MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN by Ransom Riggs

Sixteen-year-old Jacob has heard his grandfather's stories about Miss Peregrine's home for peculiar children for years. But when Jacob witnesses his grandfather's brutal murder and the strange being responsible, he realizes that perhaps the place is real, and he talks his father into taking him to the small island off the coast of Wales where the home is located.

I couldn't put this book down. It is full of suspense and supernatural forces of both good and evil. Intriguing photographs of the "peculiar children" are presented throughout. But I wish a different photograph were chosen for the cover. I'm afraid the picture of the young girl will discourage boy readers, but I think boys (and girls) will love this book. The ending is a big unfinished, so a sequel must be coming!

This book trailer is really well-done introduces the story better than I can...
Click for book trailer.

PAPER COVERS ROCK by Jenny Hubbard

Journal entries written by Alex during his junior year at a boarding school tell the story of the drowning death of his best friend Thomas.  These entries reveal that Alex, Thomas, and Glenn were by the river drinking together and jumped into the river.  Only Thomas did not survive.  The entries also reveal Alex's profound guilt and his strained relationship with Glenn who orchestrates a cover-up of some of the facts surrounding the drowning--especially their drinking.  And just what does Miss Dovecott, their young, attractive English teacher know?  She came upon the scene just as they pulled Thomas out of the river.  Does she know something even Alex doesn't know?

This is a wonderful book!  It's very well written, including Alex's poems sprinkled throughout. The surprise ending works.   It almost reads like something Pat Conroy might have written. I loved it.

iBOY by Kevin Brooks

As Tom is going to visit his good friend Lucy, he is hit in the head with an iPhone thrown from the 30th floor of the building.  When Tom awakes in the hospital, the doctors explain that they could not remove all of the pieces of the iPhone; some are embedded in his brain.  Soon Tom realizes that these electronic pieces connect with his brain to give him "super" powers.  He can read other people's text messages, listen to phone calls, and send messages with his mind.  He also discovers that the night he was going to see Lucy, she was brutally raped by a gang that lives in their apartment complex.  Tom, comparing himself to Spiderman, uses his new powers to figure out who committed the crime and get revenge.

I really liked this science fiction/ realistic novel.  The characters are well-drawn and the brutal violence of the world in which Tom and Lucy live is honestly portrayed.  The iPhone super power is a nice twist.  It actually works.