Book Review: Goddess Girls #7 by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams

Artemis the Loyal by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
Series: #7 in the Goddess Girls series
Release Date: December 6, 2011
Publisher: Aladdin
Pages: 272
Received: Review copy from author
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

It's time for the annual Olympic Games, and the four goddessgirls are not happy! It's boys only--and the girls at MOA are not pleased.

Led by Artemis, Athena, Persephone and Aphrodite, the ladies of Mount Olympus hatch a plan to get Zeus to open up the games to everyone. Will they succeed--or end up watching from the sidelines again?

-Goodreads

Like all the books in the Goddess Girls series, Artemis the Loyal can be read as a standalone and it is not necessary to have read the previous books.

The seventh book in the adorable Goddess Girls series revisits Artemis's perspective as she tries to petition for female participation in the Olympic games.

While the message of equality between the sexes is definitely worthy, it's also been done sooooo many times and I wasn't exactly excited to dive into yet another rehash. That storyline also has a tendency to veer into man-hating territory with a "Girls Rule and Boys Drool!" message, which is a total dealbreaker for me.

But, I do love the Goddess Girls series and I have been continually impressed with the creativity and depth authors Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams manage to pack into each book, so I was cautiously optimistic that Artemis the Loyal would at least hit similar marks.

Not only did Artemis the Loyal live up to the previous installments in the Goddess Girls series, but it totally blew my expectations out of the water! The authors took the tired subject matter in a direction I wasn't expecting at all, breathing new life into the tale and advocating positive values.

And, in typical Goddess Girls style, equality isn't the only message touched upon. The sibling relationship between Artemis and her twin brother Apollo is explored, as well as a friendship between Artemis and a new boy, and a (totally younger MG-level) romance between Artemis and another boy.

My familiarity with Greek myths is decent, but at this point I'm beginning to reach my limits. I recognized the Actaeon storyline (creatively altered for the modern MG reader!), but most of the other references were out of my league.

I was hoping this would happen at some point so I could see how interesting the stories would be for someone unfamiliar with the original myths (which, I imagine, describes many Goddess Girls readers). I'm happy to say I was thoroughly entertained. The story flowed smoothly and without any "gaps" that sometimes occur with retellings.

Artemis herself was a character with whom I could easily relate and sympathize. The other three Goddess Girls (Athena, Persephone, and Aphrodite) all make appearances and it is always sweet to see how they support one another. Medusa also plays a part, providing another tiny peek behind her gruff demeanor and making the eighth book Medusa the Mean one of the most anticipated upcoming releases among my library girls (and myself!).

Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key

Do you have any questions about Artemis the Loyal that I haven't addressed?

Feel free to ask in the comments!

Are there any plot topics you think are played out? Have you been surprised by an author taking a worn plot and making it fresh again?

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Book Review: Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin

Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters
Release Date: March 1, 2012
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Pages: 288
Received: ARC from publisher
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Summary

From Goodreads:

Kelsey Finkelstein is fourteen and FRUSTRATED. Every time she tries to live up to her awesome potential, her plans are foiled – by her impossible parents, her annoying little sister, and life in general. But with her first day of high school coming up, Kelsey is positive that things are going to change. Enlisting the help of her three best friends — sweet and quiet Em, theatrical Cass, and wild JoJo — Kelsey gets ready to rebrand herself and make the kind of mark she knows is her destiny.

Things start out great - her arch-nemesis has moved across the country, giving Kelsey the perfect opportunity to stand out on the soccer team and finally catch the eye of her long-time crush. But soon enough, an evil junior’s thirst for revenge, a mysterious photographer, and a series of other catastrophes make it clear that just because KELSEY has a plan for greatness… it doesn’t mean the rest of the world is in on it.

Review

Sleepover party!

Reading Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters was like meeting up with a BFF after a year-long separation and reconnecting again at a marathon sleepover party. Kelsey's voice was so real that it felt like I was listening to a friend chat about her freshman year experiences.

Because of this chatty writing style, everything went down super easy and my reading never really dragged. This was good, because otherwise the episodic nature of the plot might have felt a little slow (and you know my LOW tolerance for slooooow plots).

There isn't really any kind of major climax or story arc to keep the plot moving forward. Instead, Kelsey's voice--which is a perfect blend of "real teen" and "hilarious running commentary"--was the main hook for me that kept me turning the pages.

