So after taking respite in the past and in food, which are pretty much interchangeable and equally pleasurable amongst my people, I decided to see what the Young Adult universe had to offer in the new year.

What I found in The Future of Us was a pleasure on many more levels than I expected. The premise alone is addictive — teens in 1996 accidentally stumble upon posts from their fifteen-years-older selves on this crazy thing called facebook. But as any fan of speculative fiction will tell you, a fabulous premise does not a satisfying execution bring …

Happily, The Future of Us delivers. Emma and Josh, two teens whose otherwise idyllic friendship has been temporarily derailed by the mixed-messaged and confounding hormonal booby traps we like to believe get cleared up in older age, discover that the AOL CD-ROM Josh’s mom is more than happy to pass along to Emma somehow gives them a glimpse into their future lives.

Emma and Josh alternate chapters written by two acclaimed YA authors, Carolyn Mackler and Jay Asher. But what could have come across as an amusing writing exercise is given real weight and heft by these two. Mackler and Asher know that life can be plenty perilous without a televised fight to the death or state-sanctioned aesthetic upgrade. (Not that the novels that go there aren’t absolutely mind-boggling; still, it’s good to remember that the comparatively humdrum little things always mean a lot, as well.) Some may wonder why Emma and Josh don’t cash in on what is to us so obviously the wave of the future. Others may feel that the teens are infuriatingly short-sighted, but I think that’s part of the novel’s charm. Knowledge is only as good as our ability to process it. How many of us at 16 could have fixed the problems that our thirty-something-year old selves couldn’t for the life of us get our heads around?

Put this in the un-put-downable column and snuggle up!

As I might have mentioned before, I’m not normally drawn to fantasy novels. But when something gets as much buzz as this book did (it’s just been nominated for the Morris Award, by the way), I have to move out of my comfort zone. The story drew me in and kept me reading to the very last page because of character. You’ll fall in love with Elisa as she grapples for her true purpose and slowly gains confidence in her power. Her supporting cast of characters — a mixture of kings, priests, ladies-in-waiting, and desert rebels — is sure to captivate you, as well.

I’ll let Rae tell you more about the story and protagonist:

13-year-old Conor is confused — this is not the nightmare he was expecting. The monster at his window is wild and fierce, but nowhere near as scary as the dark dream that has plagued him lately.

Conor’s world is falling apart. His mother isn’t responding well to cancer treatments. His father is in America with a new wife and family. Conor’s friends have betrayed him, and his enemies bully him. The burden of his present and future solitude weighs heavily upon him. A monster who wishes to tell him three stories, and demands one in return from Conor, is the last thing he needs.

Fortunately, the monster is persistent.

Some might say this is a good book for children coping with impending loss and grief. I say its appeal is much broader than that. A Monster Calls is gripping on many levels and appropriate for various age groups. It is a story of loss and healing, but it’s also a mystery with mythic qualities and a realistic portrayal of a contemporary teen’s struggle for autonomy and stability. Add gorgeous illustrations to this complex narrative and you have a very memorable book indeed.

Be sure to start with the author’s note from Patrick Ness. Once you’ve read that and the first chapter, you won’t be able to put the book down. Just be sure to keep your tissues handy.

POSSESS

No. That’s not another excuse; that’s the title to Gretchen McNeil’s debut YA novel which came out during my absence. Okay, so I guess that plays into my apology a little bit because it certainly was a distraction from the rest of mylife.

Here’s an excerpt from the book flap copy:

Fifteen-year-old Bridget Liu just wants to be left alone: by her over-protective mom, by Matt Quinn, the cute son of a local police sergeant, and by the eerie voices she can suddenly and inexplicably hear. Unfortunately for Bridget, the voices are demons–and Bridget possesses the rare ability to banish them bak to whatever hell they came from. Literally.

Terrified to tell her friends or family about this new power, Bridget confides in San Francisco’s senior exorcist, Monsignor Renault. The monsignor enlists her help in increasingly dangerous cases of demonic possession, but just as she is starting to come to terms with her freakish new role, Bridget receives a startling message from one of the demons.

For me, I love the Catholicism of the book, the side references to Irish step dancing (a personal interest), and the general Buffy-ness of it. Nothing like a girl in a plaid school uniform kicking butt on the powers of hell.

McNeil also has a lot of stage experience both as an actress and a soprano, and that is evident in the well-detailed scenes and overall drama of the novel.

I give it 5 grisly demons.

Karou leads a double life. At the outset, we see her as an art student in Prague trying to shed herself of a worthless boyfriend. Before long we see her secret life – perhaps her truer life – in which she speaks multiple languages, works minor magic, and travels the world procuring teeth for Brimstone, the unearthly creature who reared her from birth and is the only family she knows. Karou understands that Brimstone uses the teeth for a deeper magic, but doesn’t question further. Not at first, anyway.

This changes when ominous black handprints appear on the doors leading to her secret realm. Karou’s violent encounter with one of the winged creatures responsible for those handprints leads to revelations that fracture her understanding of the world. These revelations also allow her true journey of self-discovery to begin.

In the past I have steered away from stories of angels and demons, not to mention protagonists who are so achingly beautiful that it hurts to look at them. That stuff was too outlandish for me. Too over-the-top. This novel is over-the-top, but in a really fabulous way. The prose is exquisite, the characterization nuanced, and the pacing grabs you by the throat. Add to this a hauntingly gorgeous setting and an epic romance (literally EPIC) and you have the makings of an unforgettable first novel in a potentially stunning series.

I can’t stop thinking about this book!