Variant

Variant by Robison Wells

Summary: Benson Fisher thought a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life. He was wrong. Now he’s trapped in a place where breaking the rules equals death.

Thoughts: Great book!  Totally didn't see the twist coming.  (And I'm pretty good at figuring it out.)  I was surprised and can't wait to see what's in store in the next novel. 

Read if you liked: Maze Runner, The Roar

Cinder

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Summary: Cinder (16 yrs old) is a cyborg and an especially talented mechanic in New Beijing long after WW IV has ended.  When Prince Kai shows up at her booth to fix an android that contains a "matter of national security," Cinder is suddenly thrown into a world of intrigue and mystery as she struggles with the Plague, Luna royalty, and who she really is.

Thoughts:  This is a futuristic Cinderella tale.  It was a little difficult to get into at first, but once I did it swept me away.  This book would've been a five-star had the ending not been disappointing.  It's almost as if the author decided that she didn't know how to end it so I'm going to make it flow into the next book.  *sigh*  I hate that!  Hopefully the sequel will resolve some of the final "issues" that were left hanging.

The Adoration of Jenna Fox

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

Summary: Who is Jenna Fox? Seventeen-year-old Jenna has been told that is her name. She has just awoken from a coma, they tell her, and she is still recovering from a terrible accident in which she was involved a year ago. But what happened before that? Jenna doesn't remember her life. Or does she? And are the memories really hers? (GoodReads)

Thoughts: Really good.  I listened to it in the car on the way to Austin.  It's a great audio book (Surprisingly!) and it has a great and intriguing storyline.  The plot is a bit predictable at times, but it has it surprises.  Would definitely recommend it!

Stuck on Earth

Stuck on Earth by David Klass

Summary: Ketchvar III’s mission is simple: travel to Planet Earth, inhabit the body of an average teenager, and determine if the human race should be annihilated. And so Ketchvar—who, to human eyes, looks just like a common snail—crawls into the brain of one Tom Filber and attempts to do his analysis. (from GoodReads)

Thoughts: Meh. This book had it's funny moments. However, there was a lot of bullying, gross name-calling (Zitface, Slugbrain), and dogging on your family. I didn't love this book. BUT! It would be great for kids who still love calling people booger-brain.

Matched

Matched by Allie Condie

Summary (from book jacket)
Cassia has always trusted their choices.  It's hardly any price to pay for a long life, the perfect job, the ideal mate.  So when her best friend appears on the Matching screen, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is the one...until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.  Now Cassia is faced with impossible choices: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path no one else has ever dared follow - between perfection and passion.

Personal Thoughts
Oh. My. Stars.  This book was GREAT!!!  I can see this book being the next Hunger Games.  I loved how easy this story was to read and how much it reminded me of some past classics like 1984.  It was a magnificent tale and should be read by anyone who like the Hunger Games.  Romance, intrigue, scandal, rebellion, questions...Seriously, it was fabulous!  The sequel is titled Crossed and is due out in  November of this year.  (I can't wait!)

The Roar

The Roar by Emma Clayton

Summary (from book jacket)
Mika lives in future London, behind The Wall, safe from the Animal Plague beyond.  Or so he's been told.  But ever since Ellie vanished a year ago, he's suspected his world may be build on secrets - and lies.  When a mysterious organization starts recruiting mutant kids to compete in violent virtual reality games, Mika takes the chance to search for his twin sister - and the truth.

Personal Thoughts
I really enjoyed this book.  It was a fascinating read...it was also a completely scary because I could see it happening in the future if we're not careful.  I think Clayton did an excellent job of weaving this particular tale.  Like many of the other books I read over break, I'm wondering if there will be a sequel.  And, yes, it is called The Whisper and is due out in Fall 2011.  I'm excited to read it and see how Mika and Ellie work through the Secret and find out what lies beyond The Wall.  Highly recommended for fans of Sci-Fi and Dystopia.

The Scorch Trials

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner (sequel to The Maze Runner)

Summary (from Horizon)
After surviving horrific conditions in the Maze, Thomas is entrapped, along with nineteen other boys, in a scientific experiment designed to observe their responses and gather data believed to be essential for the survival of the human race.

