Beyonders trilogy ~ 3 stars

     The Beyonders trilogy, by Brandon Mull, is a story of action, adventure, and courage set in a fantastical world pulled straight from the imagination of the author of the wonderful Fablehaven series. It's one of those books where a kid from our world travels to another place and finds himself the answer to prophecy. That's what Jason is: the answer to a prophecy, the hero who could save the world of Lyrian or destroy it. But he's also just an ordinary, baseball-loving teenager and at heart he's just like every one else.

     Jason comes from the Beyond - that would be our world - and his sudden arrival in a place nothing like Earth couldn't be more startling to him. Lyrian is a place like no other - you won't find another book with a world like Lyrian, and around every corner you're discovering something new about it. It's populated by humans, yes, but there are strange races living there, too, races created years ago by wizards. The food is exotic and varied, and the places Jason adventures to are as diverse as a swampy jungle full of huge frogs to the Tavern-Go-Round, a spinning tavern. All these things provide the backdrop for the story Brandon Mull has prepared.

     Jason, together with Rachel, another teen who has traveled from our world to Lyrian, are set on a quest by the Blind King to find the syllables to a magical world that can destroy the evil, tyrannical wizard Maldor, who seeks to conquer and control the entire world of Lyrian and everyone and everything in it. This quest will be dangerous enough, but no less dangerous than confronting Maldor in his fortress and speaking the word that will save Lyrian. And because of the nature of this series, I can't tell you what happens beyond that. You'll have to read them to find out.

     Now, with this fairly glowing description, maybe you're wondering why I'm only giving this series 3 stars. Here's why.

     In Lyrian, Brandon Mull created an amazingly detailed, intricate, unique world, filled with things and creatures I'd never heard of before, including wizard-born races that you will not find the like of in any fantasy novel you've ever read. Usually that's a good thing. I like to find unique worlds in books, but in Beyonders there was just too much for me to handle. I got lost in all the imagery - and not in a good way. There was so much going on in the background that I had a difficult time following the thread of the story with all these strange names of creatures and things popping up every few pages.

     Secondly, I had problems with the cast of characters in the Beyonders. As far as creating unique characters, Brandon Mull did well, especially with his wizard-born races to draw from. I do have a certain attachment to Ferrin the displacer, and I dare you to read the whole trilogy and hate him. Jason and Rachel were also great people, and the Blind King was...blind, of course, but pretty awesome. The problem for me was that there were other people who would join Jason and Rachel as they set off on each new quest, not so much in the first book, but definitely in the other two. And there were SO MANY of them, each with such a special skill-set that whenever they ran into trouble - and they did - there was always someone perfectly equipped to save their necks.

     Now, having a large cast of characters meant that Brandon Mull could regularly kill a few to remind Jason and Rachel to keep moving, but I find that creating characters and adding them to the story for a bit-part before killing them as a casual reminder isn't a mark of good writing. So between the jack-of-all-trades aspect of Jason and Rachel's ever-growing group of questers and their frequent, sudden deaths just to prove a point, I found the story lacking something. I couldn't get genuinely attached to the characters when I knew they'd be dead in 150 pages or so, only to be replaced by someone just as good or better. 

     Those are my reasons for rating the Beyonders the way I do. Despite having a brilliantly imagined world and a story premise that I loved, technicalities in how the author executed the story just didn't live up to my standards. However, there are lots and lots of people who had loved these books to an insane degree. I've read the reviews on Amazon, and there are fans out there as diehard as any fans of Harry Potter. So if you did like Fablehaven, I think the Beyonders might be worth looking into. It just didn't work for me.

     To sum up my somewhat extended review, let me just say that the first book of this trilogy has already been reviewed on Under Cover Agents by Mountain Gal, my blogging buddy. Check out her review HERE, and hopefully between us we can give a less biased assessment of these books.

Link to author website: http://brandonmull.com/site/beyonders-books

Rebellion Under the Stars ~ 3 stars

Review requested by Copper Dirt.


     Rebellion Under the Stars, by Katherine Marie, is another recent read for me. It's a story of adventure, rebellion, loyalty, and perseverance. The kingdom of Zaracor is about to be attacked by a mysterious and relentless force, led by a man driven by ambition and greed. Help must come if Zaracor is to survive the rebellion - and help is far away. An attack will soon be launched on the City, the home of the King of Zaracor.

     A varied cast of characters find themselves burdened with the task of saving the kingdom. Selena, a commoner girl, and her close friend, Prince Johnathan of Zaracor. Master Jolan, a man with many secrets, but still the closest and wisest advisor of King Charles of Zaracor. MacKenna, the daughter of a blacksmith, who has strange and frightening visions of the future. And Marzena, a powerful and mysterious woman who lives in the forest just outside the City. Working together and separately, its up to them to find out how Zaracor can be saved - or if that's even possible.

     Rebellion Under the Stars is a brand new book that was just published in December of 2014. In fact, it was self-published by Katherine Marie, a blogger and writer and now new author that I follow. The fact that Rebellion Under the Stars is a self-published book, and also the first book Katherine Marie has ever had published makes it more of a challenge to review than other books I've done, but I'll give it my best shot.

     First of all, as a self-published book, it was better than some I've seen. Often I find self-published authors to have poor spelling and punctuation or tons of typos which aren't in books published and edited by big companies. Also, I've read books where the self-published author was too lazy to make sure their formatting was consistent throughout the book - sometimes words are spaced widely in one place and indented from the page in another place. This is just confusing to read and jolts the reader out of the story. Rebellion Under the Stars had none of these problems - there were two or three typos, but formatting was consistent. 

