Amethyst by Rebecca Henry

May 31, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Amethyst by Rebecca Henry
Publisher: Finch Books
Genre: Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, LGBTQ, Romance, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

She was sent away because of her feelings for another girl. But what she discovered at her aunts’ lake house was a birthright of magic.

Thirteen-year-old Zinnia is about to turn fourteen when her life is flipped upside down. With her parents on the brink of a divorce, Zinnia is sent to spend the summer with her eccentric great-aunts at their lake house away from her home in Manhattan. Zinnia arrives at her aunts’ massive Victorian house with a heavy heart after a recent falling out with her best friend Charlotte, who betrayed her trust by showing the meanest and most popular girl in school a letter Zinnia wrote confessing her feelings for Charlotte. The aunts rely on practical magic, acceptance and old family friends to help heal their great-niece in more ways than one.

What Zinnia discovers on Ambrosia Hill is more than just her birthright to magic—she meets Billie, a girl who conjures feelings inside Zinnia that she can no longer deny.

What’s better than a summer in the countryside?

It can be hard for kids to understand topics like divorce and marital conflict. Zinnia was a smart teenager, but even she struggled with the idea that her parents were fighting and might not stay together. Some of the most memorable scenes in this novella were the ones that explored her feelings on this topic and tried to explain her parents’ anger with each other in ways that were appropriate for a fourteen-year-old to hear. These aren’t easy things to discuss by any means, but they are quite important. The author did a great job of giving Zinnia a chance to understand her parents a little better than she had before and to learn about how adult relationships sometimes work.

I would have loved to see more character development in this piece. As intrigued as I was by the setting and plot, it was disappointing to meet characters whose personalities weren’t well defined and who didn’t seem to grow very much as a result of their experiences even when they were the main focus of the storyline. There seemed to be plenty of opportunities for them to do so. I simply needed more examples of them reacting to those moments, sharing their personalities in more complex ways, and showing the audience how they’d changed.

The world building was delightful. I loved the way magic was woven into every facet of the characters’ daily lives, from the messages that were left in the arrangements of soggy tea leaves in the bottom of a teacup to the spells the aunts cast to help their visitors reach any number of personal goals. It wasn’t always clear to me where the magic ended and ordinary explanations for certain events began. I reveled in how beautifully ordinary the author made certain scenes feel even if they included moments that can’t be explained with modern science or physics. There is something special about visiting a world that accepts these shades of grey and invites the reader to come up with their own explanations for them.

Amethyst was a playful read.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Dreaming of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hyde

May 30, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Dreaming of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult (8 – older)
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Ginger

Never knowing his parents, eleven-year-old Stewie Little and his brother have been raised on a farm by their older sister. Stewie steadfastly tends the chickens left by his beloved late grandmother. And every day Stewie goes door to door selling fresh eggs from his wagon—a routine with a surprise just around the corner. It’s his new customer, Marilyn. She’s prickly and guarded, yet comfortably familiar—she reminds the grieving Stewie so much of the grandmother he misses more than he can express.

Marilyn has a reason for keeping her distance: a secret no one knows about. Her survival tactic is to draw a line between herself and other people—one that Stewie is determined to cross. As their visits become more frequent, a complicated but deeply rooted relationship grows. That’s when Stewie discovers how much more there is to Marilyn, to her past, and to challenges that become more pressing each day. But whatever difficult times lie ahead, Stewie learns that although he can’t fix everything for Marilyn or himself, at least he’s no longer alone.

I don’t know where to start on my review about this book. I enjoyed it tremendously! The writing style, the characters, the realness of the story and the teachable moments – all of it. I enjoyed it all.

This conversation between Stewie and Marilyn’s daughter, Betty will stay with me.: “You’re just upset because she doesn’t say the same things she would have said before. Instead of being so sure about exactly how you want her to be, why can’t you just be glad because she’s there?”

