Crazy for Young Adult Books discussion

Please join Lieniitte in this buddy read if you can!

yay!!! I can't wait! I've had this book for a few weeks and hadn't started it yet! I'm so glad I finally am!

I'm going to run to eat and then I'll start reading.

Should we come back and comment every 5 chapters?
that's about 100 pages

Yaay! I'll start within an hour or 2 as well! :)

Ok, sure, every 5 chapters sounds good! This is my first buddy read, but as far as I can tell, you basically just write the chapter you are on (in this case every 5 chapters) and then put everything under a spoiler?

I can pick this one up at the library tonight so I will join in as well! This one sounds really good!

Lieniitte, yes! We usually put what chapter we are on and then maybe what different spoilers are talking about. So sometimes we put a character's name and then put our spoiler about them or we put WOW!! and put a spoiler on what made us react that way.

This is the way you do spoilers. You just don't put all the spaces in between. :) < spoiler >...< / spoiler >

Ok, thanks for the info! :)

No problem! :)

I might join you guys if I can get the book!

Vicki wrote: "I might join you guys if I can get the book!"

I hope you can, Vicki! :D

Yay! Welcome Vicki and Jacquelyn!

Since you guys are trying to join, I won't go past 5 chapters today :) I hope you guys can get the book! Love for you to join in!

Sorry Lieniitte ~ I got distracted and haven't started yet :) staring now :)

:D

I just picked this one up from the library! I started the prologue and going to continue reading soon! :)

The book is already checked out at my library so I put a hold on it. Hopefully I'll get it quickly, but you girls go ahead without me. I didn't realize the start day was today.

Oh no! I hope you can get it soon! If not, we will always be here. :)

Thanks! Bummer, huh? It's $9.99 on Amazon AND B&N.

Wow, for e-book format? That's a lot! :(

Yep, I agree!

holy moly that's spendy!!! NO worries, Vicki. Join in when you can!

Yes, sorry. we were both free today so we decided to just start! LOL

What is an acceptable amount for an ebook for you? I am not really sure what is good since I don't buy ebooks. I just know $10 is crazy for one!

I started a while ago and read up to the start of chapter 4. I will save the comments for after chapter 5 but so far it's quite interesting! Continuing now :)

Lieniitte wrote: "I started a while ago and read up to the start of chapter 4. I will save the comments for after chapter 5 but so far it's quite interesting! Continuing now :)"

Glad you're enjoying it! I just had a bit of reading time but had to use it on my summer reading book instead. Picking this one up again now!

I'm 5 chapters in

Okay, so
My #1 issue with this book so far is only because I'm a mom. and (view spoiler)[ if one of my children went missing for 5 years and suddenly came home

I wouldn't go to work the next day
I wouldn't take care of my other kid all week
I wouldn't go to bed at 9 - ever - unless it was in the same room as the child who just came back

and counseling would not be an option. (hide spoiler)]
I can't imagine (view spoiler)[ having her come home and just shrugging.
My family would be flying in. I'd want to sit around and talk to her about what she'd missed, what had happened with family, the government, her school EVERYTHING. (hide spoiler)] and (view spoiler)[ reporters would be ALL OVER her story. She wouldn't be able to leave the house without being bombarded. and alien conspiracy groups would LOVE to interview her as well. there is NO WAY she'd be stumbling out of that house the same night she went missing and adventuring around the town!!! (hide spoiler)] So I'm just going to take my parent hat off and ignore all this! LOL

Tyler (view spoiler)[ OH MY GOODNESS!! Is he NOT the most wonderful boy to stumble onto a book page?? He's adorable with his little chalk bridge and his "I thought this was our thing"
he's wonderful! :D (hide spoiler)]

Kyra (view spoiler)[ I thought she'd be a little more shell shocked but I guess she's taking it all in stride
she's definitely still angsty and grumpy like a 16 year old! :D (hide spoiler)]

Cat (view spoiler)[ I feel bad for her. she didn't mean to betray her. they really thought she was dead!! (hide spoiler)]

her dad (view spoiler)[ yikes. I hope he starts pulling back together now that she's been found (hide spoiler)]

hospital incident (view spoiler)[ okay the thing with the needle. that was weird right?
do you think she was abducted and they did something to her? (hide spoiler)]

so far, as long as I ignore that one part, I'm liking it :)

I've spent $9.99 before but I don't like to! It's really too much. Usually a paperback is no more and with my teacher discount I can get 20% off paperback and hard cover, so that's often cheaper!

