Book Review: The Firebirds Tale by Anya Ow

The Firebirds Tale by Anya Ow begins with the end of a familiar story: a Prince who never smiled, and by Imperial decree, has to marry the one who managed to make him do so. Except that it was all an accident, and the Prince would say he didn’t actually smile at the thief who dared to rob a Tsar, and the thief was not even a woman—or, as it turns out, even human.

The Firebirds Tale is set in a world based upon European and Eurasian folklore. I liked seeing well know, and lesser known, folklore pulled together and woven through the book. I also like that it is clear the author did her research and got Russian names and titles correct, which is not always the case. I found the sexual ambiguity and openness to be well done. It fed into the slow relationship building between Aleksei and Nazar, which made the story so sweet and left me wondering what the resolution might be until the very end. Watching the bond being forged, and fought, was very well done, but it is far from all the book is about. There are fairy tale retellings woven together to form a bigger picture. There is a good deal of commentary on politics and human nature as well, the desire for more, and to rule. The nature of war, and the destruction and pain it causes along side the drive some have for making it happen. Every now and then I did get a little overwhelmed with the amount of things going on, and it felt a little wandering on occasion.

The Firebirds Tale had a slow start for me, but when I finally sat down and power through it I found thing I really loved about the story, and some things that did not work quite so well for me. 

Book Review: The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts (Unbelievables) by K.C. Tansley

The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts is the first book in the Unbelievables series by K.C. Tansley is a young adult novel. Kat Preston doesn’t believe in ghosts. Not because she’s never seen one, but because she saw one too many. Refusing to believe is the only way to protect herself from the ghost that tried to steal her life. Kat’s disbelief keeps her safe until her junior year at McTernan Academy, when a research project for an eccentric teacher takes her to a tiny, private island off the coast of Connecticut. Accompanied by her research partner, her best friend, and another student, she investigates the disappearance of Cassie Mallory and Sebastian Radcliffe on their wedding night in 1886. Evan’s scientific approach to everything leaves Kat on her own to confront a host of unbelievables: ancestral curses, powerful spells, and her strange connection to the ghosts that haunt Castle Creighton. But that’s all before Kat’s yanked through a magic portal and Evan follows her. When the two of them awaken 129 years in the past with their souls trapped inside the bodies of two wedding guests, everything changes. Together, Kat and Evan race to stop the wedding-night murders and find a way back to their own time—and their own bodies—before their souls slip away forever. 

The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts is a book that captured my imagination. I liked Kat's intelligence and perseverance. She is not opposed to working hard, and is willing to pitch in even when it puts her personal safety at risk. Ignoring the ghosts has worked well thus far, but surrounding herself with the research about a murder and curse is not helping her keep the ghosts at bay.  Jumping in further with the research trip makes it impossible to keep her shields up. I liked the dynamic between Kat and her best friend Mallory, and the humor that fellow student Seth brings to the group. I will admit that I was initially creeped out a bit by the connection between Kat and Joshua- the next possible victim of the curse the group is investigating. I enjoyed the enemy to friend vibe between Kat and Evan, but I could enjoy a gothic style mystery without any kind of romance hinted at just fine- not all girls are looking to forge romantic relationships their entire lives. I would love to pick up a young adult or new adult novel that skips hints at love triangle and romance once and awhile, particularly when it is not vital to the mystery or larger story line. That being said, I found that the mystery and paranormal aspects of the story were the focus for the majority of the book. The magical time travel was well done, and I liked the explanation of ghosts, spirits, and the differences between them. The curse and mystery surrounding it were well constructed, and interesting to watch unravel. I liked the layers and complexity of the curse, mystery, and the paranormal aspects that connect them and the characters. I did get a little bored with some of the ritual and spell work, and the emotional games being played in the past. However, I did enjoy the read and might pick up the next book if I run across it. However, I am not going out looking for it at this point.

The Girl Who Ignored Ghosts is a good mystery with gothic and paranormal aspects. While I do not have patience with emotional games, I think there are many readers that will enjoy the read and get fully invested with the characters and mystery.