Personal Thoughts
That summary absolutely does not do this book justice.  In fact, if the book jacket summary hadn't been so long I would have copied that one.  The Maze Runner was a fabulous book and The Scorch Trials is a fitting sequel.  The characters are splendid, the scenery is described (but not to death), and the plot is fantastic and mystifying all at the same time.  WICKED, while they keep saying they're good, are just...well...wicked-sounding.  Although, without being a spoiler, this novel throws in some bizarre flashback twists that will blow your mind!  If you liked The Maze Runner, you'll love The Scorch Trials.

The Gardener

The Gardener by S.A. Bodeen

Summary (from book jacket)
Mason isn't supposed to know about the Greenhouse.  He isn't supposed to meet the beautiful girl who is part of the experiment, and who doesn't need food or water to survive.  Now Mason is on the run with the girl.  And the Gardener, who is the mysterious mastermind of an institution that grows humans, wants them both, dead or alive.

Personal Thoughts
I really like the concept of this book.  And for the most part I thought it was well-written.  However, there were things left unexplained and the action scenes seemed a little lack-luster.  I'm interested to know if there will be a sequel to help answer some of those questions.  I would recommend this book to anyone who likes sci-fi.

Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports

Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports by James Patterson
Summary
Max and her flock are still trying to save the world.  Who can they trust?  Who will help them?  The end is near...or is it?

Personal Thoughts
Holy cow!  Another excellent installation.  I can't keep talking about it or I'll be a spoiler!  And, I'm not a spoiler.  All I can say is that I LOVE IT!

Maximum Ride: School's Out Forever

Maximum Ride: School's Out Forever by James Patterson

Summary (from Booklist)
Max and her flock are back in this new volume in the Maximum Ride series, a follow-up to The Angel Experiment (2004). In a flying fight with Erasers, Fang is injured so seriously that the flock takes him to a hospital. It's obvious he's not a normal human (having wings and avian DNA), so it isn't long before the FBI shows up. Anne Walker, the lead agent, takes the flock home to her Virginia farm, where she tries to mother the kids and enrolls them in a nearby private school. Living a somewhat normal life for the first time, Max, 14, manages a date and a first kiss, and others in the flock begin the quest to find their birth parents. Then everything falls apart.

Personal Thoughts
I can't stop!  I'm already half-way through the next one.  This series is wonderfully paced, action-packed, and doesn't give a lot away.  There were some twists that I saw coming, but in the end even those twists were twisted! Love it!

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment  by James Patterson

Summary
Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel are six kids who are 98% human and 2% bird.  But otherwise, they're pretty normal.  Raised in a lab like rats in a cage, they're now free thanks to their father-figure Jeb who sprung them from "The School."  Now they are being pursued by Erasers - wicked, wolf like creatures who work for the School.  The flock's missions are to rescue Angel from the School, track down their missing parents, get revenge on a traitor, oh, and save the world.

Personal Thoughts
I picked this book up because it was popular with the kids and I like to know what they're reading.  I was not looking forward to reading it, however.  I delayed and delayed.  I picked it up on Sunday morning and COULDN'T STOP READING!  Wow!  I've read a lot of other James Patterson [adult] books and this outshone them in terms of action and intrigue.  Plus, all of the characters seemed richly developed.  Now I'm invested.  I have to know what happens in the next book. 

*Highly recommended

Incarceron

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

Summary (taken from SLJ)
Finn is a 17-year old prisoner of Incarceron. His memories begin and end there. He knows nothing about his heritage except for vague memories that tease at his mind. The teen is determined to escape the prison fashioned centuries ago as a solution to the chaos created by man. Now Incarceron is self-sustaining and self-perpetuating—prisoners are born there and they die there. Legend claims only one man has ever escaped, Sapphique, and Finn is determined to follow in his steps.

Personal Thoughts
In the beginning, I had a hard time following what was going on.  I felt very confused.  However, after awhile (perhaps about 50 pages), I found myself wrapped up in Finn's world and then Claudia's.  I thought this adventure was well-paced, thought-provoking, and exciting.  I can't wait for the sequel, Sapphique, to come out in December.