Going Bovine

All 16-year-old Cameron wants is to get through high school—and life in general—with a minimum of effort. It’s not a lot to ask. But that’s before he’s given some bad news: he’s sick and he’s going to die. Which totally sucks. Hope arrives in the winged form of Dulcie, a loopy punk angel/possible hallucination with a bad sugar habit. She tells Cam there is a cure—if he’s willing to go in search of it. With the help of a death-obsessed, video-gaming dwarf and a yard gnome, Cam sets off on the mother of all road trips through a twisted America into the heart of what matters most.

Nathan says 5 stars...
I literally just finished this book. As in I turned the final page about 3 minutes ago. I'm still in a state of shock. That's how good this book is. Note the lack of compound sentences. I'm incapable of complex thought. My processes are being dedicated to figuring out/savoring/loving Going Bovine. I knew that I would probably like this book, I mean, it's Libba Bray. The Gemma Doyle Trilogy is Victorian candy, and her blog is a must read if you like writing, laughing, or living. What I didn't know about this book is that it would, make me invested, make me think, make me laugh, make me distraught, and make me want to live my life to its fullest. Every moment was spectacular and beautiful. It felt organic. The writing was bold, fresh, and perfect. The dialouge felt both surreal and real showcasing Bray's skill. The most stunning thing about Going Bovine has to be her cast of characters. I loved every single character. They all made sense. They all helped the story. The protaginist Cameron is an appropriate semi-blank canvas on which Bray later paints life and love. Gonzo is the unexpected best friend who is dealing with his own identity issues. Balder is the indestructable Norse God yard gnome who brings an old world sensibility and new world kick-buttery to the table. Dulcie is a punk rock angel who tries to guide Cameron and crew through a road trip filled chock full of epicness. This mix of original characters sucks the reader in with a shocking immediacy into an impeccably crafted story. If you like life, laughter, and butt-kicking gnomes Going Bovine is absolutely necessary to life...whatever that is.

A Great and Terrible Beauty

It’s 1895, and after the suicide of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in England. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma’s reception there is a chilly one. To make things worse, she’s been followed by a mysterious young Indian man, a man sent to watch her. But why? What is her destiny? And what will her entanglement with Spence’s most powerful girls—and their foray into the spiritual world—lead to?

from bn.com

Nathan says 5 stars...
I know this is older, but I realized we hadn't even touched on the spectacular Libba Bray on the site. So, now we are. A Great and Terrible Beauty is utterly and totally fantastic. As a guy I was a little hesitant to pick it up, but the title was great as was the synopsis, so I gave in and read it-I am now one of the many Libba Bray acolytes. Let's dive in to what make this book so mind-shatteringly awesome. If you haven't figured it out by now, characters are normally the most important element for me in a novel. Bray's are personal and diverse. They deal with common issues without even bordering on the stereotypical. The main character, Gemma, has to deal with a massive pile of drama. She is dealing with the death of her mother, moving away, fitting in, and, oh yeah, figuring out her magical abilities, AND she does all of this in a corset. Umm, that's pretty bad...well, you get the point. The supporting characters are also great. Felicity is definitely a fave of mine by the end of the series. The plot is fast-paced particuarly for a story set in a boarding school during the Victorian era. The story is unique and touching. The dialogue is witty and fresh. The characters are well-formed and brilliant. Do I have to keep gushing? The point is read it immediately. Once you do, find Libba Bray on twitter and tell her what you think, because she is hilarious. We really, really love her here at in BetweeN the pages, and we're fairly certain you will too.