VVMBookBlog

It’s the first day of her senior year in high school and Jessica’s world changes with the appearance of Lucius Vladescu, an exchange student from Romania.  She quickly finds out that she had been promised in a marriage pact to Lucius, son of one of the rival vampire families, by her doomed-to-death parents back in Romania when she was a baby.  Her adoptive parents, present at the time of the pact, took on responsibility for her care while never telling her about the pact or her connection to vampires…until now!

Jessica just wants to enjoy her senior year as a normal girl but soon falls under the spell of the very attractive Lucius.  She does her best to help Lucius keep his “condition” a secret but rumors start to fly when Lucius begins to show an interest in Faith Crosse, a shallow airhead cheerleader in Jessica’s opinion!  As action heats up toward a conclusion, Jessica works to convince Lucius he isn’t the evil person he’s been raised to be by his evil uncle.  But what kind of a future is Jessica heading for–college student or vampire princess?  Fun book, lots of humor!

Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin

Anything but Typical is talking about the main character who is autistic, but the title is also fitting of the book. The main characters, Jason, tells his story which focuses on his family, his writing, and perhaps his new girlfriend. Jason often has difficulties communicating verbally with people but is a fantastic writer. He is most comfortable when he is writing online. This is how he meets Phoenix Bird who he considers to be his girlfriend. Life gets complicated when he has the opportunity to meet with her at a writing conference.

This novel shows the difficulties Jason faces communicating with others. My favorite character of the books is a minor character, Aaron Miller. He is accepting of Jason and engages with him during lunch. Although Jason is autistic he is an intelligent young man, but not everyone takes the time to notice him.

The Juvie Three by Gordan Korman

Gecko, who is incarcerated for driving a stolen get-away car, is surprised when a stranger comes to visit him in the juvenile detention center. This stranger, Mr. Healy, has “a deal” for Gecko. Instead of being in the detention center, he would be in a half-way house. Half-way between jail and freedom. As he leaves with Mr. Healy he is joined by two other juvenile delinquents, Terence and Arjay. The three will live together and depend on each other to stay “on the outside.” This is difficult for all three, especially Terence. Their lives are confined to school, group therapy, and community service. A nosy neighbor and a social worker who follows the rules, maybe a bit too closely, make life difficult for the three. They are also faced with challenges such as school and staying out of trouble. Life soon gets more complicated.

This is a quick read and an engaging book from the beginning to the end. Readers will not be disappointed as they follow these three on their adventures as they try to stay out of trouble.

Shifty by Lynn E. Hazen

Soli, Shifty, is fifteen and moves from foster home to foster home. When he stays with Martha, he finally finds a home in which he feels comfortable. He even has a new foster sister, Sissy, and baby brother, Chance. Shifty is “shifty.” Often he finds himself getting into trouble. For example he drives Martha’s van even though he doesn’t have a driver’s license. Because he would like to stay with Martha, he tries to keep out of trouble especially when the social worker seems to be “uptight” and cops seem to always be around to catch him messing up. This, however, is quite difficult for Shifty and problems ensue.

Temping Fate by Esther Friesner

Llana needs a summer job. She would prefer something out of her boring town, but she is ready to do anything. When she goes to a apply at a temp agency, she gets the feeling that things are a bit strange. After meeting the manager of the temp agency, Llana is ready to leave without a job. The contract she is asked to sign is equally frightening, “… accepts no responsibility whatsoever for employees’ loss of life, limb, lucidity, lawyers, or lemurs…” Then she is given an envelope full of money for her first week’s work. This encourages her to give the job a try.

When she gets on the job site, she realizes things are only getting weirder. Her temp job requires her to use a typewriter (not computer, typewriter) to fill out death receipts. Soon she realizes her summer job will be different. She becomes involved with gods and heroes. Those interested in mythology will notice the myths and characters of the myths involved in the novel.