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This week I had the pleasure of reading two books in the same series: Tunnels and Deeper by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams.

They have the kind of covers that make you judge a book: they’re bold and striking, they’re thick and juicy. Well then, they must be good! But more and more lately, I’ve learned that you really shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. Not that Tunnels and Deeper were bad books, but Tunnels in particularly felt a little too long. (Even though Deeper was about the size of Tunnels and a half). It just dragged a some areas and could have been shorter.

The books follow Will, a budding archeologist, who follows an underground tunnel looking for his missing father. He and his friend Chester happen upon a dangerous underground world ruled by the Styx who immediately capture them. Will is released soon after, and discovers a shocking secret about his family. Chester, however, is held captive with the threat of being sent deeper into the earth, where the chance of survival is slim to none.

I definitely recommend these books to kids, especially boys, who aren’t afraid of a long read. The stories have wonderful characters, so as long as you can skim through the unnecessary description, you’ll definitely enjoy them.

Wow, what a wonderful week of books! The two sequels to The Book of Time by Guillaume Prevost are even better than the first. In The Gate of Days, Sam finally rescues his father from his six month lockdown in the dungeons of dracula’s castle. But his trip through time left him in a coma. In The Circle of Gold, Sam knows that in order to wake his dad up from his coma, his must once again travel back in time and save his mother from dying. But evil forces are at work. Sam’s crush, Alicia, is kidnapped and trapped somewhere in history. Before Sam can even think of altering the past, he needs to deal with more pressing issues…like getting Alicia back!

Last but absolutely, 100% not least — The Hunger Games. Wow. That pretty much sums it up. Suzanne Collins is unbelievable. When I first learned the plot of this book — a sci-fi novel about mandatory competition forcing teenagers to fight to the death — I really wasn’t interested in reading it. But boy, am I glad I did. I was reassured by Stephenie Meyer‘s quote on the cover calling the book “amazing.” And she was definitely right. The Hunger Games was risky, edgy, barbaric, and so gripping I just couldn’t put it down. Could this series become the next Twilight? Quite possibly.