Windfall, by Jennifer E. Smith

For the eighteenth birthday of her best friend Teddy, Alice decides to buy him a lottery ticket.  Given the hard luck both of them have lived through, neither of them think of it as anything more than a silly joke.  But $141 million later, they are shocked senseless.

Becoming instantly wealthy changes everything and Alice is none too pleased to see how it plays out.  Teddy, unable to come to grips with his windfall, initially fritters it away on toys and trinkets.  Alice, meanwhile, is unwilling to accept any gift he offers, and is afraid she is losing her friend.  In the long run, she may be right.  The money has a way of opening old wounds (from Teddy’s long absent father returning to Alice confronting the loss of her parents nine years before).  Will it destroy their friendship as well?

The premise, while far-fetched, is interesting enough to support the novel.  But I had trouble moving beyond how much I disliked Teddy.  Despite numerous protestations that he won’t change, he seemed perfectly capable of doing so repeatedly.  In fact, I found him to be as unreliable as his gambling-addicted father (probably an intentional resemblance). There’s a lot going on in the story (grieving for the dead, romances falling apart, life choices) and then the lottery stuff on top of it all.  And the ending (a quick pat-it-forward idea) seems so weak, like Smith couldn’t think of a proper way to resolve the story and just slapped this in.

Alex, Approximately, by Jenn Bennett

Bailey loves classic movies and shares her passion with an anonymous online friend "Alex." She doesn't know much about him, except where he lives (which happens to be the same California town where her Dad lives).  So, when she ends up moving in with her Dad, she really should give Alex a heads up that she's in the neighborhood.  But she's afraid of what will happen and keeps her move to herself (although she is curious enough that she initially tries to figure out who Alex is by sleuthing around town).

Meanwhile, she settles in to her new home, quickly makes friends, and finds herself alternately attracted and repelled by Porter, the son of a local surfing legend.  Soon, that relationship takes off, placing Bailey in a jam between her former crush on Alex and her burgeoning relationship with Porter.

Now, of course, the identity of "Alex" is pretty easy for a reader to figure out, so it is the one plot point that can't keep the novel together (nor can it be resolved too soon).  Instead, the story is filled out with the usual romantic stuff (featuring a few pretty hot scenes, but otherwise average), some quirky family members, an embittered and unstable bully, and a few unresolved threads (like Bailey's absent mother). Bennett relies on lots of action to keep the story going.  What gets lost in this approach is the human growth story: Bailey's transition from being a conflict-avoiding "artful dodger" to learning to take risks.  It's lost amidst all of the other plotlines and spottily developed.

The Warden's Daughter, by Jerry Spinelli

There are two things Cammie is known for – being the the daughter of the warden and being the girl whose mother was killed by a milk truck twelve years ago when Cammie was still a baby.  Now, in the summer of 1957, as Cammie is about to enter Junior High School and become a teenager, Cammie has only one thing on her mind – she wants a mother.  And she knows exactly who she wants:  Eloda – their maid and a convicted felon finishing up her sentence at the jail.

That Eloda doesn’t quite return the interest doesn’t dissuade Cammie from her mission.  But in this summer of Elvis and American Bandstand and Sputnik, Cammie will learn some powerful lessons about love, loss, and serving her time.

An extremely well-written work by an established master (he’s got a Newbery and a Newbery Honor, and he’s the author of Stargirl – one of my all-time faves).  The book has lots of things going for it. Spinelli captures the details of time and place well.  The characters are compelling, although Cammie herself can be hard to like as she makes many mistakes and is so angry.  And the emotional whammy at the end is breathtaking – the sort of climax that takes you completely by surprise.

The story is a bit mature (not in terms of subject matter, but in format and delivery) and one could worry that this is likely to be banished to Book Report Land (like, The Book Thief).  Hopefully, kids will discover it's also a fun story!

Defy the Stars, by Claudia Gray

Many centuries in the future, Earth has become an overcrowded and exhausted world, with its people anxious to immigrate to newer worlds. Noemi Vidal is a young soldier training for a desperate suicide run to save her planet Genesis from that invasion. For Noemi, she has nothing left at home anyways, so she is eager to make what little contribution she can make.

But while training for the mission, her group comes under a surprise attack and Noemi ends up on an old wrecked vessel.  There, she comes across an abandoned mech (android) named Abel.  Mechs are a common tools for Earth's people, doing their labor and fighting their wars, but this is not an ordinary soldier or servant.  He's stronger, smarter, and has developed a sense of self that is almost human.

Despite a strong mistrust of each other, the two of them embark on a mission to save Genesis (and maybe Earth as well) that takes them through several universes and adventures.  As one would expect from such a girl-boy set up, there's a relationship brewing as well, but not necessarily with the ending that one expects.  Mostly, their journey takes them to mutual understanding and some personal growth.

