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Red House Books is going through a bit of a update!

I've always had a pretty clear vision of what I wanted this space to be but I've been detoured from my path by...lots and lost of other people's opinions and ways of doing things...

I'm committed to this little chunk of the interweb but I've also branched out into other places so! Now it's time to think of Red House Books as more of a hub of all things me! And Me is a hell of a lot of book love!

Stay tuned!

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Thursday, January 21, 2010

The Best YA Books You Haven't Read!

Hello All!
Recently I was contacted by Kelly over at YAnnabe. She had a great idea she wanted to share with the blogging world. I happen to think it's a great idea as well so I'm joining her today to present to you:

THE BEST YA BOOKS YOU HAVEN'T READ!

Who says they are the best? - Well, this is my list so the answer is me :) hehe
How do I know you haven't read them? - Well, technically I don't but I can tell you how we came about making our lists. Everyone participating today has a  LibraryThing account. When looking at your (or any other member's) catalog  it's pretty easy to see how many other members have the same book listed. We have all taken a look at our lists and picked some great (by our standards) YA books we share with less then 500 other members.
Why are we using LibraryThing? For simplicity to start with - it's very easy to see others catalogs and unlike some book cataloging sites, the LT member count takes into consideration every edition of each book - so if people are listing their books by ISBN every edition is included in the final count.

Now of course, this is all for fun!

Please keep in mind, I only used LibraryThing statistics. No sales data was collected, no polls were taken. Again - just for fun because books are fun and I for one LOVE to spread the BOOK LOVE!

If you find this interesting (which I hope you do!), please take a look at Kelly's blog post today. Everyone partisipating should be linking up their posts. Who knows how many great books you'll find!

So! With that all said, I would like to introduce to you a few YA books I have read over the last year or so that you may not have read. I have picked only books that I would recommend to others.

If you have any quesitons about any book - let me know :)

Ok - here we go - In no particular order!


Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender
Alexis thought she led a typically dysfunctional high school existence. Dysfunctional like her parents' marriage; her doll-crazy twelve-year-old sister, Kasey; and even her own anti-social, anti-cheerleader attitude.
When a family fight results in some tearful sisterly bonding, Alexis realizes that her life is creeping from dysfunction into danger. Kasey is acting stranger than ever: her blue eyes go green sometimes; she uses old-fashioned language; and she even loses track of chunks of time, claiming to know nothing about her strange behavior. Their old house is changing, too. Doors open and close by themselves; water boils on the unlit stove; and an unplugged air conditioner turns the house cold enough to see their breath in.
Alexis wants to think that it's all in her head, but soon, what she liked to think of as silly parlor tricks are becoming life-threatening--to her, her family, and to her budding relationship with the class president. Alexis knows she's the only person who can stop Kasey -- but what if that green-eyed girl isn't even Kasey anymore?

Quick Thoughts: A pretty good ghost story. Creepy and spooky with a lot of potential.
My Reivew
LibraryThing

Once A Witch by Carolyn MacCullough
Tamsin Greene comes from a long line of witches, and she was supposed to be one of the most Talented among them. But Tamsin's magic never showed up. Now seventeen, Tamsin attends boarding school in Manhattan, far from her family. But when a handsome young professor mistakes her for her very Talented sister, Tamsin agrees to find a lost family heirloom for him. The search--and the stranger--will prove to be more sinister than they first appeared, ultimately sending Tamsin on a treasure hunt through time that will unlock the secret of her true identity, unearth the sins of her family, and unleash a power so vengeful that it could destroy them all. This is a spellbinding display of storytelling that will exhilarate, enthrall, and thoroughly enchant.

Quick Thoughts: An interesting story about an interesting witch family. Some romance, some scares and lots of fun!
My Reivew
LibraryThing

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George
Blessed—or cursed—with an ability to understand animals, the Lass (as she’s known to her family) has always been an oddball. And when an isbjorn (polar bear) seeks her out, and promises that her family will become rich if only the Lass will accompany him to his castle, she doesn’t hesitate. But the bear is not what he seems, nor is his castle, which is made of ice and inhabited by a silent staff of servents. Only a grueling journey on the backs of the four winds will reveal the truth: the bear is really a prince who’s been enchanted by a troll queen, and the Lass must come up with a way to free him before he’s forced to marry a troll princess.

