Zombies Vs. Unicorns

You know those times when you get into a ridiculous argument with your best friend over which fictional character could beat up another fictional character? Like who would win if Dumbledore and Gandalf got into a wizard's duel? Yeah that. Well, Holly Black and her friend Justine Larbalestier got into a fight over whether zombies or unicorns were more awesome, and because they are both authors, they took the fight to the next level: a whole book.  They asked their author friends to write stories about zombies and unicorns to help them settle the argument.  Each story is labeled with either the unicorn or zombie icon in case you only want to read about one or the other, and is preceded by a continuation of the mythic grudge match.

There are stories from fan favorites like Meg Cabot(The Princess Diaries), who tells the story of a girl who gets a pet unicorn as a birthday present, and Cassandra Clare(City of Bones) who writes about a city where everyone who dies rises from the grave, and has for centuries. Some of the stories are funny, some are sad, and some are a thrill ride. But whichever side of the argument you support(vote unicorn!), there is at least one story in Zombies vs. Unicorns for you.

~ gothbrarian

The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan

The Lifeboat by Charlotte Rogan isn't a teen book. It's not a typical whodunit mystery either. But because VOYA magazine included this book in the article "Clueless: Adult Mysteries with Young Adult Appeal 2013,"  I thought I'd blog about it. The book IS a fascinating, thought provoking read that gets a brain cranking! And it's scary, very scary, if you believe that real life and real people can be scarier than monsters.

When the Empress Alexandra sinks, survivors are left floating on the the Atlantic in a lifeboat. Battling the elements is grueling but more horrifying is...

Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday

At the beginning of Deadly Cool, Hartley thinks she has the perfect boyfriend. Then she discovers that Josh has been cheating on her. And not only that, it's with Courtney, the president of the school Chastity Club. Cue one breakup.

Then she discovers Courtney in Josh's closet, strangled to death with the cord of her iPod headphones. Oh yikes! Did Josh kill Courtney? Or is this all an elaborate frame job, meant to send Josh to jail for murder? (And if it is, does Hartley really care?)

If You Want to Be a Hero...

Then you need to check out The Hero's Guide To Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy.  Although this may be more of a "what not to do" guide. 

So it turns out that Prince Charming doesn't like to be called Charming.  None of them do.  They have names, you know.  Gustav, Duncan, Liam, and Frederick are the princes from the stories the troubadours tell - the stories named after the princesses.  They're not happy about being religated to a side note in the stories and they're not quite living happily ever after.  In fact, nothing seems to be going their way.  Which is a pity, since an evil witch has decided to cause a lot of trouble across all the kingdoms.  Even though they don't much like each other initially, the princes are going to have to band together and, well, save the kingdoms. 

This hilarious romp through fairy tales is a fun read.  The princes are flawed, but I couldn't help but like them anyway.  They do some growing up on their wacky adventures, but there's no high-handed moral lectures.  And the princesses are well-written characters in their own right - one is down-right bratty, but the rest are seeking adventure and trying to help those around them.  Also, the villians are fantastic, like the best kind of cartoon villians.  I love the Bandit King.  He's deliciously bad, but not in the ways you expect.  If you like this book, don't forget its sequel:  The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle.  Rumor has it that a third book is on its way as well!

~ Book Ninja

P.S.  Did I mention the fun pictures?  There's fun pictures!