Vampirates

I can't believe it has almost been a month since my last post! I have read several books since then. Vampirates the title just gets you, doesn't it? Vampirates is written by Justin Somper an oh my goodness it's exciting! I read the first book of the series and am eager to read the second. This is the story of twins Grace and Connor Tempest. After losing their father, they have nothing left but a boat. Unfortunately, the boat belongs to the bank! The two options they have are the town orphanage or the banker and his wife. They choose neither, instead they take their father's boat and make an escape. They encounter a bad storm and the boat sinks. Grace and Conner lose track of each other and are each picked up by different pirate ships. Connor is rescued by Cheng Lee of the Diablo, while Grace is rescued by Lorcan Furey of the Vampirates. Both Grace and Connor learn about the ways of the ship the land on. Will Grace and Connor ever find each other?
It is a wonderful story and I enjoyed it very much. This is a must have series.
Happy Reading!
Mrs. B.

"I'd Tell You I Love You, but Then I'd Have To Kill You"

Hello reading fans! Spies, romance, and an all girls boarding school? That's right! "I'd Tell You I Love You, but Then I'd Have To Kill You" by Ally Carter has it all. The story is about Cami Morgan, who attends The Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. More than just go to school there, her mother is the headmistress of the school. No one on the outside knows what goes on inside the school, most people just think it is a boarding school for weathy families. That is also the feeling shared by the people of the town Roseville where the school is located. And then Cami meets Josh in town one night while on a covert operation and her life is turned upside down. Cami struggles with what she should tell Josh. There were parts of the story where I laughed out loud! This book is a must have for the library.
Happy reading,
Mrs. B.

How to Be Popular

Hello again! I completed "How To Be Popular" by Meg Cabot just the other day. I found this to be a cute story. It is a story about Stephanie Landry and her plan to become popular after an embarassing incident five years ago. "Way to pull a Steph" is the catch phrase at Stephanie's high school, the problem is, she's the Steph in the saying. With the help of a book she finds Stephanie works her way up the social ladder, while nearly losing her two best friends along the way. The story has parts that made me laugh out loud. It is an easy story to read and get involved in. There are not too many twists and turns. It is something I think our middle schoolers would enjoy.
Happy reading!
Mrs. B.

"The Death Collector"

I finished "The Death Collector" by Justin Richards yesterday. This book had me hooked from the very beginning. "Four days after his funeral, Albert Wilkes came home for tea"(Richards). This was how it started the description given made my eyes bulge out. The story is set in Victorian England. The story begins by telling about Albert, then Liz, then George, then Eddie. After that their stories intertwine and the story really takes off. It would take a long time to really describe the book well, but here is the gist: George, Liz and Eddie have a clue to something the wealthy industrialist Augustus Lorimore wants. Lorimore sends his henchmen and a monster to retrieve the clue. This story is full of twists and turns, tons of action. The only thing to me that seemed out of place was the title. The title didn't really seem to fit the book until the very end of the story and then it made perfect sense.
This is a book I would like to get for the library I think it would appeal to many students.
Happy Reading!

Incanation

I listened to "Incantation" on audiobook recently and suprisingly I liked it. "Incantation" by Alice Hoffman is the story of Estrella deMadrigal set at the time of the Spanish Inquisition. The story is told by 16 year old Estrella. This tale follows Estrella as she discovers love, betrayal, intolerance and a family secret that changes her life forever.
I have never been a fan of historical fiction, but my views are changing as I read more and more historical fiction. When I first chose this book I didn't realize that the setting was the Spanish Inquisition (I'm not sure how I missed it!). Once I discovered the setting I did not want to read the book at all, in fact I pushed it to the end of my stack of books. I was so wrong in my initial judgement of this book. It is fast paced and easy to get into the feelings. I felt very connected to Estrella and I loved the story!
We do have another Alice Hoffman book in the library "Indigo". You may want to read this to get a feel for the style of writing even though the books are not connected in any way.
Happy Reading!