Crossed by Ally Condie

Cassia has made it to the Borderlands in her quest to find Ky. Meanwhile, Ky is also on a mission to get back to Cassia. Told through alternating chapters set in the outer reaches of the Society, Ky and Cassia learn more about the Society and the resistance movement known as the Rising and more about each other as they come to terms with their relationship and the rebellion.

Middle books of trilogy can have the tendency to have less development than first or third books. Sometimes they are treated as filler or to set up the climatic third book. So the money is really in the beginning and the end. Crossed was good don't get me wrong but when I thought about it after I finally finished (it took a while) not much really happened. Some information was learned and the characters of Cassia and Ky were explored more and I suppose this will have more bearing in the last book. But for a series I was already on the fence about this wasn't a strong sequel. I will be reading Reached sooner or later and I am interested in seeing how it is all wrapped up. Hoping this bulls*&t barely existent "love triangle" mess is put away. Condie tries awfully hard to make us think that Cassia is torn between Ky and Zander but I just don't see it and if there is a problem it is more between Cassia and Ky and whatever is happening in their heads.

Sequel to Matched

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz (audio)

Alex Rider has just lost his uncle. They claim he died in a car accident and was not wearing his seat belt. But Ian Rider was facetious about seat belts and Alex can't let this detail go. Soon he discovers his uncle was actually spy working for MI6. Now he is tasked to complete his uncle's last assignment: infiltrate the headquarters of Herod Sayle and see if there is something behind the gift of a new supercomputer to every school in Britain.

I am assuming that the words teenage Bond have been used in abundant when describing Alex Rider. Because that is basically what this feels like sans the sex (thank goodness). Even the villains have a Bondesque quality to them and the whole supercomputer plot is definitely out of a Bond type movie. But it was still a fun book. Alex is talent, resourceful and with very little true personality: pretty much an ideal spy. The gadgets are cute and very appropriate and I love the inclusion of the library. Having read a book before, I knew how this was going to end but that's okay. I enjoyed it enough to want to continue on with the series. I think it is one my son will like when he is older.

The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan (audio)

Finally the 7 have gathered together to go on the quest to unite Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. They must travel to Rome, a dangerous place for any demigod to find the thing that has torn apart the camps for centuries.

I didn't review The Son of Neptune because I listen to it while I was on maternity leave and reviewing with a newborn was not something I was capable of. Nevertheless I loved it and couldn't wait for the next book. The Mark of Athena continues the adventure this time finally bringing all our heroes together on their quest. This book features alternating points of view from the main characters, a detail that I like. It is filled with lots of narrow escapes and ingenues plans, something you would expect from a Heroes of Olympus book. I thought the villain at the end was pretty obvious. There were clues left all over the books, but the ending was a surprise. It is a definite cliff-hanger and as soon as I was done I rushed to the computer to find out when the next book, The House of Hades, was going to be released. Not till October! *groan* I have to find out what happens next!

Joshua Swanson is the once again the narrator for this book. I'm assuming he is just going to do the entire series which is great because I hate it when they change reader mid-series. He does a great job and really brings the words to life.

The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright

Amy is frustrated with constantly having to care for her brain damaged sister. Her mother always thinks that Amy should be taking care of Louann but Amy just wants to be normal for a change. When the chance comes for Amy to stay with her aunt while she cleans out Amy's great grandparent's house, Amy jumps at it. But something spooky is going one with the dollhouse in the attic. The doll seems to be moving on their own reenacting a grisly scene that took place years ago.

My sister bought a bunch of our old childhood favorites at a library book sale a couple of months ago and I couldn't resist picking up The Dollhouse Murders. It used to creep me out big time when I was younger but I still have fond memories of it. While the language is outdated, specifically referring to Amy's sister as "retarded" the story still holds up. Amy's frustrated at always having to take care of her sister and her embarrassment over Louann's behavior is something I think most older siblings can relate to at one time or another. The story also touches on Amy's mother's expectations and her own frustrations. As an adult I can understand more of Amy's mother than I did as a child.

The dollhouse mystery is still spooky. Dolls that can move by themselves is a creepy concept and it have them act out a murder is freaky. It is interesting that in the end Amy needs the help of her sister to figure out what the dolls are trying to say. That was a nice little twist to the story.