On The Volcano, by James Nelson
YA, 2011

Katie and her widowed father have always lived on their own, high up in a place few intruders would dare approach: alongside the crater of a collapsed volcano. They've built a simple but happy life for themselves, far from the frontier perils of the world below - until a long-promised birthday trip to the rough-and-tumble town of Badwater takes an ugly turn and brings the outside world much too close. With it comes grave danger and unimaginable loss, but also something Katie had barely dreamed possible for herself: a heart-pounding but tender romance, the kind to build a life on.

Raspberry: As a geologist, I was completely taken in by the title, of course and it just looked like 'my kind' of historical fiction. It was a lot of fun to read because it wasn't just a growing up story - it had dashes of Gary Paulsen and a little Louis L'Amour thrown in. Some of the content is a bit intense, and I would recommend it for perhaps older teens, and of course specifically for girls. I thought the ending a bit rushed and the romance slightly washed over, but it was a sweet story and definitely worth reading.

Graded a B.

She's here!

We've been a bit MIA these past few weeks/days because of this little squirt. She came by c-section, got an Apgar of 10 (unheard of at the high altitudes around here) and is named Hazel. We're loving on her so much we've cut back a bit on reading, but we still are, I swear! I will post when I can, in fact, I have a couple books on their way from the book depository, so never fear, we'll be back. :)

Wither, by Lauren DeStefano

Wither, by Lauren DeStefano
YA, 2011

from fantasticfiction.co.uk:
By age sixteen, Rhine Ellery has four years left to live. She can thank modern science for this genetic time bomb. A botched effort to create a perfect race has left all males with a lifespan of 25 years, and females with a lifespan of 20 years. Geneticists are seeking a miracle antidote to restore the human race, desperate orphans crowd the population, crime and poverty have skyrocketed, and young girls are being kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to bear more children.
When Rhine is kidnapped and sold as a bride, she vows to do all she can to escape. Her husband, Linden, is hopelessly in love with her, and Rhine can't bring herself to hate him as much as she'd like to. He opens her to a magical world of wealth and illusion she never thought existed, and it almost makes it possible to ignore the clock ticking away her short life. But Rhine quickly learns that not everything in her new husband's strange world is what it seems. Her father-in-law, an eccentric doctor bent on finding the antidote, is hoarding corpses in the basement. Her fellow sister wives are to be trusted one day and feared the next, and Rhine is desperate to communicate to her twin brother that she is safe and alive. Will Rhine be able to escape--before her time runs out?

Raspberry: I must confess to being unsure about how I feel about this book. On one hand, it's a fascinating idea with interesting details and a set of well-defined characters. On the other...well, it's the start of a trilogy, which of course means the publisher just wants to make more money, so they're thinning out a plot that could realistically have been written in 1 - 2 books. Also, a big part of the plot is that wives are chosen so they can have children in order to carry on the human race while they look for this antidote. If that's so, then it seems like a complete waste to destroy the life of someone who can bear a child. There are a few inconsistencies like that, but I'm hoping that the subtle hints written in mean that there are many many lies about what's actually occurring. I want to give the next book a chance, but if those inconsistencies are still around (i.e. the world is flooded and only North America survives? Check out a topo map sometime - North America isn't the high point of the world.), I wouldn't be able to finish it. However, if it's all a part of some giant conspiracy or plot that I haven't dreamed up yet, then the author may be a bit of a genius - it all hinges on what happens next.
I would also compare this book to Matched, by Ally Condie. Before some of you go 'what?!', I would say, look at the basic plot ideas - dystopian, girl falls in love with someone she's not supposed to, government conspiracy and eugenics type programs, and even the way they both end (hopeful but not quite in the clear). So, if you liked Matched, you'll like Wither. On the other hand, if you hated Matched, you might still enjoy Wither - it was written in an entirely different style and may be what you were looking for in the first place.

Graded a B-.