The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To by DC Pierson

Ever wish you could stay up endlessly, that you never needed to sleep, that you could spend your sleeping hours reading, cooking, learning, walking, anything you wanted to be doing? To be honest, I haven’t wished that, but Darren, the narrator of DC Pierson’s first novel, meets Eric, a similarly unremarkable high school sophomore (if only weirder than Darren), who The Boy Who Couldn’t Sleep and Never Had To.

Darren draws, but is not one of those artists who spend all the spare time at the end of classes drawing, as that would draw attention to him and Darren doesn’t want to be noticed. He is surprised one day when Eric approaches him at the end of a class and asks what Darren was drawing during class. From that first conversation begins a friendship that is pretty much the first solid friendship for either guy. They enjoy spending time together and create an elaborate space drama called TimeBlaze, Darren drawing all of the characters, Eric creating personalities and dossiers, and both working on the Epic. One afternoon Eric decides to share his secret with Darren: Eric never sleeps, has never slept. “Prove it” is Darren’s response and the two spend a few days awake together until Darren falls asleep (and Eric smartly videotapes himself to continue proving it).

It becomes “Eric’s thing” that they talk about periodically, that Darren wonders what Eric can do with it and their friendship continues on until Christine comes on the scene. (It’s always a girl, isn’t it?) Eric’s secret gets out and soon the two are being chased by cops and a pharmaceutical company. There’s one more incredible aspect to Eric’s thing that adds surprise to the story.

It’s an entertaining, fast-paced read, and Eric and Darren (well, Darren) speak like teenagers (with lots of swearing as well as lots of “dude”), and there’s just enough suspense and mystery to keep this book from being only a coming-of-age story.

This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer

I read Life as We Knew It not long after it came out, and there are scenes and moments of the book that (years later) still stick in my head very vividly. I admit I did not read The Dead and the Gone, primarily because a few other librarians did not like it as much as Life as We Knew It. This World We Live In comes back to focus on Miranda, which was why I decided I would read it.

The book opens in late April; not much of the world has changed since we last saw Miranda, the moon is still too close to the earth and the weather is out of whack. Miranda still has her mom, her older brother Matt, and younger brother Jon. They have all managed to survive the winter and food is even being delivered to them once a week. Life continues on in its new ordinary fashion.

The big change that occurs over most of the book is the additions to Miranda’s family. I’m a little worried about spoilers here, but some characters from The Dead and the Gone arrive (which pretty much gives it away, I’m sure), and now it’s a matter of figuring out how to feed so many people and the concerns of what happens after the food runs out. There is also discussion of leaving to find one of the so-called “safe cities”. Those of you who remember Miranda’s mom remember that she is kind of a stubborn person, so you can imagine how well that idea goes over.

It was a good story, and for not having read The Dead and the Gone I did not feel as if I really missed much, so if you haven’t read it that’s not a problem. It seemed as if the story did not advance much over the course of the book and the bulk of the action took place towards the end of the novel. I understand that the circumstances prevent much from really happening to the characters, but it seemed like the story was just passing time. This World We Live In is The Last Survivors, Book 3, and about half way through the book I was pretty certain I would not read any more of the books, should Pfeffer write them. However the way the book ended had me reconsider. So if there is a 4th Last Survivors book (and 5th and 6th …) I might pick it up to find out what happens next. It’s definitely an interesting concept, and Pfeffer has done a great job with the what-comes-next expectations readers have without the story going too far to be completely unrealistic (if one forgets about the whole moon being nudged closer to earth thing, but hey, it could happen). She addresses all the aspects of everyday life people don’t see in natural disaster movies; these stories are about endurance and finding some reason to keep living when life seems so gray (as Miranda would say).

To sum up: If you enjoyed the first two books (or even just one or the other), I recommend reading it. If the destruction of modern life is not your thing, I would pass.

Splendor by Anna Godbersen

Splendor is the final book in The Luxe series, following the lives of Elizabeth, Diana, Lina, and Penelope. It would appear as if all young women are headed for happy endings: Lina is wealthy and in love with Leland Bouchard, Diana is on her way to finding Henry, Penelope has met a real prince, and Elizabeth is safely married and getting ready to give birth to her child.