In a world where I’ve found myself drawn to watching more television shows and movies than I read, this book made me want to read. I enjoyed the time spent following the story of eleven-year-old Stewie Little. A young boy who has lost several loved ones at a very early age. He lives with his older sister, Stacey and brother Theo.

Stewie continues to take care of his deceased grandmother’s chicken. One day on his egg delivery route he meets a new customer, Marilyn. Marilyn seems to be a tough character to deal with, but Stewie took a liking to her, as her spry ways and mannerism reminds him of his grandmother.

This starts the beginning of a relationship that Marilyn didn’t want to happen. Neither did Stacey, Stewie’s older sister. Stacey’s concern for Stewie is touching to read. She recognized the many losses that Stewie has faced but she didn’t know what to do. Though their family was small I felt the closeness that the three must have needed to cope. At times it seemed they walked on eggshells for Stewie, but I like that Stewie is a strong and courageous young boy. I liked that if he didn’t understand something he spoke up. This was humorous in how he stated he didn’t know what words or phrases meant. Marilyn always took the time to explain it to him. Marilyn came into Stewie’s life at a time when Stewie really needed her. And Stewie in turn was there for Marilyn. I enjoyed and took to heart the words of wisdom from Marilyn to Stewie, in fact I’ve highlighted them on my Kindle; they are just that impacting. Towards the end of the book Stewie starts to give Marilyn and others, words of wisdom. (Hence the quote at the start of this review)

The relationship between the two is beautiful and heartwarming. I found joy that Stewie had someone he could be close to, that didn’t take advantage of him and also able to sense what he needed. Marilyn uplifted him up, educated him and filled a void that Stewie had. Stewie didn’t have biological parents or grandparents, but he had a village. Dr. Briggs helped Stewie through his complicated emotions by giving him thought provoking questions. It was a little concerning that Stewie didn’t have friends his age, but I could see that Stewie was mature for his age and didn’t seem to fit in with others of his age.

The ending felt true to life, but also hurt. The author touched on a lot in this book. Loss, and grief, from both Stewie’s view and also Marilyn’s view. Overcoming what life throws at you and having someone or people to help you along the way. That family or people that love you aren’t always blood related. That we should pay attention to those we love in case they do need help. Getting help is okay. Doing something good for someone else also helps you in return. It also gives some insight of those that are of age who feel like they have lost their freedom, their choice, and maybe even their personal rights once they’ve been moved into an assisted living facility.

I can go on and on about how much I enjoyed this book. So instead of reading my review I suggest you go ahead and get a copy of the book and enjoy it for yourself.

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Saturday at the Food Pantry by Diane O’Neill

May 30, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Saturday at the Food Pantry by Diane O’Neill
Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Molly and her mom don’t always have enough food, so one Saturday they visit their local food pantry. Molly’s happy to get food to eat until she sees her classmate Caitlin, who’s embarrassed to be at the food pantry. Can Molly help Caitlin realize that everyone needs help sometimes?

Everyone needs a little help sometimes.

One of the early scenes showed what happened at the beginning of their visit when Molly spied a box of cookies and desperately wanted them. Her mother was worried that their family was going to be harshly judged by what they put into their cart and refused to allow the girl to choose anything unhealthy. This conflict piqued my interest as it was similar to my desires at that same age. I’ll leave it up to other readers to discover how this conflict was resolved, but I can say that I loved seeing how compassionately the author handled it. She couldn’t have done a better job at humanizing her characters and explaining how much things like this matter, especially for people like Molly’s family who are already struggling.

By far my favorite portion of this picture book was the one that addressed the shame people often feel when they need to use food pantries and other forms of social assistance. The tone was so kind and reassuring that it brought a tear to my eye. The author couldn’t have handled this topic better, and I’m saying this as someone who grew up in a family that occasionally needed help to have enough food and other necessities. No one should ever feel embarrassed about visiting a food pantry in order to keep their family fed!

The power of friendship was another beautiful theme in this tale. Everyone needs a support system in life. Molly and her mother added to theirs in a surprising and heartwarming manner. I smiled as I saw this new and exciting chapter in their lives begin to unfold. There was plenty of room here for a sequel, but I was also satisfied with how it was all wrapped up in the end.

