Song of the Lioness Series by Tamora Pierce

I admit, I was slightly skeptical about reading these books, but man was I wrong! The Song of the Lioness Quartet is an awesome adventure series about a girl named Alanna who dresses up like a boy so she can become a knight and become a knight she does. They are fast moving and include adventure, fighting, magic, romance, politics and intrigue and all in a great little package instead of the fat books popular lately.

Try it out! I promise you won't regret it!

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

Want something to look forward to? Try reading the first two books in this trilogy and then just wait with baited breath until December when the third one will come out! Libba Bray's books are set in England and are about Gemma Doyle, an English girl raised in India who has discovered an ancient group of women called The Order who possess magical powers that come from a magical place called The Realms. In book one, Gemma discovers who she really is (a member of The Order) after the murder of her mother. This in addition to being sent away to a finishing school and having a hot Indian boy chasing her makes for some wild times. Add in a beautiful friend named Pippa, a loyal friend named Ann, and a strong willed and beautiful friend named Felicity and you have drama, drama, drama! Not to mention the fact that the girls can actually bring magic back from the realms to wreck havoc on Spence, their stuffy boarding school! I've read one and two and I can't wait to see what happens in three. Romance, rich historical detail, and the trials of corsets abound in these action packed historical fantasies. Till next time! -Suzanne

East by Edith Pattou

This book was recommended to me by a wonderful teenager who loved the book. She read some of it to us at a lock-in and I've been meaning to read it ever since. I finally got around to reading it and it was well worth it.

This is a retelling of the Beauty and the Beast story. However, you don't need to know that at all to appreciate the craft and creativity that Edith Pattou has poured into this book. Told from multiple viewpoints the author has given us a gem that is fantasy but reads like historical fiction or even fairy tale. Magic and beauty abounds and mature readers of Harry Potter books will love this one.

Away Laughing on a Fast Camel by Louise Rennison

Note: You must read this post with a British Accent.
Hello girls! Are you ready for some mad marvy fun? Read the Georgia Nicolson books and immerse yourself in some brilliant literature all about the situations that Geogia Nicolson gets herself into while attending her girls' school and prowling for gorgy blokes over in England-land. Learn what Boy Entrancers are and how to use them, learn how to build a shrine to a lost lurve and learn how to make any idiot boy want to spend some major snoggilicious time with you. As an added plus, these books are written as a tell-all diary! So curl up with a spot of tea and let Georgia take you away to the land of tea, scones, and full frontal snogging! - Till next time! Suzanne

Feed by M. T. Anderson

I just finished listening to this book on CD. What an experience! Feed takes place in the future in an America that is amazingly and troublingly like the America we all know. Even though people live in pods hovering just over the surface of the earth and fly around in mini air planes called up-cars they still talk like Americans, dress like Americans, and act like Americans: slang is rampant (think unit instead of dude...you know like "Unit, that girl is hot!"), fads in clothing and hair are strange and based on popularity (remember the 80's? Yeah...I don't want to either.), and no one can miss their favorite programs on the feed (TV anyone?). And what is the feed? It is a chip. A computer installed in the user's brain and hardwired to the body. It interacts with all systems in the body regulating temperature (no fevers!) breathing (no asthma!) and constantly providing the user with images, music, information, news, programs, and advertisements for products tailored to the user's preferences. This is basically like being constantly hooked up to the Internet, television, TiVo, satellite, radio, and your local newspaper all at once. How great would that be? Awesome unless you think of the cost. Our bodies relying on the feed for our health? Americans all hooked up to the feed while poor countries are cut off from the prosperity we enjoy? Sounds like a recipe for disaster. Add a serving of young love and you've got a recipe for an awesome read. Anderson's languange is spot on with teens in the future sounding surprisingly similar to teens today. A GREAT book. Try it out! Till next time! -Suzanne

Crackback by John Coy

Read Crackback! This exciting novel tells the story of Miles Manning and his struggle to play football (something he's always loved) under the direction of a new coach who is demanding to say the least. His friends and teammates start taking steriods...will Miles? Will Miles get the girl he has a crush on? Will Miles parents stop being so wierd? Looking for something to read while you're waiting for the Super Bowl? Let Crackback be your choice! Till next time! Suzanne