Vicki wrote: "I've spent $9.99 before but I don't like to! It's really too much. Usually a paperback is no more and with my teacher discount I can get 20% off paperback and hard cover, so that's often cheaper!"

absolutely! I don't think I've ever paid $9.99 for a digital copy. Sucks, I wish I could send you one!!! :(

Lol When I first got my NOOK I didn't know any better! Lol

Vicki wrote: "I've spent $9.99 before but I don't like to! It's really too much. Usually a paperback is no more and with my teacher discount I can get 20% off paperback and hard cover, so that's often cheaper!"

Yeah! The paperbacks I buy are usually 8-9 dollars so I couldn't imagine paying that for a digital copy! As Trisha said, I wish I could send you one!!

10 chapters in

The Husband (view spoiler)[ okay, he's pretty creepy right?
do you think he's really an alien conspiracy theorist or maybe he's an alien there to watch over her? I mean, something's off with him right?? (hide spoiler)]

eating (view spoiler)[ Huh...more evidence they've messed with her? She doesn't seem able to eat anything that she used to eat and still like it. ....hmmmm (hide spoiler)]

Nancy (view spoiler)[ OMG lol I love that Fancy Nancy is a dog!! I love it! (hide spoiler)]

Dad (view spoiler)[ I kind of hate the way she talks to her parents. Why would she get down on her dad for how he lives or dresses? and be so rude about it? He's been worrying about ONLY HER for 5 years. He wasn't worried about dirty dishes or clothes - just finding her. it seems so disrespectful and...just lacking empathy entirely (hide spoiler)]

Agent Truman (view spoiler)[ Ugh. who was that guy?? he doesn't seem good... Think he was legit or fake?? (hide spoiler)]

Cat (view spoiler)[ I feel bad for her too. what happened with her and the boyfriend....I can see why Kyra would be mad but it's hard to be mad at Cat. I mean...it happened over the span of 5!! Years. it's not like it was <30 days and they started seeing each other! (hide spoiler)]

hospital guy (view spoiler)[ OMG!! HE's dead?!?! OMG! From her blood?? I hope the dentist is okay!!! (hide spoiler)]

Simon (view spoiler)[ huh. wonder what he's all about, following her.. (hide spoiler)]

i'm glad (view spoiler)[ she's finally deciding finding out what happened to her is important. (hide spoiler)]

I'll read more tomorrow. I hope you guys are enjoying it!

That's sweet of both of you. As they say it's the thought that counts. :)

Ok, so.. I am done with 5 chapters now.
I completely agree with Trisha that (view spoiler)[ It's not normal for a mom to act that way. When thinking over what to say about this book, the first and main thing is - I don't like the mom. Maybe even a little too much. When I was around 16 and had an accident, my mother took 2 weeks off work to care for me, and that was simply an accident. (hide spoiler)]

Mom (view spoiler)[ Maybe she really does believe that Kyra simply ran away? Though that seems absurd to think she would run away over a simple fight about colleges. But maybe she is holding some sort of grudge against Kyra, blaming her for the fact that she was gone for 5 years and is offended that she won't tell her or something. Even so, that doesn't make it ok for her to act the way she is acting as Trisha explained very well. (hide spoiler)]

The Husband (view spoiler)[ Something seems off about him too. I don't have a clue why I think so though. :D Maybe he has something to do with how her mom is acting? (hide spoiler)]

Tyler (view spoiler)[ He certainly is a very sweet guy. I love how he is treating Kyra, actually paying attention to what she says and doing such thoughtful things like the chalk bridge and spending time with her even though he probably has things going on in his own life and other friends and stuff!
Maybe it's just me, but.. Kyra just came back after 5 years and to her it's like just yesterday she was in a relationship with Austin that has basically lasted her entire life.
Kyra seems just as surprised as I am about how quickly she is having these feelings for Tyler, but Tyler, he's jumping right in as if it had been 5 years for her as well and as if she has had time to get over his brother. Not that I mind, Tyler's great! Just seems a bit weird to me :D (hide spoiler)]