     One other thing I noticed is that there were no chapter breaks. Instead, there would be a bit of a page break when the story switched narrators or an important event was completed. This was a bit exhausting to read after a while. I found that when I didn't have chapter breaks to mark my progress, the story would drag a little bit. Still, it was an interesting choice and gives the book a distinctive voice. But as self-published authors go, Katherine Marie did a good job making sure the outward appearance of Rebellion Under the Stars wasn't disruptive to the story.

     As for the story, I have a few comments to make about that, both positive and negative. The things that bugged me about Rebellion Under the Stars was partly the big cast of characters. In most books, there are lots of named characters, and sometimes more than one narrator. I've read books with as many as four narrators, and that can be hard to cope with. Rebellion Under the Stars had seven or more narrators, I may have forgotten one or two. With that many narrators, you have to use a somewhat omniscient style of writing, otherwise you risk blending the characters together in the story. Unfortunately, in a story the length of Rebellion, I wasn't able to connect with any of the characters very well, which is important. Primarily, though, my difficulty was that I couldn't decide who the main character was out of so many narrators.

     Also, each of these characters has their own story, and with seven or more to deal with, I as a reader wasn't able to discover much about their histories. By the end of the book, I was left with tantalizing hints of secrets and hidden pasts for several of the characters, but nothing concrete. However, Katherine Marie has talked about a sequel/prequel for Rebellion, so maybe another book will clear that up.

     The positive things I have to say about Rebellion Under the Stars have to do with the writing style of Katherine Marie herself, not specifically Rebellion. I enjoyed the story, don't get me wrong, but I just felt like there wasn't enough for it to be special to me. Her writing style and grasp of story mechanics: characters, scenes, dialogue, action - all the stuff that make a story stick with you - were good. She wrote scenes that made sense, she knew what her setting was and could describe it and the characters inside it. And although I doubt she had a professional editor paid to edit her story, Rebellion shows that she put the time and effort into editing herself and did a good job. If she writes more stories, which I hope she does, I'd definitely be willing to try them.

     In the end, Rebellion was a pretty good book from a first-time self-published author. It shows bravery from the author to be willing to make herself the face of her book, and not some publishing company, since she'll have to do all the footwork to get her book known (though maybe my reviews and other reader responses will help). I thought the story was interesting, and though it could have used a bit of tightening to clearly bring the plot together and showcase the characters ideally, it was a nice debut novel. Good job, Katherine Marie!

Link to author website: https://kmariecreativity.wordpress.com/
Links to Rebellion Under the Stars page: https://kmariecreativity.wordpress.com/rebellion/

The Screaming Staircase - 4.5 stars

Second edition cover

     The Screaming Staircase by Johnathan Stroud is another new book I picked up recently. Johnathan Stroud wrote the Bartimeaus Sequence - I reviewed the first book in that series earlier. I've liked most of what I've read from Stroud. A few of his stand-alone novels didn't appeal to me much, but I've always liked the Bartimeaus Sequence, so when I saw he was writing another series, I gave it a go.

     The Screaming Staircase is the first book in the Lockwood and Co. series. It could be only a trilogy, which would be a shame, but since it's not finished yet - the second book in the series, The Whispering Skull, only came out September 2014 - I don't know. But so far, I've really enjoyed the first two books, so I'm probably going to be getting myself any sequels he comes up with.

     This story is set in London. A sinister Problem has been troubling the world for nearly fifty years now. All manner of ghosts and spirits have begun to appear in rapidly increasing numbers, and they don't appear to be friendly. Unfortunately, only young people have the ability to perceive these spirits. Many different agencies have sprung up, employing hundreds of adolescents and children to find and destroy these Visitors, as the spirits are called.. Lucy Carlyle is a brave and talented young agent with the ability to hear the Visitors. When she teams up with clever, charismatic Anthony Lockwood and his mildly repulsive assistant George, they all have hopes that the agency is about to make its mark on the world.

     Unfortunately this is not to be, and after their latest case ends disastrously with a house going up in flames, Lockwood and Co. face the possible end of their new agency. To save it, they must brave the most dangerous haunted house in London, perhaps in all of England. Combe Carey Hall has a reputation of spirits and hauntings that stretches back several centuries - long before the Problem really began. Can the three intrepid agents survive the horrors of the Screaming Staircase and the Red Room? Can they put an end to the haunting of Combe Carey Hall, or will they be the next three lives the forces of that house have taken?

     The Screaming Staircase was definitely a page-turner. Stroud balanced the comfy relationship of the three-person agency with a lot of fast-paced action and really dangerous situations. I was also really captivated by the originality of the plot. The story is set in slightly post-modern London, but it wasn't sci-fi at all. Something else that I found was interesting was the fact that agents use rapiers to fight Visitors - what's not to like about some dashing teens with flashing, silver-coated blades? Furthermore, there was definitely a mystery element to this story, and although the clues were there, I was kept deliciously guessing the entire time. I think you can agree that that's a mark of very good story-telling.

First edition cover

     As for the characters of The Screaming Staircase, they display Stroud's trademark sarcasm and humor. If you're like me and couldn't get enough of Bartimeaus in the Bartimeaus Sequence then the characters in Lockwood and Co. have a taste of that same sharp wit and irresistible, careless charm. Lucy is a very plucky and extremely admirable young lady. I didn't expect her to be my favorite, but she is, hand's down. It's also hard not to be charmed into liking the irrepressible Lockwood, and though I still have my doubts about George, he turned out to be a good egg after all. 

     Another mark of Stroud's ability to write very, very good stories is the Visitors. The descriptions of ghosts, spirits, and other things not quite of this world that stem from the Problem are incredibly riveting, and though I really should say 'realistic' that's what I'm going to go with. I honestly wished I hadn't started to read the climax after dark, because what they encountered in the Red Room was actually pretty scary stuff. If you've got a problem with getting emotionally involved with a book and getting as freaked out as the characters are, then you'll probably want to save The Screaming Staircase for strictly daytime reading.

