Monday, December 20, 2021

Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend

Summary from Goodreads:

Morrigan Crow and her friends have survived their first year as proud scholars of the elite Wundrous Society, helped bring down the nefarious Ghastly Market and proven themselves loyal to Unit 919. Now Morrigan faces a new, exciting challenge: to master the mysterious Wretched Arts and control the power that threatens to consume her.

Review:

These books get a little better, a little smarter, and a little more developed with each installment. The world building and character development has grown leaps and bounds by this book 3. This book has also gotten a little darker, and you can’t help but pull parallels to the world pandemic that is currently taking place. How long ago did Townsend write this? I know it takes a long time to get books published…but, there is no way Covid hadn’t started yet, right? That would be kind of scary.

There are also some very clear stories Townsend drew inspiration from. I kept thinking back to the story of Wicked (book and musical), and the movie Zootopia. But, I loved both of those, so it didn’t really bother me. Also, the book gets a tad political, in a fantasy children’s book kind of way -where it’s clear who the bigots are and there are some top-notch HP level quotes like:

“We don’t ignore bigotry, Jack. That’s how cowardly bigots turn into brave bigots.” and “The thing about numpties, Mog, is that they can always find plenty of other numpties to believe their numpty nonsense. You know what they say: you're never more than six feet away from a numpty.”

I think my favorite parts though involved Morrigan’s lessons, called Ghostly Hours (possibly inspired by scenes with the pensive in HP). I was fascinated! I think maybe I was more interested in it than Morrigan, and that’s saying something because she was obsessed. The one thing I felt was a little lacking in this book were the side characters (aka: her friends). So much focus was on the world building and Morrigan becoming a Wondersmith. And again, I was totally fine with that. I was fascinated. Oh, and there was this one scene in a magical library! I couldn’t put the book down.

This book ends with quite the cliffhanger, and I have such a wait before book 4 comes out…I tried to wait a bit before diving into this one, but I couldn’t hold off that long. These books are just that good. I highly recommend them to any all middle grade fantasy fans. I give it a 9/10.

Saturday, December 4, 2021

Daughter of the Deep by Rick Riordan

Summary from Goodreads:

New York Times #1 best-selling author Rick Riordan pays homage to Jules Verne in his exciting modern take on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Ana Dakkar is a freshman at Harding-Pencroft Academy, a five-year high school that graduates the best marine scientists, naval warriors, navigators, and underwater explorers in the world. Ana's parents died while on a scientific expedition two years ago, and the only family's she's got left is her older brother, Dev, also a student at HP. Ana's freshman year culminates with the class's weekend trial at sea, the details of which have been kept secret. She only hopes she has what it'll take to succeed. All her worries are blown out of the water when, on the bus ride to the ship, Ana and her schoolmates witness a terrible tragedy that will change the trajectory of their lives.

But wait, there's more. The professor accompanying them informs Ana that their rival school, Land Institute, and Harding-Pencroft have been fighting a cold war for a hundred and fifty years. Now that cold war has been turned up to a full broil, and the freshman are in danger of becoming fish food. In a race against deadly enemies, Ana will make amazing friends and astounding discoveries about her heritage as she puts her leadership skills to the test for the first time.

Review:

This is one of those situations where the summary doesn’t really summarize the book much at all….But, also, it kind of can’t, without giving HUGE things away. So, basically, writing my review is going to be interesting….Ana and her freshman class do witness something terrible in the very beginning of this book, that had me put this book down and go, “WOAH.” Riordan does not shy away from action and suspense in his books, but that was a MAJOR opening.

And then because it’s a Rick Riordan novel stuff goes a little fantasy/sci fi. I’m used to his books always involving mythological Gods and creatures and super powers of sorts, so it was a fun experience to get something different from him. Instead, there’s ships, submarines, giant octopi, dolphin friends, sci-fi weapons, crazy science, hidden islands, treasure, AI, and so much more!

I also have to admit that I never actually read (…or I guess completed) 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I tried to read it when I was a teenager, and just did not get into it.  Maybe I need to re-try it? If it’s half as fun as this novel was, I am definitely missing out.

Then of course, there’s the diverse cast. The main character is an Indian girl (who addresses colonialism!) and one of her closest friends is autistic. It wouldn’t be a Rick Riordan novel without orphans, kid geniuses, kid warrior/athletes, and kid leaders. Ana is a bit of a chosen one, kind of, but in an almost acceptable way. It has more to do with science than anything else (it’s her blood/DNA that’s needed for things because of who her ancestor is. And that’s all I’m saying on the matter.


I also like that Rick Riordan wasn’t afraid to write about periods! Ana suffers from terrible cramps! And it’s not something just mentioned once and then forgotten about. It comes up multiple times. And I have to admit that I first found this odd because I’m not used to reading about it…Like it made me, a grown woman, a little uncomfortable. But, then I thought about it, and I loved it. Why shouldn’t we be used to reading about it? I think periods and cramps should be normalized, and kids should be able to talk about it. And I know the amount of people who read his books. Hopefully, this will play a part in helping Women’s Health issues become something we can all talk about and read about in a regular way (without feeling uncomfortable).

