The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

"It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.

Liesel Meminger is a foster girl living outside of Munich, who scratches out a meager existence for herself by stealing when she encounters something she can’t resist–books. With the help of her accordion-playing foster father, she learns to read and shares her stolen books with her neighbors during bombing raids as well as with the Jewish man hidden in her basement. "

I have read quite allot of books that are about/based in the time of WWII/Nazi Germany. My mother was always adamant that I know what happened so that something like this may never happen again. So I know allot about that time period. So when I was told about this book, I was intrigued to read it. And to be honest, I was less than underwhelmed by it. It was talked up so much, and then they made a movie about it; I was ready for an amazing book. But I wasn't amazed. It was a good book, and aspects of the writing and story were interested, but  I did not see what the author was trying to tell us. I feel that if you are going to write a story about this heavy topic, you need to have a lesson that was or needs to be learned. I didn't learn anything. I was sad, and that was all.

What I did like about it is how Zusak used Death as the narrator. I felt that it made it more poignant. I also liked how it was set up. It had sections within sections, and made it an "easy read". What made it a long read was that there was a lot of time wasted on non important parts of the story and on the little things in life, and made the story drag on. 

If you like unique points of view, life struggles, difficulties to over come, and WWII than I would recommend this book to you. I give this book a generous three out of five stars. 

Grim edited by Christine Johnson

"Johnson’s anthology of retold fairy tales, most based on Grimm, should be wildly popular as the 17 authors include such well-known names as Ellen Hopkins, Julie Kagawa, Amanda Hocking, and Malinda Lo. Many authors bring the tone and focus back to the original Grimm tales, and graphic gore abounds. Sometimes the violence feels gratuitous, but often it’s completely appropriate. Rachel Hawkins’ opening story sets Bluebeard in a trailer park, with truly creepy foreshadowing from the heroine’s alcoholic mother. Jon Skovron’s “Raven Princess” has delightful contemporary touches, such as a same-sex giant couple rearing an infant, and a Shrek-like ending. Readers are bound to like some stories more than others, but the diversity of tone and treatment should please most fans of the genre. For many of the authors, the retold fairy tale is something new to their body of work. Hopefully, readers drawn by Ellen Hopkins’ novels on contemporary issues will discover the appeal and relevance of “tales as old as time,” such as Sarah Rees Brennan’s charming treatment of Beauty and the Beast."

If you may have noticed I love fairy tales, and the retelling of them. So as you may guess I really enjoyed this anthology. I have not read many books containing short stories, but after Grim I am going to be keeping my eye out for more of them. The authors that she chose to write did a great job retelling the Grimm fairy tales, so that you could still know which one you were reading. There was only one that was retold, that also happened to not be a fairy tale that the Grimm brothers wrote, Beauty and the beast. I did not mind this though, because it also happens to be my all time favorite fairy tale. 

Now to the stories themselves. While I enjoyed them all there were some that I liked more than others. Each had their own 'darkness' to them, but some did a better retelling them then others. While one story may be very similar to the original, even in the language they used to write it, others changed them so much that it was almost like reading a different story. I am not saying it was a bad thing, but I did need to look up which story they were trying to portray. There were even some stories that the author could easily take and turn it into a full novel if they wanted to , and I would defiantly go out and buy it.

So if you like reading a variety of different writing styles, and romances that are dark and a little twisted in some cases, then defiantly give this a read. I give this a four out of five stars. 

Dead is the New Black by Marlene Perez

"Welcome to Nightshade, California—a small town full of secrets. It’s home to the pyschic Giordano sisters, who have a way of getting mixed up in mysteries. During their investigations, they run across everything from pom-pom-shaking vampires to shape-shifting boyfriends to a clue-spewing jukebox. With their psychic powers and some sisterly support, they can crack any case!

Teenage girls are being mysteriously attacked all over town, including at Nightshade High School, where Daisy Giordano is a junior. When Daisy discovers that a vampire may be the culprit, she can’t help but suspect head cheerleader Samantha Devereaux, who returned from summer break with a new “look.” Samantha appears a little . . . well, dead, and all the most popular kids at school are copying her style.
Is looking dead just another fashion trend for Samantha, or is there something more sinister going on? To find out, Daisy joins the cheerleading squad."

I picked this book up as just a quick read, but was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I like the comedic quality to it. I knew I was reading a young adult book, and it is a very small book but the author did a good job at telling a story, introducing the characters, and ending it in a satisfying way. I easily connected with the main character, Daisy, and completely understood the emotions she was going through. It is the first book in a series, and even thought the book ended on a was that made the book a stand alone, it  also left opportunities for more books. If I come across the others books in the series I may get them, but I probably will not go out and purchase them as a set from a book store or Amazon. If you are looking for a book that you can read in just a few days, that has a little comedic mystery, as well as some supernatural characters, than I recommend this book for you. 

I give this book a three out of five stars.