Early Christmas?

By Jan Pease
My desk is piled high with new books, making it feel like early Christmas here.  Several well-known authors have published new books just in time for readers to curl up with a good book.

 

James Patterson is famous for writing thrillers for adults, but he has written several series for young people.  Witch and Wizard, Maximum Ride, Daniel X, the Middle School Series, Treasure Hunters, and now he has written the second book in the Confessions series, Confessions: The Private School Murders. According to Mr. Patterson’s website, “Wealthy young women are being murdered, and the police aren't looking for answers in the right places. Enter Tandy Angel. Her first case was the mystery of her parents' deaths. Now she's working to exonerate her brother of his girlfriend's homicide. And danger just got closer.”  Tandy’s first case was explored in Confessions of a Murder Suspect.  Suspend a bit of disbelief at a teenage detective (move over, Nancy Drew) and enjoy another thriller by a master writer.

Tamora Pierce continues her Circle saga with Battle Magic.  This book fits in between Street Magic and Melting Stones.  Will of the Empress comes in there somewhere.  True fans of Ms. Pierce spend time thinking about timelines and contradictions, but I would just recommend reading her books.  They are a treat.

James Dashner has finished his Maze Runner series and is starting a new one, The Mortality Doctrine. This series begins with the Eye of Minds, and the series is set “in a world of hyper-advanced technology, cyber-terrorists, and gaming beyond your wildest dreams . . . and your worst nightmares,”    quoting from amazon.com.  Mr. Dashner said in an interview for amazon.com:  “It’s in the future, but I really don’t want people to think of this as dystopian. It’s not. The world is basically in fine shape. But virtual reality technology has gone through the roof and most people are obsessed with it. Like I said earlier, the line between what’s real and what’s not gets blurred, which sets the stage for some fun twists and mind-bendy stuff. I think my fans will have a good time with it.” 

School Library Journal has stated that horror for teens is not a trend, but a staple. (Horror in YA Lit is a Staple, Not a Trend By Kelly Jensen on September 13, 2013)   With that in mind, Revealed, by P.C. Cast, will remind us of why Ms. Cast’s books are so popular.  This is the eleventh book in the House of Night Series.  Reviewers keep mentioning that this is the penultimate book in the series.  What does that mean?  I had to look it up, and it means that there will be one book after this one.

Finally, fans of Veronica Roth know that Allegiant, the last book in the Divergent trilogy, was released on October 22.  Customer reviews at amazon.com range from “What a perfect climax to a perfect series” to “This book was absolutely terrible.”   Your experience of this popular series will probably be somewhere in  between the extremes.    It is #2 on Amazon’s best seller list, and I’ve already got a second copy on order.  The series begins with Divergent, continues with Insurgent, and comes to a controversial ending in Allegiant.  This series is definitely on my “to read soon” list.  See you at the library!