That all being said, I loved the diverse characters in this book. I loved the very suspenseful plot. Even for Riordan, this was next level. I found the ocean life and science fiction elements to everything fascinating! I loved the friendship stories too. I found this to be a really fun book, and I’m so glad I read it. I’m glad Riordan is still writing more, and I hope he continues to do so. I give this a 9/10.

Friday, December 3, 2021

Marshmallow and Jordan by Alina Chau


Summary from Goodreads:

Jordan’s days as star player for her school’s basketball team ended when an accident left her paralyzed from the waist down. Now, she’s still the team captain, but her competition days seem to be behind her…until an encounter with a mysterious elephant, who she names Marshmallow, helps Jordan discover a brand new sport.

Will water polo be the way for Jordan to continue her athletic dreams–or will it just come between Jordan and her best friends on the basketball team? And with the big tournament right around the corner, what secret is Marshmallow hiding?

Review:

This book is so sweet. The artwork is what drew me into it. A smiling girl, holding an ice cream, being hugged by a white elephant? Sign me up! The setting is in Indonesia, which looks stunning. I love seeing different places in kids books, particularly graphic novels, where you really do get to see them. Everything is bright, colorful, and cheerful looking.

I also initially didn’t even realize the girl was in a wheel chair (on the cover). But, knowing the girl is still the captain of her basketball team after going through an accident that left her without use of her legs, makes you just love her all the more for her strength. You can’t help but cheer for her through everything she does. This is a story about friendship and strength. Jordan (named for Michael Jordan) finds Marshmallow right when she needs to. And Marshmallow helps Jordan find a sport she can still play: water polo!

The only part of the book I found a little hard to follow were the water polo match scenes. I don’t really know anything about the sport, and I’m not much of a sports person in general (so it could be that), but I got a bit lost in what was going on, and how the game was played. I almost wish the game was explained more? But maybe most people reading will know that?

I have to admit I had a few tears in my eyes during the friendship stuff. What happened between Jordan and her friends felt so believable and true to what might happen in real life. Friendships at  that age can be made and broken over the smallest things. I also loved the folktale elements to the story, and how everything connected: the family story, the friendship story, and the elephant story.

This was a beautiful graphic novel. The story was sweet and heart-warming. But, what makes it a standout is the artwork. You won’t be able to stop looking at it. I give it a 9/10.

Thursday, December 2, 2021

The Traitor's Kiss by Erin Beaty


Summary from Goodreads:


An obstinate girl who will not be married. A soldier desperate to prove himself. A kingdom on the brink of war.

With a sharp tongue and an unruly temper, Sage Fowler is not what they’d call a lady―which is perfectly fine with her. Deemed unfit for marriage, Sage is apprenticed to a matchmaker and tasked with wrangling other young ladies to be married off for political alliances. She spies on the girls―and on the soldiers escorting them.

As the girls' military escort senses a political uprising, Sage is recruited by a handsome soldier to infiltrate the enemy ranks. The more she discovers as a spy, the less certain she becomes about whom to trust―and Sage becomes caught in a dangerous balancing act that will determine the fate of her kingdom.

Review:


It took me a long time to get to this book. I believe it’s been out for years, and the whole series is complete. Sadly, I seem to only have this book and book 3, and now need to get my hands on book 2! I have to be in the right mindset to read a romance as of late. And I guess there’s something off-putting for me about a book covered in roses, and a giant sword? I was surprised to learn that this was more of a spy novel than a fantasy romance! Who’d of thought that a book that dealt so much in match-making would actually be about spying?

While I can see some people maybe not liking this, I loved it. I guess I’m more interested in spy stories now. My tastes have changed a bit over the years, or maybe I’m just tired of reading the same story over and over. But, I can see someone sitting down, thinking this is a romance, based off the misleading, rose covered cover, and maybe being disappointed. I found it hard to put down. I wanted to see would happen next, and I’m glad it finally called to me when it did.

There were a couple of major plot twists  that I guessed. But, not as early as I care to admit! I like that the book kept me on my toes a little. There was a lot of action going on between the match-making. Between the marriage  drama, there were royal wars being waged, and political maneuvers of betrayal. And I liked how the two stories counter-balanced each other. I could see this being a fun Netflix drama.

Women working as spies isn’t a novel concept, but it is one I love to read about. I have’t read too many YA fantasies that delve into this topic, and it reminded me quite a bit of Mary E. Pearson’s Dance of Thieves, which I loved, and now have an itch to go re-read. Maybe, I will this winter? All in all,  this was a fun spy/fantasy/romance with splashes of match making, elements of war, and plenty of suspense. I read it very quickly. This book got me out of a bit of a reading slump. I give it an 8/10.