Dead Until Dark, Southern Vampire Mysteries series, By Charlaine Harris

Due to the current vampire media saturation (to which I have fully bought into - I'm a Stephenie Meyer fan) and the True Blood HBO series based on the Sookie Stackhouse books (of which I have heard good things), I decided to read the first of the Southern Vampire Mysteries series. Gee, pop culture. Twist my arm, why don’t you?

Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse series immediately thrusts the reader into a not-so-distant future where vampires and humans coexist. Due to the invention of synthetic blood, vampires have “come out of the coffin” and live their own lives among humans at night. It's definitely a new twist on some otherwise cliché subject matter, which makes the story instantly intriguing. Harris increases suspense and curiosity by introducing the rules of this new social dynamic bit by bit, assuming the readers know just a little more than they actually do, using action and character dialogue to expand this new world. It’s a good set-up, and it makes the book a page-turner.

Sookie Stackhouse, the main character, is a 25 year old girl with a “disability” – she can hear other people’s thoughts. Sookie explains that this ability make her socially awkward and an outcast. I have to admit I didn't really buy into this "disability" thing. Being a mind-reader clearly puts her at an adavantage, I don't care how many random and disturbing thoughts she has to listen to in a day. Luckily Harris doesn’t dwell on the disadvantages of Sookie's powers too much, or I would have been annoyed. But as it stands, the book has too much action to waste time on character pity.

Sookie's non-nonsense attitude and compassionate personality soon lead her to investigate a string of disturbing murders, with the help of Bill, the new vampire in town. Of course, Sookie's actions soon make her the next target on the killer's list, and its up to Sookie and her friends to discover who it is, before its too late.

I won’t turn this into a Twilight vs. True Blood post, but I will say that if you are looking for a Twilight follow-up, this series may not necessarily be your cup of tea. Yes, there are hot Vampire men. Yes, there is love, lust, and excitement. But if you’re looking for a young adult romance, prepare to get a bit more than you bargained for. Twilight was fairly virginal (there were definitely a few Mormon undertones), and the majority of the action Bella saw revolved around kisses and “hot electric touches” that lead nowhere. Not so with Sookie, whose escapades are described in full-blown romance novel fashion. But if you don’t mind the erotic detail (or if you consider it a big plus) then you can look forward to a book that has never a dull moment and lots of sensual and supernatural action.

The first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series mixes murder-mystery, romance, and Gothic fantasy genres to create a wholly unique class of paperback fiction. If you're planning on picking up Dead Until Dark get ready for a quick, exciting romp through the supernatural.

My Rating: 3.5 Stars
Re-readability Rating: 2.5

The Hunger Games By Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games presents a story of oppression and survival to the backdrop of a future dystopian society. Sixteen year-old Katniss Everdeen has been the breadwinner of her family since her father died. To combat starvation, she risks the punishment of government authorities every day by hunting and gathering in the forbidden woods outside the desolate and destitute District 12. But her hard life becomes an advantage overnight when she is picked to represent her District in the annual Hunger Games.

The novel is categorized as Young Adult, but like most book in its genre, the storytelling and subject matter help it to appeal to a broader range of readers - think Lois Lowry’s The Giver or Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series. Books in this vein typically take a mildly unsettling aspect of modern American society and re-imagine it in the extreme as a form of social commentary. Suzanne Collins’ focus is on voyeurism (or, in more pop-culture terms, our obsession with reality television).

Take the barbarism of the Roman Gladiator events, combine it with reality television and a rich imagination of futuristic technology, and you have the Hunger Games. Collin’s description of the games is 100% action packed, with Katniss fighting for survival at every step. And if the idea of teenagers fighting to the death isn’t disturbing enough, add in the fact that the deaths are broadcast on live national television, and you’ve a got plenty of food for thought. Collins never lets the reader forget the perverse notion that the games are presented, to at least some extent, for entertainment value. Katniss and the other participants are cleaned, primped and paraded in front of society like paper dolls, then forced to slaughter one another. The whole preparation sequence was eerily familiar; by the end of the book I was almost ashamed at my obsession with the Biggest Loser.