My theory so far (view spoiler)[ Ok, well, it's not a theory really, just speculation. Everything seems off to her. Everything. I get the feeling it's not just the fact that things have changed in 5 years.
The hospital scene, where the needle wouldn't come out and the everything being off thing makes me think maybe she isn't really herself anymore or something like that. Maybe it really was something like aliens especially since her father also saw the light and she just vanished. Maybe her body is different. Of course, maybe her mom is on some health kick and the spaghetti tasting off was just related to that like the soy milk that obviously is a new thing after she vanished, but adding that to the needle not coming out makes me think that it's her body that's off. (hide spoiler)]

Dad (view spoiler)[ I feel bad for him. Everyone probably thought he went crazy because of her disappearance. Now he really seems relieved to have her home and is probably hoping that people won't think him crazy anymore. (hide spoiler)]

Nancy (view spoiler)[ I wonder who Nancy is. I just can't imagine it be being a woman. He probably would have said more if he was talking about a wife, not just "Maybe I'll bring Nancy later." I feel that he would have prepared Kyra more for a meeting with his wife. Maybe it's a dog or some other pet? (hide spoiler)]

I like it so far, I think I will continue reading for a while. Might not get to chapter 10 but we'll see! :)

Finished the first 5 chapters. I will post my spoilers and thoughts and then go back and read both of your thoughts!

Tyler (view spoiler)[I think he is so adorable and cute! I loved the chalk drawing he did and how he lent his copy of Fahrenheit 451 to her. (hide spoiler)]

The Husband (view spoiler)[It must be super hard of Kyra. To be thrown into this basically "new" life with a new brother and with her mom having a new spouse. I don't know how I feel about him yet. (hide spoiler)]

The hospital incident (view spoiler)[I feel like when the needle wouldn't come out is going to end up being a big clue or part to this book. (hide spoiler)]

I am going to read both of your spoilers and thoughts now! I am really enjoying this book so far!

Trisha wrote: "I'm 5 chapters in

Okay, so
My #1 issue with this book so far is only because I'm a mom. and if one of my children went missing for 5 years and suddenly came home

I wouldn't go to work the next d..."

I totally agree with all of the stuff you said even though I am not a mom! (view spoiler)[I was kind of shocked when she just shrugged when she came back and was going to bed that early. (hide spoiler)]

Cat (view spoiler)[I feel bad for her as well! If one of my friends just went missing for 5 years I think I would also think that they were dead. (hide spoiler)]

I agree with everything you have said! I am definitely intrigued about the (view spoiler)[needle incident. (hide spoiler)]

Lieniitte wrote: "Ok, so.. I am done with 5 chapters now.
I completely agree with Trisha that [spoilers removed]

Mom [spoilers removed]

The Husband [spoilers removed]

Tyler He certainly is a very sweet guy. I l..."

I totally agree with you (view spoiler)[not liking her Mom. I didn't like her at all either. She was just so weird about the whole thing and wasn't very motherly. (hide spoiler)]

I think we all agree on (view spoiler)[how CUTE Tyler is!! (hide spoiler)]

Your theory: (view spoiler)[Hmm! Interesting! So you actually think it was aliens? When they mentioned that I kind of just breezed right over it and didn't really consider it. Interesting! I guess with the light and all you have a good reason for thinking that! :) (hide spoiler)] It leaves me very intrigued!

Nancy (view spoiler)[You also have interesting thoughts on whoever Nancy is! I never even thought of it being anyone other than his girlfriend/wife. I really like your ideas on this book and how different they are from what I am thinking! (hide spoiler)]

Jacquelyn, yeah, I'm sure that (view spoiler)[ the needle is going to be a big clue! (hide spoiler)]

The theory (view spoiler)[ yes, well, I find myself leaning quite heavily towards believing the conspiracy theory stuff in the book! (hide spoiler)]

Done with 10 chapters now! I couldn't put it down.

