Fresh New Voice of YA- The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin by Josh Berk

The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin by Josh Berk
"Being a hefty, deaf newcomer almost makes Will Halpin the least popular guy at Coaler High. But when he befriends the only guy less popular than him, the dork-namic duo has the smarts and guts to figure out who knocked off the star quarterback. Will can’t hear what’s going on, but he’s a great observer. So, who did it? And why does that guy talk to his fingers? And will the beautiful girl ever notice him? (Okay, so Will’s interested in more than just murder . . .)

Those who prefer their heroes to be not-so-usual and with a side of wiseguy will gobble up this witty, geeks-rule debut."- summary from Amazon

I really enjoyed this book; it was original and had a unique perspective to it. It's not often I read books with male protagonists (that alone is original enough considering YA), but for him to also be deaf and on the large side? Almost unthinkable. I loved reading through Will's perspective with his being deaf because he would have to rely on clues to figure out what was going on rather than simply hearing his classmates make fun of him.

Relying on clues helped him and his friends figure out the murder that happened. Now, I had a bit of a problem with this. I felt like it took way too long for that part of the plot to kick in. I mean, when it's included in the summary, I expect it to begin like 50ish pages into the book, but this didn't start until well after page 100 and I wondered if there would be enough time for that part of the book to develop. I think what Berk did was good, but I think it could've used a bit more screen time.

OK, now I can't review this book and not mention the humor. This book was so funny. I laughed out loud many times while reading this, which definitely got major approval from me since I am a guy who loves to laugh and loves any book with humor. Will was a great character who seemed like such a great guy that you'd love to hang out with- he's hilarious, kind, and full of good intentions. I also enjoyed his friends Devon and Ebony; their interactions were fun to read.

Overall, this is a really good book and I did really enjoy it, despite the flaw mentioned above. Definitely go out and get a copy as soon as you can since the book is in stores now!


FTC: Received hardcover from publisher. Link above is an Amazon Associates link; any profit goes toward funding contests.

Fresh New Voice of YA- The Naughty List Excerpt Vlogs

So today we have not one but TWO excerpt vlogs! Josh and Suz decided to read an "embarassing" snippet (both are just a little over a minute) from the other's book. Today, it's The Naughty List, so after my vlog, Josh's dramatic reading of The Naughty List will be posted. Hope you all enjoy!



(You may have to turn up the sound on this one. Having a headcold for me usually means that I talk lower than I think I am. Headphones may be good to use.)

And here's Josh's!



Hope you all enjoyed both! Be sure to go check out my and Suz's interview with Josh that I posted yesterday.

Fresh New Voice of YA- Josh Berk Interview

1) How did you get the idea for The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin?

The short answer is that there was a week a few years ago where (A) I had a dream about a kid reading lips on a school bus (B) I watched a Law & Order marathon and (C) I watched "My Super Sweet 16" on MTV. So I pulled the ideas together and starting writing a mystery about a deaf student who solves a mystery surrounding a classmate's fancy birthday party. I love how this description makes it seem like all my book research involves is sleeping and watching TV.


2) What is your writing process like? Being a dad, I'm assuming it can be hard to find time to write, revise, edit, be on deadline, etc. How do you manage it all?

How do I manage it all? Badly! I'm always stressed out, exhausted, running late, feeling like I'm not spending enough time on writing and/or feeling like I'm not spending enough time with the kids. I never miss a deadline though! I'm a fan of Red Bull and the furious all-nighter. I recommend my methods to no one.


3) What book(s) are you reading now, or are about to start?

I'm reading Jack Gantos' autobiography, HOLE IN MY LIFE because I'm (hopefully) going to go see him speak at a Children's Literature conference here in PA in April and I wanted to know more about him. Did you know that he did time for smuggling hashish before he became a children's author? Pretty interesting guy. And quite a writer. Joey Pigza FTW!


4) You're a part of the Tenners. How did you get involved with this group, and how has it helped you in getting ready for the release of your book?

Back when I sold my book in 2007 and it was slated to be a 2009 release, I heard about the Class of 2k9 through my friend Cyn Balog who was thinking about joining. It's hard to make your name known as a debut author in the crowded marketplace and my agent agreed that a group like this could be a help for me. So I joined and one of the 2k9ers I met was Heidi Kling. We became friendly and then we both became bumped to 2010.