     Other than that, The Screaming Staircase was a captivating and fun read from an author I know and trust to write good, high-quality material and tell intriguing stories. I'm actually really impatient for the next book to be published.

Link to series website: http://www.lockwoodandco.com/

Ascendance Trilogy - 5 stars

     In these past few months, I (Noodle) have been reading some new books, ones I see suggested on the blogs I follow or that I find at the library or on Amazon. Some of those have gotten reviews, and more reviews of these new books are coming still. For instance, Poison is a book I found on another blog, and Snow White and Rose Red and The Grimm Legacy were both stumble-upons. As you can see by recent reviews, I have liked some of these new books I've been reading, while others have been duds. But just a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon a real gold-mine.

     The Ascendance Trilogy, by Jennifer A. Nielsen has suddenly become one of my very favorite trilogies. Ever.

     It's going to be hard to review this trilogy, though, because a lot of what makes it good is that it kept me guessing the entire time. Not just in the first book or the second, but the whole time, in every book. Furthermore, part of what makes this trilogy so brilliant is the slow reveal of secrets. I actually sort of ruined one of the biggest secrets of The False Prince for myself by reading the little summary of it that's up on Amazon. So the most important advice I can give you about this series is: Don't read anything that's been written about the books. Basically everything will be some kind of spoiler.

     I know that sounds weird, but it really is true. 

     With that kind of warning, I'll try and do my best to write some sort of review of this trilogy. It won't be my best, or my most thorough, but I'll give it a shot.

     First of all, the Ascendance trilogy is one of the most impossible series to put down. It's one of the most suspenseful stories I have ever read. And in my book, any story that I hate having to put down and step away from is one that's worth reading and rereading. Secondly, I can't and won't write much about the events of The False Prince, The Runaway King, and The Shadow Throne. It would give away way, way too much. But I think I can safely give a little starter for The False Prince, just so you know what you're getting into when you start reading. Because I know you will.

     Sage is an orphan boy, quick on his feet, quick with his tongue, quick with his hands. A few days before he turns fifteen, a nobleman called Connor buys him as a servant. But instead of serving tables for the rest of his life, Sage has become a part of a daring scheme that Connor has concocted. A scheme which treads very close to being treason. Sage has no choice but to cooperate with Connor, however, because if he doesn't, he'll never be heard from again.

     Sage's secrets are slowly revealed all the way through the first book,and you never quite know what he's getting at and what his plans are until the very last pages of the very last chapter. I can't/won't say a word about the other two because that would give away way too much of the story, but they're very bit as good and suspenseful as The False Prince. 

     I can say a few things about the characters of the Ascendance trilogy. Sage, the main character and narrator, is funny, quick-witted, and probably the smartest fictional person I've ever had the pleasure of reading about. He's very distinct, and I was constantly on that fine line between laughing at his jokes and groaning at his seemingly stupid mistakes the whole time I was reading. Sage is genuine. He has a good sense of what is right and wrong, and although sometimes he seems like a no-good thief, he's probably one of the most honest people in the entire trilogy. He's also the kind of person that naturally takes the lead and comes up with the ideas and plans. Sage is what makes the Ascendance trilogy as good as it is. They wouldn't be the same without him. 

     Other characters, such as Imogen, the mute serving girl, Mott, Connor's bodyguard, and the other two orphan boys, Tobias and Roden, are also incredibly varied and unique. Nielsen did an amazing job when she created them. They're complex and well-rounded characters who all add so much to the story just by being there on the pages. 

     As for setting, there are king and queens, as the titles should indicate, but the story isn't set in a medieval world. I suppose I would have to say it has some of the characteristics of 14th century Europe. There are swords and chain mail, but there was also the one cannon, so it's not strictly a Middle-Ages type of setting. And although it qualifies as a fantasy story, there is not magic - Sage gets out of every one of his scrapes through sheer luck and his sharp mind.
     In the end, I have to say that in the Ascendance trilogy, Jennifer A. Nielsen did a wonderful job of bringing together a cast of unforgettable and entertaining characters, a complex and mysterious plot, and a mastery of the art of suspense. I can't speak highly enough of them - though maybe that's obvious by now. They're complicated enough to be satisfying for adult and teen readers, but there's so much action going on all the time that my younger siblings will probably like them a lot if I can just get them to read them. I rarely advise people to buy books, especially when it's so much easier to just check things out from the library. But with this trilogy, I'm going to make an exception. These are definitely worth buying so that you can have them around all the time. If I could rate higher than 5 stars, I would.

Link to author website: http://www.jennielsen.com/

Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy (guest review) ~ 5 stars

Guest review by Eli Hansen

     Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn is the title of an epic fantasy series by Tad Williams. The title is deceptive, since the name of the trilogy is not the name of the three books, which are titled The Dragonbone Chair, The Stone of Farewell, and To Green Angel Tower. My name is Eli Hansen, and epic fantasy is definitely my cup of tea – perfect for my guest review on my sister's blog.

     One thing we can all agree on is that this is an exceptionally long story. Altogether, the edition of the series that I own was about 2600 pages long. That's close to even the Harry Potter series, and I can assure you that Tad Williams' writing is much more complex than J. K. Rowling's early work. 

