think this is a great book if someone wants a good mystery written in a YA-style novel.

Reviewed by NK, Grade 10

Montrose Library

Monday, August 17, 2020

The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi

Set in the universe of the first novel in the series, The Ghost Brigades features a new set of characters. Charles Boutin, a high-ranking scientist who studied the Colonial Union's soldiers, has faked his death and defected over to the side of an alien alliance against humanity. The Colonial Union decides to clone Boutin's body and consciousness from existing DNA and try to figure out what Boutin has done. If it works, they have the potential to thwart the alliance. If it doesn't, the new Boutin will be just another soldier in the Colonial Union's mysterious Ghost Brigades. The story follows Jared Dirac, Boutin's clone, through his service in the military and his final conflict between who he is and the precedent his predecessor has set for him.

I enjoyed this book a lot. However, extensive knowledge of the first book is needed to have a more complete idea of the story. The action was top-notch, and although the characters are kind of similar, they are also written very well. The dialogue is good and witty, and the main story was very interesting and fun to read. Readers of the previous novel would love this, and people who enjoy sci-fi/space opera type books would also enjoy it very much. I would definitely recommend this book to others.

Reviewed by NK, Grade 10

Montrose Library