Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

It's finally here and I'm finished: the final book of The Hunger Games trilogy, Mockingjay, was published on Tuesday and I've read my copy in two days. I needed to have a little time to think about the book before I reviewed it. DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED.
I was expecting the immediacy of the Games to carry into the beginning of Mockingjay; instead there was a lot of waiting, discussing, and politics. I thought it was interesting that Collins chose to show so much of the war was on appearances--something that we know is true, but that doesn't really call our attention. District 13 wanted to use Katniss as a rallying symbol for the rest of the districts, but Katniss was of course wary of being a symbol--the girl on fire can only do so much. But when she decides to help out, to overthrow President Snow, Katniss throws herself into it, visiting the different districts, helping how she can, training to be a soldier, and working to bring about the downfall of President Snow.
Gale is in District 13, and is responsible for the survival of people from District 12--it was his recognition of the bombings that got people to the Meadow and to escape with the help of District 13. He is as adamant as ever to bring down the Capitol, even teaming up with Beetee to come up with some new weapons and strategies. While Gale would not tell Katniss what decision to make, he is glad when Katniss makes the decision to be the Mockingjay.
At first all Katniss does is help make "propos", or propaganda spots, cursing the Capitol, trying to encourage the Rebels in the various districts to keep fighting. This is not quite enough for Katniss and in her usual determined manner she disobeys orders to help how she wants to help. But the cameras, as always, love Katniss and her fire.
Things get a little tricky when Peeta is rescued from the Capitol--but he's hardly himself. President Snow has "hijacked" Peeta, changing Peeta's memories so that every thought of Katniss is dangerous, that he perceives her as dangerous, and that his primary purpose is to kill Katniss. After he does attack Katniss, she is shocked and frightened and defensive--Peeta has always been the only person who thinks positively of her, but now Peeta sees her as everyone else sees Katniss.
When Katniss discovers she's not allowed to participate in take over the Capitol, she is angry--after all, she's the one who helped make this happen. But President Coin has only ever needed Katniss as a rallying point and now that all the districts are united, her usefulness has worn out. Never one to be left out, Katniss does the training that all soldiers in District 13 undergo to make sure she can participate. Katniss' greatest test comes when she has to obey orders instead of doing what she wants. But she passes the tests to become a soldier and is part of a sharpshooter team in the Capitol.
Everything that can wrong, does. The abandoned streets of the Capitol have been essentially turned into a giant Arena and the sharpshooter team--and the rest of the Rebel soldiers--must work their ways through the booby-trapped streets to reach the Circle, the center of the Capitol. It's not easy, but the remainder of the sharpshooter team reaches the Circle, where Katniss sees a group of Capitol children roped off in the cold, huddled together. Suddenly packages, like those in the Games, drop from the sky, with food and clothing. The children take the packages and begin to open them when half the packages explode. Rebel medics, who have already reached the center of the city, rush in to assist the children when the other half of the packages explode. Katniss is injured, being on the edge of the explosive range, and Prim--lovable, caring Prim--is one of the medics killed.
When Katniss' burns heal and she comes out of some of her shock, President Coin has taken over Panem, President Snow has been tried and condemned to die, and Katniss will perform one last work as the Mockingjay. She is the one to kill Snow.
She speaks to him before he is set to die, and he plants the seed in her head that it was Coin who ordered the bombing of the children, with the twice exploding packages.
The seven remaining Hunger Games victims are asked by Coin whether or not there should be a final Hunger Games composed of Capitol children--the majority vote will rule. Johanna, Enobaria, Haymitch, and Katniss vote yes. Peeta, Annie, and Beetee vote no. There will be another Hunger Games--perhaps even including Snow's granddaughter.
Katniss is in front of the Capitol in her Mockingjay suit, with her specially designed bow, facing down President Snow. But it's not Snow she kills ....
Once the war is over, Katniss is returned to the remains of District 12, but she doesn't want to be there, she doesn't want to interact with anyone--which works well because the only people who are in District 12 are a drunken Haymitch and Greasy Sae, who cooks for Katniss. Her mother won't return, and Katniss is left to spend most of her time alone. Gale is working in District 2.
Peeta eventually returns, after having been through so much, and having been un-hijacked--he can look at Katniss without wanting to kill her. She rebuilds her relationship with Peeta, beginning with friendship.
It's a good ending to the trilogy, though I was surprised that Katniss' mother and Gale were so willing to leave Katniss to herself. I did like the darkness and light comparison--Katniss is the dark, and Peeta is the light, has always been the light, to keep Katniss balanced. I thought it interesting that Collins showed so much of the war being propaganda, that there was little following the troops on the ground, the feelings of the people. It felt more about Katniss and District 13's revenge against Snow than the liberation of the people. It was a moving book, I did nearly cry at the end (but then I cry a lot at well written books), and it was good to feel it completed. The epilogue was nice, as it gave a nice wrap up of Katniss, but not of the other characters. I wish there had been a bit more about the remaining characters and not just Katniss and Peeta. One day I will re-read all three books and take more time to read them to catch what I have missed, because I always feel like I miss something.

The DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) by Kody Keplinger

High school senior Bianca has two gorgeous, wonderful best friends: Casey, tall cheerleader captain with a short pixie cut of blond hair, and Jessica, super bubbly brunette. Bianca is a bit cynical herself, and doesn't fully enjoy going to the club that her friends always drag her to, but does it because she loves them (and to keep them from going home with someone like Wesley Rush--the school's biggest womanizer).
One night at the Nest, the club Casey and Jessica drag Bianca to, Wesley Rush approaches Bianca. She tells him to get lost but he says he's trying to get with one of her friends--it doesn't matter which--and that by talking to their DUFF, he has a much better chance of doing so. Bianca has never heard that term before so Wesley obligingly explains: the DUFF is the Designated Ugly Fat Friend, the one girl in a group of girls who looks worse than the others. And by paying attention to the DUFF, Wesley reasons, he'll look like a great guy to Casey and Jessica. Bianca, never one to hold back, throws her Cherry Coke in Wesley's face and drags her friends out of the club.
She doesn't tell her friends what has happens between them and it's only one of many things she keeps from Casey and Jessica: her parents are divorcing (her mother has been largely absent anyway), her father slips back into his alcoholism (after being sober eighteen years), and Bianca is trying to find out how to relieve the stress, how to keep from going crazy. She discovers her escape is actually Wesley Rush--making out with Wesley keeps her mind from thinking about her parents. She spends more and more time with Wesley (and both keep is a secret) and Bianca's friends begin to feel she's avoiding them. She never likes to talk about herself or her problems much (Bianca's standard answer is "I'm fine" and Casey knows she's lying every time she says it). Bianca gets deeper and deeper into her struggle and her world continues to unravel when her mom shows up. She keeps running to Wesley and after one hook-up, she realizes that it's more than just screwing around--for her. Wesley's not interested in a DUFF so Bianca tries to forget him and hooks up with her crush, sweet, dorky Toby Tucker. Although things are approaching normal, Bianca still thinks about Wesley and being the DUFF.
I think all teenage girls have felt like the DUFF amongst their friends, and Keplinger does a great job of having the characters take control of the word and have confidence in themselves and each other. DUFF is a good read (definitely for older teens), and I love Bianca's character. She's balanced well by Casey and Jessica and it's nice to see confident but still vulnerable teens. The DUFF comes out in early September.

Jane by April Lindner

With all the attention being given to Jane Austen's novels, it is nice to see a modern retelling of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. Being familiar with the story, there were not many surprises in April Lindner's Jane, but I love the way Lindner updated the story.
Jane Moore is suddenly orphaned by the accidental death of her parents. She has just finished her first year at Sarah Lawrence and can't afford to start the next year at the university so she gets a job as a nanny for Nico Rathburn, a famous (and infamous) rocker. It is Jane's obliviousness to pop culture that earns her the job--she's heard of Nico Rathburn but has only heard one of his albums that her older brother listened to when she was much younger. (After the sale of their parents' house, Jane's brother took off with the money, and Jane's older sister doesn't want to be involved at all with the family.)
Maddy is a charming five-year old charge, and nineteen-year old Jane enjoys taking care of the little girl--she has time to read, to continue painting and walking, and the housekeeper Lucia is good company. She's at Thornfield Park, the enormous Connecticut home of Nico Rathburn, for a month before she meets him. I love that Lindner kept the first meeting between Jane and "Rochester" the same: Jane is walking along a road when a sports car comes tearing around a corner and nearly hits Jane--the car swerves to avoid her and the driver comes out to berate Jane for walking on the side of the road. Neither realizes who the other is until Jane returns home later in the afternoon.
Jane's attraction to Nico is not immediate, but it grows on her and she tries to deny it to herself, for a famous photographer, Bianca Ingram, is spending a great deal of time with Nico and his band in preparation for his next tour. Jane is determined that Nico is going to marry Bianca and tries to slip away, but that leads, of course, to Nico's confession of affection.
But anyone who has read Jane Eyre knows that Nico's attempts to make Jane jealous are not the only obstacles to them being together and yes, a crazy wife shows up in this version of the story and Jane disappears, meeting up with the St. John family, who give her a place to stay and a job and also a chance to go to Haiti to make a difference in the world. But somehow Nico calls to her and will she be happy unless she finds him again?
Those who know Jane Eyre know the answer. It's a fantastic retelling of a classic novel, good for young adult readers and I think I may have even convinced my grandmother to give it a try too. The book comes out in October, and I recommend it to those who love Jane Eyre and also those who like improbable love stories.

