TEEN BOOK REVIEW: Bloodwitch (#1 Maeve'ra Series) by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

Goodreads Summary

A gripping tale about loyalty, power, and the quest for freedom
Vance Ehecatl was raised with every luxury he could imagine in a beautiful greenhouse within the powerful empire of Midnight. Vampires are the only guardians Vance has ever known since he was abandoned by his shapeshifter family as a baby quetzal, and he is grateful to them for generously providing for all of his needs. When an act of violence forces Vance from his sheltered home, he is startled to meet Malachi Obsidian, a fellow shapeshifter with conflicting ideas about Midnight and its leader, Mistress Jeshickah.



Malachi claims Vance is a bloodwitch, who Jeshickah and her trainers, Jaguar and Taro, are trying to control. Vance doesn't know anything about the rare and destructive magic Malachi says he possesses, and he can't believe Jeshickah would use it to hurt others. But when his friends begin falling ill, Vance starts to realize his perfect world may not be as flawless as it seems. Now Vance must decide who to trust-the vampires he's always relied upon, or the shapeshifters who despise them.

Teen Review

Bloodwitch is a fantasy that will keep the reader on his/her seat. Vance, the main character is a fourteen year old shapeshifter who can change from human form to Quetzal. A Quetzal is a bird like creature that models for his master and is the keeper of the greenhouse where he lives. Vance's Mistress Jeshickah, is in charge of Midnight, the empire where they live. 

In this fantasy world, there is another twist- the leaders of the town are all vampires. When Vance is forced to leave the safety of the greenhouse because of a tragedy, the story really starts to get interesting. At this point the author does a fantastic job of introducing new characters, with great detail that allows you to picture the characters even when some of them exist only in her imagination and would not appear in the real world. 

The one thing I found difficult about the book was how strange the names where and how hard it was to follow at times.  As the book goes on, the main character Vance learns things about himself that he never knew. He has to choose between the life he knew and a life of unknowns. 

 "I think we'll found out what you are together", Jaguar answered. "As it happens, I remember being your age, and am of the opinion that a young man's full potential is rarely obvious at this point in his life." 


Teen Reviewer: Jillian       

Teen Book Review: Fairest (Lunar Chronicles Series) by Marissa Meyer

Goodreads Summary:

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

Review:

“Fairest” a novel from The Lunar Chronicles series. This novel will never fail to leave the reader guessing, with all it’s plot twist, tragedies and heart shattering moments. This fantasy romance novel will pull on your heart strings at one moment and in a flash turn your mood from angry to content. With Marissa Meyer writing you’ll have to expect a twist upon any of her novels.

The main character Levana is a young determined princess, who shadows her sister Channary. Channary is soon to be queen, she doesn’t like all the politics and the problems of war with the land. She would rather be out partying, unlike Levana. Levana wishes to rule but will never rule due to being the second born. Levana has been through a lot, whether it was the bullying from her sister or the fear of what happened to her years ago in the accident. Levana’s problems are far vast. She’s falling for a man she barely knows personally, but one thing she does know is he’s married. What will she do?

This dark and deep novel will make your jaw drop, at every problem encountered. This crazy story will end with a grand finale but will keep you stuck staring at the last words wishing it wasn’t over. The story was extremely well written and is simply marvelous! I recommend this novel to anyone who likes a fantasy romance read.

Anissa (Teen Reviewer)

BOOK REVIEW: The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler

Good Reads Summary:

When Alice's father goes down in a shipwreck, she is sent to live with her uncle Geryon--an uncle she's never heard of and knows nothing about. He lives in an enormous manor with a massive library that is off-limits to Alice. But then she meets a talking cat. And even for a rule-follower, when a talking cat sneaks you into a forbidden library and introduces you to an arrogant boy who dares you to open a book, it's hard to resist. Especially if you're a reader to begin with. Soon Alice finds herself INSIDE the book, and the only way out is to defeat the creature imprisoned within.

