Cashmere High School

63,255 pages read and 3,097 team points

Team members

WAD

2,476 pts

(2,476 pages read)

The Haunting of Payne's Hollow

By Kelley Armstrong

2 stars

This one lost my interest about a third of the way through and never regained it. It's a simple haunting story, without anything special (at least to me.) It felt like it was written for a younger audience than some of its content would imply. I don't remember too much of it. :/ y9/10
The Call

By Peadar O'Guilin

5 stars

Loved it! Incredible action and mystery, with fantastic pacing, I finished it in just a few days and couldn't put it down! My favourite part was how well thought out the premise was, with every possible aspect and reaction explored. Of course the humans would deal with it that way, and of course the sidhe world react with that - it's so practical and it all felt realistic (even considering the horrors and the fairy world). I would recommend this to anyone (with a strong stomach and capability for gore). y10,11 CW: violence, gore, torture, nudity
The Isles of the Gods

By Amie Kaufman

3 stars

3.5 down to 3 It was fine. No real hook, just somewhat generic fantasy romance. I appreciate that they tried something fun with the magic system and gods, but they were just too underdeveloped in my opinion. I don't see myself remembering much about this one even a week from now.
The Staircase in the Woods

By Chuck Wendig

3 stars

3.5 down to 3 Upon reflection, I think that I enjoyed this as much as I did primarily because it appeals to a few very specific niches of mine. It has a number of references I understood, and I liked the vibe of the House Dimension, but I think the overall appeal may be limited in that way. It's self-contained and I particularly enjoyed the focus on the characters strategizing about what to do next and learning as they went, rather than mass panic and inefficient decisions, as would be the easy answer. Pretty cool monster too. CW: not subtle spice (off page), mention of childhood abuse (possibly CSA), lots of trauma and mental breaks
Wolf by Wolf

By Ryan Graudin

5 stars

I loved this one, and it has everything. Engaging action, emotional beats, interesting inter-character interactions, and all in just the right amounts. Strongly recommend, for anyone. y9,10
The Power

By Naomi Alderman

4 stars

3.5 up to 4 I think that this book should exist, and should be read by many people. It is incredibly confronting, tragic and angry, and does an excellent job at opening the eyes of the readers to the brutal history of the patriarchy in our real world. However, I think that the omniscient narrator results in a little bit of a lack of connection to any particular characters, more than usual, and I found myself feeling like I was watching the story rather than being invested in it. I think there is a big market for a book with a concept like this, but written for a younger audience and with less graphic content, as it is a very important message that would blow the mind of many of my students. I will be thinking about the concept and storyline for a while to come. CW: So much, SA and CSA, forced body modification, murder, extreme emotional distress and extreme subjugation, will make you realise things you maybe didn't think about before
We Used to Live Here

By Marcus Kliewer

3 stars

**spoiler alert** 3.5 down to 3 I liked it, although it wasn't particularly memorable. I did appreciate that it did not necessarily have a nice and happy ending. I also think the horrors were a little too unexplained and esoterical at times, but props to the author for trying something new. y10 cw:stabbing, psychological horror

22 - 0 - 1

Add pages read

Cashmere High School

63,255 pages read and 3,097 team points

Team members

HLS_CHSL

SarahM

VNC

WhaeaAmy

wjj

Libby

Finn L

Zack

Russ

WAD

Stella

Gaynor

Word Wanderer

Colin

Emily P

Keets

LisetteWLL

Jo

SZP

MMay

bbm

MrZilber

WAD

The Haunting of Payne's Hollow

The Call

The Isles of the Gods

The Staircase in the Woods

Wolf by Wolf

The Power

We Used to Live Here

Cashmere High School

63,255 pages read and 3,097 team points

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

47

48

49

50

51

52

53

54

55

56

57

58

59

60

61

62

63

64

65

66

67

68

69

70

71

72

73

74

75

76

77

78