So.. I don't know where to begin :D

Trisha, yeah, I agree with you about The Husband, (view spoiler)[ He is definitely creepy! But if he was an alien there to watch over her, would he have just been acting when he didn't know who she was when they first met? Then he must be a good actor! (hide spoiler)]

My theory continued (view spoiler)[ Well, now I am even more convinced it's something to do with aliens. Or something like that. Maybe the reason why she hasn't changed at all physically is because the aliens only had her for a day or so, but that was traveling at the speed of light or something and time went forward on Earth but at light speed for her it was just some hours or something while she was asleep. Crazy idea there.. :D

And the whole eating thing continues.. Trisha, sure looks like they've messed with her! Everything keeps feeling off to her, including all sorts of meals! Though she didn't say anything about the doughnuts and Dr. Pepper tasting off. I wonder if that was on purpose or if the author didn't catch that being different when editing :D (hide spoiler)]

I completely agree about Dad, he (view spoiler)[ really has been worried and is still worried, trying to understand what happened. He asked about her having any weird reactions to the drill when at the dentist. Well, she did feel tingling when having her blood taken in the beginning! I don't get why she didn't tell him. If I were Kyra I would probably listen to him more, after all, he WAS the one who actually saw her vanish along with a white light. (hide spoiler)]

Truman (view spoiler)[ Not sure about this guy.. My first instinct is that he is not just NSA but some really really top secret something. He obviously agrees with the conspiracy theorists, asking about fireflies. (hide spoiler)]

Cat (view spoiler)[ she really does seem nice. I like how she wanted to show up right away and when she did come, she was so set on continuing to be her friend. I like her loyalty! (hide spoiler)]

Austin (view spoiler)[ Lol. Maybe it's just me but I felt nothing from him. His whole visit seemed pointless and lacked emotion to me. Maybe he just really wanted to see if she was back, or it was just because he was expected to come see her, since they had such a past together but from their conversation, I didn't feel that they even had anything real in the past and that her dad was right in the beginning, that she should have seen who else there is to meet. (hide spoiler)]

Hospital guy (view spoiler)[ Did he touch her blood? I don't remember him actually coming into contact with it but something must have happened! (hide spoiler)]

Simon (view spoiler)[ Yeah, I thought there might be something important about him when she saw him in the bookstore, but brushed it off. But now, maybe HE is some alien guy? (hide spoiler)]

Her dad (view spoiler)[ has been researching this for 5 years, I hope she goes to him soon! (hide spoiler)]

Tyler (view spoiler)[ I wonder what's up with him and Austin. Seems like they didn't get along well at all even when Tyler wasn't trying to take his ex-girlfriend. (hide spoiler)]

Very intriguing so far! I'm off to sleep soon but can't wait to read more tomorrow. Probably won't be able to put it down.

yay! I'm so glad you guys are liking it too!!

! I know ! it's hard to stop reading it! LOL!

I am still only 5 chapters in but after eating breakfast and doing a few things I will be picking it back up again! :)

Ok! I am done with 14 chapters. I think I'm gonna go for a walk and then I'll post after chapter 15. It really is a good read so I think I'll finish it in that sitting :)
I hope you're enjoying it just as much as I am, Jacquelyn and Trisha!

Sounds great, Lieniitte! I have been spending the majority of my reading time today on my summer reading book but I will continue with this one tonight! :) I am on chapter 7.

So my walk took longer than expected :D end of chapter 15 now.

I didn't take any notes or anything and some of these chapters I read yesterday before sleep. So much happened that I might have lost track of some stuff, but anyway..
(view spoiler)[ She isn't aging! Ok, didn't see that coming. And she heals, and has super fast movement, AND night vision, AND barely sleeps, eats, barely has to BREATHE. Definitely not what I was expecting. Didn't catch many signs to all these things before the big reveal, except the eating thing.

So it was aliens! Or so they think. I hope they are able to get to the other people like them safely and maybe we can find out more about this whole thing. (hide spoiler)]

Simon (view spoiler)[ I'm glad he is a nice guy, trying to help. Though he might have warned her about the whole "your blood is lethal" thing. I mean, she meets people she loves, her family. Why wouldn't that be the first thing he tells her? I didn't catch on right away when the guy in the store shot himself, but when Tyler's nose started bleeding, the pieces fit together and I guessed her blood made people sick and that's why he shot himself. Though I thought it was because he didn't want to suffer a terrible death by disease, didn't think about the whole experimentation thing. (hide spoiler)]

Tyler (view spoiler)[ Lol, I kept hoping that the aliens would take Tyler too, so he wouldn't die and wouldn't have to age while she stays the same! Though, I don't think I'd wish for anyone to become that, lethal and all. I'm confused about what I think about what she is. It's intriguing but I wouldn't want that. I get the feeling it's not supposed to be a good thing in the book either, but again, I'm confused on my own thoughts there. I'm leaning a lot towards it not being a good thing at all. Like the aliens are trying to create some army or something and the beginning of it all is wiping people out with these people's blood. Yeah, there's definitely something evil behind the whole taking people and changing them thing.

