Odd Is On Our Side by Dean Koontz

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Odd Thomas sees dead people. He lives in a small town and he tries to help the dead to find rest. Sometimes the dead aren’t just concerned with their own former lives and troubles, sometimes they are trying to tell him about something dark arriving in town. When Elvis (yes, The King) appears to Odd to warn him, Odd and his girlfriend take it seriously and try to save the town.


The story was interesting and I liked the art in this graphic novel. I liked the idea for the story and the characters, but the way it was told left me a little flat. I didn’t feel a real connection to the story and I was skipping stuff to get to the end. Not my favorite graphic novel, or supernatural mystery.

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

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Andi is devastated by the death of her little brother and the end of her parent’s marriage. She blames herself for a lot of what happens and she tries to save her mom from a deep depression while attempting to hide from her own dark feelings of desperation and sorrow. Andi is a wealthy girl who goes to an elite school. When situations start to get out of control at home her father takes her on a business trip to Paris. He thinks she will work on her senior paper and get away from the things that are troubling her. What she finds in Paris is the diary of a girl her own age. The girl lived during the French revolution and was nanny to the last heir to the throne. In alternating stories we hear the events of both girls’ lives as they deal with two separate but oddly similar tragedies.


I usually don’t read said or realistic fiction. I like zombies and ninjas thank you very much, but this book blew me away. The pain is so realistic and not at all gratuitous. Donnelly tells the story so well that you can smell the gun powder from the fireworks, and feel the chill of a New York City night. I recommend this for anyone who likes realistic fiction, historical fiction, or stories about the intricacies of families. If you’ve never read YA fiction this book would be a good place to start. I also recommend Donnelly’s other book, A Northern Light.

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Rage by Jackie Morse Kessler

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Missy has a terrible secret. She cuts herself to let out all of the bad stuff she feels. She thinks she keeps it hidden so well, but when something brings her secret to light she’s not sure what to do. When her cutting brings her to the edge of death she is presented an offer. Die or become one of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. Now she is the Red Rider; she is War.


This is the second book by Jackie Morse Kessler. The first featured a girl who became famine. Both books are amazing. I usually hate books that deal with the sad depressing fact that people hurt themselves. For some reason the way Morse Kessler writes, the insight she brings to the topic, and the fact that death likes to wear the skin of a rock god I listened to when I was a teen all comes together in an incredibly readable story. I recommend these books to everyone. There is some implied sexual content and violence, but it’s nothing gratuitous. What happens in the story is what must happen to get the main character where she belongs. GREAT BOOK!

Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin

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Sophie Blue is a goth teen, who starts noticing weird things in her small town.  After her father disappears under suspicious circumstances and a strange Popsicle truck starts following her she delves into the mystery.

I didn't enjoy this story.  I didn't like it from the start, but I thought the characters were interesting so I kept reading.  It is a science fiction story with a graphic novel flare.  There is a lot of virtual reality (it's hard to keep track of what's real and what's not) and the characters who start out interesting, don't end up that way.  I read some other reviews that this books was good, but I feel bamboozled.  I guess if you really like pulp science fiction this book might be for you, but I don't recommend it.