Ketchup Clouds

Title: Ketchup Clouds
Author: Annabel Pitcher
Pages: 251
Content: PG13
Language: PG
Level: High School
Recommendation:  Okay Read

Summary: Fifteen-year-old Zoe has a secret—a dark and terrible secret that she can't confess to anyone she knows. But then one day she hears of a criminal, Stuart Harris, locked up on death row in Texas. Like Zoe, Stuart is no stranger to secrets. Or lies. Or murder.

Full of heartache yet humour, Zoe tells her story in the only way she can—in letters to the man in prison in America. Armed with a pen, Zoe takes a deep breath, eats a jam sandwich, and begins her tale of love and betrayal.

Review: I enjoyed the mystery surrounding the plot of this book, however, I had a hard time connecting to the characters.  Some explicit sexual details (which when you thought about how she was writing this in a letter to some older guy she doesn't know was kind of weird), but it was never over the top or gratuitous.

Stronger

Title: Stronger
Author: Michael Carroll
Pages: 370
Level: Middle School/High School
Language: G
Content: PG (violence)
Recommendation: Good Read For Guys

Summary:  The critically acclaimed Super Human series reaches its shocking conclusion.  All Gethin Rao wants is to be like every other boy his age. But normal twelve-year-olds aren't blue. And they certainly aren't thirteen feet tall. That's what happens when his superpowers kick in. And from that moment on, his life is never the same. Treated as a villain—a monster—Gethin spends the rest of his life on the run or as a prisoner in a secret military facility.

When he finally escapes, he falls in with a group of superpowered teens and becomes the one thing he never thought he'd be: a hero. But as the years pass by and he takes the name Brawn, Gethin learns that being a good guy is a lot more difficult than he thought.

Review: Think comic book in novel form.  Readers who enjoy comics and superheros will be drawn into this book.  Although at times the book seemed disjointed, due to flashbacks of how Brawn became super human, I wanted to know what happened to him!  I read this book, even though I hadn't read any of the other Super Human books,  but am now intrigued to read more.

Because It Is My Blood

Title: Because It Is My Blood
(Sequal to All These Things I've Done)
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Pages: 350
Content: PG13
Language: PG13 (4 swears)
Level: High School
Recomendation: Good Read

Summary: Since her release from Liberty Children's Facility, Anya Balanchine is determined to follow the straight and narrow. Unfortunately, her criminal record is making it hard for her to do that. No high school wants her with a gun possession charge on her rap sheet. Plus, all the people in her life have moved on: Natty has skipped two grades at Holy Trinity, Scarlet and Gable seem closer than ever, and even Win is in a new relationship.But when old friends return demanding that certain debts be paid, Anya is thrown right back into the criminal world that she had been determined to escape. It’s a journey that will take her across the ocean and straight into the heart of the birthplace of chocolate where her resolve—and her heart—will be tested as never before.

Review:  I was so excited for this book to come out, and it didn't disappoint - in fact - I stayed up WAY too late to finish it the night I got it.  Full of twists and turns, I had to keep turning the pages.  Romance, violence, suspense, this book has it all. There are a few references to pre-marital sex, and **SPOILER ALERT** there is a teen that ends up pregnant.