J.S. FrankelRezensionen

Complex intergalactic conflict? Political intrigue? Deception and betrayal? If these things are your cup of tea, then Randor’s Moon is a must-read for you!
Randor, a young scientist – one of the last living scientists among his people – is tasked with the impossible: finding a cure to a virus found in a race of creatures he’s never met until that afternoon. And if he doesn’t? No big deal. The creatures of Falanar will just keep bombing his planet into extinction.
With the fate of his people hanging in the balance, Randor journeys with Minnara, the Crown Princess of this warring nation, to Falanar in order to run his tests and apply a cure, but things go terribly wrong when their navigation system forces their spacecraft into the tail of a passing comet. This freak accident (or was it an accident?) destroys their craft, marooning them on a moon inhabited by fearsome and horrific creatures.
If Randor and Minnara wish to survive, they will have to find some way to put aside their grievances and work together. Things only get increasingly complicated, however, when the sentient inhabitants of the planet become hostile, Minnara starts to show symptoms of the virus, and help is slow to arrive. If Randor’s wits and Minnara’s strength fail, it’s only a matter of time before they succumb to the terrors of this frightening world, and with their deaths will come the extinction of both of their peoples.
J. S. Frankel keeps you on your toes and guessing all the way to the end of this Young Adult Sci-Fi tale of self-resilience and survival!

Paul used to be normal. He used to play baseball, ride bicycles, and run like all the other kids his age, until a genetic heart condition ruined all that. At the age of twelve, he experienced his first heart episode--an episode of tachycardia that caused him to collapse. Ever since then, while the other kids continue with their normal lives, running, playing sports, planning for college, Paul just hopes he'll get to see tomorrow.

Now seventeen, Paul tries to make the most of it. Sure, he can't handle more than a simple walk around the neighborhood with the girl next door and his school has painted a parking space for an ambulance on his behalf they've come so frequent, but Paul continues life doing the things he's able to do. He studies a lot, watches movies, hangs out with his two friends--the only people in school who haven't written him off and moved on that is.

But when a stranger in the park asks Paul what he wants more than anything, he tells the truth: He'd like a do-over.

And so the stranger shoots him.

Really.

Paul wakes up in the hospital the next day, disoriented, but complaining about the random person who shot him in the chest. The doctors are baffled. There's no entry or exit wound, but radiological imagery shows a bullet lodged next to his heart. The thing is, though, the bullet is moving. Around and around it goes, circling his heart. And if that wasn't baffling enough, some of the images report it as being there then not, as if it's intangible.

Well, since Paul would never survive an operation due to his weakened heart, there's not much they can do about it. They'll just have to wait until Paul is dead to remove the thing. But that does not stop the CIA from circling like vultures. Sure, they do their part protecting Paul while they're there, which is especially lucky since a group of creepy, smelly aliens show up demanding whatever Paul has inside of him.

The chase is on as Paul, his girlfriend, and his CIA handlers race from one safe house to the next while the advanced alien race pursues them. With each encounter, they lose more and more of their numbers--including Paul's small circle of family and friends. Between the pursuing aliens, his weak heart, and the CIA's continued talk of basically 'disappearing' Paul, the teen is hard pressed, and it just might be time to take matters into his own hands.

I received this book for free as part of a review exchange. I had read Frankel's work before, but while I like the other book, I really like this one. Frankel's tone for Paul's voice was spot on, and I found myself caring and liking the protagonist pretty quick. I felt each loss, each pain. I felt the fear, the mystery, and the desire to just stay alive, even if by all logic, that's just not going to be possible.

The story was sci-fi, which is a genre I sometimes struggle with, but Frankel did a good job of holding his reader's hand throughout the story and taking them on this wild journey! It was a lot of fun and I'd recommend it for other readers.

Jake’s life has been challenging, growing up alone with his mother after his father died, and then dealing with having a brain tumor removal operation, which leads him with some speech and walking disabilities, but he has found some success writing and publishing a sci-fi novel as he is getting through high school. Now, as he is working on his next novel just weeks before summer vacation wraps up his junior year, he begins receiving messages from a contact named Miranda on his computer, only to eventually discover that Miranda is an AI program personality on the internet. After being directed to her creator, Dr. Schreiber, Jake is given the neural connection equipment to mentally enter the internet and virtually travel through it with Miranda. However, Schreiber’s former villainous employer, Marvin Throckmorton, and his cronies are after Jake and Miranda in order to take total control of the internet. This is a very imaginative YA cybernetic romance thriller told in the first person by Jake, with a few plot stretches, but generally enjoyable for the nerdier young romantics.