Saturday at the Food Pantry was an excellent read for both kids who have personal experience with food insecurity as well as those who might want to learn more about it through the eyes of a sympathetic main character.

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Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy – A Modern Graphic Retelling of Little Women by Rey Terciero

May 27, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy – A Modern Graphic Retelling of Little Women by Rey Terciero
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Genre: Middle Grade (8 – 12 y.o.), LGBTQ, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Little Women with a twist: four sisters from a blended family experience the challenges and triumphs of life in NYC in this beautiful full-color graphic novel perfect for fans of Roller Girl and Smile.

Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are having a really tough year: with their father serving in the military overseas, they must work overtime to make ends meet…and each girl is struggling in her own way. Whether it’s school woes, health issues, boy troubles, or simply feeling lost, the March sisters all need the same thing: support from each other. Only by coming together–and sharing lots of laughs and tears–will these four young women find the courage to discover who they truly are as individuals…and as a family.

Meg is the eldest March, and she has a taste for the finer things in life. She dreams of marrying rich, enjoying fabulous clothes and parties, and leaving her five-floor walk-up apartment behind.

Jo pushes her siblings to be true to themselves, yet feels like no one will accept her for who she truly is. Her passion for writing gives her an outlet to feel worthy in the eyes of her friends and family.

Beth is the shy sister with a voice begging to be heard. But with a guitar in hand, she finds a courage that inspires her siblings to seize the day and not take life for granted.

Amy may be the baby of the family, but she has the biggest personality. Though she loves to fight with her sisters, her tough exterior protects a vulnerable heart that worries about her family’s future.

There is nothing this family can’t handle if they stick together.

Mr. Terciero did an excellent job of updating this classic tale for the twenty-first century. He struck the perfect balance between satisfying the expectations of readers like me who are lifelong fans of the original while also keeping the storyline accessible to people who may know nothing at all about these characters yet. I was especially impressed with how he handled issues like Robert March being away at war and the serious health problem that one of the characters was diagnosed with. He made these plot twists feel modern and fresh while still remaining loyal to L.M. Montgomery’s storytelling.

I wish this graphic novel had spent more time on character development. In the first Little Women, all four sisters had clear character arcs that gave them ample opportunities to show how they slowly changed for the better. While there were signs of similar personal growth in this retelling, it was sometimes hard to follow those plotlines because of how much less space they had to work with. For example, Meg made a major revision to her life goals that was announced so suddenly to the audience I briefly wondered if I’d missed something earlier. These sorts of things happened often enough that they did negatively affect the rating even though I wanted to choose a higher one.

Some of my favorite scenes were the ones that explored the relationships between Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. The story eventually explained the origins of their multiracial family for anyone who might be curious about that, but the opening scene was all I needed to know that these four sisters were as loving, playful, accepting, and occasionally irritated with each other as ever. It was delightful to see how they handled the ordinary disagreements that all siblings have as well as to get a peek at how they made up after an argument. This was exactly the sort of wholesome content I was hoping for.

Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy – A Modern Graphic Retelling of Little Women made me smile.

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Anne of West Philly by Ivy Noelle Weir

May 26, 2022 By 1 Comment


Anne of West Philly by Ivy Noelle Weir
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Genre: Middle Grade (8 – 12 y.o.), LGBTQ, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Anne of Green Gables with a twist: in this follow-up to Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy and The Secret Garden on 81st Street, this full-color graphic novel moves Anne Shirley to modern-day West Philadelphia, where she finds new friends, new rivals, and a new family.

When Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert decide to foster a teenage girl for the first time, their lives are changed forever. Their redheaded foster daughter, Anne Shirley, is in search of an exciting life and has decided that West Philly is where she’s going to find it. Armed with a big personality and unstoppable creativity, Anne takes her new home by storm as she joins the robotics club, makes new friends in Diana and Gilbert, experiences first love, and turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. But as Anne starts to get comfortable, she discovers one thing she wasn’t looking for: a family.