I'm issuing the "Don't Read in Public" warning due to excessive laughter

Even though Major Events weren't really happening, there was still a lot going on. This is a Normal Teen Issues kind of book, so think things like awkward first kisses and having to play a really embarrassing part in the school play (to EPIC results).

Kelsey started out the book with high hopes for her freshman year, but none of them panned out quite how she planned. Mostly it was one disaster after another, and while part of me totally sympathized with her teen plights (I've so been there *groan*), the rest of me was laughing hysterically--and very much out loud--at her misfortunes.

It wasn't even like there were a few really funny scenes. It was more like a bunch of big laugh out loud scenes peppered between lots of chuckling throughout the whole book because pretty much everything Kelsey says is funny.

Kelsey is more than just a funny voice

I started out thinking the book was pretty good, but also pretty surface level. Kelsey seemed like a mouthpiece for funny comments, but she didn't seem to have much depth to her. But, this changed the more I read. I found myself liking Kelsey more and more as her personality became more distinct.

I admired Kelsey's attempts to distinguish herself during her freshman year, but even more, I admired her tenacity and "roll with the punches" attitude when her plans started to go awry.

Kelsey easily could have gotten mired in "whiny teen" (which would have been totally annoying) but instead she rose to the occasion with an understandable groan and a good dose of humor. I even found myself channeling Kelsey's attitude when things in my own life didn't go quite as planned.

Bottom line

Not only does Kelsey have a permanent invite to my sleepover party, but any book Meredith Zeitlin writes next is going on my auto-read list (meaning, I don't care what the blurb says, I'm reading that sucker).

I am also ordering a copy of Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters for my library where I will place it in the hands of every teen girl who enters the building.

Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key 

Do you have any questions about Freshman Year and Other Unnatural Disasters that I haven't addressed? 
Feel free to ask in the comments!

Still not convinced? Check out Meredith's interview!
(Mentions of Patrick Verona and Jace Wayland inside)

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Book Review: Goddess Girls # 5 & 6 by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams

Athena the Wise by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
Series: #5 in the Goddess Girls series
Release Date: April 5, 2011
Publisher: Aladdin
Pages: 246
Received: Review copy from author
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Principal Zeus asks Athena to help Heracles complete his twelve labors. But when Heracles starts borrowing Athena's friends' things without asking, will she be able to help him set things straight?

-Goodreads

Like all the books in the Goddess Girls series, Athena the Wise can be read as a standalone and it is not necessary to have read the previous books.

This series gets better and better with each book! Athena again narrates and she solidifies her spot as my favorite Goddess Girl with her brainy approach and ongoing struggles juggling all of her many activities (I can SO relate with her "more is more" approach!).

The twelve labors of Heracles takes center stage, with Athena filling her classic role as guide (this time on "dear ol' dad" Zeus's instruction). This myth translated well, keeping excitement and momentum high as Heracles grappled with each labor. Always packed to the brim with mythology, Athena the Wise does not limit itself to this tale, incorporating Athena's famed encounter with Arachne as well.

Complementing the mythology are the real world problems Athena faces, with which readers of all ages can easily relate. In addition to her over-achiever stresses, Athena grapples with the difference between revenge and vengeance and how to appropriately stand up for oneself.


Inventive melding of myth and modernity, adorably named objects (Zeus Juice, Teen Scrollazine), and hilarious puns make this series a sure thing. The honest portrayal of real-world feelings and problems youngsters face takes Goddess Girls to the next level and makes them an essential addition to youngsters' libraries.

Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key 

Aphrodite the Diva by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
Series: #6 in the Goddess Girls series
Release Date: August 9, 2011
Publisher: Aladdin
Pages: 277
Received: Review copy from author
Rating: out of 5 stars

In book 6, an exchange student from Egypt, Isis, is encroaching on Aphrodite's match-making turf. Will she also edge Aphrodite out of her group of friends?

-Goodreads

Like all the books in the Goddess Girls series, Aphrodite the Diva can be read as a standalone and it is not necessary to have read the previous books.

As much as I adore this series, Aphrodite seems to be the character I connect with the least. As in her first book Aphrodite the Beauty, it was clear to me that our personalities were not aligned. Consequently, the problems she faced were not problems I could empathize with as much as I could with, say, Athena.

