Reviews of young adult (YA) and middle grade (MG) books.
Readers of revised fairytale stories are wary of Once Upon a Cursed Time: Dark Fairytale Anthology edited by Rebecca Weeks and Aimee Shaye. To quote the editors, “[It’s] a collection of fourteen dark fairytale stories written by eleven twisted authors.” It is also a retelling of childhood favorites from a very dark perspective. First, I…
Echo is a beautifully orchestrated novel by award winning author Pam Munoz Ryan involving the lives of four different children. The book begins with Otto’s story, a young boy lost in a forbidden forest. There, three mysterious sisters—Eins, Zwei, and Drei—who give him a melodious harmonica, rescue him. It is this harmonica that becomes the…
Nine-year-old Portia Maddox needs to use the restroom every time she drinks water. She’s always thirsty and hungry and still bone thin. School Nurse Bryant recommends a doctor appointment, and Dr. Thomas confirms her suspicions—Portia has childhood diabetes. She now needs to test her blood regularly and inject herself with insulin; which turns out to…
Elle Chambers is a witch detective who works for Edinburgh’s coven. So when Ferguson Black, a Scottish solicitor and werewolf goes missing, its Elle’s job to find him and ensure this dangerous supernatural being doesn’t hurt anyone. Elle’s liaison with the coven is Rebecca, a powerful witch who keeps her “supplied with investigation jobs that…
Mackenzie Bell is Hillcrest High’s top female tennis star. When matched up against Tabor Julian, one of the school’s best jocks, Mac wins. At home, Mac isn’t such a star with her mother, Delilah, who tends to ignore her daughter for the affections of male suitors. When introduced to Roger Carmichael, Mac becomes livid, because…
Becky Mellor, age 13, is prepared for her worst summer vacation. She has to spend it with her little brother, Joe, at Uncle Percy’s stately mansion, Bowen Hall. To make matters worse, Internet access at the mansion is questionable. Little does Becky realize that her entire life is about to change when she and Joe…
The Cedar Creek Mystery Series by Anne Louder McGee consists of three books—The Mystery at Marlatt Manor, The Mystery of the Missing Ming, and The Mystery Beneath Midville Museum. McGee’s Cedar Creek Mysteries are an episodic series where each story is self-contained, but her books feature the same primary characters and independent storylines. Mystery at…
Kate Pierce-Keller finally meets her grandmother after a decade of estrangement from Kate’s mother. Now Grandma Katherine wants Kate to move into her new home close to her high school at Briar Hill. Sixteen-year-old Kate soon learns that Katherine is dying from cancer and has about a year to live. Katherine also shows her a…
Grace Adams’ life in small town Texas has been a living hell for the twenty-two year old brunette. While in high school she dated school hunk Bruce Davis, son of the town’s ruling family. After their senior prom, Grace wanted nothing to do with him, who turned out to be a brutal and controlling misogynist….
Netti hung from the hanging tree, her body limp and swinging. It’s 1692 Salem, Massachusets with the infamous witch trials under way. Netti was a sweet and innocent young woman who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Her crime: She knew how to turn herbs into oils. Neighbor Jonas Hale believed the girl was actually brewing potions…