No, you do not need to be familiar with the original Anne of Green Gables series to enjoy this retelling of it. Anyone who has read it before will receive some marvelous surprises here, though.

One of my favorite parts of reading this graphic novel was seeing how the same story can change in meaningful and exciting ways when it’s set in a different century. For example, Marilla and Matthew weren’t surprised to receive a girl instead of a boy this time around because their social worker talked to them about Anne in advance and worked hard to ensure the placement would be a successful one for all involved. Little moments like these popped up everywhere and provided the characters with faster resolutions to problems in some cases and brand new conflicts in others. As I said earlier, this is equally accessible for brand new and longtime fans of these characters, but I did have a wonderful time taking note of everything Ms. Weir changed in the plot order to better suit twenty-first century culture and technology. Some of her tweaks were quite clever, and nearly all of them suited the storyline beautifully.

On a related note, I was quite puzzled to see this tale set in West Philly as the original Anne Shirley never so much as visited the United States. I wish the author had gone into more detail about why she made this choice and how she thought it would affect the characters. If she simply wanted to choose a more diverse setting, why not pick one of Canada’s big cities instead? If L.M. Montgomery had some special connection to Philadelphia that most readers are unaware of, why wouldn’t that be made known in a preface? I so desperately wanted to give this five stars and would have if this hadn’t been a point of confusion for me.

Families come in all shapes and sizes. I love seeing how the characters reacted to Anne’s new placement and what she thought when she learned that her foster parents were siblings instead of a married couple. This acceptance of others and appreciation of diversity was repeated as Anne got to know other people in their neighborhood and settled into her new life. It was especially cool to see the nods to some long-standing fan theories about the sexual orientation of a certain character that was finally discussed openly here.

Anne of West Philly was a heartwarming read.

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Cabbages & Kings by Morgan Sheppard

May 26, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Cabbages & Kings by Morgan Sheppard
Publisher: Elemental Publishing
Genre: Historical, Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.)
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Chamomile

A Hero. Honourable Thief. Lovable Rogue. Scoundrel. Blackguard.

Everyone’s heard of Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men, with big, bad Sheriff of Nottingham and evil Prince John trying their best to thwart Robin at every turn. But what if things were different to what you’ve been told? What if Robin wasn’t as altruistic as history portrayed?

In the late spring of 1198, the hamlet of Girton is razed to the ground. Newly married eighteen-year-old Will Scathlock and sixteen-year-old Alana move to the larger village of Blidworth to start their lives anew. In his new job as a forester for the Royal Palace of Clipstone, known to the locals as King’s Houses, Will hears tales of a good thief, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. But in her role as seamstress for the Manor House, Alana hears a different story.

Find out what it was like for the peasant folk Robin was supposed to be helping, before his well-known adventures in Nottingham. Do you want to know the truth? Meet Alana Dale and read her story of what it was really like, and how it all began.

Cabbages & Kings takes the Robin Hood story to new horizons with this laugh-out-loud hilarious new reimagining!

I’ve always enjoyed a good retelling, especially about Robin Hood, a childhood favorite! Cabbages & Kings is just that, and so much more! A sweet coming-of-age story willed with humor and unexpected antics as Alana (a teen) leans to stand up for herself despite that not being done in her time!

Needless to say, not everyone is happy with this young lady learning to speak her mind, and she ends up in all kinds of delightful situations as she learns her limits and finds new allies along the way! I loved getting a more humorous take on the Robin Hood story while still getting a story with strong storytelling and enjoyable characters!

This one is truly unlike any other retelling I’ve found so far, and I loved Morgan Sheppard’s style and tone in this one! Enjoyable to YA readers and even perhaps for teens a little younger, this one’s sure to please!

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The Rogue and the Peasant by Amberley Martin

May 17, 2022 By Leave a Comment


The Rogue and the Peasant by Amberley Martin
Publisher: Caveline Press
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.)
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Chamomile

Everyone knows a girl locked in a tower is supposed to wait for a prince—but that isn’t the destiny this girl has in mind.