Also, even though Tyler really does seem to care about Kyra and is a nice guy, if a guy told me how he would like to see me naked and all, especially after they just started hanging out, I would NOT want to be with that guy. It's too much for me. I don't mean she should up and leave him o anything but to me, if the situation wasn't so complicated there with everything going on, it would turn me off the guy. It's not like they knew each other well before she vanished. Kyra said she barely noticed him at all back then. That kinda made me like Tyler less. I might forgive him, since he was delusional and all. Even so, that takes points away from him for me. I like a relationship to be about all the other, non physical stuff. (hide spoiler)]

Truman (view spoiler)[ I wonder what he wants with her and the other people like her. If he is trying to get rid of them so they don't kill innocent people with their blood, well, imagine if someone like that was loose in your town, wouldn't you want them locked up and not able to hurt anyone by accident? Though the agents seem more evil than good, maybe they're just trying to protect the world from harm. I'm confused on this as well. I am confused on my thoughts about a few things I guess. On the one hand, I would want something to be done about a person who is so easily lethal to anyone, but on the other hand I don't want her killed or anything, I want Kyra and the others to not have to worry about being lethal, to be able to go back to who they were, to not be a part of some plan the aliens have, to be rid of that killing innocents thing while staying alive themselves. I'm already worried that we won't get many answers and will have to wait til 2015 some time for the next book! (hide spoiler)]

The river scene (view spoiler)[ Is it just me or did either of you also miss the part where the fanny pack got lost in the river? They were jumping in, and suddenly, she was going after the fanny pack. They reached the river.. so on and so on... and suddenly shes almost dead rescuing the pack. It was understandable enough and didn't HAVE to be put in there, but it made me feel like a paragraph or 2 were missing. (hide spoiler)]

Dad (view spoiler)[ I have no clue where dad could be. Taken by the agents? probably not since they got there after Kyra and Tyler. I'm thinking he ran away, went into hiding or something and, hopefully, will try to contact Kyra somehow! I somehow have a soft spot for the dad, he seems nice and I feel bad for him. (hide spoiler)]

The end of chapter 15 (view spoiler)[ I really do hope Tyler gets better! I hope she patches things up with her mom (hide spoiler)]

Right, it seems as though most of my points have been critical ones. I don't know how that happened, because I really am liking the book! I guess it's not about the book, it's thoughts on whats happening :D
Going to finish the book soon I hope. :)

Finished! Overall I really liked it!

Tyler (view spoiler)[ They saved Tyler, yaay. But now he's been tampered with too and I don't know how I feel about that. At least he is alive!! :) (hide spoiler)]

Dad (view spoiler)[ I'm glad he hadn't turned against her. For a moment there I was scared he had been playing her all this time.. I wonder where he is, I want to believe it really was him in the epilogue, sending her a message. I guess that he knew about the location of Simon's camp and Truman forced it out of him somehow. Only way I can think of that they knew where they were, forcing them to move. (hide spoiler)]

Mom (view spoiler)[ I wonder what has happened to her, is she still inside the quarantined house? (hide spoiler)]

Fireflies (view spoiler)[ Seems a bit weird that those fireflies came from inside the hole as well. As if they'd been underground someplace.. And, 1st Contact Meetings? So the government supposedly has made contact with aliens in the past? So that's how the NSA top secret people know about the alien thing (hide spoiler)]


(view spoiler)[ Isn't it weird how it looks like all 3 of them returned? Truman, Dad and Tyler. If Truman stayed true to what he was doing before, he should turn himself in. :D (hide spoiler)]

I can't wait for book 2! Doesn't even have a date yet.. :(
I think I'll give it 4 stars, maybe closer to 4.5, simply because (view spoiler)[ the romance didn't feel real to me. Tyler was nice and I felt bad for him when he got sick, and I connected to him as a character but not as completely as I should have and I just didn't buy the Kyra/Tyler relationship. It seemed forced and, well, yeah, not real. Though he really is a nice guy and all. I can't pinpoint many specific reasons why. Maybe it was too fast, instant, all-in or something.