Such a fun read and well-written. This is the story of a teenage boy who early on is bullied and is a bit of a nerd in my opinion, and then he meets a beautiful girl from an alien planet and then the story really begins. The M/C, Vic, is so funny to me - quick witted, sarcastic and honest & genuine - and Iris was a strong female character that I really liked. The plot is fun and exciting, and I think this is a really good YA book if you're looking for something well written with a good plot and fun to read. I hope that we have more books about Vic and Iris as both were memorable characters.

Martin attempts to get the autographs of his favorite tv stars but instead discovers that they are aliens fighting against an enemy intent on enslaving them. I liked the idea of the book- life imitating art and how Martin gets tangled up in it, but I found it a hard read, primarily because while written from Martins PoV you don't seem to get the full picture of what is going on around him. Some of the sentences are almost like a diary entry in the sense that it seems like it is for the writer and since they were there it does not need to include all the details. If you are a scifi fan then the book is worth a read.

Wow - what a fun and unique ride! This is going to be a great series!

Anyone who is an obsessive fan of anything will be able to relate to this story, but this one has a very different twist that will pull in science fiction fans and keep them enthralled. Action, drama, and humor add to the sci-fi, and the characterization is fantastic. The only thing that could be better - the cover. It doesn't do this great story justice.

Looking forward to continuing to read this series!

Rating: 3.75

The feels in this book . . . man! I didn't cry, but there were plenty of moments to have done so. I also didn't laugh too much, but that was because of the darker plot. This book had a steady pace, but each chapter ended on a mini-cliffhanger that made me unable to put it down. It was absolutely incredible. J.S. clearly did his research on the topic, and it came across very well. I love that this book was written from Nolan's POV. We got to see him adjust to learning about Mia. I felt for her, but I felt for him too. I think J.S. did a great job with a romance and really getting the reader to accept Mia and root for her and Nolan.

We also got to see Nolan's mom come to terms with everything, and then of course the outside world when Mia was outed. I think I would have cried in this book had the blurb not given so much away.

I also liked that the teens didn't have cell phones or cars. It made it feel like it took place in the early 2000s, which was when I was a teen, so I really enjoyed that.

Though this book has a lower rating than the one I gave Catnip, I liked it more. I know that doesn't make much sense, but I have a chart I go by and I stick to it. Enjoyment wise, this sucker is a 5.

Anyway, I did have a few issues with it. Some of the dialogue was too similar. Everyone said "er" even the parents and principle. It just pulled me out a little bit. Some of the phrases and word choices felt odd (intoned, silence ruled). I've never heard anyone talk like that. This didn't happen in Catnip; well intoned did, but the character was a bit more mature, so having a bigger vocabulary wasn't off-putting. I think it was because this book was in first person and the author was trying to use "hip" phrases that aren't hip. But, it could have just been a character quirk, so who cares. It wasn't a big deal.

Despite the "er's", I felt the character's all had distinct voices and motives. Sometimes Mia came off as a bit hyper sensitive/immature. Not all the time, and it didn't even have to do with her being transgender. I can't recall any specifics off the top of my head, it was just something I noticed.

The only other thing I didn't like was the betrayal of Christians (not all religious people show up on your doorstep condensing you) and the general reactions of some of the people. A bit over-dramatic? I honestly don't think anyone would care as much as they did in this book. It felt a little unrealistic. Not the mom, that felt honest, and Nolan felt honest, and even Chase and her BF. Mason's hatred seemed to fit his personality. I'm talking about the no name characters. I don't think people would come up to someone and ask about their genitalia. I know I wouldn't. Hell, when it comes to transgender people, I'm afraid of using the wrong pronoun and being offensive, especially if the aren't even transgender to begin with. Sometimes it's hard to tell. Anyway, most people are supporters as far as I'm concerned, or at least they are tolerant. BUT I'm not part of the LGBT community, except maybe the A part, so maybe I just don't see all that goes on. Early 90s? Hell, yeah, these reactions are completely realistic.

Alright enough of the negativity, I really did love this book and highly commend it to anyone looking for an out-of-the-box romance, transgender lit, or something with an early 2000's city vibe. After reading this, I recommend [b:Golden Boy|15802886|Golden Boy|Abigail Tarttelin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1419213016s/15802886.jpg|21526297] [bc:Golden Boy|15802886|Golden Boy|Abigail Tarttelin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1419213016s/15802886.jpg|21526297]. It's about an intersex boy who get's raped and has his sexuality put into question. It's not endorsed by the intersex community, but I think it does hold some value when analyzing the effects of rape. Now if you want a memoir of an intersex person, I recommend [bc:Intersex|4166120|Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word)|Thea Hillman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1354903173s/4166120.jpg|4213417] [b:Intersex|4166120|Intersex (For Lack of a Better Word)|Thea Hillman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1354903173s/4166120.jpg|4213417].

