The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan

This is the third book in the Forest of Hands and Teeth series by Carrie Ryan.  It should be consumed in one bite.  I have never read such a gripping, thoughtful and suspenseful third book.  Ever.  While this book is a continuation of much of what happens in the second book, The Dead-Tossed Waves, it could still be considered a stand-alone, and this is partly what makes it so good.  The intensity is at an all-time high in this book as it is told through the fierce Annah's eyes (Gabry's sister) as she makes her way alone in the Dark City.  When she is reunited with her sister, the reunion is almost bitter sweet, for several reasons.  (I won't tell you what they are though!)  As the horde of Unconsecrated rain down around her, it seems like life is choked out of the Dark City.  Annah and Gabry take one day at a time while they find themselves prisoners on an island without much hope of escaping.  This book is not to be missed!

Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane by Suzanne Collins

Surprisingly, book 2 in the Gregor the Overlander series was as good as a second book can get.  It kept up the momentum of the first installment, was action packed, carried a consistent 'overlander' story line while the underland story took shape.  Given my dislike for fantasy and science fiction, I am impressed by how much I'm enjoying reading the series.  The prophecy in this story was alluded to in the first book, so it came as no surprise that this novel is based off of Underland founder Sandwich's second prophecy.  If you like talking bats, spiders, roaches and rats, then this series is for you!

Dying to Tell Me by Sherryl Clark

Dying to Tell Me is a story that will find its way into many 12-14 year old' hands.  The mystery is carefully woven along with the main character, Sasha's extra sense.  We first find Sasha on her way to a small town in Australia, where her cop father is setting up a one man operation in town.  They are getting a fresh start from Sasha's estranged mother.  Sasha starts off her first day in Manna with a severe fall.  She regularly sees details of past and present events involving murder.  Mostly though, Sasha is an angry teenager, trying to take care of her little brother Nicky while their dad is away at work and maintaining a better relationship with her father.  Did I mention she can talk to her German Shepherd, King?  Her ability to 'see' what others do not sets her on a wild goose chase both present and past to save the ones she loves and set others free.  If you like mysteries, you'll want to pick this up.  

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins

This series came out a while before Collins' hugely successful Hunger Games series came out.  I am a huge fan of the Hunger Games series and didn't know if I would be pleased stepping back in experience and skill level to read the first in the Underland Chronicles.  In some ways, this dark fantasy was exactly as I expected.  The story is not quite as complex as her more recent series, but then, it seems to be aimed at a younger audience.  It still has much to digest.  Gregor, older brother to a toddler named Boots, follows her down a vent one day in their building's laundry room.  They fall into the world beneath ours, the Underland, where humans, spiders, cockroaches, bats and rats struggle to find a balance for power through alliances and war.  Initially, Gregor's only plan is to get out of the Underland and back home as quickly as possible.  His escape turns into a complete disaster and in the midst of the chaos, he finds that he is part of a much bigger plan.  The Underland has been waiting a long time for him.  The goal of the quest he finds himself is too precious for him to say no to.  It's a great first book with an ending that is far more satisfying than most other first books in a series.  I can't wait to devour the second one!

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

  I know it's been over a week since I posted, but it's with good reason.  This book is a little longer than the ones I've been reading lately.  More importantly, it was worth savouring, so I limited myself to a few chapters a day (read: I got busy).  The premise of this book is interesting.  I do like apocalyptic type books (as long as they are somewhat believable).  This one slid nicely into that category, but did things I haven't seen before from this sub-genre.  The premise of the book is that Thomas arrives in 'the box' to a place called the Glade.  It's filled with boys who all have jobs keeping the Glade running (cleaning, cooking, farming, first-aid, etc.).  One of the jobs is being a runner.  Each morning the walls on one side of the Glade open up and the runners go out into the maze to map it.  Each day they come back and record their findings and each day the walls of the maze move.  Their only hope of getting out of this place is to figure out the message or code of the maze.  Then one day a girl, Teresa, shows up and brings a message of doom with her.  She triggers the Ending of the maze and the Glade.  The book is great for a reader who enjoys a lot of suspense.  There are great intense scenes and the epilogue is a satisfying enough close to book one, but leaves you excited for book two (which is already out.  Also, this book somehow gets away with bad language, except there isn't technically any curse words in it.  That's what happens when you make up your own words for the Gladers!  This is definitely worth being picked up.  

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

  If you like reading the same story seven times over with some variations each time, then this is the book for you.  This book tested my patience.  I appreciate what it was trying to do, but I felt like I was 'putting up with it' the entire time I was reading it.  This is the story of Sam Kingston, a mean girl, who through a series of self-initiated events, ends up dead.  After the impact, she wakes up and relives the whole day over again (and again and again and again) trying to set the world right each time.  It's an interesting concept, one that has been done before in book and movie format, but here it is being done again.  For the age group that it was most likely written for, they won't know that though. 

A Hare in the Elephant's Trunk by Jan L. Coates

Although this story is not biographical, it is strongly inspired by the real Jacob Deng, a Southern Sudanese man who was driven from his home in Duk Padiet by civil war.  For me, this novel packs a multitude of lessons, not for 'young adult' readers, but for human beings in general.  There is a scene where Jacob asks an elderly traveler why their country is at war, to which the elderly man replies, "because we believe in a different God."  This, among other reasons told to a child, reminds the reader that war is thought a viable solution too quickly in too many countries.  As Jacob grows up, walking all over Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya, he is reminded often of his mother's words, which are to get an education and learn to solve problems with words, not violence.  Jacob is from the Dinka people, who have a term, wadeng, which means 'look always to tomorrow, it will be better.'  After incredible hardships, intense hunger, thirst and suffering, Jacob lives by these words.  If you are a fan of a true survival story that opens your eyes up a little wider, try A Hare in the Elephant's Trunk.