A dark truth: DAMAGE DONE by Amanda Panitch

Damage Done

by Amanda Panitch

Gr 9+

In the vein of We Were Liars and Gone Girl with a YA twist, Panitch delivers a heart-pounding, emotionally-charged novel that proves that not everything is what it seems. Julia Vann faces unmentionable consequences when her twin brother, Ryan, brings a gun to school and kills eleven people in the band room. Ryan, after shooting himself, remains in a coma, and Julia’s family moves to a different city to escape the whispers and outright hatred.

As Julia, now called Lucy, realizes her brother’s psychologist is following her, she must confront buried memories that threaten her daily existence. The slow trickle of reminiscences unveils a dark truth, one that Julia/Lucy wants hidden forever, and one in which she will go to extreme lengths to protect.

VERDICT: The latest in unreliable narrators, Panitch combines heart-twisting realities with good old-fashioned mystery.

Note: I reviewed Damage Done for School Library Journal.

A Life For a Life: A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses
by Sarah J. Maas

My first immersive experience into the worlds-building by Maas is equal parts thrilling and intriguing. A Court of Thorns and Roses was the June 2015 pick for a book club I’m in, and I was one of the very few who had never delved into this type of fantasy before.

And fantasy, indeed, it is—to fully enjoy Maas’s worlds, you have to suspend any conceptions about reality. Feyre is her family’s hope and salvation; as they trudge through life in the Mortal Lands, they are under constant threat of savage faeries who attack, maim, and kill. When Feyre kills a wolf “the size of a pony” in the snowy forest one day, she realizes the wolf may actually be a faerie—and the repercussions of killing him dire.

Feyre is not entirely surprised when a monstrous beast barges into their cottage one night to collect his prize—Feyre: a life for a life. Feyre wakes up in one of the faerie lands, the Spring Court, over which Tamlin, a High Fae, presides. Undeniably rich and sophisticated, Tamlin and his friend Lucien defy any expectations Feyre had about the fae. She is kept, essentially, a prisoner in these lush lands, albeit a well-fed, well-clothed, and well-entertained prisoner.

As the days tick by, Feyre becomes close to both Tamlin and Lucien—although she feels a pull towards Tamlin, confusing and enthralling her. Around the Spring Court the fae battle various forms of unfriendly faeries as the entire realm of Prythian begins to degrade towards a civil war. The queen of Prythian, Amarantha, is evil and malicious; she captures Tamlin as her prisoner until he agrees to be her lover.

When Feyre goes on a mission to rescue him, she is imprisoned herself “Under the Mountain,” a dank system of caves replete with vicious faeries and other nightmarish beasts. To gain her freedom, and that of Tamlin, Feyre must complete either a riddle or three tasks. These tasks are nowhere close to easy; the first involves a large maze sunken into the ground complete with a “giant worm…with ring after ring of razor-sharp teeth.”

Without spoiling the ending, suffice it to say Maas has successfully set up the beginning of a series, especially after Feyre begins to notice another High Fae named Rhysand. Highly recommended and not to be missed!

"The swan, like the soul of the poet, By the dull world is ill understood": Review of SWANS OF FIFTH AVENUE by Melanie Benjamin

(Title quote by Heinrich Heine)

The Swans of Fifth Avenue

by Melanie Benjamin

Drenched in whiskey and jewel-toned silks, the famous socialites of 1960s New York come alive in Melanie Benjamin’s latest tour de force. If you’re like me, nothing is as delicious as reading about the sumptuous lives and dramas of the “rich and famous”—and Benjamin certainly delivers on this front.

Truman Capote is launched into the social scene thanks to his indelible and incisive works, including In Cold Blood and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Babe Paley, Slim Keith, C.Z. Guest, Gloria Guinness, and Pamela Churchill all are Capote’s “swans,” or beautiful circle of friends—but Capote’s true love is Babe. Married to a cheating and demanding husband, Babe Paley, instead of getting angry, turns her own body into a work of art, becoming one of the most famous socialites of the era. Babe and Truman share a special bond; he is her “True Heart,” and she is his “Bobolink.” That is, until Truman attempts to fictionalize Babe’s secret shames in a short story La Cote Basque 1965. Truman’s swans turn their backs to him and he begins a downward spiral into alcoholism.

A fascinating book is one that completely immerses me within the scene, one that propels me to research different people and artifacts mentioned with the book. Swans of Fifth Avenue is such a book; highly recommended!

One of my favorite parts:

            “…and all she could look forward to was losing her teeth, more face-lifts, orthopedic shoes instead of Ferragamos, the constant battle of the dye bottle…and all the money in the world couldn’t stop any of that, couldn’t stop the ravage of time and great.
            And that was the secret, the wonder of Truman, she realized suddenly. Truman made them forget all that. He had amused them. Their husbands didn’t want to talk to them. They grew bored talking to one another, these glorious creatures, for they were all the same. Blond, brunette, tall, short, European or Californian, they were still the same; only the exteriors were different. And they devoted their lives to maintaining this difference, striving to shine, be the one jewel who stood out. Yet at night, they took off the diamonds and gowns and went to empty beds resigned to the fact that they were just women, after all. Women with a shelf life.
            And then Truman leapt into their midst, and suddenly the gossip was more delicious, the amusements more diverse” (Benjamin 244).

Escape is Impossible: The Rig by Joe Ducie

The Rig 

by Joe Ducie

When Will Drake is sent to an oil-rig-turned-prison in the Arctic Ocean, he immediately cases the place for means of escape. He has escaped two previous prisons, and Will is determined to escape this ultimate challenge and leave behind the rigorous schedule and the ever-watchful Warden.

He gets more than he bargains for, though, when he accidentally discovers a top-secret experiment, Crystal-X, happening in the depths of the rig. With his newfound knowledge, he must decide between staying quiet and following through with plans of escape or whistle-blowing the entire operation – with plans of escape.

Overall, this book is marketed towards middle and high school students, which is appropriate. There is some cursing, but not as much as one would expect on a floating prison with the world’s worst criminals. While characterization could be stronger, as the reader peels away the layers of Drake he becomes more relatable and sympathetic. The whole “playing God in the basement” aspect of Crystal-X is a bit unbelievable, so just sit back, relax, and let the story lead you.

This would make a great movie, as long as it’s not directed by the people who butchered The Maze Runner. I also loved the idea of a floating prison and would immediately snap up any other books that decide to take on this premise. Amazing idea!