Finished November 15
The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd
Ted and his older sister Kat live with their parents in London. Their dad is a demolition expert. Their aunt Gloria, sister to their mother, is stopping off in London with her son Salim, as they move from England to New York City.
Salim wants to ride the London Eye while in town, and while the kids are waiting in line they get offered a free single ticket. Salim takes it and gets on the ride, but when it comes back down he is not there. After the initial panic, the police are called in and try to figure out what happened.
Ted and Kat work together to try to solve the puzzle as well, and Ted's special way of thinking gives them insight into the mystery.
This is a great story, with an interesting puzzle to solve that also highlights autism. The family relationships are well written and Ted's personality really comes through.
Finished November 16
Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz
This is the first in a series of books centred around a group of vampires. As the young vampires go through puberty they transform from humans into their true selves. The novel centres around a group of students at Duchesne School in New York City, a private school with a student body consisting of a large number of "blue bloods" as the vampires define themselves. The main character is Schuyler Van Alen, who is being raised by her maternal grandmother. Schuyler's mother is in a coma and Schuyler visits her at the hospital regularly. As Schuyler copes with the discovery of her true vampire nature and deals with the usual teenage social issues at school, she must also figure out who is murdering young Blue Bloods. Schuyler works with her friend Oliver against the denial of the leaders of the clan over the threat to their future.
Schuyler comes across as a relatively normal teen dealing with an abnormal situation. The explanations for historic events and cultural trends are interesting, and the plot keeps things moving. Teens with an interest in the vampire genre will find another interesting author to read.
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