Super cute and light hearted. This is one of those books you'll want to pick up when you want that guaranteed HEA.

!!!!! Scythe very well could be my favorite fall release. Seriously, it is one of the most perfect books I have read. The story is engaging, the characters are well-developed, the conflict is relatable to current events, and writing that makes you wish you were in high school English class so you could write an essay on all of the beautiful elements.

The growth of civilization was complete. Everyone knew it. When it came to the human race, there was no more left to learn. Nothing about our own existence to decipher. Which meant that no one person was more important than any other. In fact, in the grand scheme of things, everyone was equally useless.
Scythe is set in a utopian society where the human race has finally figured out the answers in the universe, including how to live forever, but continues to procreate. As you can imagine, this causes a bit of a population control issue. Enter the Scythes, a body of reaper-esque humans tasked with gleaning a subset of humans to keep the Earth liveable. The Scythes function on their own set of rules, separate from the Thunderhead, the omniscient cloud-based AI which oversees the rest of humanity.

The Scythe Commandments
1) Thou shalt kill.
2) Thou shalt kill with no bias, bigotry, or malice aforethought.
3) Thou shalt grant an annum of immunity to the beloved of those who accept your coming, and to anyone else you deem worthy.
4) Thou shalt kill the beloved of those who resist.
5) Thou shalt serve humanity for the full span of thy days, and thy family shall have immunity as recompense for as long as you live.
6) Thou shalt lead an exemplary life in word and deed.
7) Thou shalt kill no scythe beyond thyself.
8) Thou shalt claim no earthly possessions, save thy robes and thy ring.
9) Thou shalt have neither spouse nor spawn.
10) Thou shalt be beholden to no laws beyond these.
More and more Scythes are needed as the population grows, which is where Citra and Rowan enter the scene. Both are recruited as apprentices and get an inside gander of the life of a Scythe. Seems great to have immunity from death for yourself and your family, as well as having a purpose, right? Being a Scythe is the ultimate responsibility, something they'll both pay dearly for as the story moves on.

In a profession where conscience is a liability, who would want one?

Humans are still humans, bound to special laws or not. There will always be loopholes and interpretations, which are handled by a body of governing Scythes. One Scythe in specific takes liberties with the rules, which is the focal point of most of the plot.

Neal Shusterman pens this story with absolute grace and poetry. This is a story of death and morals and love and what it is to be human. The way he explores technological impact makes his world seem absolutely plausible - and I am absolutely terrified.

Buckle up, kids, because we are all aboard the FEELS train with Mirror of Fate. In a world of doom and gloom, Gwenda explores what's going on with Seyah and brings an unexpected relationship to the forefront...And here at Ravenous Reader, we bought the tickets to the front of the train!

The kiss. The kiss she knew she'd obsess over instead of going to sleep.

I had the chance to meet Gwenda at YallFest and SQUEE over ReMade, which she replied, "What about that kissing scene? eh? eh?" with a little eyebrow wiggle. Indeed. I was on a plane when I read it and had to contain my fist pumping (sorry, nice man next to me).

These are the lives we have left. It's time to live, not just run.

Baths. The teens find some hot springs and FINALLY get to take a bath. Following up on the last episode, they do not yet make it to the twinkly lights - city - they saw previously. We still have 5 episodes left for them to figure out what the story is there.

I appreciate Gwenda exploring cultures, white privilege, and generally confronting bias in the span of 29 pages.

I am so glad this book exists.

It’s difficult to put into words what I felt reading this book. So many tears for both the tragic and happy parts of the story. I found myself aching for the allegorical (and literal) references to homo- and transphobia, told through the eyes of Isaak and a group of "others" (youth who find out at age 18 they are robots, through no choice of their own) who are out in force throughout the book. To the obvious hate crimes and the metaphorical ones for those born different due to something out of their control. There was also a message of hope and love, of friendship and ally-ship. Simon does a fantastic job of describing the emotions, and head on collisions, the characters experience, positive and negative.

