THE SCORPIO RACES by Maggie Stiefvater

Every November the "capaill uisce" --water horses--emerge from the sea onto the fictional island of Thisby.  These water horses are much larger than regular horses, and they eat meat, including other horses, sheep, and people.  But some on the island have tamed the water horses enough to ride and race them in the biggest event of the year, the Scorpio Races.  The winner receives much respect on the island and a substantial prize of money.  Tourists from the mainland and from as far away as America flock to the island for the race.  The returning champion is 19-year-old Sean Kendrick, and odds are on his winning again this year.  But another entrant has islanders upset:  16-year-old Kate "Puck" Connolly intends to ride her regular horse, not a "capaill uisce".  She is the first girl to ride and the first not to ride a water horse.  But Puck needs the money and believes that her horse has a chance to win.   The book is told in the alternativing voices of Sean and Puck as they discover each other and begin to train together and to fall in love. 

I surprised myself by liking this book as much as I did.  The beginning is rather slow, but I couldn't stop reading the last 150 pages.  The setting is unique; it feels like a real island, perhaps off the coast of Ireland.  The time is contemporary but has a feel of the past.  Unlike anything else out there, it's full of unique characters, suspense, romance, and horses.  

I'LL WALK ALONE by Mary Higgins Clark

Alexandra "Zan" Moreland is a rising star in interior design in New York City.  But she has a tragic past--her young son was kidnapped in broad daylight when he was with a babysitter in Central Park three years ago.  On the anniversary of his kidnapping, pictures surface that seem to show that Zan kidnapped him herself.  Add to this the fact that someone has stolen her identity, running up charges on her credit cards, and she soon realizes that someone is out to destroy her life.  But does this mean her son could still be alive?

I would categorize this as "junk food" or "a guilty pleasure".  Not much substance, one dimensional characters, unrealistic plot line.  But still kind of fun.

THE DARK DAYS OF HAMBURGER HALPIN by Josh Berk

Will Halpin has attended a deaf school up until this year when he transfers to the regular public high school.  He struggles making friends, but he and Devon Smiley, another "outcast", soon form a friendship.  Will rarely wears his hearing aid because it gives him severe headaches, but he is an excellent lip-reader.  So when he rides the bus, he sits up front where he can see the mirror and reads the lips of the kids sitting in the back of the bus.  He finds a spot in the cafeteria so he can read the lips of the girl he has a crush on.  On a field trip to a coal mine, one of his classmates is murdered.  Will and Devon are soon involved with solving this crime and Will's lip-reading capabilities come in handy.

The common theme of the bullied outsider at a high school is freshened up a bit with the issue of Will's deafness and the murder mystery.

ROTTERS by Daniel Kraus

When Joey Crouch's mother is killed in a car crash, Joey is sent to Iowa to live with his father whom he has never met.  Joey, who has lived in Chicago his entire life, has a hard time adjusting to small town Iowa, and the kids at his new high school have a hard time accepting him and his father whom the town refers to as the "garbage man".  But Joey soon discovers that his father is not really a garbage man.  He is, in fact, a grave robber.  Joey's father earns his living by digging up the recently buried dead, stealing jewelry and other valuables that they are buried with, then selling the goods to less than scrupulous pawn shops.  Joey's struggles with bullying at school and this paired with his father's vocation soon join to create a macabre scene of revenge.

When I first realized what this book was about, I was repulsed and considered not reading it.  Then I thought I'd just read part of it.  But I found myself drawn to finish the book.  The author succeeds in making us care for these good people who do this awful thing.

DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth

Set in the near future in Chicago, citizens are divided into 5 factions:  Abnegation (the selfless), Candor (the honest), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent).  Sixteen-year-olds undergo an examination to determine which faction they best fit; then during the Choosing Day ceremony, each 16-year-old announces the faction they will join.  However, they must pass the initiation before they can be a full-fledged member.  Beatrice's family were leaders in the Abnegation faction; however, she chose to join the Dauntless faction and changes her name to "Tris".  But can she pass the brutal initiation rites of the Dauntless?   Did she betray her family by not remaining in Abnegation?  A romance soon develops between Tris and Four, one of the Dauntless in charge of the training for initiation.

Of the many dystopian books that have been published since THE HUNGER GAMES, this is one of the best.   I'm looking forward to the 2nd book in the trilogy!