In the Ballroom with the Candlestick is the final book of the Clue Mystery trio. It picks up a little after the events inside In the Study with the Wrench with the Murder Crew at a now almost abandoned Blackbrook Academy. Following a series of murders from the previous books has driven most of the students away, and you are left with an closed circle mystery involving a small group of students composed of both victims and suspects.
Bad Things Happen Here is an intriguing and amazingly written YA murder mystery. It is set on an island of extremely wealthy people where horrible and unexplainable disappearances happen but the consciousness of the society sweeps it all under the rug. It is a twisted tale in both the story itself and the characters, the lead protagonist is flawed, mentally ill and haunted by loss, but yet unlike other books, this does not undermine her character, but instead strengthens Luca.
Not a Happy Family is a domestic thriller full of deceit and uncertainty. One Easter dinner with a dysfunctional family has turned into a murder case with a long list of suspects. Everyone has a motive; nobody has an alibi. With inheritance being thrown around between family members the tension rises for everyone. But one question is left unanswered: Who killed them?
Set in a dystopian future, in a town of all men, Prentiss town a young teenage boy, Todd, and his dog, Manche lives in company. To him, he has no knowledge of women or even his mother. The women of the earth have been exiled for a long time according to Prentiss towns head guy in charge. In this world, everyone can hear each other's thoughts. They call it “Noise”. One day as Todd is doing his usual chores when suddenly he hears silence in the noise. He runs back to town to inform his caretakers and they tell him to leave immediately.
The Polar Express is a wonderful Christmas movie for children. It is about finding Christmas spirit. The main characters are taken on a magical train to the North Pole where they are put up against difficult challenges on the way to get there. When they finally make it to the North Pole they are able to discover real Christmas spirit within themselves and the ones around them. I think that this movie is great for young children around Christmas time, or even as a Christmas Eve family movie.
Legend by Marie Lu is a dystopian fiction novel about Day and June. The book swaps perspectives every chapter, giving a good comparison of what it looks like to live on opposite ends of the socioeconomic spectrum in this future dystopian society. Day is a world-renowned criminal operating in the Republic, while June is the younger sister of a esteemed officer of the Republic. Soon, Day learns that his family has the plague, by the mark on their door. As far as they know he’s died, he’s been on the run for years.
The Pact, by Jodi Picoult, is a crime and romance fiction novel. Emily and Chris were close childhood friends, who formed a relationship in their teen years. Their families thought they would spend their lives together, until Emily ends up dead and Chris in the hospital one night. The families are shocked to hear that Emily had been shot, even more so when authorities rule it a suicide. The police suggest that Chris shot Emily, leading to a murder investigation.
Everything Everything, by Nicola Yoon, is a teen Romance/Fiction book. Maddy is an eighteen-year-old girl who cannot leave the house. She has never been able to leave the house. However, Maddy meets a boy named Olly. He makes her want to live, breathe, and feel adventurous. But things do not happen the way Maddy wants them to. Her mother finds out about her friend, Olly.
The Song of Achilles, written by Madeline Miller, is a fictional romance novel, set in ancient Greece. Set from the point of view of Patroclus, a young boy exiled from his home to the kingdom of the young prince Achilles, whose mother is a small god. Patroclus is one of the many boys Achilles’ father has taken in, but as Patroclus and Achilles become closer, Patroclus becomes his right-hand man. Achilles is everything Patroclus is not, strong, smart, and charismatic.