Also, after one simple talk with Austin and one with Cat, there's no mention of them anymore. Even after Cat's big loyalty statement. I guess that also didn't really feel real to me. Those 2 relationships.
Also I'm still upset about how her mother didn't care much about having her daughter back. But that's also just part of the story. In any case, I can't take more than half a star or so away for these things :) (hide spoiler)]

Can't wait to hear both of your thoughts on it as well!
I hope, Jacquelyn, that your required summer reading is interesting too! :)

okay, I'm done with 15 chapters too and hope to wrap it all up in just a little longer.

Simon(view spoiler)[ I agree. I'm glad he was nice. I hope he can help Tyler!! (hide spoiler)]

Truman(view spoiler)[ YIKES!! If they really knew her blood could kill and infect people, I would have thought Truman would have been a bit more forceful about getting her and containing her when she was home alone.
I mean, imagine if she didn't know and she'd gotten a cut at the mall when she went shopping. She could have killed a whole mall or a whole Target full of people. Or even just her whole household. Since they took blood, more people should be dying at the hospital. That's pretty awful on the government's part....not protecting the people from her (hide spoiler)]

The river scene(view spoiler)[ i agree. that was a little all over the place (hide spoiler)]

Dad (view spoiler)[ YES! where did he go? his disappearance is really odd. I hope they don't have him and plan to hold him as blackmail or something! (hide spoiler)]

I still (view spoiler)[ think it's weird there haven't been any reporters or anything covering the fact that a girl missing for 5 years just reappears with no explanation. There is SO MUCH weird news coverage these days, there is no way that wouldn't be covered by every news station from east to west coast (hide spoiler)]

sorry, I finished last night but forgot to post here :)

Tyler (view spoiler)[ I totally agree with your previous post. for them never getting anywhere in their relationship, his comments about seeing or wanting her naked were a little....yuck. (hide spoiler)]

Dad (view spoiler)[ I hope it's him at the end too
but what a bad dad. If he wasn't taken, then why did he just ditch her out there to fight these people on her own? he just...left her (hide spoiler)]

Simon (view spoiler)[ I like him and his clan. lol I'm glad she fell in with them (hide spoiler)]

2 stars (view spoiler)[ as you can probably see, I only gave it two stars. I just found it too unrealistic. There is no way this would go down this way.

she was gone 5 years and not a single news station jumped on that story?
and her parents don't care that she's back?
and a whole town who helped search for her and care for her family while they grieved....none of them even recognized her or cared enough to visit - even for morbid curiosity?
and I also agree - I hate that Cat just visited that one time and then disappeared again...

Kyra didn't see to have meaningful conversations with anyone. She was kind of snarky and rude most of the time......

and I thought the end was pretty unrealistic too. (hide spoiler)]

I'm so glad we were able to read this!! :D

I am only on page 147! I am really enjoying it and would have been done by now if I didn't have summer reading!! I will definitely try to read a chunk of it today!

Lieniitte wrote: "Can't wait to hear both of your thoughts on it as well!
I hope, Jacquelyn, that your required summer reading is interesting too! :)"

I was not liking it at all but it has kind of picked up.. Very small text and hard to understand though! :(

Very small text and Trisha gave it 2 stars? I think I'll forego this one. Lol

Vicki wrote: "Very small text and Trisha gave it 2 stars? I think I'll forego this one. Lol"

no... I was talking about small text for my summer reading book! :)

Oh, okay. I just can't handle small! You're reading a 1200+ page book AND the print is small??

Vicki wrote: "Oh, okay. I just can't handle small! You're reading a 1200+ page book AND the print is small??"

Well my copy is abridged and is only 423 pages but it is small text and hard to read! :(

Vicki wrote: "Very small text and Trisha gave it 2 stars? I think I'll forego this one. Lol"

lol You crack me up!