Beastly by Alex Flinn

The guy who used to be Kyle Kingsbury has been transformed by… well… a witch, after standing up the wrong girl for prom.  But he gave a rose to the girl taking the tickets, and for that he gets a chance to redeem himself.  His father is a news anchor and never home anyway, but when he thinks Kyle’s new appearance could jeopardize his job (or his ratings!), Kyle gets a house to himself (and his housekeeper, and his tutor) to do with what he likes, as long as he stays inside and out of sights and has, you know, no contact at all with the outside world.  He has two years to be kissed by someone who truly loves him, someone he loves truly in return.  Will he find someone who can look beyond his appearance?

Beastly is scheduled to be made into a movie, with Neil Patrick Harris playing Kyle’s blind tutor, and Vanessa Hudgens and Mary-Kate Olsen playing two of the girls in Kyle’s life.

Review by Kathleen from a library copy.

Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You by Peter Cameron

James Sveck may not be the most likeable guy.  In the summer after high school, he’s decided that he doesn’t want to go to college after all.  He’d rather take the money his dad would have spent on four years at Brown and buy a house in the midwest.  This would be a complete change of pace for James after his upbringing in New York City with his artist and art gallery owner mother and hot-shot lawyer father.  As the summer progresses, James doesn’t really know what he wants, and what starts out as friendly joking with the other guy who works at his mother’s gallery might have more consequences than James thinks.

Review by Kathleen from a library copy

Everlost by Neal Shusterman

Nick’s eating a candy bar when he dies.  Allie’s arguing with her dad about the radio and adjusting her blouse.  A couple seconds later, Nick and Allie meet when they crash through the tunnel from this world to whatever’s after life.  And that’s when the story starts.  Nick and Allie wake up most of a year later not knowing that they’re dead.  Obviously, they want to get back to their parents who must be worried sick about them.  But another boy they meet in the woods explains the situation to them.  Are they stuck being ghosts forever?  Can they trust anyone or anything in the ghost world?  Or are Nick and Allie truly lost?

Review by Kathleen from a library copy