Unusual Confusion by Ada Almond

June 2, 2020 By Leave a Comment


Unusual Confusion by Ada Almond
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Young Adult/Middle Grade, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (116 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

“I was an outsider all my life. The only people in this world that wanted me were my family. But I had a way of escaping that world. I had my own world.”
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Lexi Miller never had any friends. She was the type of girl who would always get bullied, sit in a corner by herself at break, never put her hand up in class. She kept quiet, to not make the situation worse. She was a freak, and with psychic powers too. At age 5 she discovered a weird secret about herself – she could teleport to her very own dimension, which she used as a coping mechanism. But as it usually happens in story beginnings like these, someone comes along and saves the lonely main character. The “hero” in this book is the new girl Melodine Saunders. Lexi is confused about her feelings, the butterflies in her stomach fluttering stronger every time the girls meet. Gradually, she starts working things out and everything is finally going as planned. Until one day, unusual things – more unusual than normal, that is – start happening. Lexi shrugs them off, but you can’t put things off forever…

Sometimes the quiet kids are the most interesting ones of them all.

Lexi was a well-developed and sympathetic character. One of the things I liked the most about her was how realistically her voice was written. She acted and sounded exactly like a young teen her age should act and sound. That isn’t an easy thing to accomplish by any means! Ms. Almond put a lot of effort into this subtle but important part of writing this genre, and her hard work was appreciated by this reader.

I would have preferred to see more time spent developing the sections of the plot that talked about Lexi’s ability to transport to her own dimension. It was nothing like what I expected it to be. As fascinated as I was by the explanation for how this worked and why it wasn’t part of the science fiction genre like I originally assumed, it sure would have been nice to have more information here.

The subplot of this story about bullying was handled sensitively. Some of the best scenes in it involved how the adults in Lexi’s life reacted to hearing about the way she was mistreated by certain classmates. Their responses were as compassionate as they were realistic. I also enjoyed reading about how Lexi herself coped with all of the teasing. That’s a difficult thing for any kid to go through, and her coping mechanisms were good ones.

Unusual Confusion should be read by any preteen or teen who feels lonely or misunderstood.

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

Monty and the Monster by Rhonda Smiley

May 21, 2020 By 3 Comments


Monty and the Monster by Rhonda Smiley
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Middle Grade, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (232 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

When seventh grader Monty Hyde moves for the fourth time in two years, it’s the same old story. New neighborhood, new school, new bullies, no friends. With his dad working all the time and his older brother too popular to notice, he’s the lonely outcast yet again. That is until he finds a mysterious replication serum in his basement and decides to make a friend. From scratch.

When you achieve generic cialis online this, you would certainly become more effective in all areas of life- academic and professional. Some systems take a little longer to adjust than others, but you’ll get there! Remember, dietary success is a lifelong commitment, so you may need to coax your body levitra viagra online into blossoming under its new routines. K., Colorado “Absolutely Incredible! When you can try here prices in uk viagra I started using the medicine I have found that there are no kamagra jelly side effects. A Kamagra dose consists of an active agent for destroying the powerful actions buy uk viagra of PDE5 enzymes. But when his creation turns out to be a stinky, hairy eight-foot-tall monster that might be eating the neighborhood kids, Monty knows he must undo his experiment. Problem is, it’s the best friend he’s ever had.

What if building a new friend were as easy as performing a science experiment?

Monty was such a likeable guy. He was quirkier than most kids his age, but the hobbies and mannerisms that made him stand out from the crowd were also what made him so interesting. His unique approach to what someone should do for fun in their spare time showed off so many of the things that made him who he was as an individual.

Yes, some of Monty’s quirks lead to him being bullied because of how his classmates misunderstood him and he misunderstood them at times. I thought the scenes that showed him being mistreated by the other students at his school were realistic and well written. While this definitely isn’t true for every case of bullying, Monty did need to learn how to polish up a few of his social skills in this particular situation, and his classmates needed to learn how to be more accepting of people who march to the beat of their own drum. The author struck a nice balance between showing how both of those things can be true simultaneously while still having a lot of compassion for a kid who’s had to adjust to far too many new schools in his short lifetime.