It seems her uncle is more than he says he is. But then so is Alice.

Book Review:

The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler is filled with adventure, a little romance and fantasy. Alice, the main character in the book is a studious young lady who after losing her father goes to live with one of her uncles who she has never met. In her new home, a mansion also known as "The Library" she meets Emma, a plain looking girl who is a servant on the estate. As Alice begins to settle in and explore her new home, she starts to question what happened to her father and looks to the others in "The Library" for answers, this is where the book gets interesting.

 

 

Django Wexler does a good job describing Alice and the other characters in the book so that it is easy to build a picture in your mind of what the characters are doing and expressing. The author chose the right number of characters so that the reader would not be confused about where they fit in. There are lots of plot twists that keep you interested. Each twist had lots of detail, and many supporting ideas that helped you feel connected to the novel. The chapters are the right length for reading in the car and the right length for capping over what was happening, enough detail so it was a good story but not too much that you would lose interest. It was an easy book to read and understand. I liked that the author put some images in the book. As the book goes on, Alice's adventures become more extreme. Alice moves into a fantasy world full of fairies, magic, and monsters. One of my favourite quotes from the book is:

 

"Ashes," Alice said, in a tone of extremely strained patience. "Where are we?" He sighed, which was an odd sound to hear from a cat.

"We're inside the book, of course. The one you read; The Swarm." Alice laughed.

"You're not serious."

"Don't ask questions if you don't want to hear the answers," Ashes said. He swished his tail, offended, and started off down one of the corridors. Alice, feeling the first thrills of fear, hurried after him.

"All right, all right," she said. "We're inside the book. How did we get here?"

"You brought us," the cat said. "You have the gift, apparently. You're a reader."

 

If you like fantasy books, action and mysteries, then this would be a great book for you to try to unravel. Once you begin you won't want to put the book down!

By Jillian (Teen Reviewer)

Book Review: Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

GoodReads Summary:

Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.

Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.

So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.

Review:

This debut novel by Sara Raasch is a tale of loyalty, love and discovering one’s destiny.  While in the end I adored Book 1 of this soon-to-be-discovered series, at first, I found myself exasperated by Meira and her ungrateful, irritable nature.  I was expecting a strong, confident character from the top of the novel.  However, I soon found myself engrossed in the growth of her character and wishing I hadn’t been so quick to judge. 

As the story progressed, I found myself honored to be a part of Meira’s growth into the resilient and poised character I was looking for. Sara Raasch surprised me in the end with some heroic and fantastical scenes that left this heroine wanting more! I am so excited to read the next installment of this series, Ice like Fire, out in October 2015!

Happy Reading,

Valerie
YA Reader’s Advisor

Review: The False Prince by Jennifer A Nielsen

The False Prince

The Ascendance Trilogy, Book One

 

Author: Jennifer A Nielsen

Publisher: Scholastic

Published: February 2013

Rating: 5/5

* Available in the library

Summary:

The thrilling first book in a trilogy filled with danger, deceit, and hidden identities will keep readers clinging to the edge of their seats.

In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword''s point - he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage's rivals have their own agendas as well.

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.

An extraordinary adventure filled with danger and action, lies and deadly truths that will have readers clinging to the edge of their seats.

My Review:

 

The False Prince by Jennifer Neilson is a book a bout a lost prince named Jaron, who when his family is murdered, must reclaim his place on the throne. Meanwhile, a Nobleman named Conner searches for a false prince to put on the throne so he has power over the country Carthya. He comes across a boy named Sage who he thinks is perfect to be his false prince. But can he control Sage?

 

            The False Prince finds a perfect balance between the story and action. The action does not over throw the story, but has enough to keep you entertained. The plot about over throwing Carthya is an intriguing story line that keeps you wanting to read more. Ms. Neilson does a great job of making me feel like I’m one of Conner’s slaves, silently watching and observing Sage. The puzzle of who Sage really is, is all revealed in a twist of the tale, which you must read to find out. Even though this is not one of my favorite genres, this is one of my favorite books!     

