The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom

Fiewel and Friends, 2017

 Gwendolyn Bloom isn't enjoying school today.  Being pointed out by "that girl" and her friends while everyone else laughs at you isn't what she planned or wanted.  But this is just another stop along the string of schools she has attended, which may or may not last long.  It's on days like this she wishes her mother was there, but she can't be.  When Gwendolyn was ten years old, her mother passed away. The memories she has of that day, filled with terror and confusion, won't stop.

Her father, who is a foreign diplomat, has taken Gwendolyn around the world.  New York is the current place they call home.  Without a mother, her father is the only parent she has and she treasures that.  But one evening, after coming home, her father isn't there....nor the next night...and Gwendolyn keeps waiting. Eventually she is taken in by the older Jewish couple in loco parentis until her father shows up. And things take a turn....

One day, while Gwendolyn is alone in her apartment, a knock is heard.  Behind it are men in black searching for her father, but also through his papers and computers, asking her what he's told her about his job.  They're from the US government and for the first time, Gwendolyn is realizes what her father does.  The men looking for him are wondering is he still a spy for them or has he defected? The last known place in Europe he was detected was recorded before he went off the grid.

With only a scrap of information Gwendolyn stops at nothing to find her father.  With some help, she begins training in krav maga with a Mossad agent before getting entangled in the dark and dirty world of racketeers, arms smuggling and human trafficking.  One clue leads to another. Gwendolyn knows she's running out of time...unless it's already too late.

This book goes from zero to 100+ quickly.  The reader's emotions for the main character jumps for empathy to encouragement to excitement as they see her morph and change into someone who will pull out all the stops.  The dark world of criminals makes a large nod in this novel including introducing minor characters, all victims of human trafficking.  It's not sugar coated, but it isn't gratuitously graphic is nature either.  Teens reading this book may begin to connect with what's happening in the real world and see a larger picture.  Although others may see the rising action as a tad unbelievable, I enjoyed every page.  It reads like a Jason Bourne novel, only with a kick a** female character.  Recommended for upper JH/HS

Eve and Adam by Michael Grant & Katherine Applegate

published by Feiwel and Friends, 2012

Eve has lived a life of privilege and loss. She has no boyfriend, hardly any friends, and her focus is on school.  Her father died in a tragic accident, leaving her only with her mother.  Her only friend, Aislin, couldn't be more opposite of her and needs Eve to rescue her.  The two are ying and yang, but in a very good way.  The only thing that has ever come between them is the cold and untouchable Terra Spiker....Eve's mother. 

Terra is a brilliant scientist and the brains and power behind Spiker Biopharmaceuticals, a cutting edge medical industry melded with technology.  And it's there that Eve is sent after she is in a fatal accident that crushes her leg and leaves her comatose. 

When Eve finally wakes up bandaged but functioning, she is told by her mother that she is to stay at the Spiker complex for a few weeks to recover.  Eve is cut off from her best friend and has no one to interact with...until she meets Solo...

Solo lives at Spiker Pharmaceuticals and has only known the complex.  He knows the reasons he's here - more a charity case than a legal guardianship to Terra Spiker.  He's never really known the outside world, and when Eve comes to the complex, his life takes on a decidedly different turn.  He's curious about her....in fact, she's the only person his age he's ever really come into physical contact with.  Solo has secrets, but more than that, he knows secrets....

In order to ease the boredom of recovery, Eve's mother introduces her to an advanced genetics video game that is under consideration for marketing.  The game allows the user to create their own human from the ground up, selecting DNA and genetics to create perfection.  Eve sets to work, and Solo silently watches the progress.  Little do they know what's truly being put into Eve's hands or the mastermind behind what Spiker Pharmaceuticals is hiding.

Set in today's time in San Francisco, this book is a science thriller from start to finish.  The two dominant voices written by two distict authors creates a layer of intrigue for the reader because that is the only one who knows the thoughts and actions of Eve and Solo.  This type of book is rare to come by...not quite dystopia but with the elements for the possibility of that kind of society...a pre-cursor, if you will.  The other characters in the book create a rich backdrop for the action and relationships that soon start to form and each character begins to unpeel the layers surrounding Eve and Solo as well as their involvement in the entire plot.  Although I'm not a huge reader of science-based fiction, I devoured this one.  Loved it!  If you like books such as Werlin's Double Helix. Bodeen's The Gardener or Brooks's Being, this is one to pick.  Recommended for high school.