But, this is part of the beauty of the Goddess Girls series. Like The Babysitters' Club of my youth, each character has their own unique personality, and so readers of equally varied personalities can easily find a character with which they will be able to relate. Aphrodite's experiences with popularity, (MG-level) romance, and struggles with low grades are sure to resonate with many girls.

I had to force my interest for the first few chapters, but after rivals Aphrodite and Isis reach an agreement and Aphrodite remarks that "Pinky swear was obviously a universal language," I knew I was hooked! She must be right, because the pinky swear part was when I finally GOT Aphrodite. It was smooth sailing for me after that point.

The myth of Pygmalion is explored in typical Goddess Girls fashion with all of the humor, heart, and updated realism I have come to expect from this series. The more modern issue of parents divorcing was also explored (though I won't say through who--spoilers!), and we finally get a peek into the softer side of Medusa. Particularly welcome was the introduction of the Egyptian Goddess Girls. I am crossing my fingers that an Egyptian Goddess Girls spinoff series is in the works!

Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key

Do you have any questions about Athena the Wise or Aphrodite the Diva that I haven't addressed?

Feel free to ask in the comments!

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Book Review: Everneath by Brodi Ashton

Everneath by Brodi Ashton
Release Date: January 24, 2012
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Pages: 370
Received: ARC from publisher
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Summary

From Goodreads:

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.

As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's

Review

Yikes! That's a lot of pages!

I know 370 pages isn't a HUGE book, but to me, it's pretty long. What's even more important than page count is how long a book feels, and on that I'm kind of mixed.

Think of Everneath as a cake (yes, I'm pretty sure I can turn everything back around to food). Imagine a cake that's light and fluffy and goes down super easy. When it comes to this kind of cake, before I know it, I can easily scarf down half...and I could polish off the rest with no trouble at all.

Except, I'm not full. It was fun while it lasted, but I don't have that satisfying feeling of having eaten a big meal. I may even begin to regret spending so many calories on something that left me empty.

That's how Everneath felt to me. It went down easy and the pace never felt particularly slow (though it was far from fast), but I'm having trouble understanding how the relatively sparse story I read managed to fill up so many pages.

Wait, is this an issues book?

I had heard that Nikki's experiences in Everneath were a brilliant metaphor for drug abuse and depression. And, yeah, I guess they were. Brodi Ashton did do a wonderful job weaving these concepts together and capturing the emotions of both the person experiencing the trauma and how their loved ones feel in response.

But I'm NOT an issues reader. I don't want to be mired in sadness, and that's what happened here. Nikki spends most of the book oozing detached heartbreak, shuffling through her life in a haze of resignation and hopelessness. She's beyond tears. She's practically catatonic.

Despite all that, I still managed to like her. She may be a drag, but she's a drag with moral fiber. I actually felt sympathy for Nikki. Brodi Ashton does such a good job highlighting how doggedly persistent Nikki is in wanting to do the right thing but feeling like there is no way out for her.

She doesn't sit around moaning about how life is unfair. She doesn't pout, feel sorry for herself, or make poor choices (outside of the obviously very bad choice of getting involved with Cole in the first place. But those actions are understandable and not entirely her fault).

Do I smell a love triangle?

It's true that there are two guys, but Nikki isn't a flighty girl torn between them. It's very clear that one guy is her relationship and the other is her drug. I know that makes it sound kind of bad and normally I would be frustrated with Nikki over this, but I wasn't.

But...I still wasn't feeling the romance. Jack is a nice guy, but he didn't feel particularly guy like. He was just so unbelievably perfect that he felt more like a woman's dream creation than an actual genuine guy. So did I like him? Yeah, of course. But I didn't believe him and so my swoon only went so far. He did remind me of Jay from The Body Finder though (which is a GOOD thing).

Cole, the other guy, also felt a little forced and, I don't know, hollow? I feel like I should have been swooning all over the place for him, but I don't have a good enough grasp on who he actually is beyond a pretty face. There were a few hints at something deeper going on though, so I hope that gets explored more in the sequel.

Yay for retellings! Or...not.

Outside of the gorgeous cover (yeah, I'm a hopeless cover judge), my main draw was that this is a Hades/Persephone retelling. I am totally in love with retellings, but this one didn't cut it for me. The myth was used more as a rough guideline than a playbook of events and characters. This is fine, but I have to admit some disappointment (I like direct retellings more).