Book Review: Moonshadow by Thea Harrison

Moonshadow is the first book in an urban fantasy series by Thea Harrison. It is related to previous series by the author, but you can easily jump in here.

Recovering from a shooting, LAPD witch consultant Sophie Ross leaves her job and travels to the U.K. to search for answers about her childhood. When she encounters a Daoine Sidhe knight of the Dark Court, she becomes entangled in an ancient hatred between two arcane forces. He has given his body and soul to fight for his people. Barred from his homeland along with his surviving brother knights, Nikolas Sevigny is embroiled in a conflict that threatens everything he holds dear. Only by uniting his people’s resources can they hope to prevail against Isabeau, the deadly Queen of the Light Court. He will do anything and use anyone to return home to Lyonesse.

When Nikolas encounters Sophie, he sees a tool to be used. The insouciant witch might be the key to unlocking every passageway that has been barred to the knights of the Dark Court, even as a fascination for her takes root in what’s left of his soul.Sophie has no intention of becoming anyone’s pawn, yet the fierce Nikolas is so compelling, she can’t deny the temptation that endangers her guarded heart. As magic threatens Lyonesse, Queen Isabeau unleashes her merciless Hounds, and Nikolas and Sophie become embroiled in a race for survival. Meanwhile, the passion that ignites between them burns too hot to be denied and quickly turns into obsession. Thank goodness they both know better than to fall in love.

Moonshadow is a well built series starter that left me intrigued by what else might await our characters. I loved the world and character building. Sophie is a strong, smart woman with magical gifts and little to no knowledge of her heritage. She has worked had to master her gifts and learn new things over the years. Now, she is recovering form gunshot wounds and has the chance to earn an estate simply by getting inside it. Who could pass that up? I love her independence and intelligence, she talks no nonsense from anyone.  Nikolas has been fighting for his people for what seems like forever. Numbers, resources, and moral are all dwindling- but Sophie and her skills might just turn the tables. I found the interactions between Sophie and Nikolas to be fantastic. The snark, sarcasm, and independence made even the darkest moments of the story a little brighter. There were moments that made me laugh out loud, and made me wonder why I had not already read this book ages ago. Nope GIF's will forever make me smile, and proud characters finding the way to be together will always tug my heartstrings.

Moonshadow is a book that  wish I had read earlier. I enjoyed the story and character building and look forward to reading more books in this series as time allows.

Book Review: A Tiger Called Tomas by Charlotte Zolotow, Marta Alvarez Miguens

A Tiger Called Tomas is a picturebook written by Charlotte Zolotow and illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens. The original version of this book, A Tiger Called Thomas was published in 1963, and it has been updated and changed three other times, changing the appearance and race of Thomas and his neighbors to make it more inclusive and relatable to a variety of readers. In this incarnation the shy Tomas is Latino with some Spanish woven through the story so yet another group of children can see someone like themselves on the page.

A Tiger Called Tomas is a lovely story about a young boy that is very shy. He is too anxious to go introduce himself to neighbors, and is worries that they will not like him. As someone that has always had that kind of underlying conversation in the back of my own mind, I could empathize and relate to young Tomas. It is only when he is safely hidden behind his Halloween mask that he feels brave enough to go and interact with the people his family has been encouraging him to talk to through the whole book. This is a sweet and relatable story, and I think that any shy readers will be able to see themselves on the page- and those that do no understand that reluctance to put themselves out there might gain a little understand of how a shy person feels. This would be a great conversation starter about personalities and how we are all different, and kindness toward others. I would love the chance to see all four incarnations of this book together to see how wording changes and each illustrator made the book a little different.

Book Review: The Rogue is Back in Town (Wayward Wallflowers) by Anna Bennett

The Rogue is Back in Town is the third book in the Wayward Wallflowers series by Anna Bennett. While I have not read the earlier books in the series, I still understood the read. There are some references that will make more sense to those that have been following the series, but newcomers will catch on. 

