The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan*****

The Lost Hero is about three teenage demigods, each with their own secrets and shady pasts. When Piper, Leo, and Jason embark on quest to save the queen of the heavens, the fate of the world and an attitudinal satyr become involved as well. Throughout their journey, their friendship grows stronger with each obstacle that they must face. Together, they survive an ice princess, a gold investor, and a few nasty car dealers. Can Piper, Leo, and Jason's bond survive when dark secrets are told, and pasts rise to the surface?

I thought The Lost Hero was an incredible book. There is a great deal of humor and sarcasm in this book. The emotions in this story are real and make you fall in love with each and every character. It almost seems like they are real people that you can sit down and have a conversation with. This book is a continuation of the Lightning Thief series, with each new series being just as good, if not better, than the last. Overall, I loved this book, and will look forward to posting on Searching for the Perfect Book. - Amy

The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas***

The Burning Sky is about Archer. He is a boy attending Eton, a school for boys. Some people in his world can control some four elements. The elements are: water, air, fire, and earth. There are some sub-branches of these powers as well. Archer has control of these powers, and what nobody knows is that Archer is really a girl. It's her goal to stop Bane, the head of the villains in this book, and to help restore the world/region to its former peace.

When I figured out there are only four elements, fire, earth, water, and air, my mind went straight to the Last Airbender.  This is (or was) a show that I saw some, but not much. I briefly picked up details on it, and I think that the author of this book might be ripping the show off a little. The four elements in the Last Airbender are fire, earth, water, and air (from what I can remember). I think that element/magic is very overdone, it's not bad, it's just that most books I read have this. I don't know what time period this book is set in, it's pretty confusing. I think that if you like fantasy books, you will like this book too. Tomorrow I will give an update for the summer.

Dragon Keeper by Carole Wilkinson****

Dragon Keeper is about Ping, a young Chinese slave. She does work that her master is supposed to do, which includes feeding the last remaining dragons. When one of the dragons dies, it falls upon Ping to help her master create a stew from the dead dragon. Ping gets word of the Emperor visiting, and becomes very curious. While the Emperor visits, Ping sneaks around the palace. She eventually gets caught, but manages to escape with the help of the last remaining dragon. Together, they go on an amazing journey to get to the sea that is filled with many exciting events.

This book is my kind of book--fantasy. I love fantasy. I think that this book had a lot of surprise plot changes. Most of the plot changes actually make a difference on the book. I have read books where a major character will die, only to be replaced by someone else with no change in the book. I think that this author did a good job with her writing. I think that fantasy lovers will love this book.

Chupacabra by Roland Smith*****

Chupacabra is one of the many books that Roland Smith has written. It is in a series about animals that are so rare they are considered myths. These animals are known as cryptids. I really like what Roland Smith writes about. It combines nature and technology very well. I think that if new technology is added in the next book, I might like the series better. I think that the way some of the technology is used, and some of the ways people escape makes the series all the better. I highly recommend this book to anyone.

The Archived by Victoria Schwab*

The Archived isn't very good. I really didn't enjoy this book. It seemed like one of those stories that is so fake it's not good. This book had something called Narrows, which is the barrier between life and death. The entryways are basically hidden doors that only certain people can see. Also, most of the people who run this business are dead. I think that if the whole hidden-doors-that-only-certain-people-can-see is changed to something a lot more believable, this book would have been much better. The dead people or Histories, are stored in cabinets. This idea drove me insane. I think that people should be treated much better than that. I don't really recommend this book.

The Outside by Laura Bickle****

The Outside is the second book in The Hallowed Ones series. I think it wasn't as good as the first book, but it is still good. I think that if the way the characters discover certain things changed, this book might have been better. Some of the ideas in this book were genius though. The main characters use fireworks to try and kill the vampires. I thought that the author did a good job writing the book. Many people may like this book.