She told me that she was starting a new group, The Tenners, and asked me if I wanted to be a part of it. I said yes and it has been a big help! The "group marketing" aspect is nice, but really far more important to me has been the comraderie. Basically, it's helped me keep my sanity. It is very helpful to have people going through the same thing as you because being a debut author can be stressful. There's a bunch of stuff you feel like you're supposed to know but you feel dumb asking your publisher. So we ask each other all sorts of these questions ("What does a publicist do?" "What should I wear when I have lunch with my editor?" "What does 'stet' mean?") and someone always knows the answer and shares it happily. Really a great group!

Since Suz and Josh know each other so well, I let them turn the tables on each other so they can ask their own questions. So here is Suz's interview with Josh:

Amazing Josh Berk, you secretly want to be a Smitten Kitten don't you? I've heard that you are an awesome cheerleader. Any dope cheers you'd like to share?

You know, when I was in high school I was on the basketball team. Technically I was the last man on the basketball team. I sat next to the cheerleaders and spent more time talking to them than watching the game. Sometimes they would give me pom-poms. There was no chance that I was ever going to get in to the game anyway. So really, it's actually true that I am an awesome cheerleader! My favorite is that one where you spell "aggressive" and tell the team to be aggressive. As in "B.E. A.G.G.R.E.S.S.I.V.E. BE! AGGRESSIVE!" That one rules. I know a bunch of them. Just don't ask me to do a split.


Hamburger Halpin--what a great character. If you were a character in one of my books--what do you think your name would be and what sort of issues would you have?

I'd probably be named Brock Studlyton and my main "issue" would probably be a paralyzing fear of walnuts. That and being so sexy it hurts.


If you could be on any reality show, which one would it be? And if you say Jersey Shore I'll knee you in the nards.

Trick question. Because I was on a reality show when I visited Japan in 1997. It is called "Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai ya Arahende!!" and it is hilarious. Unfortunately my episode never aired because, well, let's just say some of my behavior was inappropriate even for Japanese Televison.

p.s. Jersey Shore rulez!


I heard this wild rumor... were you once a model?

Well, you know ... I was in college and I needed a quick way to make some money ... books don't pay for themselves, you know! ... And, the job listing in the campus paper just said they needed someone for the art department's figure drawing class and ... HOW WAS I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THEY MEANT NUDE MODELING?

I held that job for three semesters.

In My Mailbox- Week of February 1 + Retrospective

I am feeling too sick to post pics and summaries, so you're only getting links. Luckily, I only got three books so linking should be easy. Here's what I got:

The Reckoning by Kelley Armstrong
After by Kristin Harmel
Wherever Nina Lies by Lynn Weingarten


I can feel the waves of jealousy already. MWAHAHAHA! But please, even though you're jealous, please go comment on these wonderful reviews I posted this week:

Monday- I reviewed A Match Made in High School by Kristin Walker.

Wednesday- I reviewed Heist Society by Ally Carter (which just received some wonderful movie news!! Also, I am going to see Ally in Bethesda, MD on the 16th- anyone else going?).

Friday- I reviewed Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr.


And also, go check out Devyn's Podcast set for February 8 with some wonderful and amazing authors! Click on the link to find out who will be there!

Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr

Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr
"Samara Taylor used to believe in miracles. She used to believe in a lot of things. As a pastor's kid, it's hard not to buy in to the idea of the perfect family, a loving God, and amazing grace. But lately, Sam has a lot of reason to doubt. Her mother lands in rehab after a DUI and her father seems more interested in his congregation than his family. When a young girl in her small town is kidnapped, the local tragedy overlaps with Sam's personal one, and the already-worn thread of faith holding her together begins to unravel.

In her third novel, acclaimed author Sara Zarr examines the coexistence of affliction and hope, and what happens when everything you thought you believed---about God, about your family, about yourself---is transformed."- summary from Amazon

I love Sara Zarr's books and when you combine her fabulous writing with internal religious conflict and doubts about faith, I am all over it. Despite my being apathetic toward religion, I do love reading about it and learning more about it, my favorite being books that take a look at what it means to have faith and be religious. Samara is a wonderful heroine who learns to be herself and is realistic with her doubts and flaws considering what is going on in her community. Her questioning during this situation is understandable and I could easily identify myself with Samara's character.

