Fantasy

Book Review: The Selection

Author
Cass, Kiera
Rating
3 stars = Pretty Good
Review

The Selection was a very fun book for me to read, because it was a quick read fantasy book. It incorporates all the elements a romance lover looks for in a book. It is a love triangle, enemies to lovers, and friends to lovers novel all in one. America is a very strong and independent character, but we see her become more open minded and willing to work with others instead of fighting them. It is cool to see her perspective on the life she wants change as she gets to know Maxon, but she never forgets the change she wants to make for the people of her past life. The book was not my all time favorite, because the plot can be a little more predictable at times, and some parts are slower. Although, it is definitely worth reading.

Reviewer's Name
Mackenzie

Book Review: The Inheritance Games

Author
Barnes Jennifer, Lynn
Rating
5 stars = Bohemian Rhapsody Awesome!
Review

I chose the Inheritance Games to read, because I love fantasy, realistic fiction, and dystopian books. This one caught my eye especially from the cover. I know, never judge a book by it's cover, but this one ended up being great. This book is one I can safely say I will reread many times. It was hard to put down, because it incorporates mystery, romance, and the feeling of being in an escape room so perfectly. It is not only cool to see Avery solve the puzzles in the Hawthorne house herself, but to try solving them from the perspective of the reader. The Hawthorne boys are witty, and each so unique, they are easy characters to love. Especially Jameson, who is a very dynamic character, always doing and saying the unexpected. This book was far from predictable. It is a given that once you read the first book you will want to read the sequel, because the series as a whole is fantastic.
Reviewer grade: 11

Reviewer's Name
Mackenzie

Book Review: Wrath of Empire

Author
McClellan, Brian
Rating
5 stars = Bohemian Rhapsody Awesome!
Review

Wrath of Empire is a fiction book by the author Brian McClellan. It is the second book in the Gods of Blood and Powder trilogy. This trilogy is also a sequel trilogy to the amazing trilogy The Powder Mage. I chose this book in particular because of how much I loved both the first trilogy and because the previous book Sins of Empire left an amazing cliffhanger in preventing the rise of another god. I chose to read the first book of the first trilogy because the author, Brian McClellan, was strongly recommended for fans of Branden Sanderson's work (another fantastic author). The book largely follows 3 main characters: Lady Flint, a minor character from the previous trilogy who leads a mercenary group known as the Riflejacks, Michel Bravis, a spy that double-crosses the group he double-crosses for, and Mad Ben Styke, a cavalry leader focused on escorting and protecting a magical savant (the savant, Ka-Sadiel is trying to prevent the creation of another god). Each character was exceptional in their own way; personally, I enjoyed Michel's sections the most because of the consistent location (both Lady Flint and Colonel Styke are travelling to prevent a creation of another god, but Michel stays in the same location for the majority of the book). This book was full of surprises as amazing characters died and lied while striving to bide their time. None of the characters are wholly relatable because I am a child that could not survive a war. At moments, however, nerves would build and sympathy would be drawn from the reader (e.g. when Michel didn't know if he could ever find an important character in a massive city). This is definitely one of the best books I have read this year.
Reviewer Grade: 10

Reviewer's Name
Ryder

Book Review: Watership Down

Author
Adams, Richard
Rating
5 stars = Bohemian Rhapsody Awesome!
Review

This is a book designed for lovers of Xenofiction (books from non-human perspectives). "Watership Down" is a book about a warren of rabbits. Hazel's brother Fiver has a disturbing vision that prompts him and others to leave the warren. Along the way they run into other, sinister warrens. Interwoven with the story, short segments describing the mythology of El-ahrairah ( a figure similar to Robin Hood).

Some may be familiar with the violent reputation of "Watership Down". This is an earned reputation. Although no main characters die, they do suffer grievous harm. Aside from that, there is a vivid and disturbing description of the original warren's description. However, I felt that the most disturbing parts of the books were the parts exploring the almost dystopian warrens the group meet. If you plan to read this book, keep this in mind. Do not read this if you are sensitive to violence.

