Virals by Kathy Reichs

Tory Brennan is adjusting to life with her dad. Just a year ago her mother passed away and she and her dad got the shock of their lives--they learned about each other. Now Tory is living on an island off the coast of Charleston, South Caroline, with Hi, Shelton, and Ben as her only friends.

The foursome spend a lot of time on Loggerhead Island, the research institute where most of their parents work. That's where Tory finds a set of dog tags that lead them on a search to find a missing person, then a murderer. Not to mention the change it makes to all of them.

The book starts off a little slow, but picks up quickly. The science can get heavy at times, but it rarely takes away from the pace of the book. There's lots of action and adventure to go with the science. I'm waiting for the next one to come out.

The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York by Deborah Blum

I really don't read a lot of non-fiction, but this book looked intriguing enough I decided to give it a try.

This book is more about the first medical examiner, Dr. Charles Norris, in New York City to actually hold a medical degree, and the first toxicologist, Alexander Gettler. Each chapter is about a different poison and how the two working together figured out what effects the poison had on the body and in what levels. Before their time, forensic science was not considered to be reliable or even usable in a court of law--Norris and Gettler changed all that.

This is a fascinating work about poisons, chemistry, science, and how it has changed and shaped our lives. I learned so much from this book about Prohibition and the people who died of wood alcohol, the women who died from radiation poisoning and taught us that radium was not beneficial. There is a lot of chemistry and science in the book, which is hard to get through, but the story woven through the pages makes it all worth it. I enjoyed each chapter focusing on a different poison and how Gettler and Norris worked to get forensic science into the 20th century.

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

Will Henry is the assistant to a monstrumologist--someone who studies "life forms generally malevolent to humans and not recognized by science as actual organisms, specifically those considered products of myth and folklore". He's use to the unnatural hours, the demands the doctor makes on his time and his life for the past year since his parents' deaths.

One night, a grave robber brings a strange bundle to the monstrumologist's house with no explanation. The doctor takes one look and is sure they have a big problem on their hands--the bundle turns out to be the body of a young woman with a monstrosity wrapped around her. The monster has no head, a mouth with a lot of teeth in the middle of its chest, and eyes in its shoulders. The doctor is shocked to see such a creature in New England and so begins Will's even more bizarre life hunting monsters and puzzles.

As frightening the concept, especially since they go hunt the monsters in their underground lair, there is a lot of science in this horror tale. Will narrates this story that covers a few days. The story is engrossing and would be most interesting for older teens.

The Hunting: Z. Rex by Steve Cole

Adam and his dad are working on a new virtual reality video game. In order to find new funding, Adam's dad leaves for a few days in order to find another job. But he doesn't come back and Adam is worried.

Adam wonders what is going on--and then his building is attacked by a living, breathing dinosaur. Not sure what to think, Adam runs from the dinosaur and from the men who are hunting him and it. But the dinosaur, Zed, is determined to get him. And Zed is incredibly smart.

Adam and Zed head across the Atlantic--Zed can also fly--to find Adam's dad and look for help. Not sure who to trust, Adam takes a chance and puts them all in danger.

A definite sci-fi novel. Lots of action and danger to go around. Some things might make suspending disbelief hard, but things fall into place to make a great novel with lots of promise for the next in the series.

STORM: The Infinity Code by E. L. Young

Will's father died and his mom left him with Natalia so she could grieve. Will's started at a school for gifted children, but his true passion lies with inventions. While testing out a new invention, Gaia, one of the girls from school, sees. She reports back to Andrew, a friend and creator of STORM, a secret organization created to save the world, as only 11-year olds can.

The Caspian, one of their members, disappears. In an effort to find him, they stumble upon his formulas to create something called The Infinity Code--a black hole.

Worried why Caspian is messing around with this code, Will, Gaia, and Andrew follow him from England to Russia and find themselves in a much bigger plot and in more trouble than they bargained for.

This is the first book in the STORM series. There is action, science, and camaraderie throughout the book, although this book focuses more on Will than anyone else. The 11-year olds are smarter and sometimes more mature than their years, although sometimes their age shines through.