Happy Reading,

Nate
Teen Reviewer

Teen Review: Rush by Eve Silver

 

"Rush"

Author: Eve Silver

Publisher: Harpercollins

Published: June 2013

Available at the library: On order

*Aliens, Science Fiction, Fantasy

Synopsis:

So what's the game now?
This, or the life I used to know?
 
Miki Jones's carefully controlled life spirals into chaos after she's run down in the street, left broken and bloody. She wakes up fully healed in a place called the lobby-pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game in which she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures.
 
There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out. Every moment of the game is kill or be killed, and Miki has only the questionable guidance of Jackson Tate, the team's alluring and secretive leader. He evades her questions, holds himself aloof from the others, and claims it's every player for himself. But when he puts himself at risk to watch Miki's back, he leaves her both frustrated and fascinated. Jackson says the game isn't really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival. And the survival of every other person on this planet. She laughs. He doesn't. And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.

My Review:

 

The book I have recently read and reviewed was Rush by Eve Silver, a fantasy novel taking place in our current time period in an unspecified place, most likely North America. It follows Miki, a teenaged female living a normal life. Suddenly one heroic choice, saving a classmates sister from being hit by a truck, changes her life, her relationships and could change the world. She and child-hood friend Luka are transported to a place called “The Lobby” where they meet Richelle, Tyrone and our love interest, Jackson Tate. These kids and hundreds of others were predestined to fight a terrifying and beautiful alien race, the Drau. The rest of the team calls this a game and that’s how Miki treats it. Then the game becomes fatal quickly, and the weight of their situation finally hits her, full force. Struggling with this deadly challenge, a best friend quickly becoming distant, her own grief and the infuriating yet special Jackson Tate, Miki’s life presents a formidable challenge. The plot was exciting yet easy to follow, a harmonious mixture.

            The book wastes no time getting to the meat of this story, the game. Within the first pages we’ve met Miki, her best friends and learned enough about her life that we already feel connected to the character but there are still mysteries to solve about her. The book was able to maintain interest throughout but it didn’t have too many major events that the reader became confused or felt the book was trying to distract them with excitement. It had enough twists to aid the story and they were logical but not predictable. It was a very strong piece of writing with very few faults.

            As mentioned earlier, this book had exceedingly good writing. Not only was it an original concept, it was an original concept executed well. Starting off with the writing itself, the passages were descriptive enough to paint a clear picture but still let the reader imagine some things. They used a wide range of vocabulary appropriate to the age level it was geared towards, especially for the character’s emotions. For example, instead of saying “She didn’t like the taste” it would say something like “She detested the sharp, bitter taste with a vehement passion”. It really helped the reader empathise with the characters, giving a better reading experience. The author also used great detail in describing settings such as Miki’s home. You got a clear mental map of everything, further immersing yourself. Moving on to the characters themselves, there was one thing that caught my eye first. Not only is there a strong, realistic female protagonist, she’s of Asian descent. A lot of times when there is a female protagonist in a modern novel, she’s Caucasian. Having a character representing minorities is always a plus. Miki’s personality was likeable with a good back story. I’m against using tragedies simply for the sake of giving characters a tragic back story. I felt the story did it to add meaning and it didn’t feel like a cheap gimmick. The characters also developed over the course of the story and you see your first judgements overturned. The only complaint I could possibly have is sometimes it can use repetitive phrases. It would still have good vocabulary but it would be identical to something the character said in the previous chapter. It wasn’t a big problem, just a small thing.

In conclusion, I give this book five out five stars for excellent development and execution. I would recommend this to anyone interested in the fantasy genre or who is looking for a relatable female protagonist in a leadership role.

Happy Reading,

Abby
Teen Reviewer