Zarr does a great job of balancing different aspects of her novels, showing off family life, friendships, inner turmoil, all with ease and fluidity. Each aspect gets enough screen time that I didn't feel slighted by any of those areas. The disappearance of Jody works well with this story and it was intriguing to watch this event unravel and it hits home because this kind of thing happens every day.

Basically, what I'm saying is that Zarr has another winner on her hands and I'm so glad I got to read this book and can't wait for her next!

Heist Society by Ally Carter

Heist Society by Ally Carter
"When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her on a trip to the Louvre...to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria...to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own--scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving "the life" for a normal life proves harder than she'd expected.

Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster has been robbed of his priceless art collection and wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help. For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in history--or at least her family's (very crooked) history."- summary from Amazon

Carter has got the market on spy books; her attention to detail and clever plotlines make her books the most fun to read and they're so unique. I don't think I've ever read a book about a family of thieves before. Heist Society is the start of a new series, and it's one I know Gallagher Girls fans will enjoy immensely, especially while waiting for the next GG book. Kat is a bold, serious, and very smart heroine, one readers can look up to and root for.

Carter does a great job with romance too, and this novel is no different. It's definitely a lower-tier plotline, as the story is more about the heist, but it shines through in the small patches it's in and is realistic in its portrayal. It takes time for a romance to begin and blossom, and the signs are starting, and it's just so cute. I loved it, and am really wanting to see how it all turns out!

The scenarios Carter writes are so amazing and full of suspense, and it was so hard to put the book down. I flew through this book and loved reading about Kat's adventure, as well as about all the exotic places she went to throughout the story; I didn't want it to end, though of course it had to. I'm excited about it being a series, and I can't wait to see what happens next to Kat and her friends!

FTC: Received ARC from publisher. Amazon link is an Associate link; all profit goes toward funding contests.

A Match Made in High School by Kristin Walker

A Match Made in High School by Kristin Walker
"When the principal announces that every senior must participate in a mandatory year-long Marriage Education program, Fiona Sheehan believes that her life can’t get any worse. That’s until she marries her “husband”: jerky jock Todd, whose cheerleader girlfriend, Amanda, has had it in for Fiona since day one of second grade. Even worse? Amanda is paired with Fiona’s long-term crush, Gabe. At least Fiona is doing better than her best friend, Marcie, who is paired up with the very quiet, very dorky, very big Johnny Mercer.

Pranks, fights, misunderstandings, and reconciliations ensue in an almost Shakespearean comedy of errors about mistaken first impressions, convoluted coupling, and hidden crushes."- summary from Amazon

OH. MY. GOD. I LOVED THIS BOOK!!! I flew through it so quickly and it was just amazing. It's such a cute book, but it has a bit of emotional depth to it too, which I really liked. My favorite bits were when Fiona and Todd were together; the zingers they throw at each other are just so hilarious and had me laughing out loud. I loved their interactions. The romance was also done really well because I wasn't sure who Fiona would end up with, at least not right away; that definitely helped me to enjoy the book a bit more with that small mystery.

Now, a few days ago, while reading the book, I went and looked for some reviews. I found one review where the blogger had said that they almost put the book down after 100 pages or so because Fiona's character was so self-centered and was being a bitch to everyone she knew. When I read that, I was shocked because I thought EVERYONE ELSE was being a bitch to Fiona for absolutely no reason, which is why I was looking for other reviews to see if other people mentioned it. This brought me to a question: Am I self-centered for not seeing that Fiona was being selfish and self-centered, and for sympathizing with her? Because I was seriously like "WTF? Why is everyone so mad at Fiona? She's not doing anything wrong!" Which, in at least one situation, I still don't think she was wrong and think her "friends" were being bitchy for no reason. Feel free to ask me about it if you've read the book.

Another thing that made me happy was the inclusion of a gay couple; it's very biased of me, but I love it when gay people are represented well in YA books. I also quite enjoyed a particular exchange that happened when this couple was introduced; it made me giggle a lot. I also liked Fiona's parents, especially her mom and what she did to protest the marriage course going on. The book has a lot of fantastic, memorable characters, but there isn't enough room to really get to know them and so they aren't developed to their full potential, but that's ok. The events of the book and the witty exchanges keep the story alive and well. This is a really good novel, and I can't wait to read more from Kristin Walker.

FTC: ARC provided by publisher. Amazon link is an Associate link; any profit goes toward funding contests.