Guest Post: Emily’s Reading Room

Today we are lucky enough to have Emily from Emily’s Reading Room sharing her top three book picks for The Hunger Games fans. I actually found Emily by searching for Divergent stuff and I fell in love with her blog. She writes a book blog and her tastes are right up my alley you should check it out. Without further delay here are Emily’s suggestions.

Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer. If you couldn’t get enough of the action in The Hunger Games, then Life as We Knew it is the book for you. When a meteor hits the moon, the entire planet is sent into disarray as natural disasters wipe out parts of the world, and the survivors are left to pick up the pieces. This book is told in diary format from the point of view of Miranda, a girl living in semi-rural Pennsylvania, and follows her family as they try to survive. You won’t be able to put it down until you’re done, and you’ll be stockpiling food and other essentials by the end.
 

Blood Red Road by Moira Young. If it’s Katniss you loved, then give Blood Red Road a try. Saba is a heroine to root for. Saba and her family live out in the desert wilderness with barely enough to survive. Saba is sent on a journey when cloaked horsemen kidnap her brother, murder her father, and she is left with nothing else but to find her beloved brother. Of course, she does have her sister Emmi to worry about (much to her chagrin). Blood Red Road is written in a unique style with no quotation marks, and phonetic spelling. This only adds to the charm and rugged quality of the book. It was one of my favorite reads last year.

Partials by Dan Wells. If it’s the oppressive government that you can’t get enough of, then Partials will be right up your alley. Humanity has become an endangered species when the governments genetically modified killing machine clones, the Partials, turn on them. Match that with a mysterious plague that kills all the new babies, and you’ve got a timer that is ticking away on the human race. Kira is a young, aspiring scientist who will stop at nothing to find the cure for this mysterious disease. Of course, she discovers that the cure may come at a very high cost. Partials was released on February 28, and it’s going to be a show stopper.

Starters by Lissa Price. Just like Katniss will do anything to protect Prim, Callie is determined to keep her little brother, Tyler, safe. Even if that means renting out her body to Enders, senior citizens who yearn to be young again. If she can complete three rentals, she will receive a generous sum of money. Enough to buy a house, a luxury she hasn’t had since the death of her parents and almost every other person between the ages of 20-60. But, during her final rental, she discovers that the person renting her body is planning on using her as an assassin. “Starters” has a fantastic plot with lots
 of twists and turns. And, as a bonus, there are several e-book short stories that will be released, and the sequel will be out in December 2012!

Matched by Ally Condie. Maybe the violence and mayhem in The Hunger Games was too much, and you’d like a more thoughtful discourse on freedom and making choices. Matched, by Ally Condie, is set in the future where every decision of the citizens of the Society are decided for them. Including who and when to marry. Cassia received her match, her best friend Xander, and couldn’t be more thrilled. But, when another name pops up on her screen, and a boy that she knows, she’s left with a choice. Who is right for her? Matched, and its sequel Crossed, are not as action-packed as the Hunger Games, but they are beautifully written. The final book, Reached, will be released this fall.