Gemina: The Illuminae Files_02

YA Fiction

E/A. Kaufman, Amie and Jay Kristoff. Gemina: The Illuminae Files_02. Knopf, 2016. 672p. 978-0-533-49915-5. 19.99.

The sequel to Illuminae picks up the action in the aftermath of the Kerenza colony’s destruction. The only survivors on board the Hypatia are making their way to Jump station, Heimdall, a space station that maintains and operates the wormhole leading to core space.  However, BeiTech Industries has sent an assault fleet to intercept and destroy the Hypatia and a second one to secure the Heimdall station.  It is up to Hanna Donnelly, the privileged daughter of the space station’s commander and Niklas Malikov, a convicted criminal from a notorious crime family, to stop the invaders.  With deadly alien parasites on the loose and the impending collapse of the wormhole, they’re in a race to not only save themselves, but also the fate of the universe. A well-crafted, visually captivating book, Gemina is full of fast moving action and mind-blowing plot twists that will keep readers engaged and on the edge of their seats. Camille Keo Campos, LAPL, Angeles Mesa Branch 

Illuminae: The Illuminae Files_01

YA Fiction

E/A Kaufman, Amie and Jay Kristoff. Illuminae: The Illuminae Files_01. Knopf, 2015. 608p. 978-0-533-49911-7. 18.99.

The day that Kady dumps Ezra – their whole world falls apart. Their remote mining colony, Kerenza, is attacked by a warship, the Lincoln, which is owned by a rival corporation—BeiTech Industries.  Kady and Ezra escape with their lives to end up on two different ships.  Kady and her mother are on the Hypatia, the scientific exploration vessel, while Ezra is on the battlecarrier Alexander and is later conscripted by the United Terran Authority, as a pilot for their Cyclone fighter crafts.  The Lincoln is relentlessly pursuing them, and it’s only a matter of time before it catches up to them.  Meanwhile, a deadly and highly contagious plague breaks out, and their artificial intelligence, AIDAN, seems to have gone mad and turned against them.  When Kady realizes that Ezra is stuck onboard the Alexander the ship where the virus is getting out of control, (even though she swore she never wanted to see or talk to him again) she risks everything to go and save him. A great sci-fi thriller illustrated and told as a dossier of memoranda, reports, emails, journal entries, intercepted messages and other “classified” documents.  Camille Campos, YA Librarian, LAPL, Angeles Mesa Branch Library

Eve and Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate

General Young Adult Fiction

G/A. Grant, Michael & Katherine Applegate. Eve & Adam. Feiwel and Friends, 2012. 978-0-312-58351-4. $17.99.

When Evening gets hurt in a car accident, her mother, Terra Spiker, head of Spiker Pharmaceuticals has her transferred to a private hospital. While she’s recovering, her mother gives her a project to design the perfect boy using a computer simulation program. She meets Solo, her mother's employee and ward. But Solo is more than just the gofer that he appears to be.  He is working to uncover the secrets of Spiker Pharmaceuticals that involve not only Eve and the program she's working on, but also dangerous secrets that may implicate Eve's own mother. 

Attack on Titan, v. 1

Manga for Older Teens

VG/M (Very Good, Mature Reading Level)

Isayama, Hajime. Attack on Titan, v. 1. Kodansha Comics, 2012. 208p. 9781612620244. $10.99.

Eren will never forget the day that the gigantic, humanoid beings called Titans broke through the protective wall surrounding his village and consumed most of the townspeople.  Five years later, what remains of mankind has formed military groups to protect themselves, the village, and hopefully, discover a way to kill the Titans.  Obsessed with avenging his mother's death, Eren joins the "Survey Corp," a group of fighters that form the offensive against the Titans.

With its fast pacing and frantic illustration style, this thrilling, action-packed, violent, gory series is sure to appeal to older teens who are fans of horror, suspense, and science fiction.

- Candice Mack, Richard J. Riordan Central Library, Los Angeles Public Library

The Fox Inheritance

General YA Fiction
VG/A. Pearson, Mary. The Fox Inheritance. Henry Holt and Company, 2011. 294p. 978-0-8050-8829-8. $16.99.

Locke and Kara lost their lives in a gruesome car accident. Their bodies did not survive, but their minds were scanned and uploaded into a special environment, a cube measuring no bigger than 6x6 inches. There they were stored in the hopes that a future technology would exist to bring them back to life. Two hundred sixty years later, Locke and Kara awaken to find themselves in new, improved bodies with heightened senses and greater strength fashioned for them by Dr. Gatsbro. Not only do they have to become acclimate to their new selves, but also to a much changed world. Nothing they remember is still the same. No one they remember is still alive, until Dr. Gatsbro tells them about Jenna. Jenna was also in the accident that fateful
day. She was also saved with technology from Fox BioSystems, but two hundred sixty years earlier and is still alive. Locke and Kara set out determined to find Jenna, intent on discovering why she never came to help them all these years. Although, a sequel to Pearson’s The Adoration of Jenna Fox, this story can stand on its own.

C. Campos, LAPL, Angeles Mesa Branch