This was one of those cases where a blurb fairly reveals the basic plot of a book while still leaving plenty of surprises for a reader to discover for themselves. I was intrigued by the little I knew when I started reading it, and I quickly realized that I enjoyed this tale twice as much as I originally thought I would. I obviously can’t go into specific details here, but I will say that this felt like something that underpromised an already attention-grabbing storyline only to over-deliver on exactly how much fun it was to read. It’s pretty marvellous when that happens!

The character development was handled beautifully. I especially appreciated seeing all of the ways in which Monty grew and changed as a person as a result of everything that happened to him during the course of this storyline. He matured so nicely while still remaining true to who he’d been all along.

Monty and the Monster is a must-read for anyone who has ever had to deal with bullying or experiments that don’t necessarily go the way they’re expected to.

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Mrs. Murray’s Home by Emily-Jane Hills Orford

May 20, 2020 By 8 Comments


Mrs. Murray’s Home by Emily-Jane Hills Orford
Publisher: Tell-Tale Publishing Group
Genre: Middle Grade, Mystery, Paranormal
Length: Full (191 pgs)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Rose
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Home is where the heart is, or so they say. It’s also been said that a home is a person’s castle. But home is also with family and friends. Mrs. Murray longs for home, the family home, a castle an ocean away. The Brownies also crave for home, the same castle Mrs. Murray considers home. And Granny? Mary’s Granny hasn’t been home since she was Mary’s age. It’s time to visit the homeland, Scotland. Mary’s excited to tag along with Granny, Mrs. Murray and the Brownies. And then there’s the witch. The one they thought they’d killed. And the treasure. The one they had found. And it all ties together, for better or for worse. Join the adventure in book 3 of the popular “Piccadilly Street Series”.

What an absolutely charming book! This is the first of the series I’ve had the chance to read, but it will by no means be the last one. In fact, I have already ordered the first two and can hardly wait to read them. However, it is not necessary to have read the first two books in order to enjoy this third volume. I was never lost, but would like to see how Mary gets involved with Mrs. Murray and the Brownies (what fun they are… there were some moments when I literally laughed out loud at some of the antics).

Ms. Orford has the ability to draw the reader in and let them feel like they are right there in the moment with the other characters. The action was non-stop and kept me on the edge of my seat as Mary strives against her greatest enemy.

Thanks for a wonderful read, Ms. Orford. I’m looking forward to Mary’s next adventure.

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

The Ghost of Jamie McVay by R.G. Ziemer

May 7, 2020 By 1 Comment


The Ghost of Jamie McVay by R.G. Ziemer
Publisher: Black Rose Writing
Genre: Middle Grade, Suspense/Mystery, Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (240 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Brian Krueger has a lot of problems: The death of his grandfather and his father’s alcoholism have led to hard times and a move to a new town, where his nearest neighbor is a pyromaniac and a bully. Brian runs to escape his troubles, but it’s on the gravel jogging path that he encounters the ghost of Jamie McVay.

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Can Brian and Sharon prevent catastrophe on Halloween night? Will the ghost of Jamie McVay find peace for his unquiet soul?

Sometimes local legends are true.

The details of Jamie McVey’s life and death were so vividly written that I actually googled him to see if this was based on a true story. It honestly felt like something ripped from the headlines of a small town newspaper. While it turned out to be fictional after all, this didn’t dampen my enthusiasm for figuring out what really happened to this ghost one bit. I was so interested in learning his secrets that I couldn’t stop reading.

I enjoyed finding all of the parallels that the author drew between Brian’s life in the present and Jamie’s life in the past. They had far more in common than I would have guessed, and many of their similarities were things that took some time to uncover. It was rewarding to see all of this slowly come together as Brian adjusted to life in his new community and began to explore the mystery of what really happened to Jamie.

The romantic subplot was handled beautifully. It definitely wasn’t something I was expecting to find in this tale, but I was pleased with how much time it was given to develop while all of the other storylines were going on as well. The characters involved in it had plenty of opportunities to slowly transition their friendship into a romantic connection. Given everything else that was happening in their lives, this was the perfect decision. I must also say that I really liked the idea of them being a couple! The fact that they were so well suited for each other as far as their personalities and interests go only made the idea of them falling in love even more appealing.

The Ghost of Jamie McVay is something I’d recommend just as earnestly to adult readers as I would to the middle grade audience it was originally intended for.

