Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula

Princess Decomposia and Count Spatula  by Andi Watson (graphic novel)

Princess Decomposia of the Undead is overwhelmed with work.  Ghost papers to sign, alien reports to read, werewolf dignitaries to entertain...and her father the King is no help at all.  But when a vampire with a sweet tooth joins the Royal Staff, some changes are on the wing...and so is a bit of romance.

A cute love story with plenty of unexpected twists.  I've never considered Chocolate Monster Cake as a possible defense strategy for zombies...but maybe I should. 

Recommended for ages 10 to adult.  No cussing or sex, but lots of fun (un-) dead stuff.

Poisoned Apples

Poisoned Apples : poems for you, my pretty  by Christine Heppermann

After the kiss and the trip to the castle, Sleeping Beauty's day consists of showering, shaving, shampooing, conditioning....and so much more.  Little Miss Muffet signs up for a drastic diet to try to assuage decades of dairy-fed weight.  A "house of bricks" girl gradually starves herself down to mere straw.

In this poetry collection, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, the Miller's Daughter, and many other folkloric ladies are besieged by modern body image issues including eating disorders, social pressure, verbal and physical abuse, and sexual situations.  

This collection is uneven and repetitive.  Some poems are deftly created, merging a traditional tale with modern sensibilities, offering insight to both.

Other pieces clunk when they roll, with messages about fat girls, mean boys, and relentless striving to conquer societal expectations, delivered via a merciless hammer fist and no reference to any external story.

Teachers and lovers of poetry will find useful bits of brilliance here, but the verses may be best enjoyed in small tastes, rather than large gulps.

All These Things I've Done

All These Things I've Done  by Gabrielle Zevin

16-year-old Anya is the heir to to the "family business":  chocolate. 

In the year 2083, chocolate is a controlled substance, and Anya's family is a modern mafia, importing chocolate and other prohibited luxuries to New York.   Her parents were both killed in mob hits, leaving Anya in charge of a younger sister, a brain-injured older brother, and a dying grandmother.  Anya considers herself the least romantic girl in the world...until she falls in love with Win Delacroix, the son of New York's new assistant DA.

Then Anya's ex-boyfriend nearly dies from eating a poisoned bar of Balanchine Chocolate, and the story begins to twist and turn and twist again.

Crime, drama, chocolate, forbidden romance...and this is only the first book!  At least two more in the Birthright series are already in the works. 

This book contains some sexual situations (including a steamy "near miss" scene in a hotel room) with no actual body parts on the page.  There is no cussing, some not-very-bloody mob violence, and several scenes of alcohol consumption by teens; in 2083, alcohol is legal for all ages, but coffee is not.

Recommended for ages 14 to adult.