As a freshman in High school, Daisy Fisher was surprised to be paired with a senior during in-school detention.  Befriending Fredrick Ramsey changed her life, first she witnessed his part in the school burning down, then she finds that he would be attending the same school as her.  Mixed feelings and thoughts about him and many of her new friends at Ginger High are compounded with the new understanding that everyone at this new school has special powers.  When several deaths occur shortly after her arrival at school, a healer (Amanta) from the parallel universe of Animist arrives, between him and his best friend (Matthias) they are determined to help find the person responsible.  The answers may not be as easy as they would like with Amanta in a weakened state and Matthias keeping secrets.  Is anything what it appears to be?

Reviewed on 08/23/2009 by ReviewTheBook.com Member Debbie Berry

I was hesitant when I asked to review Ginger High. I had never reviewed Young Adult fiction, nor had I reviewed an author as young as Melissa Burmeister.

However, to my delight Melissa Burmeister is a remarkable young author. She has brought to life a school filled with colorful characters, mystery, murder and the paranormal with a talent usually seen by much more experienced authors of this genre.

I had so many ‘Oh My Gosh moments’ and ‘I didn’t see that coming’ moments that I quickly got swept away with the storyline.

I gave Ginger High to my younger sister following reading it and she loved it, so much so that I haven’t gotten it back off her.

Reviewed on 08/21/2009 by ReviewTheBook.com Member Tina Evans

After the suspicious destruction of her normal high school, Daisy Fisher gets transferred to Ginger High, a school for students for special powers. But Daisy doesn't quite fit in, as she hasn't discovered her powers yet, which isn’t good, because “normals” who find out about the secret of Animist (a parallel universe full of supernatural creatures) have to be disposed of.  To top that off, students are being attacked, and a war’s breaking out in Animist. Throw in a cute, mysterious boy who’s got a thing for her, and you’ve got an action-packed adventure.

Melissa Burmeister makes her writing debut with Ginger High, a novel full of mythical creatures and intrigue. Prior to reading the book, I took a look at Melissa’s website and biography, which stated that Ginger High was published when she was fourteen! I have to say, this Ginger High is an extremely creative piece of work for a writer of such a young age.  In addition, the book is grammatically sound , which is often a problem in books written by younger authors.

While being a published author is a remarkable achievement for a fourteen year-old, as a reviewer, and there were enjoyable aspects in this novel, I’m obligated to review this book as I would any other, and hand out some criticisms as well. First of all, the book seemed to be rather fast-moving, and many of the characters seemed flat and poorly developed. There was an excess of minor characters that had made so many appearances that I had trouble keeping them straight and remembering who was who. Finally, while the book is written about older characters and marketed towards teenagers, I think the writing style of the book makes it more appropriate for younger readers.

Ginger High follows the recently popular teen formula of girl meets boy, conflict arises, and girl (with help of boy and friends) overcomes conflict. These kind of novels can usually go either way, but for the audience intended, I’m afraid Ginger High falls somewhat short. 

Reviewed on 08/14/2009 by ReviewTheBook.com Member Natalie Monzyk

Ginger High

BY: Melissa Burmester

PUBLISHED BY: Infinity Publishing.com

PUBLISHED IN: May 2009

ISBN: 0-7414-5363-0

Ages: teen & up

Reviewed by Billy Burgess

Growing up in the 90’s, I was a big fan of teen horror novels - Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine and Lois Duncan were some of my favorite authors. The teen horror/thriller trend has died down, except for the ones where vampires sparkle. I found Ginger High a breath of fresh air. Teen girls will easily connect with the main character, Daisy - a smart, strong young woman.

The novel begins in 1901 where a series of murders take place. All of the victims have bite marks on their necks. Could it be vampires? The story jumps forward to modern days and focuses on teen Daisy Fisher. After her school is burnt down, Daisy is sent to a new school in New York.. Ginger High is a private school for students with extraordinary powers and abilities. She befriends some of the students who can teleport, heal others, and create fire. She soon finds out that people came to Earth from a parallel world called the Kingdom of Animists.

A murder occurs at Ginger High, bringing the supernatural beings Amanta, Matthias, and Taeru from the parallel world. While they investigate the death, Daisy struggles with her supernatural powers, and with her mysterious new friend, Fredrick. Amanta must deal with a long time, buried family secret.

Reviewed on 07/30/2009 by ReviewTheBook.com Member Billy Burgess