I was also disappointed with the sparseness of the paranormal parts. Brodi Ashton created this unique, intriguing world with the Everneath, but I feel like I've barely scratched the surface. The whole book is told through Nikki's first person narration, and so I only got to know what she knows about the Everneath (which is, apparently, not much).

The story focuses almost entirely on Nikki's feelings--how she feels having come back from the Everneath, and what she felt that led up to her time in the Everneath. Chapters alternate from Before Everneath and After Everneath. I liked the chapters B.E. a lot more. They were like breadcrumbs, with each chapter giving a tiny bit of information that I could use to piece together the Big Mysterious Reason why Nikki chose to leave Jack and go to the Everneath with Cole.

A.E. was a lot less interesting and mostly focused on Nikki trying to rebuild her relationship with Jack. There was also a mystery in this part, but it was pretty easy to figure out and I ended up losing interest the longer it took Nikki to get with the program. There isn't a ton of action in either time period, and sadly the paranormal parts stay far, far in the background.

Bottom line

Everneath is way more of a contemporary issues book than I was expecting and, unfortunately, I'm not the right reader for this story. Nikki's blah mood rubbed off way too much on me and I now feel blah about the whole book. I will be ordering a copy for my library though, as it is a solid read that I think will be appreciated by readers who like contemporary issues, romance, and a touch of paranormal.

It was nice and easy enough to read that I might check out the sequel, but I'm not desperate for it. Everneath ends at a natural point, but it is also a pretty decent cliffhanger, so heads up on that.

Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key 

Do you have any questions about Everneath that I haven't addressed? Feel free to ask in the comments!


What did you think of Everneath? 

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Book Review: The Fourth Stall Part II by Chris Rylander

The Fourth Stall Part II by Chris Rylander
Series: #2 in The Fourth Stall series
Release Date: February 7, 2012
Publisher: Walden Pond Press
Pages: 288
Received: ARC from publisher
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

This is a review for a sequel, but there are NO spoilers for the first book!
Still worried? Check out my review of the first book instead!

Summary

From Goodreads:

The tween-noir saga continues. The life of crime is good. Mac has taken down legendary high school crime boss Staples, business has been booming and Mac and Vince are getting ready for middle school baseball tryouts. But this can't last. Mac has always tried to keep his friends close and his enemies closer. But what happens when you can't tell the difference?

A dilemma walks into the fourth stall in the form of Trixie Von Parkway - an eighth grader with a mean look and an even meaner predicament. Seems that the new science teacher is terrorizing her, and she needs Mac to get him off her back. Sounds simple enough, but as Mac starts to dig deeper, he finds even more trouble brewing at his school, including a new administrator bent on destroying his business and indicating that Trixie isn't who she claims to be.

Review

Mac had me at hello

Mac's "voice" is a combination of The Godfather, film noir, and contemporary middle school boy that blends perfectly. Mac is such a likable kid. He makes me laugh and even when he's doing less-than-moral things, I'm still rooting for him to win (plus, his heart is in the right place, so that has to count for something, right?).

If I were in middle school, I would be crushing on Mac so hard. I'm talking notebooks filled with "Mac <3's Small" and I-can't-form-words-in-his-presence-because-he's-so-cool kind of crush. And if I were a middle school guy? I would totally want to BE Mac.

I love male narrators, but it's hard to find a good male narrator who actually sounds like a guy (sorry women authors, lots of your guys sound like girls!). Chris Rylander scores major points by writing a book that feels authentically boyish.

Not only that, but he also sounds like a genuine middle school kid. He thinks and acts the way a normal kid would act, and sometimes that means he bungles in ways that are just so classically tweenish. This totally endeared him to me, and I imagine Mac's thoughts and actions will resonate strongly with the target audience (tweens, primarily tween boys).

These are the kinds of issues I like

I really don't like reading about Heavy Issues like people dying or struggling with abusive relationships or depression and stuff like that. But I love contemporary books that deal with the normal "lite issues" kids face like zits and crushes and school stress.

Chris Rylander integrated these subjects well in the first book, and he proved his skill again in the sequel. Mac's first crush on a girl is equal parts funny and sincere, with a few laugh out loud lines as he expresses his total bafflement with the opposite sex. The pressure of standardized testing provides a more serious topic, and offers an opening for candid discussion without coming across as preachy or dull.