BOY ROBOT, a YA sci-fi metaphor about what happens when we start hunting people for being "other" and denying their humanity. https://t.co/19UWFRIZym
— Simon Curtis (@simoncurtis) November 9, 2016

Books like Boy Robot are what we need to see discussed in our youth English classes and book clubs, to be available in our libraries, and accepted rather than labeled “controversial.” Exploring social constructs in a sci-fi world makes Boy Robot an attractive option for teens. This book was clearly written for the young adult audience and I appreciate that. It examines what it means to be human.

As a bonus, the book itself is gorgeous. I remember being at YallWest this year, where a publisher reached out to me and said, "You want to be back here at 1:30pm because the book we are giving away will be the best you will read this year." My immediate reaction was a skeptical eye and to ask, "What book?"...As you can imagine, the title stuck with me over the months. And they weren't kidding...You need this book in your life.

Simon Curtis, thank you. Thank you for sharing your experience and message of hope. Thank you for sharing the stories of so many of our youth.

As a cisgendered, straight woman, I default to the LGBT community for their thoughts over mine so I encourage you to seek their reviews, too.

This week’s episode brings us the world through May’s eyes, who we previously spent time with in the second episode. In case you’ve forgotten, May’s food allergies are a real problem in a world where food is as scarce as it is foreign (remember, coffee that tastes like hot orange juice with a side of ass).

So, our ReMades are away from the caretakers, free of strange creatures (sabertooth, giant bunnies, unicorns?), off the train headed no where fast and…Unsure of where they are. This world is a never-ending source of pain and frustration so OF COURSE there’s a random snowstorm to nearly bury May and Gabe while they’re separated from the group. Lucky for them (?) there is a field of glass sheets to help build shelter (um, what in the world is going on in this world?).

She was the one person with nothing to contribute. The one person with no future in the future.

May is facing the stages of grief, with a little bit of anger at missing out on all of the things she’s planned, including being the first Chinese-American Supreme Court Judge. Hey, don’t count that possibility out yet - who says this world lacks the need for organized government?

Alright, so, predictions? My latest theory is they’re living in some sort of Sims world, where their spirits have been trapped in online avatars. I’m still wondering what happens when you die a second time. Do you get to go back home? Move on? Do it over and over again - ReMade inception? But really, it’s anyone’s guess as to what’s happening in ReMade! So tell me yours, if you’re following along!

When we left our ReMades, they were headed on a midnight train going...anywhere. Fast.

Train tracks were like your future. Except, she had no future here...

In this week's episode, the teens have to decide - stay on a train without a conductor (thanks, Loki) or figure out how to get off. With the train picking up speed, they decide staying on board is too much of a risk. Or it's decided for them when one of the cars is set on fire.

A few of my favorite parts of this week:
Getting Inez's backstory (many tears)
Coffee that looks and smells like coffee and tastes like orange juice
UNICORNS (did an FYA'er make this world?)
I finished the episode with a sense of relief...and dread. Nothing stays good for long.

Lucky for us, the writers are well on their way to a second season.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! Ok, not really...But if this book doesn't put you in the holiday spirit then you're just a Scrooge anyways.

Oh, Dash. Sweet, sweet Dash. We needed more of you in our lives and we didn't even know it. And Lily, you and all your sass and ridiculousness. We both LOVED this book so much that we basically hyperventilated through a conversation about where these two crazy kids are.

What were your first thoughts when you heard there was a sequel coming?

NS: I couldn’t wait to read it; I loved the first book. It took so much for them to get together and you always wonder about those characters. This is a chance to check in on them.

CJ: If you don't already know, David Levithan is one of my favorite authors and I think he thrives the most in his co-authored books. So basically my reaction to ANY new David Levithan book is immediate flailing.

Where did you think this book was going to pick up?

NS: Well, it’s a Christmas themed book. I thought it was going to be a little further down the road for them.