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

Willoughby’s World of Wonder by Stephen Barnwell

November 1, 2019 By Leave a Comment


Willoughby’s World of Wonder by Stephen Barnwell
Publisher: Bayne & McKay
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal
Length: Full length (182 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 5 stars
Review by Honeysuckle
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This is the International Edition of Willoughby’s World of Wonder, a fictional reproduction of the famous 1882 Field Guide to Strange Beasts & Curious Creatures. Willoughby’s, as it was popularly known, was created by noted cryptozoologist and naturalist, Angus Willoughby. For half a century, this unique reference guide was used as a textbook in many universities around the globe, and was considered a primary reference of many cryptozoological societies and organizations. Years of painstaking research and expert restoration have yielded the amazing rebirth of this treasured book, which is as important today as it was when it was originally published.

Ever wonder where the inspiration for some of the fantastical creatures in Percy Jackson, Clash of the Titans, The Hobbit, Harry Potter and many other fantasy series could have come from? Quite possibly, the authors were inspired by the writings of one Mr. Angus Willoughby circa 1882. This updated and illustrated reprint of the book is filled with details of well known folk such the Fey, Faerie, Brownies, Kraken, and Cyclops, as well as creatures that inhabit the night such as Pookas, Bogeyman, and Banshee’s. But there’s so much more. What is a chickfish and a Leocornus and a Mock Lobster?? Readers will see their size, habitat and other intricate details.

This book will appeal to a wide audience. I spied all three of my children, all teenagers, thumbing through this book at various times but it was my husband who really got a kick out of it. Also listed as a Field Guide To Strange Beasts and Curious Creatures, it isn’t hard to see how the clever creatures created by Mr. Willoughby found their way into thousands of fantasy and urban fantasy literature and still inspire authors today as well as their big screen counterparts.

Readers who have creative artists and budding writers in their house would do well to obtain a copy of this book. It’s both entertaining and educational.

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Escape from the Past: The Duke’s Wrath by Annette Oppenlander

August 21, 2019 By 20 Comments


Escape from the Past: The Duke’s Wrath by Annette Oppenlander
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Young Adult/Middle Grade, Science Fiction/Fantasy (time travel), Contemporary, Historical
Length: Full Length (292 pgs)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Poppy

When nerd and gamer, Max Anderson, is lured into trying an experimental computer game, he doesn’t realize he’s playing the ultimate history game, time-traveling into the past…anywhere…anytime. Survival is optional. To return home he must decipher the game’s rules and complete its missions–if he lives long enough. Tofail means staying in the past–forever.
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Now he’strapped in medieval Germany, unprepared and clueless. It is the year 1471 and he quickly learns that being an outcast may cost him his head. Especially after rescuing a beautiful peasant girl from a deadly infection and thus provoking sinister wannabe Duke Ott. Overnight he is dragged into a hornets’ nest of feuding lords who will stop at nothing to bring down the conjuring stranger in their midst.

Filled with realistic historical references and a lot of adventure to keep even the pickiest of readers happy, Escape from the Past: The Duke’s Wrath was nearly un-put-downable. I read it in just two days.

I adored our hero, Max (“Max Nerds”). He actually took to going back in time with a pretty level head, which is good since if he’d panicked at any time, he’d likely have been killed or worse (and, yes, in that time there is definitely “worse” than death). The author is honest about the time: the food, the stench, the lack of understanding about germs or medicine and more. It’s clear the folks not born into priviledge (or earning it, like the squires/knights) had a horrendously hard life. Max gets to see both sides of the coin as he moves through the era with his new friend Bero and the family that takes him in. He sees poverty and hunger, pain and abuse. He saves Bero’s sister with some good ideas on how to treat a wound, even without modern medicine, and teaches his new family how to forage for edibles in the woods.

I enjoyed learning more about the time period–typically when I read historical fiction, it’s not from this time so it was interesting to go somewhere new! I don’t understand the cover, despite how eye-catching it is, since it seems to imply there’s a time machine involved, and there isn’t. Also, Max talks, thinks and acts like someone much older. In fact, at the beginning, I thought it was an adult looking back on an adventure he’d had. Max’s friend, Jimmy, acted more like that age group but Max was exceptionally mature.

Despite that very small blip, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I wish it had been around when my own, history mad, daughter was younger. I would have given it to her with no reservations, and she would have loved it, too.

