Kyle Demore and the Timekeeper's Key

by Samuel J. Vega

"It was a horrible day in math class...that turned into the adventure of a lifetime.

In this exciting debut book from a fresh new YA author, come meet Kyle Demore: the oddball and outcast of Grayling Junior High. After Kyle accidentally turns Grayling's gym into a snow-packed toboggan run, he is expelled, only to be recruited for a school in another realm that he's already seen in some bizarre dreams. In Endera, nothing is the same, especially keys. Turns out they can unlock spectacular and magical powers--but only in the right pair of hands."

Kyle Demore and the Timekeeper's Key follows a thirteen year old boy named Kyle who is at an orphanage. He's different from the other kids around, and this goes beyond the mysterious key he keeps around his neck, and the other kids know it. It isn't until a strange man shows up at the orphanage that Kyle really starts to know it for himself.

This first installment introduced a world of various dimensions and new possibilities that took some time to understand. The world building in this book is rich and elaborate, and is to be approached with patience and imagination. I really enjoyed the thorough descriptions with which the story was written. 

The dining halls and foreign classes the school comprised of reminded me vaguely of Harry Potter, as did the group of five friends that faced adventures together. The introduction of an important quest and the role of an oracle reminded me of Percy Jackson. And yet, despite these similarities, Kyle Demore and the Timekeeper's Key was undeniably original in its own way.

A few things I found to be quite strange included the names of some of the characters (Kyle, Kevin, Kane, Kross) which were difficult to keep up with and separated at times, as well as a habit of Kyle's of constantly "fluffing up" his hair. At times I felt there were unnecessary elements in the plot and found myself wanting to read ahead; other times I struggled with understanding a new concept that was being introduced, due to its imaginative complexity.

One of my favorite elements of this novel was the ongoing pursuit of acquiring new names at the Academy, with the final goal of earning an eternal title, that is. Students would be able to challenge professors to a duel in order to prove themselves worthy of an eternal title. I saw it as a mark of one's coming of age in this particular world, as well as the acquisition of an identity. The concept was very interesting and I really enjoyed learning about it in the context of this fantastical reality.

The idea of the controlling of the elements, furthermore, was very intriguing to me, especially Kyle's gift for lightning, which was an interesting, new element to consider. The strength and courage he must employ in order to master this gift is tremendous, and really proved his character to be one that quickly adapted and of abundant talent.

Kyle Demore and the Timekeeper's Key is a fast paced book with a wide cast of characters. Action, fantasy, and even a budding romance are all present, as is a story for those who seek a new world to immerse themselves in.

3/5 stars.

Impulse

by Ellen Hopkins

"Sometimes you don't wake up. But if you happen to, you know things will never be the same.

Three lives, three different paths to the same destination: Aspen Springs, a psychiatric hospital for those who have attempted the ultimate act -- suicide."

Impulse is written in verse, and this structure within a novel was new to me. I was uncertain if I would enjoy it. Looking back on the story now, however, the thoughts and images that I have of it likely hold no difference to the ones I would have acquired if the novel had been written in prose. In other words, Ellen Hopkins was able to create events vividly in my mind, to fully develop her characters, all in verse form.

What I really enjoyed about this book is the fact that each of the main characters had their own structures in the writing style, and that each of these mirrored their personalities, and some of the troubles they had gone through. The emotional trauma experienced by the three is terrible, heart breaking, disturbing; and the rawness of it all, the truth that Hopkins revealed free of censorship, was shocking. I appreciated it.

There aren't many teen books out there like Impulse, or at least there aren't many that I know of. I think real issues like these are often tabooed, and literature allows them to materialize free of society's inhibitions. I think these books can really help people.

I found the ending abrupt and dark; I didn't see how it connected to the development of the story. And yet, perhaps, in it, is a statement about the ephemerality of things.

4/5 stars.

The Cuckoo's Calling

by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)

"After losing his leg to a land mine in Afghanistan, Cormoran Strike is barely scraping by as a private investigator. Strike is down to one client, and creditors are calling. He has also just broken up with his longtime girlfriend and is living in his office.

Then John Bristow walks through his door with an amazing story: His sister, thelegendary supermodel Lula Landry, known to her friends as the Cuckoo, famously fell to her death a few months earlier. The police ruled it a suicide, but John refuses to believe that. The case plunges Strike into the world of multimillionaire beauties, rock-star boyfriends, and desperate designers, and it introduces him to every variety of pleasure, enticement, seduction, and delusion known to man."

I adored this novel. A vast selection of characters intertwined in a story has never been my favorite, as I generally prefer a handful of very well developed characters as opposed to many fleeting ones. The Cuckoo's Calling had the perfect combination; so many individuals were involved in the mystery at hand, and yet each was described expertly, almost becoming three dimensional entities as they were created on the pages.

The vocabulary in this novel was very impressive, the writing style precise and lyrical. Everything was constructed very visually, and I could easily see this being adapted into a movie. Robin and Strike were such interesting and likeable main characters, and I am so glad that this is the beginning of a new series.

The way that each component of evidence came together gradually and believably was incredible. This story was crafted so carefully and intelligently; it really was a pleasure to read.

5/5 stars.

Origin

by Jessica Khoury

"Pia has grown up in a secret laboratory hidden deep in the Amazon rain forest. She was raised by a team of scientists who have created her to be the start of a new immortal race. But on the night of her seventeenth birthday, Pia discovers a hole in the electric fence that surrounds her sterile home―and sneaks outside the compound for the first time in her life."

Origin had a very interesting and scientific premise, and I did enjoy its opening pages. Pia, sheltered from the outside world, is restrained entirely by her family; by her nature as an Immortal. Her dream is to help create a race of people like her, ultimately so that she will not be alone. Unfortunately I could not engage myself in the story; the writing style did not capture my interest. I didn't find the themes of rebellion to have been smoothly or believably executed. I did, however, enjoy the end, as predictable as it may have been...

2/5 stars.

It's Kind of a Funny Story

by Ned Vizzini

"A humorous account of a New York City teenager's battle with depression and his time spent in a psychiatric hospital..."

This really is kind of a funny story, but it's so much more than that. Getting into Craig's head -- a place Craig himself can't seem to get out of -- is extremely interesting in developing an understanding and sympathy for him. Craig may seem ungrateful; mopey in his privileged life. But the honesty with which he tells his own story, and the fears he so openly shares, makes him very intriguing. The pressures he feels, of school and society in general, are very relatable. In this way, the story was encouraging overall, stressing on the importance of action, and the dangers of over analyzing things. Aspects of the storyline were awkward for me at times, and I have to admit I felt uncomfortable in some instances of the novel; but its ending could not have been better. Really enjoyed this.