     In fair warning, this series was also one of the slowest series to "get in to" that I've ever read. Some reviewers say it takes 100 pages in to the first book to really get moving, others say 200 pages, and others say it takes half of the book before the story really get started. In my opinion the story really didn't get so exciting that I didn't want to put the book down until I was 600 pages in, almost all the way through the first book! Even for a seasoned reader, that's a long time to stick with a book that just doesn't seem all that great at first glance before you get to the good part. I would almost have to say it was poor writing. To me, the set up for the rest of the story was worth it, but I've had a hard time getting other readers (like my sister!) past the long intro to the rest of the trilogy without losing their interest. 

     Once you do get past the intro, however, you get to all the good things that I enjoy about Tad Williams' writing. For one thing, he keeps it real. The protagonist of his story starts out as a servant boy at the castle and over the course of 2600 pages, he develops from a simple adolescent who dreams of achieving great things, but would rather avoid responsibility, to being a strong leader and actually becoming the ruler of the human kingdom. But the development of this young man's character is never as if the author waved a magic wand and suddenly made him into a saint with all the virtues of a fairytale hero. Through the experiences he faces, the character actually comes to adulthood. I don't know any better example of character development in a piece of fictional writing.

     The other fantasy races that Tad Williams uses in his story also help to keep it real. He takes races like elves and dwarves and succeeds in making them really unique and distinct. Their motivations, their thoughts, and their culture are different and much stronger than the stereotypes that are typically portrayed for those races. 

     Another characteristic of Tad Williams' writing is that it's very dark. The situations his characters encounter can be very desperate, and you never actually know which ones will survive to see "happily ever after." Personally, I enjoyed the dark style of writing in the series; however, I know it can be offputting to some. Who wants to read about more suffering when there's already plenty of it to go around in the real world? As a sidenote, of all the books that Tad Williams has written, this is actually the least dark and grim.

     The plot of the series is definitely archetypical of the classic fantasy or fairytale type of story. It has some elements of mystery mixed in as well. I guess the reason I like it so much is that it is such an epic fantasy tale, but it does not resort to the kinds ofdeus ex machina and implausibilities that are so common in the genre, like waving the author's magic wand to change a formerly shallow and selfish character into a brave and self-sacrificing hero with no explanation for his change of heart. The characters, though, are the best part of the story – all very realistic in their choices and their motivations.

     The length of the story and the dark style of writing definitely make it a series for an experienced reader. There is some adult content; while it's not too overt, nor is it the focus of the story, it's there, so beware. The best thing I can say about the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series is that it will blow you away with its depth. It takes a plotline that really is a classic example of fantasy and makes it so much more than its stereotype. A piece of "easy reading" it is not, but if you like writing that challenges you and really makes you think to keep up with the author, you will really enjoy Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn. I encourage you to give it a read!

     Noodle: Thanks, Eli! He has is own website and blog over at www.elihansenart.com which you should really check out. Eli asked me to review this series, but I really think we can all agree he did a better job of it than it than I would have.

Castle Glower series - 4 stars

     The Castle Glower series by Jessica Day George is a very charming story about a girl, a griffin, and a castle that is constantly changing. I wouldn't normally describe a series with the word 'charming', since that might give you the idea that it's just another 100 page kid story. But this series really is charming: pleasant, agreeable, and even lovable.

     The story throughout the three published books in this unfinished series is interesting in itself - first the Castle in ambushed, then Celie, the princess of Sleynth, secretly hatches a griffin, and finally she and her siblings are transported to the original home of Castle Glower. I always enjoy a good story about children solving problems bigger than themselves, and Princess Celie does a very good job of that in every book of the series. Also, I was intrigued by the concept the series is built around: the mysterious Castle Glower. It almost seems to be alive, creating new rooms every few days or taking away old ones. No one is sure why or where the rooms come from or where they go to when they disappear. 

     Besides the interest of Castle Glower, the characters are also fun. First of all is Princess Celie, who is a plucky girl of twelve years. She's a fairly practical princess, and she's mapped most of Castle Glower, and is always adding the new rooms to her map. Also, she's Castle Glower's favorite person, and she can count on it to help her in it's own way when she really needs it. When the Castle is under attack, Celie is the best person to help save it. And when the Castle starts to fall apart and no one knows why, Celie is the one who understands the clues the Castle is leaving for them. Besides her special connection to the Castle, Celie is also smart and cheerful even when things get bad.

     Her brother Rolf and sister Lilah are also enjoyable characters, and they're both sweet and act just like family would. Then there's the quaint, dog-loving Prince Lulath and Lilah's sweetheart, Pogue. And there's even a griffin that Celie names Rufus, which is a cute name for a griffin.

     Besides having a great story premise and fun characters, the Castle Glower series is a nice series in other ways. One thing I really enjoyed was that when Celie is in big trouble, she goes to her family for help. In lots of stories, this doesn't happen and the character has to rough it out on their own for various reasons. While there's no problem with this - and in fact, I enjoy it a lot - there's something refreshing and appealing about a character who gets some help for once. Another thing I enjoyed was Celie's sassy sense of humor. I always enjoy characters with a sense of humor.

     I bet the Castle Glower series won't build up a fan base like the Harry Potter series or Lord of the Rings, but they're still a fun, enjoyable read. Not every book has to be a hit series to be good, or even to be someone's favorite. The Castle Glower series isn't my favorite series, but it's one that I have had a good time reading. I'd definitely recommend it, especially to kids. It's about that reading level, is completely clean, and is a very fun series. It might not be entertaining to more advanced readers, but I found it worth reading and definitely worthy of four stars.

Link to author website: http://www.jessicadaygeorge.com/

Forest Born - 5 stars

     Forest Born, the last book in The Books of Bayern series, is my personal favorite. It is the story of Razo's sister Rin, the only girl in a large family from the Forest. Rin is a quiet girl, and everybody thinks of her as her mother's shadow. But Rin has secrets of her own that no one has ever guessed at.