CJ: I thought the book was going to start with Dash and Lily on a break or break up. Even though it didn't, my first thought in reading was, YOU BROKE THEM, followed by a lot of curses directed toward Rachel and David.

Holiday books tend to be like Hallmark movies. When did you cry?

NS: When Lily went to visit her mom and during her internal dialogue when she realized her life would never be the same again.

CJ: There's a chapter that starts with Dash saying, "No." (you'll have to read to find out what he's negating) so basically from then on to the part where he ends up in the hospital. I was a blubbering mess.

How is The Twelve Days of Dash & Lily compared to their other co-authored books?

NS: This is one of David’s lighter reads in terms of the sarcasm. It’s more romantic. It explores relationships a bit deeper than their other books.

CJ: This book felt so refined and just perfect. I mean, all of their books are amazing but this one felt extra polished.

What is your favorite part?

NS: The massacre of the librarians 2016. That reference will make a whole lot more sense when you read it.

CJ: There's a whole section about BDSM gingerbread men - no, I am not kidding.

Oh, Cupid. Always causing so much mischief in the YA world. The Romantics is told from the point of view of Love, a playful silent partner in the other character's lives. Love is determined to play matchmaker on her terms but these pesky free-willers keep mucking it up (or is it Love who is doing the mucking?). Either way, Gael has some serious decision making to do, even if he is slightly set up by an arrow through the heart. Did I mention he's all jaded because of his parent's divorce? So yeah, it's going to take more than an arrow to get his blood rushing again.

In one corner, we have Cara, your typical YA dream girl. She's a whirlwind who storms in at just the right moment.

In the other corner, there's the girl who's always been there, Sammy.

GASP, just how will this end up? I don't think I have to tell you. But Love's antics are quite adorable (it's similar to how The Game of Love and Death is set up), even as she stumbles. It's a classic case of you wanting to yell at the TV as she falters and messes with the lives of our three main characters.

The story is predictable and nothing new - you'll find quite a few romance tropes in here. This one reads like a Swoon Reads book...Just a small nibble of a HEA to get you through those heavier things in life.

I LOVED the back story of the zombie virus and that it was more mystical than science. Eve was such a great character and I can't wait to see where she goes next.

Hands down, this was my favorite episode. It was raw, emotive, and terrifying. Not because anything awful happened but because we've had three episodes go by where no one has died and we are four from the end. Everything is looking too good to last.

"What's scarier than a zombie?" Holden asked.
Loki stopped and gave Holden a sober look."People."

I love that this episode is titled after music referenced within the episode. We're Dead in this Ghost Town is a Shiny Toy Guns song and is a perfect compliment to the episode. Now I want a ReMade soundtrack; one song for each episode.

This episode mirrors the moments prior to Loki's ReMade encounter and his exploration of the ghost city. He's brought Holden along for the adventure, which has the makings of a disaster but actually bonds the pair together. I'd ship these two if I didn't know better.

Holden trailed behind Loki. “This city reminds me of some of the levels. Reminds me of pretty much every post-apocalyptic movie and video game I’ve seen.”

By now, we know there's something not right about this world. Is this someone's screwed up vision of the world? Have our ReMades dropped into their own version of purgatory? Either way, they're now not only facing killer bunnies, killer machines, unicorns...But dragons. Yep, dragons. I was feeling major Bioshock vibes this episode.

Everyone had something to contribute and was playing the role they were suited to.
I've been saying all along that this rag-tag team of people seems too perfect to be coincidence. Now I'm wondering even more why no one is exploring why Umta stays so quiet when they're speculating about the world.

He imagined that when he died, he would respawn safely at home as if none of this had happened. If only real life let you create save points so you could go back to your previous game and try again with the benefit of added experience.

We knew previously that Loki faced cyber-bullying and that had lead to his eventual death by suicide. In this episode, we get even more backstory that adds to the depth of his character and the tragedy that lead to his death. I just want to hug him. I'm so glad he has a second chance.

Is anyone else reading/listening to ReMade? I hope so, because it's my favorite new adventure this fall!