Nicely written and lively, the novel doesn't do much downtime.  Whenever one issue is resolved, Gray introduces another one.  There was a lot of potentially interesting stuff to be made out of having a girl with no faith in her future meet a "boy" with lots of future in front of him.

But the human growth story is fairly smothered in the fireworks of sci-fi cliche. All the usual elements are present, from "blasters" to tractor beams to wormholes and star gates to robots acquiring humanity.  It's comfortable ground, but all very formulaic.

Hidden, by Miriam Halahmy

Alix struggles to take care of her Mum and she has plenty of worries, but she can't help but notice the unfair way that some of the kids at school treat Samir.  Samir is a refugee, but to hear the kids talk, you would think he was a terrorist or worse.  She knows that they get such ideas from their parents and Alix wonders if she is the only one who feels that treating people badly because of where they came from is bad.

Then, one evening, walking on the beach with Samir, they find a dying man.  He's delirious and speaking Arabic.  In a split moment, they decide to rescue him and, at Samir's urging, hide him away. Now, they struggle to keep him alive and hidden, while they figure out some way to save him.  But as teens living in a small British coastal town, they don't have many resources.

It's a book with a definite agenda and mission: to raise awareness about the refugee crisis, which is of course quite topical (especially in Europe).  It's a little hard for me to picture Alix being so naive and uninformed about the state of the world, but doing so allows Halahmy to lecture the reader about the situation (I also assume that Halahmy is pitching the situation softly to make it more palatable to adult readers, who may feel the material is inappropriate for children).  As for the story itself, it is lively, but a bit hard to track due to cultural differences (parental, teacher, and even law-enforcement behave strangely in this world).  I found it all a bit odd, but certainly readable.

Radio Silence, by Alice Oseman

Frances has two major obsessions -- doing well enough in school to get into Cambridge and listening in the evenings to an enigmatic science fiction podcast about a survivor in 26th century Earth by the name of Radio Silence.  No one know who writes and performs these podcasts, but uncovering the identity of the "Creator" (as he is known in the fandom) has Frances and a few hundred other diehard followers are obsessed.  Then, quite by accident, she discovers that the Creator is actually her old friend Aled and a new world opens to her.

However, the anonymity of the podcasts turns out to be a crucial ingredient and, as it is cracked open, Frances discovers disturbing truths about Aled and about herself.  The publicity threatens not only to destroy the joy that Radio Silence brings her but also causes her to question every thing else she's ever valued.

Quirky and engrossing, Oseman's second YA novel creates a unique world with vibrant and authentic characters.  The mood is dark and gloomy, but the story is fast-paced and never boring.  I didn't really see the appeal of the podcasts, but I didn't need to in order to appreciate the characters and their motivations.

It Started With Goodbye, by Christina June

Getting busted for shoplifting with her best friend threatens to ruin Tatum's entire summer.  Forced to do community service during the day, she is kept under virtual house arrest by her stepmother.  That’s OK, since her best friend isn’t talking to her.

Tatum is miserable – her Dad’s gone away on business for the summer and her stepmom and stepsister are horrid to her. But she still has plans and ideas: starting a web design business, a guy she corresponds with, and her stepgrandmother who revels insights and secrets that help Tatum solve her problems.

Ostensibly inspired by Cinderella, Tatum is a lot more self-reliant than a fairy tale heroine.  She uses her wits, hard work, and a lot of personal drive.  She also has a strong enough character to forgive others and move on with her life and not overly dwell on her misfortunes.  All of which are very useful character skills that the author holds up as life-transforming. 

The story suffers from a lack of background development.  Tatum misses her friend, but given that we never see much of their friendship, it is hard to understand why.  And even the romantic story seems underdeveloped and lacks spark.  The ideas are all there, but aside from each character’s assertions, there’s no evidence to back up the motives.

The Most Dangerous Thing, by Leanne Lieberman

Sydney has been struggling with depression for years and she feels that she finally has gotten the "fog" under control.  But when her lab partner Paul starts to show a romantic interest in her, her fears all return.  The attention is welcome and yet scary at the same.  Her instinct is the run away and hide, but yet she knows that she would like to have a boyfriend.

In the meantime, her sister is trying to stage a production of The Vagina Monologues at school and Syd can't imagine anything more embarrassing.  She understands her sister's fervor and even agrees that girls need to speak out for their rights.  But do they really need to be talking about sex and their girl parts, and using those words?  For Sydney, there is nothing more dangerous than the minefield of sexuality, especially her own.

At times pedantic about sex (and religion to a lesser extent), Lieberman's novel is at its strongest with Sydney herself and with illustrating her struggle with depression.  This is sensitive stuff and handled well, allowing Syd to have wishes and desires, yet feel restrained by all sorts of fears.  I loved the give and take between strength and vulnerability -- how she can be so terrified of Paul at one point, yet willing to come back and fight to overcome those fears.  The story would have been even better if Lieberman had let Sydney tell her story without so many adult voices intervening -- she's smart, interesting, and capable of expressing herself.  I wanted to hear more.

