Chris KrovatinReseñas

This book was just as amazing as I expected. It's the story of a boy who listens to heavy metal but still has all the hopes, fears, and dream of any other teenage boy. This kid has heart and uses it to express his love for Slayer, Children of Bodom, Satyricon and any other black metal act you can think of.
This book is great for fan of these bands because you can really relate to the character and what he thinks about his music and his life. It's great to read a book that looks at the normalcy of this type of person's life, where so many books give "metalheads" a negative feel.

Quick, interesting read. I like the fact that the protagonists realize they really aren't meant for one another; and Sam realizes he's back-burnered his friends.

The Best Ghost Stories Ever is a great little primer of vintage ghost stories aimed at kids, who might not otherwise be exposed to fiction of this type. Even adults whose acquaintance with horror extends no further than Stephen King and Dean Koontz would benefit from reading this book cover to cover. From Poe ("The Masque of the Red Death") to Henry James ("The Romance of Certain Old Clothes"), from Charlotte Perkins Gilman ("The Yellow Wallpaper") to W.W. Jacobs ("The Monkey's Paw"), many of the acknowledged masters of the form are represented here. My only quibble is that there is not now, nor has there ever been, a ghost story author named Algernon Blackwell. "The Empty House"--a classic tale of ghostly phenomena witnessed by two astonished human observers--was, of course, written by Algernon Blackwood. An error of this magnitude (Blackwood wrote what is generally considered the single greatest horror story in the English language, "The Willows") ought to have been corrected by now.

Definitely an upper high school book. A lot of swearing, underage drinking, sexual situations. Still, many of the interactions between characters are laugh out loud funny. The author does a good job of putting you inside Locke's head, showing you up close what sets off his violent episodes and how he deals with their aftermath.

During a class hiking trip, Ian, Kendra, and PJ get lost in the mountains and discover that they are being stalked by a pack of ravenous zombies. With the help of a witch doctor and some unusual folk magic, will they be able to defeat these monsters and escape the mountain with their lives?

Author Christopher Krovatin perfectly blends humor and horror together in this first installment in a funny, frightening series that will get every kid reading.

A high-interest, low-reading level book, good for reluctant readers who have an interest in music.

Sam loves music - emphasis on heavy metal - and Melissa, his new girlfriend. But when she starts criticizing his 'extracurricular' activities, his friends, and his music, he begins to wonder how much of himself he's willing to change for love.½

Gravediggers tells the story of three 11 year olds, Ian, Kendra and PJ and their Homeroom Earth field trip to the Montana wilderness. Kendra and Ian are sworn enemies because of a previous incident involving Kendra smacking Ian with a text book. PJ is Ian's oldest friend but he's not one of the "cool kids" so Ian is hoping to avoid him on this trip and hang with his jock friends instead. Kendra is intelligent but socially awkward and only has cyber friends that she has met online. Her parents are hoping she will make a new friend but Kendra is more concerned with amping up her vocabulary and collecting nature specimens. After Ian is put into a group with the very people he was avoiding the action begins. Ian spots a large buck and takes off into the woods after it to get a picture. Not wanting him to get lost the others follow him into the forest and end up getting lost. The book tells the story of their struggle to find their way back and to avoid being eaten by zombies. I thought the book had an interesting start but the middle was slow and the ending was anticlimactic. The fact that it was humorous helped bump up its rating from 2 stars to three. I think fans of the zombie genre and reluctant readers will enjoy this book.

Reviewed by Steph for TeensReadToo.com

Locke Vinetti has anger issues. Except these are not just regular anger issues. He's plagued by the venom: a monster-like character that takes over whenever something gets him angry. When the venom releases its power there's no stopping Locke. Locke tries to control the venom, but he simply can't.

Then Locke meets some new friends and the girl of his dreams, Renee. She is able to control this beast inside Locke by just simply being around him. But nothing this good can last for long.

Soon, the venom starts to come between Locke and Renee, and now Locke is more afraid than ever that he'll lose control and hurt someone he loves.