The Hallowed Ones by Laura Bickle****

The Hallowed Ones is about an Amish community. They have almost no communication with the rest of the world, so when a disease that makes people turn into vampires erupts, they have no idea. This book definitely had a cliff-hanger ending. It just left off when the main character and her friends were leaving, Some books are able to get away with this kind of transition (those kinds of transitions make me not want to read further), but most books can't. I feel that this book had a good feeling for this series book. It kept true to old legends, like how garlic keeps vampires away, or how they can't enter holy land. That is a strong point for me because the book didn't make vampires totally super-villain-that-does-whatever-he/she-wants, but it also didn't limit the vampires power. It's not like the characters were able to shoot them, guns don't work. It's cut of the vampire's head, or burn it alive. I definitely thought that this book is generally a good book. I didn't like the ending, but the way the author used the older stories of vampires is good. It adds realism, and a story that we already know, so we can infer (predict) a few things about the vampires. I think that teens will like this book.

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman****

The Grimm Legacy is an okay book. It is about a store that contains magical items. They sometimes rent out the items too. I think that the whole idea of renting out a magical item, even if it is a friend, is a bit unrealistic. The store does make you take out a deposit though, like your sense of direction or something similar. I think that if you like books that combine many fairy tales into modern times, you will like this book.

World's End by Jake Halpern and Peter Kujawinski****

World's End is the sequel to Dormia, and is just as good. It brought back a lot of characters that seemed like they wouldn't be brought back. Take Clink, the pickpocket who help Bilblox escape from jail. He returned in this book, becoming a key part in Alfonso's adventure. Some characters were reinforced in this book as well. Kiril, one of Nartam's key components, has facts added on, like how once he starts to bleed it is hard to stop. I really liked some of the twists and turns in this book. I think anyone who enjoyed the first book will enjoy this one as well.

Croak by Gina Damico***

Croak is about Lex. She's been acting out lately, so her parents decide it's time to send her to her uncle's farm. It turns out to be a place where reapers collect dead souls and send them into the afterlife. She hears stories of a reaper that lived long ago after seeing many deaths that nobody knows about. The reaper had very special powers, and discovered many secrets. But with people dying of an unknown cause, Lex doesn't get a break-until her uncle comes up with a plan to stop the rouge reaper (look at that alliteration). All Lex has to do is scythe her way to the death site fast enough. She manages to find the reaper, but is given the choice of a lifetime. Kill all the people who have done wrongs, or save them.

Sometimes I read the Amazon reviews just to see what people thought about it, and somebody wrote something that I hadn't even realized (here's a link, last review of the section). This book resembles Harry Potter. She points out that Lex is taken on a motorcycle with a weird man, finds out that they're different from everyone else, given an education in this subject, and even has a blond haired nemesis. Remember, this is written by someone else, so click on the link above, this review is really smart and pointed out something that I didn't even think of. I did like this book, and I am sort of excited for the sequel. I think that this book should be read by high school students. It is very inappropriate.

Dormia by Jake Halpern and Peter Kujawinski****

Dormia is a okay book. It doesn't really seem logical, with all the sleep activities like climbing trees hundreds of feet tall. If the way the Dormians (or whatever they're called) had a more realistic power, this book might have been more believable. I think that if the concept of how the tree worked is different, I might have liked this book better as well. Also, if some of the other major characters were more defined, this book might have been a bit better. I think that if you like to read long fantasy books, this is the book for you.

The Vampire Stalker by Allison Van Diepen****

The Vampire Stalker is about Amy, a high-schooler who is obsessed with the same books that almost everyone is obsessed with. The stories feel so real, so real that Amy stumbles upon two of the biggest characters in the book. At first Amy thinks that the boy she has encountered is a wannabe Alexander Banks, but then he gives proof. Amy also realizes that the person who attacked her is the vampire that Alexander is hunting, Vigo Skaar. Can Amy and Alex kill Vigo?

I think if the author didn't have Mrs. Super-power librarian, this would've been a better book. Mrs. P, The librarian, studied quantum physics, and has read all the books that Alex comes from... and is an athlete. That is way too much. It drives me crazy when people do this. It's like the librarian runs the world and knows pretty much everything. I did like though, the way some of the characters grow onto you. I think that middle school kids would like this book.

