Into the Dim
Posted: September 26, 2016 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: fantasy, London, time travel, young adult fiction Leave a comment
Into the Dim by Janet Taylor
After her mother’s funeral, teen Hope Walton reluctantly travels to Scotland to meet her aunt. She learns that her mother is alive, but is trapped in London in 1154. Homeschooled Hope can remember everything she reads, is claustrophobic, and has recurrent nightmares. Only the memory skills are helpful when she travels back in time to the coronation of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II with her cousin and her new friend Phoebe. Caught up in the drama and intrigue of London and the Court, Hope’s cousin gets arrested and Hope encounters Bran, a handsome teen she met in Scotland. Is Bran going to help Hope and Phoebe, or is he one of her family’s enemies? Fearful Hope is an unexpected heroine, but pretty good company in this first novel full of drama, adventure, fights, and some romance. The historical London setting is vividly drawn, and readers will look forward to Hope’s next time travel adventure. Kerstin Gier’s Ruby Red trilogy is a good readalike.
Brenda
Rebel of the Sands
Posted: August 16, 2016 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: coming of age, fantasy, young adult fiction Leave a comment
Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
Teen Amani lives with her aunt, uncle, and numerous cousins, helping to run the family store in Dustwalk. Amani sneaks out one night to win money in a sharpshooting contest. The next day she hides fellow sharpshooter Jin from the Sultan’s army. A train ride to the capital city ends abruptly, sending Amani, who is disguised as a boy, and handsome Jin on the run in the desert, which is full of danger and adventure. Amani reluctantly gets involved in a rebellion against the sultan, and meets people with various magical powers, half human and half djinni. Amani finds that she can’t tell a lie, and has to make choices about where her loyalty lies. This is a fun fantasy adventure that mixes elements of westerns with Arabian Nights.
Brenda
The Goblin Emperor
Posted: June 17, 2016 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: fantasy 1 Comment
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
I just loved this book, published in 2014, and am disappointed that there’s not a sequel yet. Fantasy, but no magic. Elves and goblins, but not like in Tolkien. Maia, 18, suddenly becomes emperor when his elvish father and half-brothers are killed in an airship accident. Raised in exile, with a cruel cousin appointed as his guardian after his mother’s death, Maia slowly finds his way through the maze of rituals, government officials, and his numerous staff in the capital, learning his duties and trying to decide who he can trust. Never alone, but often lonely, Maia is an appealing character, and the reader learns about the complex society through his eyes. There is a kidnapping, an attempted assassination, funerals for his family and the airship’s crew, visiting dignitaries, and the question of choosing his wife.
Brenda
The Invisible Library
Posted: June 10, 2016 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: adventure, fantasy, humor, London 1 Comment
The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman
The Invisible Library has a huge collection of rare books. Irene, the daughter of two librarians, is a junior librarian assigned to retrieve a unique version of Grimm’s Fairy Tales from an alternate version of London, along with her new apprentice, Kai. The London they’re visiting has magic, vampires, and steampunk elements. Unfortunately, the book has been stolen, and they need help from a handsome Londoner. Murder and mayhem ensue. The pacing is fast, there is humor and intrigue, an unexpected dragon, and possibly a romance in the sequel if Irene can get back to this London and keep the library’s big secrets. A fun fantasy adventure, with a sequel, The Masked City, being published in September. For readers of Diana Wynne Jones, Mary Robinette Kowal, and Patricia Wrede. This first novel is a June Library Reads selection.
Brenda
Slade House
Posted: November 20, 2015 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: fantasy, horror Leave a comment
Slade House by David Mitchell
Readers who have enjoyed David Mitchell’s earlier novels, The Bone Clocks or Cloud Atlas, or who are looking for a haunted house story will be entertained by Slade House. Otherwise, you may be just as confused as young teen Nathan, college student Sally, or policeman Gordon when they open the tiny iron door in Slade Alley and enter the garden of Slade House. The door only appears every nine years on the last Saturday of October. Of course, things are not what they seem, more like Alice in Wonderland than Brigadoon, and eventually they encounter evil twins Jonah and Norah. Not nearly as substantial as his other books, Slade House is humorous and scary, but not very satisfying.
Brenda
Welcome to Night Vale
Posted: November 2, 2015 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: fantasy, horror, humor Leave a comment
Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor
What is Night Vale? First it was a popular podcast set in a surreal town in the desert. Now it’s a book, audiobook, and ebook that fans of the podcast, along with the reader looking for something a little different, can enjoy. I’ve only listened to the first two podcasts, and it took me a little while to feel welcome in Night Vale. But once you visit there, it’s really hard to leave. Night Vale is a cross between Garrison Keillor’s Lake Wobegon tales and The Twilight Zone. Strange lights appear in the sky, helicopters and secret police are here to protect us, a sentient haze works at the movie theater, and angels named Erika don’t exist. There is an opening for an intern at the local radio station, but it’s not a job with a good future. Customers at the Moonlight All-Nite Diner may pick fruit off the tree who is also a waitress, or eat invisible pie. Single parent Diane works in an office where her boss Catherine denies that a man named Evan ever worked there and seems oblivious to the tarantula on her desk. Diane’s son Josh, a teenager, is a shapeshifter. This is a problem while he’s learning to drive. 19-year-old Jackie runs an unusual pawn shop. She’s been 19 for decades but can’t remember her childhood. Now Jackie can’t get rid of a piece of paper that simply says King City. Diane and Jackie finally work together to learn more about King City and to confront Troy, Josh’s father. Along the way, they brave trips to the library (all the librarians are tentacled monsters) and to City Hall. I enjoyed my visit, and plan to listen to more of the ongoing podcasts.
Brenda
The Shepherd’s Crown
Posted: October 12, 2015 Filed under: Book Reviews | Tags: fantasy, young adult fiction Leave a comment
The Shepherd’s Crown by Terry Pratchett
The last Discworld book from a beloved author is one to savor. The magical barrier keeping the elves out of the Discworld grows dangerously thin with the passing of powerful witch Granny Weatherwax. Young Tiffany Aching, witch and healer, is left Granny’s cottage and becomes the unofficial head of the witches. Swamped by work, Tiffany prefers her bedroom on her parents’ sheep farm, complete with her mother’s cooking and her father’s advice, but must take care of Granny Weatherwax’s people as well as her own. Finally she takes a most unlikely apprentice, Geoffrey, who wants to be a witch and has a calming influence, along with a very smart goat. The fierce, tiny Nac MacFeegle clan, along with the other witches help Tiffany defend the Discworld from the elves, aided by a group of older men organized by Geoffrey, and the deposed Queen of the elves. Fast-paced, enjoyable, and with plenty of adventure, this is a book about loss, duty, and hope.
Brenda
