Utopia, Iowa by Brian Yansky

Genre: YA, Mystery, Paranormal

Source: I won a copy from LibraryThing. The opinions expressed here are my own.

From Goodreads:

An Urban fantasy (small town urban) with paranormal elements (ghosts, witches, fortune-cookies that come true, an astral traveling movie-theater owner, a goddess, a banshee). Kind of funny. Utopia, Iowa is a place where the people are strange and there are stranger things than people. Our hero, Jack, is a high school boy who wants to be a screenwriter and has a serious crush on his best friend, Ash. He also happens to see ghosts. When two girls are murdered in Utopia, those ghosts insist he help them find their murderers. This gets him into all kinds of trouble with the police. But there's something darker and much more powerful than local law enforcement interested in Jack. Will Jack's dream of becoming a screenwriter come true or will he be caught up in a nightmare he can't get away from?

My Thoughts:

Imagine living in a town where everyone has a special gift. This is the type of town Jack bell lives in. For Jack, who has the ability to talk with dead people, life becomes very complicated. Two girls have asked for his help making him the prime suspect in their deaths. His parents and friends have their own drama going on. I loved the first person point of view. I know not everyone is a fan, yet I felt it was nicely done and made the story feel more personal. This is one for you to check out.

Student Saturday: The Dark Zone by Dom Testa

Student Reviewer: Isaac
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction

Alexa, a crew member of Galahad has recovered from a coma after having her appendix removed. However, she’s had weird visions believed to see the future. As strange aliens that have little info about themselves make contact with Galahad everyone’s fate may be sealed.

It felt odd for me to try new things and that I knew nothing about it. Galahad’s crew members have similar feelings about the aliens. Readers who like thinking about the plot and questioning everything,  would like this part of the story. Each Galahad book has an original plot which still continues to baffle me.

Summer Reading Plans

http://ebr.oncoursesystems.com/

I have fallen so far behind on reading books.  Part of this was due to new testing at our school this year.  We literally tested from the middle of April to the end of May. I didn't personally test every day. However, it meant I had students missing at different times for different tests etc.  It meant I had more school related things to do and got behind on my usual amount of reading.  I am here to tell you that is going to change. I am reading everyday this next week. That means I will be posting anywhere from two to four book reviews a day throughout the month and hopefully throughout July. When given time to just read I can read anywhere from four to six books a day. This is especially true when I tell my mom and husband I am doing a reading challenge.  They leave me alone for a specified amount of time. I will continue with other things in my life during that time such as physical therapy, working out, and getting out of the house. But it is that undisturbed time to read which will benefit me. The only days I will have a single review posted is if it was previously arranged with the author or publisher. I plan on keeping up this pace until I have worked through a large number of my books. If I can get ahead enough then I will continue posting a morning and evening post until I am completely caught up. That may take me up until Thanksgiving, but I am willing to do this. Why? Because I don't like taking books from authors and pubishers and then getting behind. The second reason is that it is interrupting my own writing. I can't focus knowing I have made a committment to read and review books and then I have fallen behind in that committment. So, wish me luck.
Here is a list of books I will be reviewing this month. So far I written reviews through Tuesday the 16th. So let the fun begin.

My List for the rest of June beginning the 17th and July. There are 40 books here and I will see how it goes. Some of these are picture books that I have read but must write the review.  I will cross the off as I go and maybe add some more.

Pressed Pennies - Steven Manchester
Becoming Monsters - Liss Thomas
Qumran - Jerry Amernic
Heroes and Giants - Douglas Ashby
If Only - Norma Buden
Sacrifist - T. Mason Gilbert
You Are Not Alone - W.R. Watkins
An Obsessive Infatuation - W.R. Watkins
deepFreak - Mars Dumont
The Skye in June - June Ahern
City of Redemption - Jue Ahern
The FunGkins - C.Raymond Gray
Second Chance Friends - Jennifer Scott
The Circle - Mario Escobar
D.E.M. Deux Ex Machina - Lee Ness
Stereo Realism - Milton R. Trice
Kitty Hawk and the Case of the Yukon Gold - Iain Reading
Parents For Sale - Dr. Nicole Audet
The Enterprising Chipmunk - Gramps Doodlebug
The Karate Shepherd - Walter Rouzer
Diary of Chris & Boomer the Wonder Dog - Walter Rouzer

Wolf City - Walter Rouzer

Perfect Pam and the Big Bad Wolf - Walter Rouzer
Oliver and Jumpy Stories 10-12
Cool Magic Tricks You Can Do - Steve Black
A Light Shining in the Darkness - Karen A. Cooper
Blood Sweat Tears and Prayers - Gary Ludwig
The Jumble Jungle - Michael Sasson
Playlist of the Ancient Dead - Aaron Frale
The Diary of an Ugly Sweater - Cassie Eubank
Ninelands - K.E. Boyer
Dragon's Future - Kandi J. Wyatt
Nuts About Nuts - Shir Guez
The Mind of the Living - J. Kaihua
Witches Protection Program - Micahel Cash
Youngtimer - G.G.Fulton
Dinosaurs - Rose Leo
Two for Joy - Gigi Amateau
Sapient - Jerry Kaczmarowski
Mercy's Rain - Cindy K. Sproles