The Hunger Games is a quick read, completely engrossing from start to finish. Collins concludes the plotline but leaves the book on a semi-cliffhanger, leaving me completely ravenous for more. I’ve got book 2 in the series, Catching Fire, on hold at the library.

My Rating: 4 Stars

Re-readability Rating: 3 Stars

Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

Alias Grace re-imagines the sensational murders of Thomas Kinnear and his housekeeper Nancy Montgomery, which occurred in 1843. The story revolves around Grace Marks, the house servant convicted of the murders, along with her alleged accomplice, John McDermott, who was hanged for the crime. The novel is driven by the same sensationalism that created fascination and uproar among the public and in the newspapers: was Grace Marks in fact guilty of murder?

When the novel begins, Grace has been in prison for 8 years. She’s served time in the penitentiary, an insane asylum, and back again, and now works as a servant for the wife of the prison Governor, who is part of a committee working to have Grace exonerated. An American doctor, Simon Jordan, studying in the field of human mental illness (although then it was referred to simply as insanity), is entreated by the group to study Grace in hopes of producing proof of her innocence.

Dr. Jordan is perhaps a good representative of doctors at the time. He is familiar with the small amount of research available on the human mind, acknowledges there is still much to be discovered, and hopes to uncover some of the mysteries himself, thereby making his name in the world. Also, like many doctors at the time, he is not to be trusted.

The only first person account, other than letters, is that of Grace Marks. Grace fears doctors, with good reason, and so does not trust Dr. Jordan. And neither does the reader. As Grace relates her life story, working up to the time of the murders, we see Dr. Jordan’s life begin to disintegrate. And because his story is told from the third person omniscient, we see into his mind with perhaps more clarity than we see into Grace’s; for although she gives a first person account, the reader cannot help but question her reliability as a narrator. A deep vein of mystery, questioning, and distrust runs through the novel. The more we see of the minds of the characters, the more disturbing the human psyche becomes. Men in particular as seen as untrustworthy, their sexual appetite overtaking any good character they might posses.

As Grace relates her story, Atwood brings up intruiging questions, that perhaps even today cannot fully be answered. What is insanity? What is it that keeps our own sanity in check? What is the difference between the mind and the soul? These questions are pondered and never fully answered in the book.

My Rating: 5 stars
Re-readability Rating: 4.5 stars

Just Listen by Sarah Dessen

As is the pattern with all of Sarah Dessen’s books, the title refers to a literal object in the book, which then becomes a metaphor for the emotional journey of the main character. In the case of Just Listen, the metaphor is music.

The book follows Annabel Greene as she begins her junior year of high school. Due to a falling out with Sophie, her former best friend, Annabel has morphed from popular clique to social outcast, and she begins the year on perhaps the worst possible note. But eventually she meets Owen, another social outcast, six feet tall and glued to his I-pod, ignoring almost everyone around him. Owen and Annabel begin a tentative friendship, revolving around their discussions on music. Soon he becomes her anchor as navigates the difficulties at school and at home.

The book touches on several heavy themes. Like all of Dessen’s books, family relationships are a significant part of the book. Annabel’s older sister, Whitney, is battling anorexia, perhaps an expected subject in a novel where the main character is a model, but unique in that it is not issue Annabel faces personally. Whitney’s struggles are by no means at the forefront of the novel. Rather they provide an obstacle for Annabel as she struggles to be honest with her family and herself. Annabel’s grapples not with body image but with her ability to express the truth. When Owen informs her, during one of their early conversations, that he “doesn’t lie”, even about little things, Annabel finds herself hyper-aware of all the little white lies she tells to avoid discomfort and confrontation.

I won’t spoil the ending, but I will say that when it came to the “big reveal” of Annabel’s secret, I was expecting it. I think Dessen purposefully provides a lot of lead up to that scene; since the book is written for young adults, it’s only fair that she prepares the readers for that. The book was immensely readable, and it touches on some major themes without plunging the reader into a depression, which is something one generally expects of young adult fiction. I definitely enjoyed this book.

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Re-readability Rating: 3 stars