Breathe by Sarah Crossan*

Breathe wasn't very good. It is super unrealistic and dumb. If the Earth is airless there is no oxygen levels, or atmosphere. Looking at the Amazon description, what's the first sentence? The world has no air. That would mean no atmosphere or ability to even grow trees outside the pods. You couldn't breathe outside the pods, and there would be no weather. Here is an example of this. I think that if an author should write a book, it should be realistic. Also, in the example, every single living cell would evaporate/explode. I really don't recommend this book at all.

Invisibility by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan***

Invisibility is an okay book. It picked up in the end, but it could have been better in the beginning. It felt too romance-y in the beginning, and then the book completely changed. It might have been better if it was more gradual or started that way. It is also very girly. I think that middle school students will like this book.

Angel Fever by L. A. Weatherly****

Angel Fever is the last book in the Angel Trilogy by L. A. Weatherly. It has many plot twisters, and things that push the characters to their breaking point. Some characters are forced to do things that they would never do. This book is really good.

I think that if this book was a bit shorter, I would have enjoyed it more. I also loved how some characters seemed to disappear in the first book, only to reappear now. It keeps the book more realistic. If new characters were introduced, I'm not sure I would've liked this book as much. I think that high school readers would love this series.

Angel Fire by L. A. Weatherly****

Angel Fire is about Willow finding another half angel. She once thought that she was the only one, but when she met Seb, it all changed. The newly formed Angel Killers decide to kill the head angels. Their plan goes terribly wrong, and friendships are broken, trusts betrayed, and the world as they knew it destroyed.

I love how the idea of a new half angle is implemented. It happens to Willow in a dream, but Seb had been looking for her almost his whole life. I think that if the author had maybe not drawn out the book (over 600 pages) so much, I would have liked it better, but it is good. I think people who like more religious-fantasy-type books would enjoy this book.

The Strictest School in the World by Howard Whitehouse***

The Strictest School in the World is very creative, but it is a bit unbelievable. The Kitty Hawk, the first real aircraft wasn't invented yet, but somehow, in the 1800 to 1900 range. Also, the birds. I think that this added suspense, but took away from the book as well. I won't spoil the birds, but there is a boy who you meet early one who is practically rubber. He can get hurt, but is indestructible. I also think that a fourteen year-old girl shouldn't be able to build a whole glider/aircraft. The tech in this book shouldn't even be around. It tells how to make an aircraft. I think that this could have been a bit more believable if she hadn't read multiple books. I think that someone with a very, very creative mind will love this book.

Unbreakable by Kami Garcia****

Unbreakable is about Kennedy, a girl whose mother has a heart failure and dies. But then two boys come who say that her mother was killed by a spirit that a demon sent. She doesn't believe them at first, but eventually her whole house turns against her. She is now on an epic adventure against a spirit who might do anything to stop her.

I was surprised by the ending, but I generally liked the book. It used enough detail to make it feel believable, but not too much to make it feel fake. I think that it might have been better if the spirits were all more hostile, it might have added more action to the book. I think that middle school readers would love this book.

The Sight by David Clement-Davies*

The Sight isn't that good. It is longer than it needs to be (over four hundred fifty pages long), and didn't feel all that interesting. It used too much space on extra details, and though those make a book better, too many is overwhelming. I think that if you're into books that are more mature than other fantasy, you'll like this book better than I did.

Angel Burn by L.A. Weatherly*****

Angel Burn is about Willow and Alex. Alex is an Angel Killer, a group of people who have been traveling around the U.S to kill secret angels. Willow is a normal teenage girl who can see the future. She reads someones future and sees an angel in their past and future. She tries to stop the angel from hurting her classmate. That's when Alex gets a call to kill her. She is apparently an angel, but not like any he's ever seen. She's half human, half angel. Something both worlds have never seen.

This book is really good, it provides detail and didn't come up with a happy ending. Willow survived the blast, but still let thousands of angels into her own world. I think that the sequel to this book will be great, and I am really looking forward to it. I think high school students would love this book.