If you can get past the disturbing content, this is an excellent read. The characters are incredibly charming. Hazel is an inventive leader, who sometimes acts recklessly to show off. Fiver is a timid rabbit who has glimpses of the future, based on the famous Greek oracle Cassandra. Bigwig is a gruff ally, who occasionally doubts Hazel's leadership, but has a big heart. The plot is equally as interesting, leaving me anxious at parts when things seemed to be going eerily well. The segments regarding El-ahrairah are also entertaining, giving insight into the rabbit culture.

All in all, if you aren't sensitive to violence, I would definitely recommend trying this book.

Reviewer's Name
Rose

Book Review: Fairy Tale

Author
King, Stephen
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

The Lord of The Rings, Harry Potter, Hobbit and The Chronicles of Narnia have already won the hearts of millions of readers of all ages. Fantasy novels with complex plots, written in the understandable even for the youngest readers language, keep older generations excited and thrilled as well. The Fairy Tale by Stephen King can definitely be included in this honorable list. Describing the incredible adventures of Charlie Reade, it takes us to the mystical world and introduces to the ancient evil monsters and brave fighters for freedom.
Everything starts simple enough. The characters are living their ordinary enough lives and dealing with their down-to-earth duties and routines. But everything changes when a 17-year-old Charlie Reade decides to help his old grumpy neighbor. He discovers the door to the hidden world, where life is paralyzed by a curse that erases people’s faces and takes their sensations away from them. An evil tyrant Flight Killer and is the one who stands behind it. And, as it normally happens in fairy tales, Charlie turns out to be the one, whose mission is to defeat the evil, liberate the city of Lilimar and save the fallen princess. Is it truly up to a high-schooler to beat the powerful monster? And what does it have to do with an old ill German shepherd? The Fairy Tale has the answers for all these questions.
The audience gets a chance to dive into the exciting and cozy atmosphere of the good old stories, heard in childhood, and, at the same time, enjoy the complicity of created by King universe and charm of human feelings and behaviors. Classical fairy tale plot and motives make the novel easy and pleasant to read, however, as any fairy tale, it contains hidden moral and promotes eternal values.
Reviewer Grade: 12

Reviewer's Name
Oleksandra

Book Review: Wings of Fire Legend: Dragonslayer

Author
Sutherland, Tui T.
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

A quick summary of this book is that three kids, Wren, Leaf, and Ivy, all live in a world filled with dragons. Wren was sacrificed to the dragons by her village leaders but she escaped and befriended a dragon named Sky. Leaf wants to slay a dragon and take revenge on the dragons because he believes that the dragons ate his sister, Wren. Ivy is the dragonslayer's daughter and she starts finding the truth about what happened when her father slayed the dragon. Ivy starts to realize that her father is the entire reason the dragons hate humans. When Leaf comes to Ivy's village to seek out the dragonslayer, Ivy and Leaf decide to go to the desert dragons stronghold to find Ivy's lost aunt Rose and return the dragons treasure to them. On the way they meet Wren and together they find out the truth about how the dragonslayer actually killed the dragon and try to make amends for it.
This book was one of my favorite books of the entire Wings of Fire series. It has a ton of amazingly portrayed action scenes. Tui T. Sutherland, the author, did a marvelous job of using imagery to make you feel as if you are in the book. I also really enjoyed how all the books in the series are connected. You see characters from other books such as a Nightwing named Deathbringer, who is from the Dragonet prophecy series and also the second Winglets book. My favorite character is probably Wren because she is so brave, courageous, resourceful, and smart. I also love Sky, Wren's dragon, that she befriends. He is so adorable and kind of funny at times. There was nothing in the book that I didn't like. Over all this book is one of the best ones I have read this year. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in dragons or fantasy/adventure. (8th grade)

Reviewer's Name
Alex

The Last Guardian

Image
The Last Guardian
Author
Colfer, Eoin
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

The Last Guardian—the final book in the Artemis Fowl series—could not have gotten here any faster. In my mind, the series was basically over once they did the "time travel" book in the fifth entry, The Time Paradox . That The Atlantis Complex felt like the weakest in the series meant I didn't have high hopes for this wrap-up of the series. Fortunately, the downward trend since the third book did not continue here, and it finished on a satisfying high note.

