Author Archives: Kasey

About Kasey

Reads things. Writes things. Fluent in sarcasm. Willful optimist. Cat companion, chocolate connoisseur, coffee drinker. There are some who call me Mom.

Review: Moonblood by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

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Moonblood
Anne Elisabeth Stengl
Bethany House
Published April 1, 2012

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Prince Lionheart returns to his ruined kingdom and struggles to reclaim the trust of his people. But when the people demand the death of Lionheart’s only loyal friend Rose Red, he banishes her instead to the treacherous Goldstone Wood, filled with deadly magical creatures.

Captured by her father, King Vahe, and imprisoned in the lost kingdom of Arpiar, Rose Red refuses to call for help. She waits for the Night of Moonblood and her father’s vile plans to unfold, a talking statue and lost boy with no memory for her only companions.

Lionheart pursues Rose Red, determined to rescue her and atone … Continue reading →

Review: The Sight by Erin Hunter

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The Sight
Erin Hunter
HarperCollins Publishers
Published April 24, 2007

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Jaykit and his siblings can’t wait to be christened as apprentices when they finally reach six moons of age. Until then, though, no one will let them leave the camp, even when a dead fox and its abandoned cubs spell big trouble for the clan. Determined to help, Jaykit and his siblings sneak out of the safety of the camp, hoping to be the first to find the fox cubs and chase them from the ThunderClan territory. When the larger than expected cubs injure Jaykit, all three kittens find themselves in big trouble.

As the apprentice ceremony finally arrives and Jaykit becomes Jaypaw, … Continue reading →

Review: A Girl Called Problem by Katie Quirk

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A Girl Called Problem
Katie Quirk
Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Published April 18, 2013

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Shida is not a child anymore. At thirteen, she is now a young woman and her mother constantly reminds her to conduct herself as one. No more tree climbing and running around alone. Soon she will be ready to marry, if any young man will associate himself with a girl whose name means “problem” and whose family is cursed.

While her widowed mother sinks deeper into depression, the village leaders talk of moving the people to join a nearby community to share resources. Shida is excited. At last, she may have a chance to go to school, to … Continue reading →

Review: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

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Speak
Laurie Halse Anderson
Square Fish
Published May 10, 2011 (Orig. published 1999)

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At a high school with an ever-changing mascot, Melinda begins her year friendless and alone. She’s the pariah who called police at a summer party. The one where the awful thing happened. Through a caring teacher and a challenging art project, Melinda struggles to piece herself back together. But when the familiar face of that boy materializes out of the halls of her new school, she spirals into silence and isolation. As the boy, Andy, draws closer to Melinda’s former best friend Rachel, Melinda tries to reach out, to warn her. Rumors swirl that he’s hurt other girls, the same … Continue reading →

Review: Perverse by Larry Rodness

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Perverse
Larry Rodness
ITOH Press
Published December 31, 2012

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As a second generation Goth, even Gothic life for Emylene is weird. Not weird. Perverse! While she enjoys her position in her community as a Goth princess, she doesn’t always see her spoiled and self-centered behavior and how it impacts others. When she inadvertently frees a mysterious girl from a charcoal sketch found in a dismal antique shop, Emylene’s world begins to shift. Her parents are barely recognizable and what’s the deal with her friends at her nightly club hangout?

Too late, Emylene realizes her new friend is not what she seems. As events spiral out of control, Emylene finds new allies to face … Continue reading →

Review: The Girl Who Played Chess with an Angel by Tessa Apa

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The Girl Who Played Chess with an AngelThe Girl Who Played Chess with an Angel
Tessa Apa
Big Planet Corporation
Published June 8, 2012

Currently Out of Print

Thirteen year old Florence doesn’t want reasons; she needs answers. About her father’s death. About her mother’s fierce anger. But Florence knows answers change things, and everything is about to change.

Things have been changing ever since the day she played chess with an Angel. One might think meeting a real live angel answers a lot of life’s questions, but Florence is taking things slowly. One answer at a time.

As she wrestles with her father’s sudden death and her mother’s bitterness, Florence begins to see life beyond her own needs. In her tenuous friendship with Max, she finds the courage to ask an even bigger question: is … Continue reading →