Me on Flash Reviews (3)

More quick reviews, this time of books I recently checked out from my local library. That might've sounded too much like a PSA. ;)

Title: Awaken
Author: Katie Kacvinsky
Release Date: May 23, 2011
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children

Intriguing, very realistic, which made it compelling. What if all our lives was spent in front of a screen? What if we went on dates and runs and walks and saw movies all from the comfort of our home? I spend a lot of my time online, reading or on social media, and this book hit a little close to home. While reading I had that slightly uncomfortable 'our lives could really be like this' one day feeling.

Maddie was very conflicted, torn between the physical and actual make-contact-with-the-world-without-a-screen environment Justin brings her into and the comfortable and familiar computer screen inside her room. She's torn between conforming and investigating. What stops her are the repercussions, the consequences, the possible banishment, the anger of her parents.

A very much enjoyed semi-dystopian, a recommended read for fans of Lauren Oliver's Delirium and Elana Johnson's Possession. A little easier on the soul, perhaps. Delirium almost brought me to tears.

Quick note: I read this book as a stand alone and enjoyed it, it worked. Recently I learned the author is working on a second book, but I'm not sure if it's a sequel or a companion novel. I'm not sure how I feel, but I will read it.

Title: Magic Under Glass
Author: Jaclyn Dolamore
Release Date: December 22, 2009
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books

Sweet, magical, and fantastical, this debut novel will enchant fantasy readers and introduce them to a brand new re-tweak of Jane Eyre, plus faeries and magic and singing.

Nimira is innocent but strong, knowing what is right, willing to act and save those who need saving. She sees the automaton more than those around them do, as more than a machine, because she is willing to look deeper. Things are not always as they seem in her new home.

Discovering the truth behind her clockwork man changes Nim, gives her ideas, gives her a purpose. She would do anything to save him, to help him, to keep him away from those who would dismantle him like so many broken machines.

A must-read for fans of fantasy and magic, of clockwork and faeries, of spells and romance. Fans of Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken will devour this book.