Quick Thoughts: A new take on an old story. Full of myth and ledgend with some wonderful characters.
My Review
LibraryThing

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman
Strange things are happening in Skeleton Creek . . . and Ryan and Sarah are trying to get to the heart of it. But after an eerie accident leaves Ryan housebound and forbidden to see Sarah, their investigation takes two tracks: Ryan records everything in his journal, while Sarah uses her videocam to search things out. . .and then email the clips for Ryan to see.
In a new, groundbreaking format, the story is broken into two parts -- Ryan's text in the book, and Sarah's videos on a special website, with links and passwords given throughout the book.

Quick Thoughts: A tottally different take on story telling. The online componant is just plain creepy - in such a good way!
My Review
LibraryThing

The Faerie Path by Ferwin Jones
On the eve of Anita's sixteenth birthday, her date with her new boyfriend, Evan, is interrupted by an accident that lands them both in the hospital. After a series of dreamlike visions, she awakens in Faerie as Tania, the seventh daughter of King Oberon and Queen Titania, who has been missing for 500 years. Anita doesn't know what to think, and while she is trying to figure things out, she uncovers a plot that could destroy both worlds. The writing is occasionally awkward, and the book's setting and characters are typical fantasy fare. Even so, there's enough mystery, suspense, and romance to carry readers to the inevitable happy ending, and girls fond of magical princess stories won't be disappointed.

Quick Thoughts: I haven't reviewed this one on my blog but it's the first book in a 5 book series. It's full of magic and wonder and I absolutly loved it!
LibraryThing

Everlost by Neal Shusterman
Nick and Allie don't survive the car accident...
...but their souls don't exactly get where they're supposed to get either. Instead, they're caught halfway between life and death, in a sort of limbo known as Everlost: a shadow of the living world, filled with all the things and places that no onger exist. It's a magical, yet dangerous place where bands of lost children run wild and anyone who stands in the same place too long sinks to the center of the Earth.
When they find Mary, the self-proclaimed queen of lost kids, Nick feels like he he's found a home, but allie isn't satisfied spending eternity between worlds. Against all warnings, Allie begins learning the "Criminal Art" of haunting, and ventures into dangerous territory, where a monster called the McGill threatens all the souls of Everlost. In this imaginative novel, Neal Shusterman explores questions of life, death, and what just might lie in between.

Quick Thoughts: A ghost story like no other! These characters are mesmerizing!
My Review
LibraryThing

So, what do you guys think?

11 comments:

  1. I really enjoyed Bad Girls Don't Die too. Once a Witch was a quick read, but not an all time favorite (I just reviewed it yesterday actually!)

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  2. I really want to read Bad Girls Don't Die! Thanks for the reminder to add it to my TBR list. :)

    Love the "quick thoughts" addition to your list. Makes it easy to see which ones I might like!

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  3. Great list! I totally want to read all of them! Especially Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow! It looks awesome! :-0

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  4. O most of these are on my TBR list. Nice list!

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  5. I love this! I had not heard of any of them but Once A Witch and it was on my wish list..now I have some more to add! thanks!

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  6. We both have Faerie Path on our lists! Instead of Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow I put Princess of the Midnight Ball! The rest of your list sounds fantastic too.

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  7. I think I'm going to have to find Bad Girls Don't Die its on alot of these lists.The faerie Path is on my TBR pile will have to move it up!

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  8. Ooooh Bad Girls Don't Die is on my list, too. I was shocked to see that it made the cut! It's so fabulous!

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  9. Once a Witch has been on my TBR list for a while, and now Bad Girls Don't Die is going on there, too!

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  10. Fun list--I have some of these in my pile but haven't read any yet!

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