THIRTEEN REASONS WHY by Jay Asher

When Clay returns to his house after school one day, he discovers a package containing 13 audiotapes.  He discovers that the tapes contain the voice and story of Hannah, a classmate who recently committed suicide.  Hannah explains that there are 13 reasons why she committed suicide and that everyone who receives the tapes is one of the reasons.  Clay must listen to all of the tapes to discover how he is responsible, then pass them on to the next person on the list.  Clay spends the night listening to the tapes; he discovers Hannah's pain and the consequences of his actions--and inactions.  The story alternates between Clay listening to the tapes as he travels to the various locations in town as described by Hannah, and Hannah's recounting of her high school experiences.

Admittedly, it took me a while to get around to reading this book, but it is compelling. Hannah's pain is palpable, and the uncaring reactions of some of her classmates is disheartening. The story is, of course, emotional and melodramatic, but you won't be able to put it down until you discover Clay's responsibility.  (But I must admit, the ending of the book disappointed me a bit.)

PERFECT CHEMISTRY by Simone Elkeles

Brittany and Alex attend the same high school in a suburb of Chicago, but they live in two different worlds.  Brittany's family is wealthy and lives in a beautiful house on the lake.  Alex lives in a small house with his mother and 2 younger brothers, with whom he must share a room.  Brittany is a cheerleader who dates the football captain and has a seemingly perfect life.  Alex is a gang banger who often finds himself in trouble at school.  The two have a very visible conflict in the parking lot before the first day of school, but then find themselves lab partners in their Chemistry class.  We soon learn that Brittany's life is not so perfect, even though she feels that she must be.  She feels responsible for her older sister who has multiple sclerosis since her mother can't seem to cope and her father is rarely at home.  And Alex is not your typical gang banger.  He's very smart, but as a child, he witnessed his father's murder and joined a gang to protect his family.  Predictably, Brittany and Alex find themselves attracted to each other and must deal with the pressures against the relationship from their families and friends.

A predictable but nonetheless enjoyable retelling of ROMEO & JULIET and WEST SIDE STORY.  But the ending of this story is a bit different from the other two...

BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore

This sequel to GRACELING follows 17-year-old Bitterblue, daughter of King Leck, as she reigns as queen of Monsea.  King Leck was a psychopath who had mind-altering abilities, and the country is still traumatized by his abuses.  In an attempt to better understand her kingdom, Bitterblue begins to sneak out at night disguised as a peasant and realizes that she and her advisors cannot just pretend the abuses never happened, they must confront them.  During these night roamings, Bitterblue meets Saf and Teddy, two thieves who only steal back what was stolen from the original owners.  Saf has the two-colored eyes of a Graceling, but he has not yet discovered what his grace is.  He and Bitterblue become romantically involved.

Some characters from GRACELING reappear in this sequel.  Katsa sweeps in and out of the action, while Po acts as an advisor to Bitterblue.  Katsa's passion and physicality contrasts to the more subdued Bitterblue.   I did not find BITTERBLUE to be as compelling as GRACELING, but fans of the first book will definitely want to read the sequel.