Numbers

I love an unsettling cover. So I was drawn to Numbers by Rachel Ward immediately. As I suspected there's a supernatural theme to the plot. British teenager Jemma has the ability to see the date a person will die. Literally, the date of death hovers over a person's head when Jemma interacts with anybody. Jemma first figures this out as a young child when her mother dies of an overdose and her mother's "special numbers" disappear. By the time she's a teen, Jemma has been shuffled from one foster home to another, never getting close to anyone. It's hard to form attachments when you know a person's final day on this earth. So, it takes Jem by surprise when she forms an unlikely friendship with Spider, a juvenile delinquent Jem runs into when they both cut class one day. Unfortunately Spider's death date is less than a few months away, and the closer Jemma grows to Spider, the more desperate she is to learn if she can prevent his death. Then an act of terrorism in London leaves Jemma and Spider on the run. They're not responsible, but the cops think they are. If they're caught before Spider's death date, Jemma might not be able to save him. If she can at all.

I liked that the main characters in this book were the "bad" kids. I also enjoyed the London slang, which could leave some American readers puzzled. (Don't worry--you get into the swing of things pretty quickly and might even find yourself with a fake British accent by the end of the book.) This is probably an older teen read, and not quite the Twilight fan's cup of tea, because it's more realistic fiction than supernatural---although the numbers are a key part of the plot, it's easy to forget for long stretches that the story is formed around a supernatural ability. Relationships in this book rang true, in all their complications. Nothing comes easy for anyone in Numbers. I wasn't sure how the author would end the book---right up until the end, I was uncertain---and all I will say is that I found it very satisfying. The last line in particular is deliciously chilling in its punch.

Broken Soup

Oh, dear. There has been little to no time to blog this summer, but seeing that there hasn’t been an update in over a month I feel compelled to post. Also, I just got back from the ALA convention in Chicago with an armload of advanced reading copies, most of them teen books. So stayed tuned for new posts coming soon.

The last teen book I read was Broken Soup by Jenny Valentine. The title is explained about midway through the novel when the protagonist’s little sister tries to make a meal. She drops the tray and cries out, “I tried to make things all nice and now look at this broken soup.” This is a metaphor for how life in general is going for the family in the aftermath of the drowning death of their brother/son. Rowan (the teen protagonist) is trying to keep things together after her brother dies, her father leaves, and her mother breaks down into depression. Suddenly Rowan is responsible for her little sister and for hiding the truth of their increasingly desperate home situation. In the meantime, a handsome boy comes into Rowan’s life after he hands her a photo negative he claims she dropped. Rowan knows the negative isn’t hers, but he insists it is so she takes it. A new friend helps her develop the photo and Rowan is shocked to find that it’s a candid shot of her dead brother. Where did this photo come from? Who took it and how is the handsome boy involved? What kind of secret life did her brother live?

I liked this though I found that some parts dragged ever so slightly. Rowan's story is less compelling than the story of the other characters she tells, which might explain the slow bits. Still, Rowan is likable as are all the characters. I saw some of the plot twists coming but it didn’t spoil the story. This is a well-written, realistic novel about how difficult it is for life to go on after the loss of a loved one.

Jack Tumor

Aren't brain tumors just hilarious? Okay, you might not think so now but you will after reading Jack Tumor, a British novel for teens in which our hero, Hector, a firm member of the nerd tribe, experiences a huge turnaround when he develops a brain tumor that begins speaking to him. Jack Tumor, as the brain tumor is known, realizes his days are numbered and he wants to enjoy his symbiotic life experience with Hector to the fullest. He gives Hector direction, sometimes even taking over Hector's body when Hector shows reluctance. Soon Hector finds himself standing up to bullies and catching the attention of Uma Upshaw, a girl way out of his league. Yet he's also drawn to a "freak" girl whom Jack Tumor assures him isn't worth his time. Likewise, Jack finds Hector's circle of nerd friends less than satisfactory and makes several attempts to sabotage the friendships. Either Jack Tumor is going to fix Hector's whole life or ruin it. . . not to mention that the tumor threatens Hector's mortality entirely.

It's odd to find yourself admiring the character of an animate tumor. But Jack is a wonderful voice and has such charisma you can't help but like him. The humor in this book is ongoing and often of the bawdy sort. Much of Hector's ruminations are on snogging (British term for kissing), bosoms, bodily humor, and the gross things that teenage boys find endlessly appealing, yet it's done with such flair and aplomb that Hector's adolescence seems somehow sophisictaed. Maybe it's the British thing. Speaking of, some readers might be thrown by the British slang---"taking the piss" means making fun of someone, not anything relating to the bathroom, for instance--but many more will suddenly find words like "gormless" peppering their vocabulary.

Jack Tumor was great fun. Funny and satisfying.

Kiss Me, Kill Me

Imagine the first guy you ever kissed dropped dead at your feet two minutes later. That's the fate that befalls sixteen-year-old Scarlette Wakefield in Kiss Me, Kill Me.

Scarlette has always been an outsider at her posh British girls' school. She spends her days practicing gymnastics and hanging out with a few gym friends, while living with a strict chaperone (Scarlette's parents are dead) who allows her little freedom. The ruling clique, led by beautiful. wicked, and uber-rich Plum Saybourne, has always snubbed Scarlette, so she's shocked when one of the golden girls invites her to a private party. She's even more shocked when the gorgeous object of her affection, Dan McAndrew, shows interest in her and gives her her first kiss on the secluded garden patio. The kissing goes great. . . until Dan suddenly stops breathing and moments later dies.

Scarlette is branded as the "Kiss of Death" girl. Though the inquest clears her of murder, no one can understand what killed Dan. All anyone can assume is that Scarletter's kiss did him in. Guilt-ridden and socially ruined, Scarlette is forced to transfer schools. And it is there that she receives an anonymous note that reads only, "It wasn't your fault."

Determined to solve the mystery of Dan's death, Scarlette begins to investigate and learns much more than she anticipated about the golden clique and Plum Saybourne. Her gymnastic skills come in handy while spying. She forms a tenuous friendship with another outcast, and slowly the two begin to unravel the clues to Dan's demise.

I quite liked this book, especially its British setting. Now I am using words like "knackered" instead of "tired" and "lift" instead of "elevator." But I have always been an Anglophile. I love Scarlette's character and read the book quickly. Much to my chagrin, the mystery is not entirely solved at story's end--why is it I seem to be picking up books that are first in a series these days?--but there was enough of a conclusion to make for a good ending. I'm looking forward to the next installment and in the meantime recommending this as a good mystery read.