Newes From the Dead by Mary Hooper

This novel by Mary Hooper tells the tale of Anne Green, a convicted murderess sentenced to hang. Want to hear the twisted part? Anne is found to be alive many hours later (after being declared legally dead) on a doctor's dissection table . The best part? It's based on the true story of Anne Green's hanging in 1650.

While Anne hangs in a state of unconsciousness, completely unaware that she is alive, her life (forgive the cliche) flashes before her eyes. Well, not her entire life, specifically the events leading up to her being accused of infanticide and hearing her family's screams as she met her end (or so she thought) in the hangman's noose. As Anne remains in a place close to death, the doctors have abandoned their original intent and rally to bring her back from the other side. All the while, they stave off attempts by parties of questionable innocence to bring her back to the noose.

I felt that this was an interesting read. I enjoyed the author's take on a 16th century event through Anne's perspective and that of the doctors who revived her. However, I found Anne's character grating at times. She was quite easily swayed and had an inability to hold to her principles even after this trait gets her into trouble of the worst sort. It was out of my usual reading genre, and it really was a decent book. Not exceptional, but a good book nonetheless.

I give Newes From the Dead 4.8 lightnings [insert flashing light and various sounds of a thundery nature here]

From the Shadows,

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

Third person present. Third person present. I had great difficulty getting used to this perspective, but the novel in question proved well worth the effort. Creepy, suspenseful, and thought provoking, Unwind by Neal Shusterman was a surprise from an author I have never taken the time to be particularly familiar with.

In an age not very far along from now, the teens that no one wants are harvested for their organs. Rebellious, deformed, or simply not good enough, they are sent to the infamous Harvest Camps, to be dismembered for the "good of mankind". Connor is a financial liability and his parents sign the forms of release. Risa is a foster home kid with a future in classical piano, but maybe not as much of a future as the next virtuoso. Lev believes firmly in his unwinding, honored by his religion as a Tithe. But their fates collide when Connor shoots his transport (with a tranquilizer) and helps save Lev in the process, Risa pursuing in her interest. Together and apart they find their way through the hazardous days in between them and their 18th birthdays, the age of neutrality.

I really enjoyed this novel. Reminiscent of a futuristic perversion, there were secret hide outs, crazed revolutionaries, and demented medical staff. Connor is a hero in his own right, but his mistakes are glaring reminders at his humanness, while Risa is piecing out what she means to her world. Probably the most fascinating character in the book was Lev. He betrays, kills, searches, and saves at different points, his growth increasingly more involved as the pages turn. Some parts of the story were particularly disturbing, common in a dystopia novel of this subject matter. But a fantastic plot and writing handled inquiries about the value of life and the meaning of death in a sensitive and clever way.

6 out of 7 lightnings. BOOM ZAM SCHWA!

Futuristic Culture Defiant,
*Aella Siofra*

Creepy Glass Eyes...

After reading this, I doubt if I will ever be able to look at a doll without shuddering somewhat. Although not one for scary books ,I thoroughly enjoyed the eerie sensation of reading this. Sweet Miss Honeywell's Revenge by Kathryn Reiss never sacrifices quality for blood-baths and sufficiently surprises throughout its plot. Enough so to cause its nearly untimely death when my pulse needed a break. I had to put it away... in a sack... in a drawer... in a different room.

Isabel Thorne, more commonly known as Zibby, can't quite put her finger on what frightens her about the new doll house. Perhaps its the strange way she came by it, marked at the exact price she had in her pocket and sold to her by a woman no one recognizes. All the same, once she has signed on the contract of sale, the beautiful creation and its accompanying set of dolls are hers forever. Quite literally. Always accompanied by the eerie doll in the gray dress, danger begins to follow the Thorne family. For the scenes of play are warping into reality and the greatest disaster of all has yet to occur.
In the early 1900s, Primrose Parson is too grown-up for her beloved nanny and is turned over to a governess. Mean-spirited and controlling, Sweet Miss Honeywell demands obedience and an end to Prim's pranks and tricks. But the girl is indomitable and snarky (new favorite word), taking out her frustrations by playing with the custom doll house given her by inattentive parents. And when Honeywell's domineering actions become too much, one prank will end a life and begin a nightmare to last more than a century.

With plenty of unexpected occurrences and happenings, Sweet Miss Honeywell's Revenge did not disappoint. Even the vile governess has more to her than meets the eye, the novel outlining her loves, clouded past, and the twisted result. With all the darkness, stormy nights, and history of a good ghost story it unfolds to provide a tale that will make your palms sweat at either noon or midnight. You'll also think twice before you laugh on the next time you think your stuffed animals just moved.

BANG!ZAP!KACHOW!! 5 out of 7 lightningz.

Shivering and Packing Away My Porcelain Dolls,
*Aella Siofra*