Esme’s life has been filled with secrets. Her mother says she’s destined to be a queen, but she won’t say when. Or how. Or who Esme’s father is.

When Esme’s imprisoned by the evil fairy godmother, she only has more questions. Who is the young man guarding her? Why is he so interested in her father’s identity? And can she convince him to help her escape before she’s forced to marry whichever self-absorbed prince with a hero complex turns up to rescue her?

Since his father’s murder, Rory’s life has depended on keeping his identity secret. Working for the fairy godmother seems like a fair trade for his safety, until he’s sent to kidnap a girl who wears his family ring, a girl his father’s ghost is suspiciously quiet about.

Unraveling their connection might do more than save them both from the fairy godmother. It might save the fate of an entire queendom.

But can Esme achieve her destiny when Rory’s trying to avoid his own?

The Rogue and the Peasant is a fun, fairytale adventure that blends Hamlet with Rapunzel to make something completely new.

A fantastic debut from Amberley Martin, The Rogue and the Peasant is a wonderful story of hope, redemption, and growing up!

Neither Rory nor Esme have been dealt the life they would have liked, but despite that, both are determined to make something of it! I loved the positive messages and themes in this one! It’s a wonderful story and blends the beloved Hamlet and Rapunzel stories into something both familiar and completely new in a way I absolutely adored!

I did have a bit of trouble with how to place this one, as some places seem to mark it ‘Adult’ but with its slightly more simplistic style it’s more of a YA/NA crossover, which I loved but feel it’s hard to judge what to expect with a story when it’s listed in both groups. That said, after reading it I’d likely place it more YA-Upper YA and can see readers of both enjoying this one!

I loved meeting Esme and Rory and seeing the fun tributes to the original stories while also remaining original in its own right in this one, and felt the story was well written!

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , ,

Hello, Puddle! by Anita Sanchez

May 17, 2022 By Leave a Comment


Hello, Puddle! by Anita Sanchez
Publisher: Clarion Books
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Non-Fiction, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

A nonfiction picture book exploring a deceptively simple but unexpectedly crucial resource for wildlife: puddles! This lyrical, gorgeously illustrated nonfiction picture book is perfect for young science learners and nature lovers.

Hello, puddle! Who’s here?

A normal everyday puddle may not seem very special. But for a mother turtle, it might be the perfect place to lay her eggs. For a squirrel, it might be the only spot to cool off and get a drink when the sun is shining down in July. And for any child, it can be a window into the elegant, complex natural world right outside their window.

With lush, playful illustrations and fun facts about the animals featured, Hello, Puddle! is a joyful celebration of the remarkable in the ordinary, and the importance of even the most humble places in fostering life.

Nature is filled with marvelous things.

This was a detailed introduction to the wide variety of plants and animals that rely on puddles for food, shelter, cooling baths on a hot day, and, of course, fresh water to drink. No one species dominated the plot, so it would be quite easy to use this as a jumping-off point to explore anything from how tadpoles turn into frogs to how seedlings grow to why bats are such an important part of the ecosystem. I thought this was a brilliant way to encourage young children to be curious about the world around them and have some idea of which plants or animals they might want to explore in depth in the future.

While puddles definitely aren’t as active in the winter, I did find myself wishing that Ms. Sanchez had dedicated an extra page or two to what happens in them during that season since she spent so much time discussing spring, summer, and autumn. After all, puddles do sometimes melt during the winter. This was a minor disappointment, and it could be easily remedied by a little research online or at the local library for readers who want to learn more. If all four seasons had been discussed, I would have eagerly given this a five-star rating.

It was refreshing to find a nature book that was accessible to so many different types of people. Puddles form in cities, suburbs, and small towns just like they do in the middle of the woods, and the text supported that fact. They can be observed by folks from a wide variety of backgrounds, too. One doesn’t need to run fast, spend money, listen closely, or carry any special equipment to observe what’s happening in them. This is a fantastic way to introduce kids to nature at story time, especially for families who have tight budgets, special needs, or other circumstances that might make wandering around out in the middle of nowhere difficult for them.

