Katherine Harbour's Blog, page 6

Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand

Sawkill Girls
The island of Sawkill Rock is haunted by an ancient evil. Teenage Marion has arrived with her older sister Charlotte and her mother. Zoey lives on the island with her sheriff father and has recently had her best friend disappear. Beautiful Val is from one of the wealthy families on the island, and lives with her strict mother. And Val has a horrifying secret.
The three girls are drawn together in a tangle of betrayal, deceit, love, and terror. The island, with its Nantucket vibe, also has a life of its own. Marion, Zoey, and Val are exquisitely drawn characters. The theme of extraordinary girls and useless male authority is Buffyesque in the best way. This is a horror story, and one I'm glad I decided not to read at night.
One of my favorite horror reads.

Alexander and Alestria by Shan Sa

Alexander and Alestria
I loved this book because of its two fierce, mythical heroes and gorgeous prose. Alexander the Great is a tormented young man with a terrible family, and he does terrible things that make him less than a hero. It's his equal, the petite and ferocious Amazon queen, Alestria, who steals his heart and the story. The Amazons are young horsewomen who live on the steppes of Siberia. Her world is as breathtaking and innocent as Alexander's is brutal and corrupt. (There's a scene in Chapter One that I'm less than thrilled by and destroys any sympathy I have for Alexander.) These two future lovers clash in one of the most inventive romance scenes I've ever read. Alexander and Alestria is like a ballad written in modern form. If you can make it through that one scene in Chapter One, you'll be well-rewarded with a gorgeous, historical fantasy.

The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman

The Dark Days Club
Lady Helen lives in Regency era London, where a secret society called The Dark Days Club have been fighting monsters for centuries. When she meets the infamous Lord Carlston, she learns she can do extraordinary things. Filled with interesting details about life in Regency England, and Lovecraftian demons, the story is interesting, as are the two main characters, Helen and Carlston. I just wished they'd come up against a villain to equal their intelligence, so maybe in the sequels:)
If Jane Austen wrote Buffy the Vampire Slayer...

The Good Demon by Jimmy Cajoleas

The Good Demon
A contemporary dark fantasy. Clare has lost her beloved demon due to a childhood exorcism. The demon (or imaginary friend) always took the form of a little girl who protected Care and showed her wonders. Clare feels lost and depressed, in withdrawal. She wants her demon back and will do anything to get her.
With some help from two town eccentrics, and perhaps the ghost of a girl like herself, Clare ventures down a dangerous path to confront a terrifying evil.
Loved this creepy modern fairy tale about how loneliness and imaginary friends can be dangerous.

Never-Contented Things by Sarah Porter

Never-Contented Things
Ksenia and Josh are foster siblings, teens, and complete opposites. Ksenia is androgynous and hides her feelings. Josh is exuberant and emotional. But they're about to be separated by their ignorant foster parents--Ksenia to be sent out into the world, while Josh is going to be officially adopted.
But impulsive Josh is in love with Ksenia and when they come across a group of beautiful, unusual teens in the park one night, Josh vanishes into a dangerous world that he soon drags Ksenia into. And their only hope is their friend, Lexi, who is brave and has a great family.
Weird and unique, this is a beautiful horror story, definitely not a fairy tale. I loved Ksenia's courage.

I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson

I'll Give You the Sun
With its two strange and uniquely-thinking protagonists, this story of two siblings finding their place in the world has tension and charm. Told in the first person by a twin brother and sister (Noah, from age 13, and Jude, at age 16), it is hilarious and touching.
At thirteen, Noah rules the roost as the promising artist, treasured by his mother, yet having difficulties with a dad who has some minor toxic masculinity. Noah finds a soulmate in another boy who is a science nerd and an athlete. His competition with his sister peaks at a party where she kisses Noah's boyfriend.
Every other chapter skips ahead three years, and these are from Jude's POV. Once a pretty and perfect girl, she's now an art school weirdo. She's taken Noah's art school opportunity, while Noah has become the perfect son, all of his creativity stifled by athletics. Jude takes an apprenticeship with a temperamental sculptor old enough to be her father, and meets his protege, Oscar, an English version of James Dean.
A tale of magic realism with no actual magic, of twins divided and reunited. One of my favorite YA reads.

The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

The Gracekeepers
I love it when a book I plucked from the ARC pile turns into one of my favorite books ever.
From the first scene to the last, with a lyrical foreshadowing, this fairy tale takes place in a future where the earth seems to be mostly water broken up by a few precious islands.
North is a dampling with a traveling circus of some of the most interesting circus characters I've ever read. She performs with a bear she's known since childhood. The bear is the only thing she loves--aside from the baby growing within her under mysterious circumstances. The bear is also the child of the bear that killed her parents.
Callanish is a landlocker who is a gracekeeper, one who buries the dead at sea. It's a self-imposed exile because she was born with webbed hands and feet. Hers is a solitary existence, interrupted when the circus arrives on her island.
A lovely fairy tale with an exquisite atmosphere and unique characters.

Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor

Akata Witch
Sunny was moved by her family from America, to Nigeria. Albino and fourteen, she has enough problems before she realizes she's a free agent, an avatar for a powerful spirit. She meets Orlu, Sasha, and Chichi, three other young people who are also avatars. Meanwhile, a bad agent named Black Hat Otokoto is ritualistically murdering children. Sunny is determined to find her way in this strange shadow world.
With its exquisite details, spectacular imagery of Nigerian folklore, and four fierce heroes, this coming-of-age story is for every age.

The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee

The Thousandth Floor
In a lavishly imagined future, where the main characters' world is a one-thousand floor building in New York City, Leda is the character with the most disadvantages. She isn't super rich and she's fighting a drug addiction. Rylin is the girl who's on her own, somewhere on the poverty line, and taking care of her sister. Avery and Eris are privileged, but have family problems. Avery is in love with her adopted brother, Atlas. Eris has learned herfather isn't her father and she'll lose everything. Watt is a boy who's intelligence is underestimated because he's middle class. He falls for Avery.
The book begins with a girl falling from the thousandth floor. It's a mystery woven with the complexity of forbidden love, crushed dreams, and Big Mistakes. It's also a dazzling and refreshing view of a slick future for the wealthy, and not so much for the poor. Each of the characters has interesting stories, and I cared enough to dread which girl was going to fall. A page-turning mystery with complicated characters.

The Creeping by Alexandra Sirowy

The Creeping
Sometimes YA horror scares me more than adult. And this was one of those.
Stella is a typical teen, but, in childhood, she survived a potential kidnapping while another girl did not. She has no memory of what took the other little girl, but she's haunted by it. She's the cool girl in town, her friends the stars of their galaxy. The friends are distinctive and beautifully drawn, including Sam, the geeky but handsome ex-best friend.
There's something in the woods, an urban legend that maybe some of the locals still believe in, a monster that devours children. Stella has a mystery on her hands and must remember what she and her friends encountered when they were children, before whatever took Stella comes for her again. If you liked Tana French's In The Woods, you'll love this terrifying mystery.