Maid to Match by Deanne Gist

When I read the review for Maid to Match by Deanne Gist, what caught my eye is that the book takes place at Biltmore Estate near Asheville, North Carolina. I have visited Biltmore Estate and have been fascinated by the Vanderbilt family for ages so this book seemed a natural fit.
It's 1898 and Tillie is a maid in the vast Biltmore Estate, a high ranking maid, and it has just been discovered that the new Mrs. Vanderbilt's French maid wants to go back to France. This is Tillie's chance to see the world; being a lady's maid opens so many doors for her--travel, nice clothes, books, leisure time--and she and her mother have been preparing Tillie for this happenstance since Tillie was young.
Of course, it's not as easy as just saying she wants it--Tillie is in competition with another high ranking young maid, and Mrs. Vanderbilt has determined to give both young women a chance to prove themselves. When a large party comes to visit the Vanderbilts, Tillie is assigned to a young woman not much older than herself, who gives her a taste of just how much work it is to be a lady's maid and Tillie is run ragged.
Complicating matters further is Mack, the new handyman, who is gruff but kind and to whom Tillie is attracted to. Unfortunately, only single young men and women can work at Biltmore and Tillie knows if she marries Mack, she ruins her chance at becoming a lady's maid. She is torn between her wish to fulfill what her mother wants for her and what Tillie thinks she wants for herself, and the chance to have a family of her own and to be truly happy.
There are obstacles and stubbornness, but this sweet story ends happily for all concerned. I have never read anything by Deanne Gist before, so I wasn't entirely certain what to expect; there tended to be more discussion of God and faith than I am used to in my fiction, but it did not deter from the story. Definitely an enjoyable light read with feel-good ending.

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

So I'm probably one of the last people to read this book, but better late to it than never. Clary Fray lives with her mom in New York City; her father died before she was born. Being almost 16, Clary and her friend Simon go out to a club one night and Clary gets caught in the midst of a very strange interaction--four people her age go off into a storage room of the club and three kill the fourth one. Clary is surprised by this but even more surprised when the dead one disappears!

It turns out Clary has met Shadowhunters--warriors whose purpose it is to rid the earth of demons. And the fourth person? That was a demon. Clary gets sucked further and further into this world as first her mother goes missing, her mother's oldest friend refuses to talk to or help Clary, and she finds out stuff about her past that Clary never could have imagined would be true.

There's fantastic action in the book, there's battles with demons and vampires and werewolves and creatures who were once human and a lot of leg work trying to figure out if one of the most dangerous Shadowhunters is indeed still alive and if he is, where he is. Clary becomes torn between the thrilling world of the Shadowhunters and the life she's always known, including her best friend and "mundane", Simon.

I really enjoyed the different relationships portrayed in the book amongst the teenage characters, I felt that was pretty accurate. It was nice to see some presence of adults in the book, though I would have liked to see more with Clary's mom (though I understand her missing mom is pretty key to the plot; I just hope there's more of her mom in the next couple of books). I'd also like to see more of Alec and Isabelle, and see Clary come into her own and become more confident. It was really those last 50 pages that got me hooked. Now I have to wait for one of the library copies to be checked in again so I can read City of Ashes.

There are surprises in every chapter and the reader is usually just a tiny bit ahead of Clary--but not very much. The book really picked up in the last 50 pages and that was the point that I couldn't put the book down and am very pleased to know there are two more books after this one. I was thinking as I read most of the book that I wouldn't be interested in finding out what happens in City of Ashes and City of Glass, but the last few chapters (the last part of the book, I think) really brought me into the world and I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next.