Truly Madly Deadly

by Hannah Jayne

Summary:
When Sawyer's boyfriend dies in a car crash, she's full of both grief and relief. You see, Kevin wasn't that nice of a boyfriend. He was the kind that would intimidate her constantly, manipulate her, even hit her. But no one knew that but her. To everyone else they had a great relationship. But someone knew. And that someone killed Kevin for Sawyer, and they're coming for whoever hurts her next.

Review:
Jayne's novel is full of suspenseful twists and turns. At times you think it's going to be predictable, but then she hits you with another twist. Well written, this book will keep you glued to the pages until you get to the end. Definitely a read for slightly older teens, it reads like any great thriller.

Genre: Suspense
Age Level: 9th Grade

Code Name Verity

by Elizabeth Wein

Summary:

When Verity is arrested as a spy in occupied France, she knows that the only way she will escape being tortured by the Gestapo is to collaborate. She knows that regardless at the end of her usefulness to the Germans she will be executed, so she might as well live out her last few days in comfort. The story she tells them is not just about her mission, but about two friends, Maddie and Julie. Two girls from different walks of life who might never have met but for the war. Whose fate is intertwined beyond what they even know themselves. For captured Verity and her pilot friend Maddie, trapped behind enemy lines, the mission of their lives may have only just begun.

Review:
Code Name Verity is one of the best books I've read in awhile. The book is full of intrigue, leaving the reader unsure til the end of the real motives of half the characters in the book. The more Julie reveals about herself in her writings for the Gestapo the more you wonder how she could become a collaborator.  The book has tons of twists and excitement, making it great for anyone who likes spy novels or thrillers.  I won't give much away, but it's definitely worth the read. (Full disclosure the book didn't completely grab me until about 100 pages in, and then I couldn't put it down). I would be cautious recommending it to younger teens just because of the torture scenes (they aren't terribly graphic, but because these things actually happened to people it might be a little hard for less mature teens to read).  Personally, the book made me wonder if I would ever have the courage to do what girls like this did during WWII.

Genre: Historical Fiction

Age Level: 8th Grade

Shadowlands

by Kate Brian

Summary:
Rory was the first girl who escaped serial killer Steven Nell. Now, hidden by the FBI with her family as they try and track him down, she has to pretend that everything is ok. That she's not terrified every time she steps outside. That she's not plagued with visions of what could happened. But their new community might not be as safe as they had hoped. When Rory starts to hear Nell saying her name in crowded rooms, and finding his things outside their new house, she realizes that maybe no where at all is safe enough to protect her.

Review:
The first of a planned trilogy, Shadowlands is excellently written. The engaging plot grabs the reader from the get go. Rory and her family have already dealt with heartbreak (her mother died of cancer a few years before) and this new incident seems to highlight everything that is wrong with her family now.  Rory and Darcy are great characters, very realistically portrayed sisters who get along but also don't. I saw the the twist at the end coming, but it was a little different than I expected. Overall a great read for teens that like suspense stories.

Genre: Suspense
Age Level: 10th Grade

172 Hours on the Moon

by Johan Harstad

Summary:
In an effort to get people excited about space again, NASA holds a contest to send 3 teenagers to the moon for a week (along with an experienced crew of course). When Mia, Antoine, and Midori are selected from millions of teenagers across the world they are thrilled to go. But the moon hides some dark secrets, and what they find up there is something none of them expected.

Review:
I don't know what I was expecting when I picked up 172 Hours on the Moon, but I was pleasantly surprised by what I got. Harstad's book is full of suspense, but he writes it in a way that makes it fairly plausible.  The government conspiracy will intrigue any who like that sort of thing, and the book even has a little romance thrown in. I'll admit I was completely thrown by the ending, the book was nothing that I expected but is definitely going to be sticking in my memory for quite some time.

Genre: Science Fiction
Age Level: 8th Grade