Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin

I read this in an hour or less.  This ties in well with Soviet History.  The author/illustrator has at the end of the story a personal notation about an experience he had with the secret police when he lived in the Soviet Union.
Very good book and I hope this will be up for an award.  It takes us into the world of a 10 year old living in a communal apartment building and how quickly people can turn on you.  The illustrations are perfect for this story.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card creates masterful characters: Ender who is isolated and outsmarting battle strategies while he is dealing with Bullies.  His older brother, Peter who tortures small animals and plans to take over the world all before reaching the age of 18.  His sister who is equally smart but with a kind heart.  This is quite the story of mind games and beating the dreaded "Buggers" of space.  Excellent book.

Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

The characters are well developed in this story with the exception of Grace's parents.  They for the last two books have been pretty much absent or brief visits in the story of this teen age girl's life.  Finally towards the end of the story, Grace gives them a lecture when the parents finally do take over.  If you enjoy this series, you won't be disappointed.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

I was able to hear this story in audio.  This is an amazing story.  Full of insight.  I only wish I could write like this.  Our hero is named September, her father is a coder for WWII and her mother works in a factory.  The Green Wind invites her to go into fairyland.  This is a richly written work and I will look forward to more writings of this author.

Faery tales & Nightmares by Melissa Marr

I was able to read an advanced copy, and this is my first time reading something from this author.  It is not your typical easy to read book.  There are several different short stories threaded with this secret violent fairy world set in modern times.  The nature of the book is a bit on the dark side.

The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

I really enjoyed this book.  It's very chilling as to who is the puppet master in this thriller.  Lots of twists and turns so it's hard to figure out who might be the guilty person.  You also meet Sutton, the dead sister as she narrates the story in the perspective of a ghost.  The contrast of the two separated girls' lives is huge.  Emma is a foster girl who has lived in many a foster home and was kicked out of the last one because of the false accusations.  Meanwhile Sutton, the adopted daughter of a affluent and rich family a few states over has been cruel to other students.  Sutton the ghost, gets to see what she has done to others in fresh eyes.  A good read.

Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog by Ted Kerasote

I got to hear this as an audiobook.  Merle was a great dog and reminded me of the great dogs in my life.  This the story of Merle and Ted, how they met and what they learned from each other.  Sprinkled into the story are bits of research about dogs and they behavior.  Over all, its the story about the dog and the relationship with Ted that draws you in.  Good book.

Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs

This is a fun no brainer kind of story.  Entertaining.  It's about three identical sisters separated by birth and are descendants of Medusa.  They have certain abilities to be able to get rid of monsters on the streets of San Francisco.  The monsters are disguised as humans but the sisters can see through the guise.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

If you get the chance to hear the audio version of this book, do it.  Well crafted, this story is, taking us into a celtic island filled rich with a culture and tradition that is believable that it could very well indeed exist.  Go and listen to the author's accounting of how this story came to be and make sure you check out the youtube animation of the Scorpio Races short that ties in to the story.  This is on my top ten list of all time favorite stories.  The book is filled with characters in this tiny island where every year people die violent deaths from this frightening horserace of these dangerous horses that rise up from the ocean.  Sean has takes care of his boss's beautiful water horse and also deals with the boss's jealous son.  Kate wants to save the family farm, her parents were killed by the capaill uisc, and her older brother has decided to leave the island for the mainland and leaves her and her younger brother behind.  Both riders have a stake in the race to win.  Well worth reading.

Crossed by Ally Condi

I heard this book on audio and really enjoyed listening to the story.  I kept wondering if Ky and Cassia would meet again.  I loved the description of the canyons and climbing and the secret farmers.  This is another dystopian novel, the speed has picked up compared to Matched, and instead of one evil person controlling the shots, it's society vs. the teens.  Good story line.  Enjoyed and will read book 3 once it comes out.

Fire by Kristin Cashore

This is the sequel to Graceling.  These characters are vibrant and the plot captivating.  There are two possible romances in this story.  The opening of the book introduces Graceling's evil, probably the most evil character, I've come across in my readings.  Cashore really knows how to make this character a smooth manipulator.  Once you get past the opening, you meet new characters and a new world.  I highly recommend this book.  My students have also enjoyed the book and we just found out the third book is coming out May 15, 2012.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

In a future Chicago setting, this dystopian novel has the lead character named Tris having to choose which faction of society to enter when she turns 16 years old.  There are five to choose from: Candor the honest, Abnegation the selfless, Dauntless the brave, Amity the peaceful and Erudite the intelligent.  Tris finds out from her test results that she is a divergent, and to not tell anyone.  Her test results are deleted.  She decides to leave her family of Abnegation for the daring Dauntless.  Fighting her way into this world to discover secrets and more riddles.  This is a page turner for sure and finished it in a day.  If you love Hunger Games, this book is the next series to read.  Characters are well developed and plot has you going down the Rabbit Hole.
Enjoy, I look forward to the next novel.

Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare

This is a great series full of adventure, romance, dark mystery and brooding, part Gothic, part steam punk it is a fun read. The characters are fully developed and the plot works well.  Written for teens and adults to enjoy reading.  I'm looking forward to the next in this series.  Set in London in the 1800's, you meet werewolves, ghosts, demons, vampires and demon fighters.  But beware of the clockwork devices that have no soul and are an army of fighting machines.  As I said, this is an enjoyable read and start with Clockwork Angel, book 1 of the series.