Always and Forever, Lara Jean, by Jenny Han

Lara Jean is almost done with high school and her plan to attend UVA with Peter is well on its way.  That is, until she is turned down.  Coming up with Plan B changes the picture greatly and Lara Jean, who always likes to have everything figured out, is surprised to find that new doors truly do open when old ones close.  Meanwhile, Dad and Trina are finally getting married, and older sister Margot is none too happy about the changes.

There isn't much of a theme to this conclusion of the To All the Boys I've Loved Before series, as much as a grand housekeeping and capstone of the tale.  As a way to once again experience the Song sisters and their family and friends, this is a delightful continuation of a well-loved series.  But as a literary work in its own right, it has little new to offer.

Still, I always enjoy Jenny Han's books.  She continues to be a master at depicting characters from different generations in a respectful and honest way.  Her kids are kids and her adults are adults.  No one is perfect, but no one is a straw man either.  The subplot involving the tensions between Trina and Margot is particularly noteworthy.  Truth be told, neither adult nor child behave well and Han just presents it warts and all.  In a similar vein, Lara Jean and Peter's relationship continues to evolve as it is stressed by their impending separation in crowd-pleasing, yet realistic ways.  In general, Han doesn't do dull or shallow characters, but instead populates her stories with people of all ages who are believable and interesting.

Sophie Someone, by Hayley Long

Sophie lives in Belgium and has a Flemish last name, but she speaks English and has faint memories of having come from England.  When she asks, her parents are vague about the details.  And there are other strange things too, like the way her parents claim she doesn't have a birth certificate or strangers who show up and know her Dad but call him by a different name.  Then one day, she comes across a woman on Facebook from England who claims to be her grandmother.  What she finds out causes her understanding of her family and her life to crumble.

It's a story full of loose ends which peter out maddeningly without much resolution.  Complicating the storytelling is an odd lexicon that Long uses, swapping dozens of words with others (e.g., "freckles" for friends, "boiled" for bad, ironically "trump" for truth, etc.).  This gets distracting and grating and is never really explained that well (there's some brief mention at the end about using a code to obscure the story).  Fewer concepts and gimmicks and more story would have made this a better read.

Alex & Eliza: A Love Story, by Melissa de la Cruz

Elizabeth Schuyler, the middle of three daughters of the well-established Upstate New York family,  has turned of marriageable age.  It is propitious time as the family has fallen on hard times since the British army destroyed their Saratoga estate and General Schuyler has been subject to court martial by General Washington.  Forging links with other families will be beneficial, especially in these uncertain times of war.

The story begins inauspiciously as Washington's trusted aide-de-camp, Alexander Hamilton comes bearing grave news and earns the immediate disdain of the Schuyler girls.  While he is charming, he has no real family or wealth and is an undesirable suitor. History, however, tell us it all ended up well in the end (for love at least) and de la Cruz's fictionalized re-telling of the courtship of Alex and Eliza imagines how it all came to pass.

Richly detailed, the author goes through great pains to provide the political background and social realities of life in the Colonies during the Revolutionary War.  That she lets some anachronisms and inaccuracies slip in seems more driven by a desire to make this trip enjoyable rather than errors on her part.  This is not history, but simply a delightful romance, set in eighteenth century parlors.  Less fortunately, I didn't actually find any of the characters compelling.  This is a shame because I would have enjoyed the romance more if I had bonded with Eliza or Alex., who instead seemed too stiff to really care about. Still, I was swept away by the setting and the story itself.  This is the kind of historical fiction that will make a reader more interested in history itself.

The Whole Thing Together, by Ann Brashares

Lila and Robert married and had three daughters together.  After they divorced, each of them remarried and had an additional child each with their second spouse – Sasha and Ray – who were born around the same time.  Now both seventeen, Sasha and Ray share the same half-sisters and even the same room at the beach house on Long Island.   

However, the antagonism between their once-joined mother and father keeps them forever separated.  As a result, they have never crossed paths.  But ironically, their shared blood ties link them together nonetheless in an intimate way that borders on incest.  Meanwhile, the artificial (and legally-driven) isolation of the two families – sharing space but never at the same time – obscures scars and wounds that only a tragedy can break open.

Ostensibly not a YA novel, this book gets picked up as such because of Brashares’s Traveling Pants series.  The most YA-ish part is the somewhat touching (but more than a little creepy love story) between Sasha and Ray.  But the novel is really about family and how blood lines and even living arrangements don’t define it.  It’s a moody and lyric work (and a bit hard to track at first, thanks to all of its characters), but a decent heartfelt story about divorce and its aftermath.  It's not a children's book.