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Posts Tagged ‘NYC’

Blue Bloods | Melissa De La Druz

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Rating: ★★★★½
Schuyler Van Alen leads a mixed-up life. She attends a prestigious NYC school, where she doesn’t fit in with her peers, except her best friend Oliver, and though her family used to be one of the wealthiest in the city, their holdings are now few and money sparse. She doesn’t know her father, her mother has been in a coma in the hospital for most of her life, and she lives with her foreboding grandmother.

When the uber-boy at school suddenly takes an interest in her, she doesn’t know what to think. And despite herself, she finds herself drawn to him. A fact which his twin sister takes much issue with.

After being invited to join The Committee, an elite society everyone at school knows about, Schuyler learns some startling things about herself and her family that she isn’t sure how to deal with. As it turns out, Schuyler isn’t human. And her best friend Oliver isn’t just her best friend. He’s a servant of sorts. And the dog she mysteriously found–also not an accident.

As mysterious deaths continue to plague the Blue Bloods, a secret from deep in their past comes forth. Silver Bloods. Fiends who feed on and kill Blue Bloods. Schuyler and her friends struggle to solve the mystery, losing much in the process. Left with many questions and nearly no answers, all Schuyler knows is its her mystery to solve, and only she can do it.

A very creative take on vampires and vampirism, which will leave you eager for the next installment.

Tomorrow Maybe | Brian James

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Rating: ★★★★☆
It can be a world of shadows, ghosts, haunted memories, and shame. But it can also be freedom, beauty, and solidarity bred of understanding. Every street kid has their story–they don’t ask, but they know. For Gretchen, it was her Stepmother. Continued life under the same roof as her: impossible. At 15, she still feels like the baby, even though it’s been two years. Two years learning to love the morning, before the city wakes up. Loving life while the sun is rising. Liking it less once there’s a world to see. Two years on the streets take their toll. Lately, it’s the dream of getting out that keeps Gretchen going.

Until Elizabeth.

Tiny, cold, and silent, she arrives one night on the stairs. It’s not a place Gretchen usually stays. Still, she can’t help but take a stand. They tell her a kid that young will only be trouble. But all she sees is someone who needs her. Someone to take care of. From that moment on, Elizabeth is hers.

At first it’s simple. Easy enough to make Elizabeth smile. Easy to be happy just because she is. Then people start to drift, police start to raid, life gets more and more out of control. The streets aren’t as fun anymore. The dream seems farther and farther away. Today isn’t enough, tomorrow slips from her reach. Only the finality of total loss can bring resolution.