Krovatin writes an interesting tale about a teenage boy trying to overcome a monster within himself. The author creates a world that any reader can delve into, and he also captures the personality of Locke perfectly, to create both sympathy and loathing for the main character.

VENOUMOUS is a good read for any teenager trying to overcome the bad pats of themselves, the monsters that lurk within.

a great book about the drama of being a teen and going threw divorce. there are lots of fighting and friendship..the main charachter locke has an anger problem,which he calls the menom and latter in the story he meets casey who also has the same problem but he calls it the black so at any second these to could clash and beat eachotheres face in or somebody elses

Teen's anger poisons everything he touches. He thinks it is a force beyond his control, until the girl he loves, him mother and brother convince him to try.½

Sam falls head over heels for a preppy girl - and she really seems to like him too, which his friends consider strange given that he's a dedicated metalhead. Melissa is interested in him - even interested in getting to know the music he loves. But as Sam spends more and more time with her, he realises that he is making more and more compromises. This is a story of romance running off the rails, where love just might not conquer all, and , well dang, I wish I could think of a clever musical allusion here, but I can't. But that's OK, the book is full of them.
It is the constant references to bands, songs, and lyrics that will make this book charming to fans. In the copy I borrowed from the library, someone has sweetly marked all of the band names with yellow highlighter.
This book wasn't outstanding, but it is worth reading for the Venn diagram description of Goths and Metalheads.
I'd give this to someone interested in light romance, a fan of heavy metal, or maybe even the occasional Goth.

I LOVE THIS BOOK......End of story.

METAL HEAD, NOT GOTH and Sam likes his life LOUD until a very different straightedge girl starts whispering to him. Melissa tempts Sammy away from drugs, alcohol, and tobacco but can she turn down the VOLUME?

The form of this book, with its pause, rewind, forward, fast-forward, and stop button icons screams loudly right along with the metal music language. The book explores the timeless dilemma of the balance between love, sex, and friendships in an entirely unique way. Especially important is the way this book grants permission to boys, even head-bangin’, mosh pittin’, metal-pierced boys, to feel good about sharing feelings with each other. Teens familiar with Slayer and other metal bands will enjoy feeling like guides. Heavy Metal and You should be required reading material for school personnel that have teen fans of this sort of music. Fortunately the book is written well enough to be purchased for sheer pleasure by any school that enjoys carefully crafted books and fine writing. This book is one of my top ten (of the more than 150 books read to date).½

Heavy Metal and You explores typical YA dynamics (boy & girl like each other but hate each other's friends, boy & girl are totally different and try to make it work anyway) but never feels like the same teen book you've read a million times. Sam is a likeable character (though not as sympathetic as Troy from K.L Going's Fat Kid Rules the World)and the music references will delight anyone for whom the title is a draw. SLJ says this book is a "good pick for reluctant readers," which I agree with to an extent, because the story is fascinating, but the chronolgy jumps back & forth, so anyone who can't stand that when they read will have to pay close attention. Overall, a great read!

Sam meets this girl he really likes, but she is determined to change him - making him give up things he likes. Going straightedge is okay - but giving up his friends and the heavy metal music he loves is more than he is willing to lose.

Summary: Sam has one thing in his life that he loves, and that is music specifically, heavy metal music. Then he meets and works up the balls to ask out this gorgeous girl named Melissa. Now he has two things in the world he loves. As the relationship progresses, Sam is in denial about any problems they have until Melissa meets his friends and she hates them. Sam hates Melissa’s friends, and Melissa hates going to metal shows. The two of them fight and have to decide what to do next.
Evaluation: This book is exciting because it shows what can happen when a relationship starts to define two people; who and what are compromised, and all the while these ideas are coming from an intelligent, masculine, teen perspective!

Sam Markus (aka Conan) lives Melissa! And his band, Brent and Sean and heavy metal. Melissa is high maintenance and flaky. She tries to make him over as she likes him and messes him up bad.