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

Jamestowne by Tim Black

July 11, 2019 By Leave a Comment


Jamestowne by Tim Black
Tesla’s Time Travelers, #3
Publisher: Untreed Reads
Genre: Middle Grade, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Historical
Length: Short Story (137 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

With Nikola Tesla at the controls, teacher Nathan Greene and the time-traveling teens journey back to 17th century Virginia to witness the founding of Jamestowne. As the famed Serbian-American scientist brings the classroom portable in for a landing, two young Native Americans witness the portable’s descent from the sky. The boy and girl quickly return to their village and the girl tells her father, Chief Powhatan, that People of the Sky have landed. Called “playful one,” Powhatan’s daughter, Pocahontas, is known to tell imaginative stories of her own creation. Still, as a precaution, Powhatan sends his brother and a group of warriors to investigate his daughter’s claims.

As Greene and his students trek across a grassland in the direction of the English settlers’ landing site, Chief Opechancanough and his warriors surround the time travelers and take them hostage, leading them to Powhatan’s village where Mr. Greene faces execution.
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So begins the third adventure of the students of Cassadaga Area High School, whose latest trip includes meeting the famed adventurer John Smith and witnessing the beginning of the first English colony in North America, all while being chased through time by the most dangerous Native of the 17 century.

There are some parts of history that can only be rediscovered by visiting the past for yourself.

The descriptions of Powhatan culture were fascinating. I appreciated the fact that Mr. Black went into so much detail about what life in this tribe was like for people of all ages. It made it easy for me to picture what an average day for them involved and why they were so confused and irritated by some of the decisions the European characters made.

This tale never really had a clear narrator. There were a few difference characters that kept popping up regularly, but the plot moved among them without ever making it clear to the audience which perspective or perspectives we should be giving the most attention to. My preference would have been for Pocahontas to take on this role, but any main character would have done nicely as long as it was clear who was in charge of keeping the storyline moving forward.

One of the things I appreciated the most about the plot was how careful the characters were to avoid changing the past. This is always a temptation with time travel, but it’s terribly risky. I liked the fact that the characters were aware of that risk and did everything they could to let history unfold the way it had in our timeline regardless of how much they wished they could change certain things.

This is part of a series, but it can be read as a standalone work.

Jamestowne should be read by adult and young adult history buffs alike.

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The Hidden Worlds by Sandra Ingerman and Katherine Wood

February 20, 2019 By Leave a Comment


The Hidden Worlds by Sandra Ingerman and Katherine Wood
Publisher: Moon Books
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary, YA
Length: Short story (111 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Snowdrop

Were those people in Isaiah’s dream the same people from school? Popular soccer star Magda? George, who he’d never heard speak because he always left classes for special services help? Angry Rose, the Chinese girl who was always in trouble for fighting? And why were there dead birds and fish everywhere? When the four encounter one another the next day by the same pond from the dream, they realize they’ve shared a dream and there really are dead birds and fish covering the ground! This leads to real-life adventures and more dreams as they discover a toxic waste plant disposing of poisons illegally. Not friends in the beginning, romance blossoms as they work together with their Power Animals to close down the plant.

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This is a fun book, really a sort of fantasy and yet a teaching story all rolled into one. Some aspects of the story are very realistic, the problems pollution can cause, the easy way we can ruin our world when we don’t pay attention, the bullies, both young and old, we must face. Yet this is never a dry book in its teaching lessons. It’s one which children will fly through.

In the midst of all these lessons of nature and environment, are four young people wanting to help and working to do so. They all have individual personalities. I think most kids will find at least one character they can identify with. I thought the level of “other worldly” or “hidden worlds” was a little difficult for the authors to describe well and although they did so, there were a few times I had to look back to see if I had missed something. This made me lose my reading rhythm now and then and broke my concentration.

Sandra Ingerman has many publications, all with very good reviews. Now she and Katherine Woods have a book of what shamanic practice is, all in the source of a great fiction and very readable book for younger ages.

My best description is…different than I usually read, interesting, and definitely worth the time.

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

Fury’s Ghost by Sue Perkins

January 16, 2019 By Leave a Comment


Fury’s Ghost by Sue Perkins
Publisher: Caishel Books
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (114 pages)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Fury’s family leave the city for a six month visit to rural New Zealand. They stay in an old house belonging to her mother’s family, but who is the ghostly figure in a hidden attic room and why is Fury the only one who can see her? She learns the ghost is the spirit of the original owner who has been trapped in the room for one hundred years.

