The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney

Alex wakes up in a strange boy's bed, a bad taste in her mouth, and without any of her clothes. She can't remember how she got that way. She makes her way back to her room across Themis' campus, determined to forget everything.

But her roommate T.S. has a different idea. She believes Alex was raped and wants her to go to the Mockingbirds to turn Carter in. The Mockingbirds is a student-run justice force to police bad behavior.

While Alex decides to talk with the Mockingbirds, she has doubts about what really happened in Carter's bed. And when he tells all his friends about her and their "great" time together, she starts avoiding him at all costs. This event has completely changed her life, and thanks to the Mockingbirds, it's about to change Carter's as well.

Then Carter and his friends get pushy about her silence. And have no problem smearing her to anyone who will listen. Especially at the Mockingbirds' trial.

While I agree with the reviewers that it seems implausible the adults at Themis have absolutely no idea what's going on, I can fully believe they'd turn a blind eye to misbehavior and misconduct.

The real story here is Alex's coping with being date raped, her acceptance of what happened to her, and the beginning of the healing process. Alex spends much of the book in agony that she asked for what happened, she can only remember bits and pieces, and she worries about Carter not being found guilty. I found the character and story to ring true with what I know, and thought it was just amazing. Well worth reading.

Vampire Rising: Alex Van Helsing by Jason Henderson

I believe this is the first book in the Alex Van Helsing series.

Alex has been sent to yet another boarding school after an incident at the last one. As he's walking through the woods one night (yeah, he breaks the rules sometimes), he hears a scream. He finds a dead body and what appears to be a vampire. Not sure how, he stakes her and watches as she turns to dust. Convinced he was hallucinating, he returns to school and what he hopes is his sanity.

No such luck. Alex starts to wonder if the stories about Van Helsing are true. And if there really are vampires, is he destined to fight them? His friends are kidnapped and he knows he has no choice in the matter. He must charge into the lair of the vampires to save his friends.

An interesting premise and story. The story does waiver a little, but the action is solid and pretty believable. No romance here, just vampire hunting and plenty of it!

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Luce is being sent to reform school, after the mysterious death of a boy she liked. Luce's parents send her to Sword & Cross school, a rundown school near home.

The school is nothing like Luce is use to--the campus includes a cemetery and a staff that expects nothing but the worst from the students. Luce struggles to fit in, becoming friends with the strange Arriane and Penn. She finds herself drawn to both Daniel and Cam. Cam returns her interest, but Daniel can't seem to decide if he likes her or hates her.

Luce deals with the reality of school and her infatuation with both Daniel and Cam while keeping her own secrets--she can see shadows. The longer she's at Sword & Cross the more they appear, and it seems Daniel can see them as well. Luce can't get over the idea that she knows Daniel from somewhere, and she wants to know what's going on and what the shadows really are.

This book is the first in a series. The action in the book really picks up in the last third, while the rest of the story is busy setting up background and character development. It's a little bulky, but hopefully the next book explains more about what was left out of this book.

School for Dangerous Girls by Eliot Schrefer

Angela's parents don't know what to do with her after her grandfather dies. She's been getting into one form of trouble or another for years, so they send her off to Hidden Oaks, a school for troubled young women. A school that has a reputation for changing their behavior.

Once Angela arrives, though, she realizes the school is not what it seems. For the first month, the new girls are kept secluded from the rest of the students, and given harsh lessons about their behavior. In groups, the girls disappear towards the end of the month, and Angela can't help but wonder where the people she got to know ended up. Determined to find her friends and figure out what the school is up to, she breaks too many rules and finds out for herself the true mission of the school.

An interesting idea and story line.