Equal parts scoundrel and seducer, he’s returned to London determined to mend the rift with his older brother. All Sam must do is take possession of a tumbledown town house. A seemingly simple task, except the house is occupied—by an infuriating, whip-smart beauty who refuses to do his bidding. Miss Juliette Lacey’s wallflower days are over. She has a plan to turn her eccentric family into the toast of the ton—but the devilishly handsome rake trying to oust them from their home thwarts her at every turn. How can one man be so vexing and make her simmer with desire? As her attraction to Sam deepens, Julie’s problems grow—she may have, once upon a time, secretly shared a kiss with his honorable older brother. Suddenly, Julie’s caught between a rogue and a marquess, between passion and respectability. Torn between two brothers, what’s a girl to do?

The Rogue is Back in Town is a historical romance with truly manipulative and despicable bad guy.  Juliette is intelligent and independent, but more naive than she can admit. I liked her spunk when dealing with the situations she finds herself in, and in her conversations. However, I find her decision making to be frustrating and occasionally rage inducing. Sam is a good guy, despite his reputation as a rake and a rogue. He has done more than his fair share of gambling, carousing, and more- but he is honest about his failings and owns his mistakes. I really liked his character, aside from the fact that he is unwilling to lay blame on the one person that really deserves it through most of the book- and is ready to give up and in way too easily. I liked the couple's banter, and the way they each interact with Julie's uncle. There is so much about these characters to enjoy that I had trouble dealing with the cause of all the conflict and how completely irredeemable he was through the entire book. The fact that his actions are likely to have been done by some in reality- made it no easier to bear, since he faced no consequence.  It left me more than a little frustrated and unsatisfied with the story

The Rogue is Back in Town is a book with entertaining characters and conflict, but a bad guy that had me wanting to hurl the book across the room. Getting such an emotional response is good writing, but the bitter aftertaste does not leave me looking for more.

Book Review: A Friendly Town That's Almost Always by the Ocean (Secrets of Topsea) by Kir Fox, M. Shelley Coats, Rachel Sanson

A Friendly Town That's Almost Always by the Ocean is a middle grade novel written by Kir Fox, M. Shelley Coats. It was illustrated by Rachel Sanson. In Topsea the coves are bottomless and the pier has no end in sight. There's a high tide and a low tide and a vanishing tide. Dogs are a myth, but mermaids are totally real. And seaweed is the main ingredient in every meal-watch out, it might just start chewing you back!

New kid Davy definitely thinks Topsea is strange. His mom keeps saying they'll get used to life in their new town-it's just the way things are on the coast! But after his first day at Topsea School, Davy finds himself wondering: Why is his locker all the way at the bottom of the school swimming pool? Why can't anyone remember his name? (It's Davy!) And why does everyone act like all of this is normal?! Through newspaper articles, stories, surveys, notifications, and more, follow Davy and the rest of Ms. Grimalkin's fifth grade class through the weird world of Topsea. (Whatever you do, don't make eye contact with the rubber ducks.)

A Friendly Town That's Almost Always by the Ocean is a story that is not only about a very strange town, and the unusual activity in it. It is also about finding your interests and yourself. I like that Davy seems like a perfectly normal boy, just trying to deal with all the recent changes in his life and move forward. He needs to deal with the loss of his father, and moving to a new town- something that many will be able to relate to in one way or another. However, to make settling in a bit harder the town and school are more than a little odd. A school locker at the bottom of the swimming pool, creepy cats, odd classes, and dogs being a myth are only the start of the oddities. Normal problems like being heard when you are small and friends with bigger personalities, being believed when you like to exaggerate, and other friendship dynamics are all within the pages as well. The balance of mundane and ridiculous keep the story fun and forward moving while still getting to the heart of the matter with fitting in and friendships. The artwork adds an extra layer of fun and details to the story, engaging readers even further in the story. I think this will be a great read, and think it might appeal to struggling or reluctant readers as well as more advanced readers.

A Friendly Town That's Almost Always by the Ocean is a fun and quirky read. I enjoyed the odd little town and unique characters. I think I need to explore this series further.

