The Killing Woods

Did Emily's father murder the teenage girl (Ashlee) he found in the woods? He can't remember--he was having a PTSD flash back. Emily is sure he is innocent, not that anyone else believes this. Ashlee's boyfriend, Damon is sure he is guilty, but that was before he realized he has no memories from that night.

I have read many reviews comparing The Killing Woods to Christopher's first novel  Stolen. These books can't be compared, but this is still an interesting psychological thriller sure to attract readers. 

Threatened

Chimpanzees are the closest relative to humans--but in some areas of the world they are hunted for game and for food. Many people, including Jane Goodall, have brought attention to this problem. In Threatened by Eliot Schrefer, a young boy inadvertently becomes one of the chimpanzee heroes. Luc is an AIDS orphan living essentially on his own, trying to make enough to pay back his mother's dept to an unscrupulous money lender. When a professor carrying a metal case comes to town Luc thinks he has found an easy mark. Immediately tracked down, the professor instead pays Luc's debt and takes him "inside" to be his research assistant among the chimps.

Soon left alone among the chimps and other predators, what follows is a beautiful and miraculous story of a boy who saves a pair of orphaned chimpanzees and is inducted into their family. Protected and adopted, Luc makes his home with the only family he has left.

This story is heartfelt and important. As mentioned several times throughout the book and authors notes, we can only protect what we understand and love. Read this book.

Backwards Compatible

Backwards Compatible by Sarah Daltry and Pete Clark is a hilarious and (as you can guess from the cover) geeky read. Costumes, quotes and play by play gaming fill the pages of this love story. I didn't get most of them--just a few amazing Joss Weadon references, but I still found this a page turner. The characters were fascinating, especially Lanyon. And though the language was crude at best--it is how boys talk.

It began with a midnight release of a game. Two people grabbed for it, and only one could walk away holding the game. There was guilt, there was pleading, and there was hatred. But that didn't stop George and Katie from meeting again and again, in the real world and online. Add in a few best friends, gamer acquaintances and a challenge akin to Ready Player One (but on a much smaller scale) and you have the plot to this "geek romance".

This book is geared towards the 20-something college aged crowd, but older teens will enjoy the book as well.


*ARC provided by publisher through Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.