Scorpions is a realistic novel published in 1988 and set in a similar time period. It’s the story of Jamal, a 12 year old who is pulled into a gang after his 17 year old brother, Randy—the leader of the gang—is jailed for a robbery in which a clerk is killed. Mack, who was Randy’s […]
The Crimson Crown
April 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jennifer Lewis. In The Crimson Crown—the fourth and final book of the Seven Realms series—Raisa assumes the role of Queen of the Fells after her mother was murdered at the end of Book 3, The Gray Wolf Throne. Her determination to focus on re-uniting the different factions within her realm is constantly challenged […]
The Dragon Charmer
April 3, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The Dragon Charmer is the sequel to Prospero’s Children. Twelve years have passed, and Fern has grown up; in many ways, the tone of this novel has grown up as well. After denying that she has the Gift, Fern is about to marry a charming media personality to live a perfectly acceptable life. She’s not […]
The Queen of Attolia
March 28, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee. The Queen of Attolia has captured The Thief and now she will make him pay for all the slights that she has felt from his presence—the little things that he’s done like leaving ruby earrings on her dresser, or changing the place of something in her room. This is on top […]
One Crazy Summer
March 11, 2014 by 2 Comments
You can hardly see the cover of One Crazy Summer because of all of the award emblems on it—Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, Coretta Scott King Award, Newbery Honor, and National Book Award Finalist, with a list of more awards on the back. The story is set in 1968. Delphine, our narrator who is […]
The Shadow Throne
March 6, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The Shadow Throne brings The Ascendance Trilogy to a close, and I have to say it’s one of the best final books I’ve ever read. This whole trilogy is so tightly written—it ends up exactly as it needs to without any aimless wandering along the way. You absolutely have to have read The False Prince […]
Dork Diaries 1: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
February 27, 2014 by Leave a Comment
I read the second Dork Diaries book before I read Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life, and I think I’m glad I read them out of order. The first book fills in some minor gaps for me—I now know that Nikki is new to her private middle school and that she’s there on scholarship […]
Cinders & Sapphires
February 24, 2014 by Leave a Comment
I enjoy Downton Abbey, so a book loosely inspired by it is bound to get my attention. Cinders & Sapphires is a soapy Edwardian read that very much evokes Downton Abbey while still telling its own story. There are more characters and subplots than I could easily keep track of (here’s where the lack of […]
Forge
February 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Forge picks up immediately where Chains left off, although the point of view has changed from Isabel to Curzon. Then it leaps ahead a few months. Isabel and Curzon have parted ways on less than ideal terms because he wouldn’t go to South Carolina with her to search for Ruth. Curzon ends up in the […]
Cress
February 11, 2014 by Leave a Comment
I was very eager to read Cress, the sequel to Cinder and Scarlet, and it didn’t disappoint. You definitely need to read the series in order or you won’t have any idea who anyone is. Like the others, a new fairy tale is wound into the story in innovative ways. In this book, it’s the […]