Book Review: You've Got Tail (Peculiar Mysteries) by Renee George

You've Got Tail is the first book in the Peculiar Mysteries series by Renee George. Sunny Haddock, an animal-loving vegetarian psychic, is stoked to leave California behind to start a new life in the Ozark town of Peculiar with her best friend Chavvah Trimmel. She ups the moving date when Chav goes missing, and Sunny high tails it to the small town. What Sunny doesn’t realize is that she’s moving into a tight knit community that does not want another resident. When the gorgeous Babel Trimmel, Chav's younger brother, (along with the sheriff, the mayor, and some other nice folk) suggests Sunny haul her U-haul and butt back out of town, she’s undeterred. Her psychic abilities might be out-of-whack, and blood makes her faint, but she’s not a quitter. Besides, she's not about to go anywhere until she finds out what happened to Chavvah. But Sunny has more to deal with than unfriendly townsfolk, like disturbing killer visions and the dog-like animal no one else sees that seems to be stalking her every move. To make matters worse, she is finding Babel to be more irresistible than crack on a donut. Sunny needs to get her ability and her hormones under control if she wants to solve the mystery and save her best friend.

You've Got Tail is quirky and fun- pretty much what I expected from the cover and blurb. Sunny is a character with a lot of heart, but not always a stable train of thought. I liked Sunny's determination and some of her observations. I enjoyed Babel, but felt like I could have gotten more of his character through the story, I liked what I saw I just wanted more depth. I found the mystery about the town and Chav's disappearance was well done, and I enjoyed the characters of the strange little town and the layers to all the secrets they hid. I found some of Sunny's mental tangents highly entertaining, and others less amusing. However, I think it worked for the story. I did not really connect with the characters, partially because of Sunny's distracted way of thinking, but I died enjoy the ride and am more than a little curious to see where the series goes from here. 

You've Got Tail is a fun romance with a good touch or suspense and mystery. I enjoyed the read and look forward to catching up with the following books.

Book Review: The Graveyard Girl and The Boneyard Boy by Martin Matthews

The Graveyard Girl and The Boneyard Boy by Martin Matthews is a young adult novel. 16-year-old albino Drake Stevenson lives a life alone in his world of video games and comic books, dreaming of one day saving a real princess. But fantasy becomes reality when his lawyer father suffers a heart attack, and the Stevensons are forced to move to flyover country in order to take up the family business: Stewardship of the oldest and largest cemetery in the state. There, among the weeping angels and willows of Centralia Cemetery, Drake meets Scarlet, an unusual girl who needs his help to find her killer. Complicated by his albinism, a mentally unstable sister bent on high school domination at any cost, and a jock with a deadly secret, Drake sets out to find the shattering truth about a murder no one will speak of, to help a girl no one can see.

The Graveyard Girl and The Boneyard Boy captured my attention right away, and kept me guessing through the entire book. Drake has a self effacing sense of humor. while dealing with his own issues and the family issues around him he keeps his feet fairly well grounded while still able to laugh at himself and wonder how things could be better. I liked the introduction of setting and characters, it was faced well and worked perfectly in the story. I did not care for some of the love triangle hints, thought it was unnecessary. Why couldn't he just be friends with Sasha or Scarlett, or both for that matter. Why would he pursue both, and why would Scarlett pursue Drake when she was in a happy relationship before all this began? I just do not understand the need for all relationships to include a romantic component when sometimes a good friend is much more important. Love triangle rant over, because that was really the only fault I could find with the book. I adored Drake's character, while sometimes he felt really young and I did not always agree with his decisions, I think he was a well built character. His parents and sister were important to the arch of the story, and the way Drake connected with others.The dichotomy of his sister's personality, the way everyone viewed her, and the way everyone viewed him was realistic and still hit me right in the feels, because doesn't everyone sometimes feel like they have gotten the short end of the stick socially, in the family, or in some other way.  I like how thorough and well planned that built up the family and personal dramas were. Even the secondary characters had plenty of family or personal information shared to make them dynamic and explain them. The mystery surrounding Scarlet, the car accident, and more had me at the edge of my seat and turning pages well past my bedtime. 

