Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley

You know that thing that happens when you throw all your favorite books from widely varying genres into a super-collider and it makes one heck of a brilliant mess?  Wait, that isn't a thing?  Well it should be if this book is that mess.  This novel is part Fault in Our Stars part Girl At Midnight/Smoke & Bone part nothing I have ever read before.  And it's not all wonderful.  A lot of it was confusing (purposefully, I mean the main characters have NO clue whats going on for a majority of the book). The book was also short, for a YA novel, less than 300 pages.  I feel like a little more time could have been spent explaining or filling in HUGE gaps in character development.  It was one of those instances like: "You are special main character.  Oh really?  No, I'm ok, I don't need to be special.  Oh wait, BOOM, I am special.  The end."  It all happens a bit to fast for my liking.  But in all, I did really like this book.  It was definitely a weird mismatch but that worked for it.  And I look forward to more magical world-building in books to come.

Final Recommendations: if you like sick kids, fantastical fantasy, awesome creatures (I mean what could be more awesome/precious than a squallwhale!), star-crossed love, ocd earth boys, shady moms, girls with a destiny

Poisoned Apples: Poems for You, My Pretty by Christine Heppermann

So. Clever.
A. Must. Read.
A. Must. Own.
Painful in its realness.
Heartbreaking.
Teens, Teachers, Moms of girls, Moms who once were girls.
Run. Get it NOW!

Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen

This is one of those books where the first half deserves one rating while the second gets a slightly higher one.  It started off at a run, throwing the reader into the environment and the characters, but quickly slows to a dead stop.  It's basically beauty and the beast with trolls.  But not like tiny, live under your local bridge-type trolls.  These trolls are basically fairies (I am placing heavy bets on this reveal in coming books) with slight abnormalities cause by years cursed to confinement within a mountain.  The main heroin, Cecile, is very likable.  The relationship between her and the troll prince is intriguing and genuine.  The conflict between full-blooded trolls and half bloods is trying to hard but is well meaning.  I think I will continue the series.

Final Recommendations: if you like magical creatures, kidnappings, strained romantic entanglements, crewel kings, and lots of unanswered secrets

Dream a Little Dream by Kerstin Gier

So this one gets bumped up to 3 stars based mostly on the fact that I loved the Ruby Red Trilogy by the same author.  If you have not read this fun time-traveling saga, lucky you, you can binge-read the entire series (Ruby Red is the 1st one) now.  But, I digress.  Dream a Little Dream wasn't bad.  The main character was likable, the concept was descent (lucid dreams made possible by a potential demonic presence), but I didn't feel as if the plot really went anywhere.  There were no big reveals and by the end, I didn't feel like I understood what was going on any better than when I started the novel?  It also should be stated that the translation (from German) was not as smooth in this novel nor as funny as it was in the Ruby Red series.  I will probably pick up the 2nd book in this series when it comes out, simply to try and figure out what the heck is going on?

Final Recommendations: if you like mystery, dream psychology, high school drama, not super-scary demons, too many hot guys to really remember which is which?