Rating: 4.75

This book was excellent. It follows an 18yo genius who has never had a girl friend. He gets in trouble with the law for research he has conducted, but then they need his help and strike up a deal. From that point on, I was hooked.

The pace of this book is very fast, except in the parts where further explanation is needed. Those were the only parts that felt boring. Honestly, I think the rest of the book was so intense that I made those slow sections feel that way when they might not have been. I was just spoiled. Still, I didn't feel like anything was an info dump or fluff.

All of the characters introduced where vital to the plot and unique. I especially liked Harry, Anastasia, and Jason. Anastasia developed throughout the book, and I loved her sass. Jason was the best sort of best friend. He was also smart. At one point he had everyone dress up for cosplay to get through a security check point. Harry got braver throughout the book and stood up for himself and Anastasia with his mind and body. I loved seeing their relationship grow throughout the book. My favorite part was when Harry kissed her under the bed and she pretended to be a real cat.

The mood of this book was frantic & romantic. The characters would be chased by a monster or hunted down by the government, then they'd find safety and strengthen there relationship before the next crazy thing happened. This book wasn't at all predictable. That's why I struggled to put it down. It was hilarious as well. I found myself stopping to highlight the funny lines and even wound up live tweeting them because I had to let others laugh too. I didn't cry but not for lack of empathy. I cared about the characters and I was sad when they were sad, but with the constant flow of action, I couldn't stop to dwell on anything too hard.

There are four more book in this series (that I know of), and have high hopes for them all. This book, despite being written in a more adult-like style, held my interest. (I'm pretty much a YAaterian, so this says something. It also dealt genetic engineering and scientific research, and it read as if the author had done some research on the subject before spewing words onto the page. I will definitely be reading more from this author, and I may continue with this series in the future.

If you enjoyed this book, I recommend [b:Angelfall|15863832|Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days, #1)|Susan Ee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1381264956s/15863832.jpg|16435765] [bc:Angelfall|15863832|Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days, #1)|Susan Ee|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1381264956s/15863832.jpg|16435765] and the subsequent books in the series. The series has angels, which aren't in this series, but the MC is in love with an angel, which is forbidden, much like falling in love with a catlady. On top of that, the series has mutated beings and a ton of action.

My oh my what a journey! This book is absolurely amazing! The main character, as well as all the supporting characters, are so real you can not help but to connect with them. I really took my time reading this authors' gift. And that is what it is, a "gift". Full of action, intrigue and wonder, This "gift" has many themes, but my favorite is:
"Everything in life is a gamble". Thank you Jesse. Forge on!
~Linie Sherrod

***I received a free copy in exchange for a book review***

I loved this 13 chapter book. It was told through Sam’s first person point-of-view. The author was great with voice; it sounded authentic like the way a 17 year old guy, who’s losing it all, would think and act. I loved his sense of humor–sarcasm.

I immediately felt sorry for Sam. He and his girlfriend broke up because she wanted to live her social life instead of take care of her dying boyfriend. He had a fatal illness with no cure or surgery to offer comfort. Plus, Sam’s poor mom. I couldn’t even imagine knowing my child would leave Earth before me.

Luckily, they found a doctor who dabbled in experimental science–the consciousness of a human’s mind would be transferred to a computer program chip instead of a disabled body.

My favorite lines: 1) How would one go to the bathroom here? I mean, what would come out, bytes? 2) Disease didn’t care who it got and death cared even less. 3) So far, I’d died and gone to cyberspace, dodged a cyclops, fought a duel, and decked a king. Real or not, it beat watching television.

Once Sam entered the cyberspace world, the pages were action-packed with adventure. Twists kept me entertained as well as trying to solve the mystery of: Who was responsible for the tragedy at the lab? And, why did Boris and Merlin want Sam dead so badly within cyberspace?

The author painted a vivid picture with cool dialogue, overall setting details, characterization, voice, plot, and description. I could definitely see this as a Blockbuster hit.

My favorite moments were when Boris and Merlin were chasing Sam. I liked that he was proactive in helping himself instead of waiting for help. I also enjoyed that he researched for answers–reminded me of Sherlock Holmes or something. My other favorite moments were when he met a mysterious 17 year old girl in cyberspace. She had a sad past as well, so as a reader, I appreciated that they bonded over that.

I RECOMMEND this book to read.