The Graveyard Girl and The Boneyard Boy is a well done young adult novel with complex characters, compelling mystery and coming of age drama, and a solid resolution. Although, I admit that I would love to see a follow up about our characters in five or ten years to see just how things end up in the long term. 

Book Review: Seafurrers: The Ships' Cats Who Lapped and Mapped the World by Philipa Sandall, Ad Long

Seafurrers: The Ships' Cats Who Lapped and Mapped the World, written by Philipa Sandall and illustrated by Ad Long, explores the history of the cats that explored the world alongside seafarring souls over the years. People remember the bold seafarers of yore, from Magellan to Shackleton, for their extraordinary exploits: new lands discovered, storms weathered, and battles won. But somehow history has neglected the stalwart, hardworking species who made it all possible, the noble cat! Here readers can learn the stories of sea cats such as Trim (who circumnavigated Australia), Tom (the sole feline survivor of the sinking of the USS Maine), celebrity cat Simon (a veteran of the Yangtze Incident), and other furry heroes. There are thirty eight stories of cats that proved to indispensable at sea—both as pest controllers and as beloved mascots, all told from the voice of Bart- a cat eager to explain the missing histories of seafaring felines. The book is filled with nautical trivia, rare photographs, and whimsical illustrations, this deft genealogy of human–feline friendship will stir your regard for the incomparable cat.

Seafurrers: The Ships' Cats Who Lapped and Mapped the World is less about the individual cats and the sailors that befriended and made use of them, it is more about the benefits and uses of cats on ships and in the world in general. The information about the benefits of cats for pest control and the calculations of just how useful they were. I think I was expecting more stories than science and math, but that is on me rather than the author. The information given is well presented and the illustrations and photographs added to the narrative. I will admit to being bored with some of the facts, and doing a little skimming. My biggest issue was the fact that the author cited Wikipedia. I am trying to teach research to school children, and how to verify sources. Wikipedia does not count, but can be a good starting point as long as you follow it to reputable primary sources. It is not in itself such a source, and that an author would use it as one made me less than happy. 

Early Book Review: The Dam Keeper: World Without Darkness by Robert Kondo, Dice Tsutsumi

The Dam Keeper: World Without Darkness is a graphic novel written by Robert Kondo and illustrated by Dice Tsutsumi. It is currently scheduled for release on July 10 2018. It is the second book in the series, and I have not read the first. I think that reading the series in order is recommended, but if the art draws you in, most readers could pick up the story to a certain degree. However- those that have read the first volume or watched the short animation it was based on will get much more from it than those of us that jumped in here.

Beyond the dam lies certain death—this is something every citizen of Sunrise Valley knows well. Yet, when a poisonous black tidal wave carries Pig, Fox, and Hippo over the dam and into the wastelands, they don’t find death. Instead they find bustling cities, each with their own dams. Pig can't help but wonder, who is the mysterious dam keeper behind it all? But he doesn't have time to unravel this mystery. The wave of deadly black fog will return to Sunrise Valley in four days, and its dam can't withstand another assault. In a stolen truck and with a deranged lizard leading the way, Pig and his friends are in a race against the clock. but can they reach home in time?

The Dam Keeper: World Without Darkness is a graphic novel that I was tempted into reading because of the art. Even when I had no idea whatsoever about what was happening I fully enjoyed the artwork. The story lost me more than once, there were flashbacks and references to the past, which mostly went over my head because I missed the first book. However, the majority of this book felt like a buddy or roadtrip movie with some interesting twists and turns, some suggestions of secrets, and meeting new characters. As the group tries to make it home, assuredly to save their families and friends, they find themselves in some very weird situations with stranger characters, but I never really felt like I got to the meat of the story. There is a good climax, and hints to what is next for Pig, but since I was so uncertain about what was going on I never got invested in the characters or the story.

The Dam Keeper: World Without Darkness is  a well drawn and colored graphic novel for middle grade, and perhaps younger and older, readers. I think readers that have read the first volume and enjoyed it will definitely want to pick this one up. I prefer series with a more complete feel to each of the installments, but that is jusyt my personal preference and I know others are not as bothered by this.