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The afterlife isn’t always a peaceful place.

At first I wasn’t sure if this tale was meant to be set in the past or the present. Eventually, I did make up my mind about this question, but I liked the fact that the storyline focused on all of the timeless elements of being a twelve-year-old whose family has just moved into a haunted house. Fury could have just as easily lived several decades ago and it wouldn’t have changed much about her adventures at all. There’s definitely something to be said for characters and plots that aren’t tied down to one specific era. This could be a modern-day classic in the making!

I would have liked to see a little more attention paid to character development. Fury went through some pretty memorable and spooky experiences, so I was surprised by how quickly she adapted to the idea that ghosts exists and that there was one living in her house. If a bit more attention had been paid to how she made that mental leap, I would have given this book a five star rating. Everything else about it was well done.

The plot related to who the ghost was and how she died was handled nicely. While I obviously can’t go into a lot of detail about it without giving away spoilers, I liked the fact that Fury had barely any information at all about this character in the beginning. Her lack of knowledge only made me more curious to find out who the spirit had been in life and why they’d hung around for so long.

Anyone who enjoys paranormal fiction should give Fury’s Ghost a try.

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The Colonel and the Bee by Patrick Canning

December 18, 2018 By Leave a Comment


The Colonel and the Bee by Patrick Canning
Publisher: Evolved Publishing
Genre: Action/Adventure, Historical, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Suspense/Mystery, YA
Length: Full Length (279 pgs)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Aloe

A peculiar explorer and downtrodden acrobat span the globe on a building-sized hot air balloon, in search of a precious artifact and the murderous treasure hunter who seeks it.

WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award – Summer 2018 – Best Adventure

Beatrix, a spirited but abused acrobat in a traveling circus, seeks more than her prison-like employment offers. More than anything, she wants to know her place in the world of the halcyon 19th century, a time when the last dark corners of the map were being sketched out and travel still possessed a kind of magic.

One night in Switzerland, the mysterious Colonel James Bacchus attends Beatrix’s show. This larger-than-life English gentleman, reputed to have a voracious appetite for female conquests, is most notable for traveling the world in a four-story hot air balloon called The Ox.
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Beatrix flees that night to join the Colonel, and the two of them make a narrow escape—Beatrix from her abusive ringleader, the Colonel from a freshly-made cuckold. Beatrix, feeling the Colonel may have the answers to her problems, pledges to help him catch the criminal he seeks in exchange for passage on his magnificent balloon.

The criminal seeks a precious figurine, The Blue Star Sphinx, but he’s not alone. The Sphinx’s immense value has also drawn the attention of the world’s most deadly treasure hunters. A murder in Antwerp begins a path of mystery that leads all the way to the most isolated island on Earth.

What dangers await the Colonel and the acrobat?

Beatrix is an orphan who works as a trapeze artist in the circus. She performs over bare ground to make it more dangerous. Her boss uses a whip to punish any employee that acts out or gets mouthy. She gets her fair share of correction because she talks back to him. But one night she sees an Englishman at the show and finds out he rides around in a hot air balloon. She likes the trapeze because it reminds her of flying. Imagine what it would be like to ride in a hot air balloon!

Beatrix begs to ride on the hot air balloon. She wants to escape the circus. The Colonel refuses but when she offers to help him find the criminal he’s hunting he finally decides he’ll take her. He doesn’t intend to keep her long.

It’s a four-story hot air balloon. He soon teaches her how to fly and manipulate the balloon. She’s not real good at it, but she learns to stay afloat. The only thing she doesn’t like about the Colonel is that he’s a womanizer. Every time they stop somewhere he’s out looking for a woman.

She meets the other members of his team and they all become friends. They’re looking for the mysterious Christopher and he’s hard to find. Bee doesn’t know but the Colonel has more secrets. It’s a good thing she had acrobat training. It’s the only thing that keeps her alive…

Mr. Canning writes a very good story. It starts with a fast pace and that lasts the whole story. There’s plenty of danger, lots of excitement, and two unlikely characters become a team. There’s not a boring part in this story. The story flows well and you almost think you’re losing a character or two but not to worry. It ends unusually but happily.

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