Reviews of young adult (YA) and middle grade (MG) books.
A cryptid is a parahuman with a few animal-like traits. Shay, a high school senior is oblivious to the fact that she is one. Yes, she can see and communicate with ghosts and she has jet-black hair as deep and rich as a black cat. But, does that make her one? Hugh, a college freshman,…
Jeanne Bannon is the author of The Beautiful Monster Series. She says, “I’ve always loved to read about vampires, especially the Vampire Lestat books by Anne Rice. Another of my favorites is Salem’s Lot by Stephen King. My aim for Beautiful Monster was to remain true to the folklore and genre. I didn’t want to…
Sam Vives, a Barcelona teen, is just a normal boy dealing with usual problems–homework, friends, and school bullies like Rafa who has targeted Sam since he was 7. When Sam and Rafa are paired during fencing class Sam wins easily, but gets smacked illegally by Rafa’s heavy sword. Later that day, limping home, Sam’s thoughts turn…
Red Fever wiped out Maelyn’s entire village. Just a toddler, she left her dead family in search of bread. Luckily, a kind stranger found the little girl crying on the side of the road. He and his wife adopted her and loved her like any good parent would toward their eldest daughter. Eight other girls…
Jimmy Hankins and Mickey O’Hara, boys in their early teens, are abducted from the streets with many other children in their city, by a band of evil men planning on selling the children as sex slaves through the seedy channels of human trafficking. Then, like magic, Theresa Bordils and Melchior, Fairy King of Avalon, rescues…
Blurb Witch of the Cards is historical, supernatural romantic suspense set in 1932 on the Jersey shore. Twenty-two year-old Fiera has recently left the Brooklyn orphanage where she was raised, and works in Manhattan as a nanny. She gets a lucky break when her boss pays for her short vacation in Asbury Park. One evening,…
Jake Tharsher is just 13 years old when his mother is killed in 1883 by a mysterious beast with red hair and plate-sized tracks. His father, an Army Scout, refuses to hunt the animal down. So when dad is called away again to fight renegade Apaches, Jake decides to risk it all and hunt the…
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, fast food has been associated with higher caloric intake and poorer diet quality in children and adolescents.” It’s no wonder 25 million children in the US are overweight or obese consuming 67% more fat than recommended amounts and 72% more saturated fats, which leads to obesity….
Seventeen-year-old Emma Garson is Lucas Walker’s devoted girlfriend. She expects their relationship to blossom into a life-long commitment with a picket fence and plenty of kids. Then, months before Lucas’ high school graduation, he is diagnosed with terminal cancer. When the boy finally becomes a shell of his former self—high school football star and most…
The Luna Chronicles consists of four major books—Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter. Author Marissa Meyer connects each book sequentially, so it’s important to start with Cinder and read your way through to the amazing climax in Winter. Each book is named after one of the primary female leading teens in the Luna Chronicles. First and…