     Rin has a connection to trees that goes beyond the ordinary understanding that all people who live in the Forest have. Rin can feel them in a way that is beyond her understanding. But after she does something terrible, something which makes her ashamed to be herself, the trees turn against her and she can find no comfort in the Forest. If Rin is ever going to feel right in her own self again, she must find out how to fix what is wrong inside. 

     But she can't do that at home in the Forest among her family, so she goes with Razo to the capital city to be a waiting woman for Queen Isi. Rin admires Isi's quiet strength and her confidence and wishes she could feel that way herself. When Isi learns that there are hostile fire-speakers in Bayern again, attacking her husband's soldiers, she sets out to stop them forever, taking Enna and Dasha with her. And Rin, who is determined to stay near Isi, follows them. 

     But it's not fire-speakers who pose the greatest threat to Bayern and to Isi. Selia is back, the girl who tried to have Isi killed when she first came to Bayern so that she could become the queen. Selia escaped from her death sentence and now she's revealed herself once again. Isi and her friends are her prisoners, and it's up to Rin to somehow break them free so that Selia can be defeated once and for all. That will be harder than it sounds, because Selia has Rin's brother Razo and Isi's little son Tusken in her power. Rin will need all the courage she has to be brave enough to do what needs to be done. And in doing so, she will realize why she feels broken inside.

     Forest Born resonated strongly with me. It's a story about a girl who feels lost inside herself and doesn't know who she is. Rin is afraid of what she could become, and doesn't realize the greatness of the gifts she has been given. I found myself identifying with Rin as I read this book because she reminded me of myself. One of Shannon Hale's greatest talents as a writer is to be able to create characters who the readers can identify with as if they were themselves, and that's something to be admired in an author. When Rin is afraid of herself and when she tries to be like other people to feel more right inside, I feel her pain. 

     Forest Born was written incredibly well. Particularly captivating to me was Rin's voice as a narrator. Growing up in a rustic, backwoods family who have a blunt, down-to-earth way of speaking, Rin describes things in a way that always harks back to her roots. She is a character who is more strongly rooted in her family than even she realizes, and it's those roots that make her strong. And once she finds the balance in her gifts, Rin can find peace and contentment within herself, something that she has been missing. 

     Its hard for me to describe how much I love Forest Born. As I said, its my favorite of The Books of Bayern series. I suppose I identify with it so much right now because of where I am as a person, but no matter what age you are it's still a rewarding, compelling story. Also, like all the other books in this series, it can stand alone, although it's a bit easier to understand if you've read the other books first. And since they're all worth reading, why not?

Link to author website: http://www.squeetus.com/stage/main.html

River Secrets - 5 stars

     River Secrets, the third book in The Books of Bayern series by Shannon Hale, is a strikingly different book from the two previous ones. This book is narrated by Razo, unganly, awkward Razo, boy from the Forest and one of Isi's closest friends. Although he is not a very good warrior, for his heroic deeds on Isi's behalf in The Goose Girl he is part of Bayern's Own, a group of elite troops. And in this book, the kingdom if Tira and the kingdom of Bayern are slowly trying to mend their old alliances after the devastating war between them which took place in Enna Burning. And Bayern's Own is going to Tira as part of a diplomatic mission to help make peace.

But when they get to Tira, things are not all as they seem. The people of Tira are not particularly happy to see the representatives of Bayern, and to make things even more serious, bodies have been found. Blackened, burnt bodies. The leader of the Bayern representatives in Tira asks Razo to find out who is doing the burning, but it may turn out to be more than Razo can do alone. He may need to ask for help from some unlikely people, such as the Prince of Tira, and Dasha, a noble Tiran lady. A lady that he might be falling in love with. And there's also the danger that it could be Razo's friend Enna. Is her gift out of control again? Is she killing without even realizing it?

River Secrets is a much more jovial story than the rest of the series. Razo is a light-hearted character with a sense of humor that never shuts up, and you can count on a laugh every page or two. He's also irresistibly charming and endearing as a narrator. I couldn't help but root for him, even if I did find him annoyingly clueless and thick-headed from time to time. Razo is one of those characters you just can't help but like.

     Once again, River Secrets brings back some old characters and includes some new ones. Enna and Finn are important returning characters, and Dasha and the prince of Tira are new ones that I particularly liked. Although this book was far less serious in tone than Enna Burning and even The Goose Girl, it was far from trivial, and I definitely enjoyed this addition to the series. It was a meaningful story about loyalty and love that was fun and entertaining to read.

Link to author website: http://www.squeetus.com/stage/main.html

Enna Burning - 5 stars

     Enna Burning is the second book in The Books of Bayern series by Shannon Hale. Unlike the first book, it isn't based off a fairy-tale, but is just as intriguing and captivating a story as The Goose Girl.

     Enna Burning centers around Enna, the best friend of Isi, formerly Anidori-Kiladra of Kilandree and now the new princess of Bayern. Enna is from the Forest, one of a practical people who live a harder life than those in Bayern who dwell in cities. To be from the Forest is to be a survivor, and that aptly describes Enna. She's a blunt, quick-thinking and -speaking person who can stand up for herself, and she's fiercely loyal to her friends and family. But things are about to change for Enna, and her loyalty and strength will be tested to the limit.

     Bayern is at war with the neighboring country of Tira. Enna's brother Liefer has mysteriously learned to control fire, and he hopes his new gift will be able to help Bayern win the war. Instead, his new gift overpowers him and burns him to death. Enna discovers how he learned to control fire: a scrap of vellum he found in the forest tells how to learn to speak to fire. Enna is now gifted like her friend Isi, who is able to speak to the wind and understand the language of birds. But Enna's gift is strong, almost stronger than Enna herself. The need to burn and burn is more than she can bear sometimes. She's afraid she'll lose control and hurt the ones she loves. Can she find a balance? Or will she burn like her brother, mastered by a gift too powerful for her?