Perhaps due to this being the last book in the series, the whole "deus ex machina" style of returning everything to normal by the end of the book seemed to go out the window here. This allowed for some truly exciting developments—not the least of which includes the death of main characters. Using not one, but two of the series' best antagonist was also a smart move to increase the stakes to the highest they've ever been in the entire saga. All these things combined into an entertaining ending that reminded me why I kept with this series for so long.

There wasn't any reason to hold anything back in this book, and Eoin Colfer flawlessly left everything with a satisfying conclusion. Sure, there were some romantic aspects of the titular character's life that I would have liked to have seen wrapped up slightly differently, but I also understand that this middle-grade series never had that as its strong suit (other than the "will they/won't they" between him and Holly Short). Ultimately, would I read this series again? Probably not. However, I would pick up a few entries to read again, and this is definitely one of them.

Ending the Artemis Fowl series on a high note, I give The Last Guardian 4.0 stars out of 5.

Reviewer's Name
Benjamin
Genres

The Wind Through the Keyhole

Image
The Wind Through the Keyhole
Author
King, Stephen
Rating
4 stars = Really Good
Review

Backstory can often be a difficult element to work into a series. To keep the action in the present and moving forward, there’s rarely time to go into the background of the characters, let alone the main character of the series. This is why side stories like Fairest and The Wind Through the Keyhole exist. There’s a subtle need to explore the troubled past of a main character, but to get into the depth of their backstory requires a significant amount of words that won’t fit into already full books in the main series.

In The Wind Through the Keyhole, Stephen King lets the reader see the origins of Roland the Gunslinger. What’s interesting here is that King does so in a series of nested stories, almost evoking something from Inception (2010) or Cloud Atlas. After all, a single story hardly affects real people but is instead a string of interactions that themselves were influenced by the past events of other characters’ lives. And while knowing these stories doesn’t add to the whole of the Dark Tower series, they confirm some things that Roland alluded to from his past.

With many moments in the core Dark Tower series being used to show character development for the rest of the members of the ka-tet, The Wind Through the Keyhole provides the foundation for the titular Gunslinger that was mostly missing from the main series. Considering that King wrote this book almost a decade after the series concluded, it’s no wonder that the universe of Mid-World feels as rich as ever in this side story. Adding this mid-series book after the fact meant that King still had more to clarify and The Wind Through the Keyhole definitely delivers.

A Dark Tower side story with plenty of character background, I give The Wind Through the Keyhole 4.0 stars out of 5.

Reviewer's Name
Benjamin
Genres

Book Review: Monument 14

Author
Laybourne, Emmy
Rating
2 stars = Meh
Review

This book is the perfect example of a great concept with poor execution. It is about a bunch of kids trapped in a grocery store amid an apocalypse, and trust me, it isn’t as good as it sounds. First of all, the worst thing in this book was the handling of 13 year old Sahalia, at least in the beginning. Her character in itself was creepy and unnecessary. Under no circumstances should a character who is only my age be described like that. She was handled well in the very end, but that’s about it. Besides that glaring issue, the rest of the book is flat at best. I will definitely not finish this series. (8th grade)

Reviewer's Name
Maya

Book Review: A Monster Calls

Author
Ness, Patrick
Rating
5 stars = Bohemian Rhapsody Awesome!
Review

A Monster Calls is excellent for what it does. A young boy battles with his feelings over his sick and dying mother. He is haunted by a certain horrible nightmare. A monster outside his window causes havoc on various levels to evoke his true thoughts. He isn't afraid of anything, because nothing is scarier than his nightmare. The story reads similarly to a fable in that it weaves itself perfectly neatly. There are no subplots, extra characters, or excess in this novel. Instead, it marches on to the structure that one would expect, in three acts, each with appropriate escalation. The structure of this novel was refreshingly minimalist, and it helps highlight Conor's strengths and flaws in a powerful way. A Monster Calls is a short read, but it is heartbreaking and beautifully done.

Reviewer's Name
Samah