I didn't see it coming!

I didn't see the culprit until their identity was finally revealed. The evidence was stacked up against each possible bad guy in such a way that I believed any of them were capable. But, the doubts were equally convincing, so I was totally twisted up.

Chris Rylander gets the Genius Award for Epic Characters

Mac is great, but so are all of the secondary characters. The prim and proper but totally crazy little bully named Kitten cracks me up every single time. He didn't even have a big role, but I mentally cheered whenever he was mentioned. Reading these books is worth it for the mental picture of that character alone (don't believe me? Check out Heather's review of the first book where she said almost the exact same thing!).

Really, almost all of Chris Rylander's characters are memorable and awesome for some reason or another. Extra points for Mac's trusty right hand man Vince; Tyrell, Mac's surveillance man (SO cool!); and Trixie, Mac's crush and possible femme fatale. Even the opportunity to meet super minor characters like the weird rodent droppings expert make the book worth reading.

Where did the star go?

The wandering plot. I didn't think the mystery was built as cohesively as it was in the first book. The first book had great momentum, but it was very easy for me to put the sequel down for days at a time. I did want to see who was behind the problems plaguing Mac and his classmates, but clues came too few and far between to really grab hold of my interest.

There was also a LOT of baseball filler, and after years of associating baseball with boring weekends when my dad wouldn't let me watch my cartoons because there was a game on, I automatically revert into "this is boring" mode whenever baseball is brought up. I imagine the target audience will appreciate Mac's baseball nods more than I did. I did like the futile camaraderie Mac felt with other Cubs fans though--that I can understand.

Bottom line

I adore this series and I can't recommend it highly enough. If you have a middle grade boy in your life, do him a favor and buy him this series ASAP. The first book is a hot seller in my library and I already have a waiting list for the sequel.

What's also great about this series is that each book can be read as a standalone. Even though knowing the events of the first book helps when reading the second, that familiarity isn't necessary. There are also zero spoilers in the sequel, so you don't have to worry about ruining the first book if you read the sequel first.

The second book ends by alluding to a possible third book, and I SO HOPE THERE IS A THIRD BOOK! I'll auto-buy it.

Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key 

Do you have any questions about The Fourth Stall Part II that I haven't addressed? 
Feel free to ask in the comments!

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2012 Free Reads Challenge

15/15 books + 6  

How do you make a progress bar? 

Challenge Basics:  

Name: 2012 Free Reads Challenge
Hosts : Bookish Ardour  
Starts: January 1, 2012
Ends: December 31, 2012
Eligible Books: Read books you’ve received without purchasing: gifts, ARCs, prizes that you haven’t read yet. Library books do NOT count.  
Levels: Seven; I am going to try for the second level: Read 15 books  
Prizes? Not that I see
Link Your Reviews: Yes, HERE
Sign up page 
Report completion page

Why I'm Interested:  

I have a LOT of books on my shelves. It's like once I acquire a book it goes into a black hole where I neglect them terribly in favor of library books. NO MORE!

Plus, it looks like ARCs sent for review will count toward this challenge, which should make this an easier challenge to finish (while, um, still probably neglecting my other free books, but shhh).

Some books I'm considering: 

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
My Unfair Godmother by Janette Rallison
Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday
Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines
The Dragon of Trelian by Michelle Knudsen

A TON more.

Books Completed:

26. The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke
25. Monument 14 by Emmy Laybourne
24. Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
23. Griffin Rising by Darby Karchut
22. Dark Frost by Jennifer Estep
21. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
20. The Wicked and the Just by J. Anderson Coats
19. Ordinary Magic by Caitlen Rubino-Bradway
18. The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda
17. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
16. Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink by Stephanie Kate Strohm
15. Ladies in Waiting by Laura L. Sullivan
14. The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen
13. Fetching by Kiera Stewart
12. A Breath of Eyre by Eve Marie Mont
11. Renegade Magic by Stephanie Burgis
10. Bourne by Lisa T. Bergren
9. Artemis the Loyal by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
8. The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy
7. Freshman Year and Other Unnatural Disasters by Meredith Zeitlin
6. Aphrodite the Diva by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
5. Everneath by Brodi Ashton
4. Cinder by Marissa Meyer
3. The Fourth Stall Part II by Chris Rylander
2. Athena the Wise by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Tweet