Croak by Gina Damico

Publisher: Harcourt
Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 311 pages
Series: Croak #1  

                            

Sixteen-year-old Lex Bartleby has sucker-punched her last classmate. Fed up with her punkish, wild behavior, her parents ship her off to upstate New York to live with her Uncle Mort for the summer, hoping that a few months of dirty farm work will whip her back into shape. But Uncle Mort’s true occupation is much dirtier than that of shoveling manure.

He’s a Grim Reaper. And he’s going to teach her the family business.

Lex quickly assimilates into the peculiar world of Croak, a town populated entirely by reapers who deliver souls from this life to the next. Along with her infuriating yet intriguing partner Driggs and a rockstar crew of fellow Grim apprentices, Lex is soon zapping her Targets like a natural born Killer.

Yet her innate ability morphs into an unchecked desire for justice—or is it vengeance?—whenever she’s forced to Kill a murder victim, craving to stop the attackers before they can strike again. So when people start to die—that is, people who aren’t supposed to be dying, people who have committed grievous crimes against the innocent—Lex’s curiosity is piqued. Her obsession grows as the bodies pile up, and a troubling question begins to swirl through her mind: if she succeeds in tracking down the murderer, will she stop the carnage—or will she ditch Croak and join in? 

A Beautiful Dark by:Jocelyn Davies

Publisher: Harper Teen
Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 390 pages
Series: A Beautiful Dark #1

On the night of Skye's seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites;like fire and ice;Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth about her own past.
In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can't help falling for, and Devin, who she can't stay away from, the consequences of Skye's choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine. -quoted from Goodreads

Hourglass by Myra McEntire

Publisher: Egmont USA
Reading level: young adult
Hard cover: 397 pages
Source: Publisher
Series: Hourglass #1

Since the age of fourteen, Emerson Cole has seen strange things--swooning Southern Belles, soldiers, and other eerie apparitions of the past. She's tried everything to get rid of the visions: medication, counseling, asylums. Nothing's worked.
So when Emerson's well-meaning brother calls in yet another consultant from a mysterious organization called the Hourglass, Emerson's willing to give it one last try.
Michael Weaver is no ordinary consultant. He's barely older than she is, he listens like no one she's ever met before, and he doesn't make her feel the least bit crazy. As Emerson ventures deeper into the world of the Hourglass, she begins to learn the truth about her past, her future--and her very life.

When I read the summary for Hourglass the story didn't seem that appealing. I thought it would be the typical "girl sees ghosts" type of book. which is why it took me so long to finally pick it up, but when I finished reading Hourglass I couldn't get over it, I even mentally slapped myself for not wanting to read it earlier. This book is so awesome that I did my first review on it!

Emerson, the main girl leads the kind of life that makes a person appreciate their own. Emerson is the type of person I would look up to if she were real, shes a fighter--literally she has a brown belt and can easily flip a hot guy over her shoulder, but she also fights fate and life everyday trying to keep her sanity. This is where "Mr.Delicious", Michael Weaver comes in. Michael is hired by Emerson's legal guardian and brother Thomas to help her get her mind back. Michael isn't like any other counselor she has had before, he's young, handsome and really seems to care about what she has to say.

I undoubtedly enjoyed the plot for Hourglass there were just so many twists and turns that kept making this book even more interesting. Hourglass seems to have the right amount of everything drama, mystery, action and an intense electrifying romance--literally, Emerson and Michael make light bulbs blow up!!! :D I recommend this book to anyone who loves mystery!

FAVORITE quotes<3

"Does your brother have a gun? If so, get Delicious a bullet proof vest. That boy is way too pretty to have a hole in him." (pg. 191; paperback)

"As he lay on the ground panting, I walked to stand over him, looking down, my smile still in place."so I'll see you later?"