     Enna Burning was probably the most suspenseful of The Books of Bayern. The whole struggle Enna goes through, not just because of the war, but because of her new power, is very intense, and thanks to Shannon Hale's writing it's impossible not to feel Enna's pain. Enna Burning was also the book that took me the longest time to digest, and I'll admit to actually disliking it when I first read it. Enna Burning was very different from other Shannon Hale books I'd read, and took me completely by surprise. 

     First of all, Enna Burning is more sober than the other books in this series. There's less of the fun and light-heartedness that can be found in the other ones, and although there are happy moments, there are also many, many scenes that are very sad and terrible. When I first read it, I was actually a bit frightened by it, because it was more dark and intense than anything I had read from Shannon Hale, and was completely unexpected. It took me a reread and a week to contemplate the story before I could really decide what to think, and at that point I realized it was an amazing story. It was much less intense than many stories I've read, but because it came from Shannon Hale - who has always been a writer who quietly thrills me with gentle, heart-felt scenes - I had all my barriers down and Enna Burning made a terrific impact.

     The other reason I initially thought I disliked Enna Burning is because this book also happens to be one of the edgiest of Shannon Hale's books, which is saying something, since Enna Burning is barely edgy at all. That should speak for the quality of Shannon Hale's stories. It's mostly because of Enna's character that this story feels edgy to me. Enna is a sharp contrast to the quiet, reserved Isi of the previous book, and Enna's bold actions lead her into situations Isi would never have found herself in, and there was a particular scene where I was afraid the story would go downhill. But thankfully, although Shannon Hale pushed the extent of edginess from her other books, Enna Burning is clean and safe, and isn't really any worse because of what happened.

     In the end, I would recommend Enna Burning just as highly as I would recommend The Goose Girl. It's full of powerful feelings and meaningful characters. It's more intense and less funny that The Goose Girl, but it can still make me laugh. It's also a great sequel to The Goose Girl, bringing back many of the old characters as well as including some new ones.

Link to author website: http://www.squeetus.com/stage/main.html

The Goose Girl - 5 stars

     The Goose Girl is the first book in Shannon Hale's Books of Bayern series. It's actually a retelling of the classic 'Goose Girl' fairy tale, but Shannon Hale has done a marvelous job of expanding the story into a wonderful story about a girl who can speak the languages of animals and elements, a girl with an inner strength she never knew she had. 

     Princess Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, Crown Princess of Kildenree, has listened to her aunt's curious tales about a time when people could understand the languages of animals and even speak to the wind since she was a little girl. Ani possesses this gift of languages which has been almost lost, and she learns to speak to the swans in the royal pond and a lovely colt called Falada born in the royal stables. But as she grows, so does her gift, and there are murmurs about the oddities of the Crown Princess. Ani's mother feels she has no choice but to send her away in marriage to a prince of a distant land: Bayern.

     Who would have guessed that along the road to Bayern, Ani is betrayed by her lady-in-waiting, Selia? Selia has pretended to be her friend, but all along she has planned to murder Ani and take her place as the Queen of Bayern. Luckily Ani escapes, and with the help of a forest woman and her son, finds her way to the capital city of Bayern, the city that was to be her home after she was married. But instead of being received as a princess and a bride-to-be, Ani is a stranger in a strange land. Selia has beaten her to the capital city and fooled everyone into believing she is the real Princess Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee. Ani makes a living as a goose girl and tries to hide from Selia's hired mercenaries as she develops a new gift: a connection with the wind.

     But it's not just Ani's life that's at risk. Her homeland of Kilandree is suddenly in peril when the much larger Bayern begins to muster troops for a surprise attack. Selia intends to destroy everyone who could possibly give away her real identity and take away her new title of Princess. And Selia can do all this because she has people-speaking, a gift like Ani's understanding of animals and the wind. This gift gives her words special weight, and she can convince people to do anything she wishes, no matter how vile it is. It's going to be up to Ani to save her native country from Selia, with only the help of her unlikely animal-herder friends and a wounded captain of the guard.

     The Goose Girl is a book I admire for a variety of reasons. It has a wonderful plot and a captivating, magical story premise because of the idea of languages. It also has amazing characters, and the characters are what make Shannon Hale's stories so enchanting. Ani became so real to me after reading The Goose Girl. She's kind and gentle and not particularly brave - unlike some of the more macho heroine's that I regularly find in other recent publications. This is refreshing and makes the story all the more beautiful. Enna, Finn, Razo, Conrad, and other characters are also fresh and distinct, all of them with a rich background that flavors their actions and even the words they say. I love how Shannon Hale draws you in with her words. She writes in a way that feels as natural as breathing to me, and it makes her books comfortable to read and read again. 

    Shannon Hale also incorporates very deep meanings into her stories - this isn't just a casual novel, but a story with meaning. Ani has the qualities of a queen, and The Goose Girl tells the story of how she realizes this and becomes a leader of a people she has made her own. Selia has chosen to do what's wrong to get what she wants, and she has allowed herself to hate Ani because she has what Selia wants most: a title and a throne and a country of obedient subjects. The contrast of these two characters and their goals are part of what make The Goose Girl shine as a story.

     I cannot recommend The Goose Girl highly enough. For people who enjoy a high-quality retelling of a classic fairy tale, this books is one of the best I have ever read. For readers who enjoy a good fantasy, this is that book. I found The Goose Girl to be a highly entertaining, captivating story full of meaning and characters who feel like family. It's definitely a must-read.

