Batman: Nightwalker, by Marie Lu

The second book in the newer DC Comics chapter book series (DC Icons), the first being Wonder Woman: Warbringer, by Leigh Bardugo, which is awesome!! Batman was equally as good as Wonder Woman, almost, but close enough to say YES you should read this! This new series has one chapter book to explain how different superheroes in the DC Comics world came to be the superhero they are, and each book is being written by a different YA author. The third book in the series is Catwoman: Soulstealer, and the newest, coming out this year, is Superman: Dawnbreaker. Batman explains how Bruce Wayne becomes Batman, facing a group looking to steal all the wealth from Gotham City and using it for their own equalizing purposes. Bruce ends up on the wrong side of the law and his community service introduces him to a young woman who is in prison for being part of this nefarious group. There is an attraction, of course, so there is romance as well as action, adventure, cool tech gadgets, and more!  Marie Lu, perhaps my favorite sci-fi/fantasy writer right now, does a very good job with this story. If comic book eors, or any element mentioned above, interests you, try this one - it won't disappoint! Get past the slow-ish start, and you'll be rewarded. 4.5 paws!

The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch, by Joseph Delaney

Cool! Cool! Cool! And scary, and fun, and spooky, and yucky...and fun! I don't know why I have never read this book/series before - this first one in the series came out in 2005. But now that it is an OBOB book I gave it a try, and I'm very glad I did! Now when anyone asks me for a scary book recommendation, this one will be top of my list of suggestions! Tom Ward is the seventh son of a seventh son, and thus in line to become a Spook - one who defends the county against witches, ghasts and ghosts, among other beings. In this book he is apprenticing to become the next Spook of his county, and along the way he makes mistakes, of course, ones that include dead rats, dead witches, live witches, screaming, blood, fear, shadows...do you really need more examples of scary fun?! 5 paws for this read - if you think you can make it through to the end of the book, go ahead...check it out!

The Truth As Told By Mason Buttle, by Leslie Connor

Leslie Connor is the author of several books for young adults and teens, including Waiting for Normal, which I believe was an OBOB book a few years ago. I remember liking that story, but not so much that I could recall at this point what it was about. Mason Buttle, on the other hand, will be a character I will remember for a long time. This book has many elements to it, most of which would be memorable all by themselves. Mason Buttle is the main character, and with his name alone you just know he is going to get teased at school, right? So some parts of this story are easy to predict. What you won't guess from the title are the plethora of other elements...friendship, bullying, death, dogs (spoiler alert: the dog does not die!), family, being a teen, the awkwardness of being a teen, mystery, school, lacrosse, apples...Connor weaves a really good story here, told through Mason in a style that is very much his own, with all of the blood, sweat and tears that goes with the story. Hopefully I am making you curious about this book, enough to make you want to read it without really telling you anything about the details that will give anything away. This is a very good book, one I would recommend to anyone who enjoys realistic fiction, in the vein of Stargirl, Wonder, or Counting By 7s. Buttle is a half-step behind those stories only because the ending was a bit easy to predict early on, but this isn't lost on the excellent storytelling on Connor's part, so it is still well worth adding to your reading list for the year! 4.5 paws!