Of course, none of the novels in this series have led to fully happy endings and the trials and turmoil that have been a part of these women’s lives continue. Lina is paid unexpected visits by Tristan, Diana is as restless as soul as always, Penelope lives scandalously, and Elizabeth discovers that the man she married may not be entirely what she expected.

The rich setting of these books, the wealth and the style of the characters and their expectations I have always enjoyed and this final book continues to live up to that standard that Godbersen has set. It had a bit of a sad ending, but I was expecting that after reading the previous three, and really if after reading the previous three you thought everything was going to end happily would be sorely mistaken. If you are intrigued by the storylines and invested in the characters, you will definitely want to read Splendor to know the complete story.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Yes, yes, everyone has read and reviewed Graceling, but I finally got around to it. And enjoyed it! Though am looking more forward to the book about Bitterblue than I am Fire.

Graceling is set in a world where some people are born with Graces, or a natural ability to do something uncommonly well. Some people are born with the Grace of cooking, or swimming, or fighting, or singing. Katsa, niece to the King of Middluns, one of the Seven Countries, is born with the Grace of killing.

This Grace weighs heavily on the 16 year old girl, whose main purpose is to injure, maim, and kill at her uncle’s command. Katsa does not take easily to this and so has started a Council to help innocent and wronged people. While on a mission for the Council, Katsa meets a man with a fighting Grace and from their tentative friendship, she begins to discover more about herself.

Graceling is an excellent fantasy novel, filled with adventure, action, a quest, and a little bit of romance. Cashore has created memorable characters (especially, in my opinion, in Bitterblue, who is star of Cashore’s third book, yet to be released) and in interesting world. In our world we like to think our differences are celebrated, but in Katsa’s world people with Graces are seen as freaks and meant to be used by the kings of their countries.

A Spy in the House by YS Lee

A Spy in the House by YS Lee takes place in London in 1858 and centers on Mary Quinn, a young woman with remarkable talents. Mary is given a choice when she is 12 years old: hang for being a thief and a beggar, or attend a charity school. The 12 year old is determined after a rough life that she’s prepared to die, that there’s not much hope for her, but when actually given a choice (and an escape), Mary becomes a new pupil at Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls.

Fast forward 5 years. Mary is now 17 and a junior teacher at the Academy. She has tried training in a number of professions available to women at her time, and each leaves Mary feeling something is missing. The two headmistresses of the Academy meet with Mary and reveal to Mary they are members of the Agency, a group of woman who assist the police (and other private inquirers) by placing female agents in positions close to suspects. Mary is shocked, but is excited by this prospect.

After her brief training, Mary begins her first assignment, meant to listen & observe. Of course, being the headstrong person she is, Mary decides to take matters into her own hands to make sure she gets the information she is after. It’s a good story of intrigue about the case and mystery about the character of Mary (there’s more to her than even she is willing to admit). A fun, fast moving historical fiction novel that I hope will be the first in a series!

Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta

Finnikin of the Rock is a great fantasy quest novel. Finnikin is the son of the King’s Guard, friend to the heir to the kingdom and his cousin (and also the youngest princess, but she just tags along). When Finnikin is 9, he and his friends make a pledge to protect the kingdom, a pledge sealed by the blood the three boys draw from their legs. Only days later, the unspeakable happens: the entire royal family is slaughtered, an impostor king and his army invade (taking Finnikin’s father prisoner), and the Forest Dwellers (those with a bit of magic) are burned at the stake, and as the head of the Forest Dwellers dies, she spits a curse out on the kingdom. The ground shakes and splits open, and the land is covered with a strange, dark mist. About half of the people in the land make it outside of the kingdom’s walls, but the rest are trapped inside.

Ten years pass; Finnikin has been traveling the different countries surrounding his home, learning the languages, the cultures of the other countries, finding his people in refugee camps, writing their stories and the names of their dead. He’s called to a cloister of nuns (novices), and there Finnikin and the King’s First Man, Sir Topher, pick up Evanjalin, who keeps secrets of her own. She has seen the return to their kingdom, and Finnikin has been trying these 10 years to carve out a piece of land for his people to call home, a new home. Evanjalin, stubborn and quiet, sees things much differently.

Similar to Graceling by Kristin Cashore, Finnikin of the Rock is a darker fantasy with a male protagonist. Evanjalin is very much a part of the story, too, but most of it centers on Finnikin. An excellent read. Definitely intended for older audiences; there's a little swearing, sex, and an attempted rape scene.