Link to author website: http://www.squeetus.com/stage/main.html

Behold the Dawn - 5 stars

     When I first got Behold the Dawn by K.M. Weiland, I didn't really have any expectations for it. I thought it might be a fun read and an interesting story, but not necessarily something which would rank among my favorite books. Within three chapters I literally could not put it down. Eating and spending time with people was reduced to the bare minimum, and I don't think I even got myself anything to drink. I didn't put the book down unless I absolutely, absolutely, absolutely had to, and then I was back as soon as possible to keep reading. That's how good it was. 

     Behold the Dawn has a lot of aspects that I enjoyed reading. First of all it was set during the Crusades, right around the time period of Robin Hood, and I enjoy reading fiction set during that time period. I was also captivated by the main character, Marcus Annan, a champion tourneyer. He's a strong and silent sort of person with a lot of pain in his past he's trying to hide from, and he is also one of the best-written characters I've read in a long time. Behold the Dawn is also a story of redemption, not the cheesy, sugary kind I've read in some books, but the kind that really rang with truth and resonated with me. 

     There were other aspects of Behold the Dawn that were very, very good as well, such as the characters, so genuine and real they should be walking off the page. There's also a slow-burning romance, strong enough to change Annan's life but not the defining feature of the book. I enjoy romance in a book, but I don't like that to be the entire focus of the story. There's also plenty of gritty action, and when Annan fights I can feel the battle. Weiland writes with passion and captures the little moments of her story masterfully. And there's suspense on every page - the secrets the characters carry will drive you mad until they're finally revealed in an stunning climax at the very end.

     The only negative thing I have to say about Behold the Dawn is that no one told me I shouldn't read it as fast as I did. It's the kind of book that should be taken at a reasonable pace so that all the details can sink in - I devoured it in about four hours. Another thing I noticed was that the book did allude to some unpleasant details of real life, and those things affected the past and present choices of several of the characters. These hints don't detract from my opinion of the book, but it was a detail I noticed which some readers might want to be aware of before they start reading this book. 

     My opinion of K.M. Weiland has definitely been boosted after reading this book. She's a powerful writer, and I highly recommend this book and any of her others as great reading material. I really can't believe Behold the Dawn is her first published novel, but it is now one of my favorite books.

Link to author website: http://www.kmweiland.com/

The Outcasts - 4 stars

Review requested by Alaina Bach


     The Outcasts is the first book in John Flanagan's Brotherband Chronicles. It's set in the same world as his bestselling Ranger's Apprentice series, and focuses on the Skandians, the Viking-like barbarians of the north. It has all the hallmarks of a Flanagan series: dry humor, fast-moving action, engaging characters, and plenty of plot twists.

     The Outcasts centers around Hal, a half Skandian/half Araluen boy who's father died in a raid. Raised by his mother and his father's best friend Thorn, Hal is about to begin his brotherband training, a Skandian method of training boys in the skills they will need to become full-fledged Skandian warriors and sea-farers. If Hal doesn't do well in his brotherband training, he can expect to have a difficult time being accepted aboard a ship when he becomes an adult. Unfortunately, Hal has been chosen as the leader of the most unlikely bunch of young Skandians, and the chances that they'll win the brotherband training are very slim.

     I enjoyed several things about The Outcasts. First, the concept of brotherband training was interesting - what kind of skills do boys need to become Skandian warriors, and how do they acquire those skills? John Flanagan is particularly adapt at writing those things and making them both fun to read and funny to read. I also liked the other boys in Hal's brotherband. They were definitely the most unlikely bunch of heroes I've read about, and the way Flanagan turned them into something heroic was well-written. Also, Flanagan has a certain style of dry humor that makes fun of a situation in a way that I really like - it's clean, it's genuine, and it's everyday humor, the kind everybody can relate to. The humor and the characters are what makes The Outcasts a good read for me.

     The reason I only gave The Outcasts 4 stars is because it was very similar to Ranger's Apprentice. Some of the similarities are simply because he's still the same author writing in the same world, but in my opinion, John Flanagan didn't make his Brotherband Chronicles separate enough from his other series. I saw the same kinds of jokes being made, and the characters of The Outcasts had many of the qualities of some of his Ranger's Apprentice characters. Ranger's Apprentice fans might find the closeness between the two series enjoyable because the Ranger's Apprentice story continues in the new Brotherband Chronicles. I had been hoping, however, to read something different from John Flanagan and see him write some new idea, and so I was somewhat disappointed that he only came up with a spin-off of his previous series. But if you are a fan of Ranger's Apprentice and are looking for more of the same, the Brotherband Chronicles are a must-read. They have all the qualities that made Ranger's Apprentice such a great series, and I've always liked Skandia, so reading about that part of Flanagan's world was also great.

Link to Brotherband Chronicles website: http://www.worldofjohnflanagan.com/the-brotherband-chronicles/

Shadowfell ~ 4.5 stars (guest review)

Guest post by jayden robyn.

     Shadowfell is the first in a trilogy for young adults by respected fantasy author Juliet Marillier. It is set in Alban, a world not unlike a fantastical Scotland, and follows the story of a sixteen-year-old girl named Neryn.

     Neryn has been on the run for the last three years of her life, because of a secret she holds: Neryn can call the Good Folk, fairy-like creatures that inhabit Alban. A Caller is born only once a generation, if even that often. If Neryn’s magical ability is revealed, she will be captured and sent to the cruel King Keldec, and she will be forced to do his bidding.

     Alone and wary, Neryn is searching for a place called Shadowfell, rumored to be the hideaway of the rebels who seek to bring down Keldec’s rule. With help from the Good Folk and a mysterious stranger, Neryn journeys to find Shadowfell, which she worries may just be a rumor.

