The Well of Lost Plots

The Well of Lost Plots by Jasper Fforde is the third book in the Thursday Next series. Thursday is on a character exchange program, living inside an unpublished book while she waits out the trouble waiting for her at home - Goliath and SpecOps searching for her, her husband eradicated from time. In addition, her encounter with Aornis Hades (in the previous book) has begun to rob her of her own memories. Her mind seems to be erasing all that she has lived through. Now working as a bookjumper in the Jurisfiction department, Thursday must work to get her memories back, help fix plotholes, and eventually, search for a murderer in fiction. Read this book if you like strange alternative worlds, if you read the first two book, or if you're interested in metafiction. I give it a 7 out of 10.

Crank

Crank by Ellen Hopkins is a story in verse meaning that the entire story is comprised of poems. It's the story of Kristina, a sixteen-year-old girl who goes to spend a summer with her father who she hasn't seen in years. While there, she meets a boy who she falls in love with after he introduces her to the "monster" - meth. Kristina, now calling herself Bree, becomes addicted to the monster and continues to get high even after she returns home to her normal life with a solid family, good friends, and a bright future. As she falls deeper into her addiction, Bree battles with Kristina about how to live her life and who she should become. The verses are a bit strange and disconcerting, and the story is depressing and graphic. Read this book if you like stories in verse, if you're interested in teenage drug use, or if you want to look like you read giant books (537 pages), but you want to finish it in one or two days. I give it a 6 out of 10.

The Diamond of Darkhold

The Diamond of Darkhold by Jeanne DuPrau is the fourth, and final, book in the Series of Ember. It picks up where the second book left off, with the main characters, Lina and Doon, living in the village of Sparks. It has been a tough winter, and food is scarce. Some villagers are suffering from illnesses that can't be cured. The people of Ember are working on collecting materials to build new homes when the winter ends. When a roamer brings along a mostly destroyed book, Doon and Lina begin to question what happened to their old city. Is there something there waiting for them? Should they return? And what will the find when they get there? Read this book if you liked the first two, if you want to find out what happens to the people of Ember and Sparks, or if you like easy, quick reads. I give it a 7 out of 10.

Cut

Cut by Patricia McCormick is written from the perspective of fifteen-year-old Callie who is in a girl's home or some sort of institution due to her habit of cutting herself. Although the novel is from her perspective, Callie does not talk at all during therapy or group or to her roommate. Callie learns about the other girls in her group, but doesn't seem able or willing to talk about herself until they threaten to remove her from the home because of her non-participation. She then has to decide if she really does want to get better or if she's fine continuing to cut herself and remain silent. Read this book if you like young adult fiction, if small, quick books are your favorite, or if you want to learn more about this strange phenomenon affecting young girls. I give it a 7 out of 10.

Lost in a Good Book

Lost in a Good Book by Jasper Fforde is the second book in the Thursday Next series. It begins where The Eyre Affair left off, with Thursday now married to the love of her life, Landen. All seems to be going great now that Hades is dead and no longer a threat. However, someone still seems to be out to get Thursday. Is Hades actually dead? Is the mega-corporation, Goliath, involved? As Thursday tries to solve these mysteries, her husband suddenly disappears from time and space. Someone has been messing with history! Thursday fights to get her husband back while also learning to become a book jumper with Miss Havisham from Great Expectations as her teacher. So much to learn, so little time. Read this book if you liked the first one, if you enjoy alternate realities, or if you're interested in strange tales that keep you thinking. I give it an 8 out of 10.

Ender's Game

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card is a science fiction book set in an unknown future where an alien race known as Buggers has attempted to invade earth twice and seems to be prepared to invade once more. Children seem to be the only hope for survival as they are trained in the latest combat through games at Battle School. Six-year-old Ender Wiggin has been chosen to attend Battle School and seems to be the only hope for humanity. He must leave his family behind and learn quickly in order to lead the soldiers before the Buggers attack. Can Ender learn fast enough? Are the Buggers really coming? And why do the teachers seem to be messing with Ender's mind? Is it all just a game after all? Read this book if you like science fiction, if you like battle stories, or if you're interested in books about good and evil. I give it a 9 out of 10.

The Eyre Affair

The Eyre Affair: A Thursday Next Novel by Jasper Fforde is the first book in a series about Thursday Next, a special operative agent in an alternative version of 1985 England. Thursday works for the LiteraTec department that investigates mysterious happenings in the world of books and literature. In this first novel, Thursday must deal with a serial killer and general psycho, Hades, who seems to allude photographs, police, and reality. Thursday eventually follows Hades into Jane Eyre where she has to be careful to stay out of the story or change the novel forever. Will she survive Hades? Will she survive the book world? Read this book if you love Jane Eyre, if you like metafiction, or you're interested in suspense thrillers. I give it a 9 out of 10.