Review: Mermaids Never Drown edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker

Mermaids Never Drown: Tales to Dive For edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker

Mermaids Never Drown: Tales to Dive For
Edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker
Feiwel & Friends
Published September 26, 2023

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About Mermaids Never Drown

14 Young Adult short stories from bestselling and award-winning authors make a splash in Mermaids Never Drown – the second collectionin theUntold Legends series edited by Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker – exploring mermaids like we’ve never seen them before!

A Vietnamese mermaid caught between two worlds. A siren who falls for Poseidon’s son. A boy secretly pining for the merboy who saved him … Continue reading

20 Fabulous Middle Grade Books Coming Fall 2023

20 Fabulous Middle Grade Books Coming Fall 2023

Usually, my review calendar is about sixty to seventy percent young adult and only thirty to forty percent middle grade, but this season, I’m split pretty close to fifty-fifty for what’s on my reading list. It’s hard to keep up with all the great books coming this season, but I’m going to do my best to try! Here are my 20 most-anticipated middle grade books coming fall 2023.

Since September is already almost over (How?!), I’ve linked a few of the books I’ve finished to my reviews below.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays with Greg Pattridge at Always in the Middle Continue reading

Review: Wishes Are Free by Diana Mercedes Howell

Wishes Are Free by Diana Mercedes Howell cover shows a girl holding a dandelion, standing in front of a white picket fence with a cluster of buildings in the distance.

Wishes Are Free
Diana Mercedes Howell
Published September 15, 2022

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About Wishes Are Free

Friends are everywhere if you have a big heart and know where to look.

California, 1959. Spunky ten-year-old Rose O’Reilly feels abandoned when her best friend from birth moves two thousand miles away. Determined to find a new best friend, she turns to Grandpa, whose wife – his own best friend – has recently died. They hold chat cafes in the kitchen on Sundays and with Grandpa’s help, Rose … Continue reading

Review: Champion of Fate by Kendare Blake

Champion of Fate by Kendare Blake

Champion of Fate (Heromaker #1)
Kendare Blake
Quill Tree Books
Published September 19, 2023

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About Champion of Fate

Behind every great hero is an Aristene.

Aristene are mythical female warriors, part of a legendary order. Though heroes might be immortalized in stories, it’s the Aristene who guide them to victory. They are the Heromakers.

Ever since she was an orphan taken in by the order, Reed has wanted to be an Aristene. Now, as an initiate, just one challenge stands in her way: she must shepherd her first hero to glory on the battlefield. Succeed, and Reed will take her place beside her sisters. Fail, … Continue reading

Review: The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie

The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie

The Forest Grimm
Kathryn Purdie
Wednesday Books
Published September 19, 2023

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About The Forest Grimm

Where fairy tales come to life with dark, deadly twists…

“Tell me again, Grandmère, the story of how I die.”

The Midnight Forest. The Fanged Creature. Two fortune-telling cards that spell an untimely death for 17-year-old Clara. Despite the ever-present warning from her fortune-teller grandmother, Clara embarks on a dangerous journey into the deadly Forest Grimm to procure a magical book – Sortes Fortunae, the Book of Fortunes – with the power to reverse the curse on her village and save her mother.

Years ago, when the villagers whispered their … Continue reading

Review: House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin Craig

House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin Craig

House of Salt and Sorrows (Sisters of the Salt #1)
Erin Craig
Delacorte Press
Published August 6, 2019

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About House of Salt and Sorrows

In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.

Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls’ lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that … Continue reading