Hello, Puddle! offered an intriguing and educational glimpse into the sort of natural habitat that nearly everyone can find somewhere in their own neighborhood.

Filed Under: Non-Fiction, Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , ,

Teddy Loses His Ears by Christine Milkovic Krauss

May 16, 2022 By 1 Comment


Teddy Loses His Ears by Christine Milkovic Krauss
Publisher: Tellwell Talent
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

Teddy is a rescue cat who lost his ears from frostbite. Teddy has inspired a series of stories with his true-life adventures that share relatable messages of kindness and acceptance. Teddy hopes that his stories will raise awareness to the organizations that saved his life, and thousands of other animals’ lives every year.

Everyone has the ability to make the world a better place.

I loved the way the narrator briefly described Teddy’s backstory without going into much detail about it. Rescued animals often have mysterious pasts, so it made perfect sense for the narrator and the kind human who later found him to not know much about what this cat’s early life was like. This also gave me a lot of room to imagine who might have looked after him in his kittenhood and what sort of life he had with them.

The simplicity of the storyline meant that I think it would be a good choice for kids who are just beginning to learn how to read on their own. Frostbite was the most difficult word included in it, and the text was sure to explain what it meant for anyone who might not know. This also covered a topic that I haven’t seen mentioned too often in picture books and that can be very appealing to kids who love animals.

One of the biggest reasons why I chose a five-star rating for this tale was the compassion that was woven into every scene. Readers were encouraged to feel compassion for Teddy as he mourned the loss of his ears as well as for the other cats who were confused by his appearance and kept asking him questions about why he didn’t have ears. I also adored the heartwarming message the narrator shared in the final scene that tied everything together and encouraged human readers to think about how they can incorporate it into their own lives.

Teddy Loses His Ears was a beautiful read.

Filed Under: Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , ,

A Mad Awakening by Sasha Hibbs

May 12, 2022 By Leave a Comment


A Mad Awakening by Sasha Hibbs
Publisher: Evernight Teen
Genre: Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Romance, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

The dead are meant to stay dead. Eighteen-year-old Albert Frank Young knows because he’s one of them. He had his life planned out with intentions of attending college in the fall with his brilliant girlfriend, Mary Shelley. What he didn’t plan for? Dying before his dreams were realized.

Over the course of one night, his life, and Mary’s, change forever. Mary’s brilliance quickly turns into a maddening obsession fueled by the death of Albert. Death took her mother away. She’ll be damned if death takes her boyfriend away too. In crossing the line between life and death, Mary damns them both before she realizes the realm of the living and land of the dead is an arena she has no right to meddle in.

A story of young love, the depths grieving drives the heart to, and the consequences that follow. This gothic tale proves love lives beyond the grave.

Love never dies.

The author did a good job of mixing the science fiction and romance genres, and I’m saying this as a reader who generally prefers to read books that focus on one or the other. I appreciated the hard work Ms. Hibbs put into ensuring that they were both given plenty of time to shine. Some scenes nudged a little further into one direction due to what the plot needed in that moment, but overall everything balanced out nicely.

It was confusing for me to hop between the perspectives of multiple narrators. As much as I enjoyed getting to know them, there simply wasn’t enough time to dig deeply into anyone’s personality or character growth due to how often readers needed to shift from one narrator to a different one. This technique would have worked better for a full-length novel, but eighty-nine pages simply weren’t enough for it to be effective here in my opinion.

I liked the way this novella jumped around in the timeline. There were some incredibly exciting scenes shared in the beginning that made me yearn to find out how they were connected to the quiet life Mary had when the audience first met her. Having that information so early on also made the foreshadowing pop out to me when it showed up. While I didn’t have the full story by any means, I knew enough to start putting the pieces together as soon as they arrived. That was a fantastic choice.

A Mad Awakening was a fun homage to Frankenstein.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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