The Dead and the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer

4 stars -- I like it

I did not know that this book, the second in a series, existed. I read Life as We Knew It, the first book, ages ago, and I loved it. The idea just stuck in my head, and it was so well-written--straight from a girl's diary, but with enough detail to have the story make sense--that when I saw that the third book, This World We Live In, was out, I had to get this one immediately and continue following the series.

The idea, carried out in The Dead and the Gone as well, is that an asteroid hits the moon. In Life as We Knew it, it's clear that everyone is aware of what's going to happen, and they treat it like a fun meteor shower-watching event. In The Dead and the Gone, it seems like the general public of New York is mostly unaware of the asteroid collision. What no one in either book expects is that the asteroid drastically shifts the moon's orbit, which causes changes in the tides, which in turn leads flooding and tsunamis, and in the tetonic plates, which causes earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The clouds of ash block the sun, killing crosp, and winter arrives early, with colder-than-normal temperatures. Supply lines, satellites, communications, and even electricity is avilable only sporadically. Plagues emerge and starvation is prevelant.

I was amazed at the scope and magnitude of disaster such a seemingly innocuous event could cause. It comes together in a perfectly logical manner (at least to my unscientific mind), and I applaud Susan Pfeffer for pulling it all together in such a believable way.

The only real difference between Life as We Knew It and The Dead and the Gone is that the first story takes place in the country and follows Miranda's story, while The Dead and the Gone takes place in New York City and follows Alex Morales. The same events occur, and the same tragedies take place, but the setting and characters are so different that each story is equally captivating.

I am particularly pleased with how Pfeffer glosses over the horror without diminishing it. She casually throws in that the 17-year-old boy is down to 78 pounds (or some other absurdly low number), which makes the reader realize the situation is much worse than the storytelling seems to imply. It's a brilliant juxtaposition that works beautifully.

This is another one of those terrifyingly beautiful stories of survival and hope that I highly recommend. I have to admit that I think the first story is stronger, but this is a commendable companion book.

Secret Society by Tom Dolby

1.5 stars -- Meh...

Secret Society bored me. It bored me so much that I put it down five pages from the end and forgot that I hadn't finished it. It was only a week or so later that I thought, "How did that book end? Surely the author didn't leave it like that..." and picked it up again to see where I had left off.

Not that the ending made a difference.

Secret Society is about (can you guess?) a secret society that promising, rich, New York high schoolers can get inducted into.

The four main characters, Phoebe, Lauren, Nick, and Patch, are flat and not believable. Their personalities fluctuate too frequently (is Lauren rich and untouchable, or is she this weak, sniveling girl who doesn't know what to do about anything... How did Patch, a countercultural poor kid, suddenly become a buff, ripped, secret society wanna-be?).

The plot is weak (the society kills people, but WHY?). The story is unoriginal. And I am not looking forward to the sequel.

Splendor by Anna Godbersen

4 stars -- I liked it.

The fourth and final book in the Luxe novels, Splendor ends the series perfectly. It's one of the first times I can remember being perfectly pleased with a series' ending. Other series tend to tie things up too nicely or don't really have an end at all, but this one was perfect.

You definitely have to read the first three books in the series (The Luxe, Rumors, and Envy) for this one to make sense for these are not stand-alone novels. They follow the lives of several upper-class New York socialites in the late 1800's, early 1900's.

In all of the novels, the heroines are the Holland girls, but there are a number of characters that readers aren't sure how to feel about. Finally, though, readers find closure. A former maid, in the beginning petty and untrustworthy, had wormed her way into high society and was being cast in a gentler light. Unsure whether I was supposed to still hate her or whether I should begin liking her for her ingenuity and success, the way she was left was perfect. The hated rival to Elizabeth Holland is given a taste of her own medicine. Henry Schoonmaker, a cad and unlikable fellow for the majority of the series, is redeemed in readers' eyes, only to be given an appropriate ending, as well. Henry had been getting on my good side, but the way the author left him made me smile--he was a cad, after all.

There was a new twist in this story as well. Elizabeth had been remarried in a previous novel, and I felt like she was settling, because she was. But we find out that all is not as it seems in her new marriage, and Elizabeth--often weak and malleable--finds her backbone unexpectedly, and then finds happiness as well.

Like I said, I really like how this series ended. Everyone got exactly what they deserved, and for a series that I was only reading due to the pretty dresses on the cover (fabulous covers, Harper), I'm pleasantly surprised by how much I appreciate the progression of this series and its characters. Well done.