     Marillier’s writing is lyrical, and her characters are well-written and multi-dimensional. Neryn is a likable heroine; she is tough, and despite going through tragedies at a too-young age, she stills retains a kind heart. Neryn is not your typical heroine—she has no fighting ability, rather slipping away into the woods whenever danger approaches. While this starts to become a bit of a problem for me in the second installment, I liked this aspect of Neryn in this book.

     Flint, the troubled anti-hero of the trilogy, is very well-written and likable. While he struggles with the double life he leads, he is kind to Neryn and respects her. The romance that develops between these two is clean, as well as slow burning, a relief from the cases of instant-love that appears in many books today.

     There were several very likable characters among the Good Folk, and although they talk in thick Scottish brogues, I found them easy to understand for the most part. In fact, several of the Good Folk were probably my favorite characters out of the entire book.

     The story, your traditional quest tale, is slow-paced, but it never really dragged despite its 410 pages. Marillier manages to balance Neryn’s book-long journey with meetings with the Good Folk, close encounters with Enforcers, the men who do the king’s bidding, and finally, meeting the rebels of Shadowfell. Despite its dark moments, Marillier keeps a beam of hope shining throughout the story. The ending is not a cliffhanger, rather wrapping up the story of book one while still leaving more to be discovered in the second book. There was only one small instance in the book that I think would probably not be age appropriate for some under 14—however, the particular moment was not presented crudely.

     Shadowfell is my favorite book by Juliet Marillier, and I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a good fantasy read—I’m not sure that it would appeal to those who aren’t into fantasy.

Link to author/Shadowfell website: http://www.julietmarillier.com/books/shadowfell.html

The Hero and The Crown - 5 stars!

     The Hero and The Crown is one of many amazing stories Robin McKinley has written, and is my favorite of her books. It is set in Damar, a country not unlike medival Europe, and follows the journey of Aerin, the eighteen-year-old first-sol of Damar.

     Aerin is the only child of Damar's king, but because her mother was a witchwoman from the North, the palace folk distrust her. Her only real friends are her cousin Tor, her nurse-maid, Teka, and her father's lamed war stallion, Talat. But she rises beyond everything Damar expects of her when she slays the Black Dragon Maur and brings the Hero's Crown back to Damar in time to save her country from destruction. 

     Aerin is a memorable character, a stubborn and sometimes awkward girl who grows up to become a stubborn and sometimes awkward young woman. She is loyal to those she loves, but prefers to hide from trouble rather than face it, a trait that I can only sympathize with. From her fiery red hair to her surprising discovery of a fireproof ointment called kenet, Aerin proves herself to be resourceful when she must be, and more determined that anyone gives her credit for. In Aerin Robin McKinley has crafted a unique and memorable heroine, and that's the most we can ask for.

     In The Hero and The Crown, McKinley writes a captivating story in a very down-to-earth style that is distinctly her own. Her characters are well-crafted and well-written, from Aerin and Tor to Aerin's childhood enemy Galanna and the mysterious mage Luthe. The story was full of vivid detail and feeling, and McKinley put in plenty of surprising plot twists that sprinkle most of her writing: surprises that are interesting, magical, and at the same time very human.

     In my opinion, The Hero and the Crown is a good book on every level. It had memorable and multi-dimensional characters, an amazingly detailed world, and a well-crafted story. The narrative never dragged, despite several chapters of flashback into Aerin's childhood - that part of the story fit in smoothly with the rest. I would recommend The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley to fantasy readers of all ages. 

Link to author website: http://www.robinmckinley.com/

The Squire's Tale - 5 stars

     The Squire's Tale, by Gerald Morris, is a really amazing book about knights and squires, adventures and quests. It's the first book in Gerald Morris's The Squire's Tales series, a 10-book series of retellings of various Arthurian legends with a unique spin on them. Gerald Morris tells a humorous and heartfelt story about knights and magic, with moments of true feeling and plenty of humor. I know I'm going to laugh when I read one of Gerald Morris's The Squire's Tales.

     The Squire's Tale has all the things I look for in a really fun read. It has strong characters in Terence (the squire) and Sir Gawain (his knight). During the course of the book, both of them go on a long quest given them by a faery enchanter and have all sorts of adventures: fighting recreant knights, meeting a mischevious faery, even trying to sort out a few knightly romances. Both Gawain and Terence are honorable and brave - both of them are some of the best examples of real knightly behavior to be found in the book. 

     There are also all the old staples of a story about King Arthur and his knights. Merlin appears, and so does the Lady of the Lake. King Arthur and his wife Guinevere are also characters, as well as a mysterious enemy who threatens King Arthur. In Gerald Morris's story, there are also faeries and enchanters, magical spells and disguises, and mysterious things that happen to Terence and Gawain during their quest. I'd highly recommend this book for all these reasons, plus once you finish the first book there's nine more stories to come!

     I would say this book is probably just about right for readers between 8 and 14. I started reading them when I was 12, and I still love them now, several years later. There's no inappropriate language or content at all, and the book is very engaging. The romance elements in it were brought to the story by other characters and in my opinion were more hilarious than realistic. The 'damsel in distress' and the lovestruck knight made me laugh every time. Morris used them and various other characters to poke fun at the ridiculousness of the pathetic ideas about chivalry and knightly love that came from the original Arthurian tales.

     The thing I liked best about this book and this series by Gerald Morris was that it was the best retelling of King Arthur that I've come across. I like reading about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, so I scout around for stories set in that era. Out of all of them that I've found, The Squire's Tales is my favorite. It's funny, there's adventure, and the true valor and honor of King Arthur and his knights shows in this series.