Category Archives: By Age Range

Review: Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , ,

Deep Blue by Jennifer DonnellyDeep Blue (Waterfire Saga Book One)
Jennifer Donnelly
Disney Hyperion
Published on May 6, 2014

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Dark dreams haunt Princess Serafina as she prepares to prove herself worthy to one day be Regina and rule her people. When an assassin attacks her mother and an army overtakes her home, Sera and her best friend are forced to flee for their lives. Could there be truth to the voices from Sera’s dreams? If she can find the ones she hears in her sleep, can they stop the evil force and restore Sera’s world to what it was?

As far as mermaid books go, Donnelly wins the award for best story world and most unique story ideas. If you’re rolling your eyes expecting there to be a human prince out there waiting for rescue, think again. This author has developed an entire Mer culture with rituals, history and complex political alliances with other Mer kingdoms. Delicious stuff. And instead of the familiar mermaid-longs-to-be-human-for-love theme, we experience an entirely different adventure full of danger and intrigue.

As a part of the ceremony in which Sera proves herself the rightful heir to the throne of her kingdom, she will pledge to marry her childhood sweetheart, Prince Madhi. Troubling rumors surround the young prince, and Sera fears he is no longer the friend and love she once knew him to be. In one scene in which Sera confronts the prince, he claims there’s more going on than she knows. As the story unfolded, I developed a pretty specific theory about what I think is going on. I’m anxious to read the second book in the series, Rogue Wave to learn if I’m right!

Language Content
None.

Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Sea witches chant a song about five mermaids gathering to stop a terrible evil from destroying their kingdoms. Mer people worship powerful ancestors who saved them when Atlantis fell, giving them tails, the ability to breathe under water, and the power to perform magic through song for protection.

Violence
Serafina and her friends are captured by an evil man who threatens to torture them and has already cut the thumb from another prisoner. Some brief details.

Battle scenes show armies fighting one another and civilians caught in the fray. Descriptions are brief.

Drug Content
Green pill.

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Review: Bricks by John Davidson

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Bricks
John Davidson
Anaiah Press
Published February 3, 2015

Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

When an EF5 tornado rips through sixteen year-old Cori’s neighborhood, more than her house is reduced to rubble. Shocking truths about her family emerge in the aftermath. Her nemesis suffers amnesia and Cori can’t seem to get rid of her. Her best friend Slim becomes angry and reclusive. Everything is out of order, and for not-precisely-OCD Cori, this is a huge problem.

As a character, Cori is absolutely the believable high school princess. Davidson does a great job crafting this selfish yet somehow endearing heroine. Cori’s friends are great foils for her, too, often much more noble than she herself can be.

The story bears some cute references to The Wizard of Oz. Cori nicknames the tornado “the witch.” Her friends include Toni “Toto,” Leo (her cowardly lion) and Slim (her scarecrow and courageous buddy.)

Entertaining dialogue fills the scenes between Cori and her friends. Parental figures remain a bit awkward. There were a couple of places where issues between Cori and her parents were left hanging. She lies to them and later discovers they knew the truth, but there’s no confrontation about it at any point. Even when Cori finds out that they were aware of her deceit, it doesn’t seem to register with her. She also avoids contact with them to get money to pay an important debt, but seems to have no problem getting money for a prom dress immediately afterward. Not a big deal, but it definitely felt off.

I really enjoyed the way the author pulled threads from The Wizard of Oz into the story without trying to make it a retelling or getting carried away with the references. There were just enough to add zest. Like Dorothy, Cori learns the value of community and that family doesn’t always look the way one expects.

Language Content
No profanity.

Sexual Content
One brief kiss.

Spiritual Content
One of Cori’s neighbors is a devout Christian and prays openly in addition to telling Cori that she prays for her.

Violence
The immediate aftermath of the tornado is a bit intense. Much of Cori’s neighborhood is destroyed, and many people are injured. Damage and injuries are briefly described.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Review: Golden Daughter by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Clean Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

Golden Daughter
Anne Elisabeth Stengl
Rooglewood Press
Available November 25, 2014

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

A Dream Walker with legendary power returns from a dream marked by an enemy hand and lost in a trance. Hoping to buy time for her healing, the high priest places her in the care of a cunning protector. As one of the emperor’s famed Golden Daughters, Sairu vows to serve her mistress on a dangerous journey from the emperor’s palace to a remote temple. They are accompanied by an orange cat and a slave boy with unexpected abilities. A dark enemy seeks to eliminate the Dream Walker in Sairu’s care.

Fans of the Tales of Goldstone Wood series will recognize the cat as the indomitable faerie poet, Eanrin. His presence adds spunk and humor to this more serious story. Unlike the other Goldstone Wood novels, this one has much more of an Eastern feel. Sairu and her mistress both share more reserved character qualities. Reserved but very deep and definitely complex.

One of the other great surprises in this tale is the thread that bears similarities to the biblical story of Joseph. Stengl does a great job weaving that story into the larger tale without letting it become too predictable or stealing the show from the other characters and plotlines.

My only complaint as I read this story is that I often found myself wishing for a map. (I own the kindle version, and it does not include one that I could find.) Three kingdoms feature in the telling of Golden Daughter and I often found I had confused two of them. I also wanted to see the path of Sairu’s journey mapped out on the larger story world.

Language Content
None.

Sexual Content
Brief kissing.

Spiritual Content
The people of Noorhitam worship the sun and moon personified as deities. The Chhayan people believe their goddess, the moon has forsaken them.

The Song Giver, or Creator rules over all, even the sun and moon goddesses. (In a dream, the moon goddess tells Jovann not to worship her, but instead to worship the Song Giver.) A wood thrush and a Man of light, (Lumil Eliasul, a Jesus-like character) guide Jovann and Sairu through a realm of dreams on a Path.

In each of the Goldstone Wood books, Stengl does an excellent job creating parallels to Christian theology that are not overbearing or which overly interfere with the story.

Violence
Sairu comes upon a group of slavers who’ve captured innocent people and cruelly mistreated them. A brief battle ensues. Later a woman is bound and killed by her captors in front of her adult son. A dragon uses his fire to destroy anyone who opposes him.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Upcoming Reviews on The Story Sanctuary

Lists, Middle Grade 8-12, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, ,

Last year brought about some big changes in The Story Sanctuary. As an active member of NetGalley, I’ve been able to request and review some great releases (like We Were Liars by E. Lockhart and We Are the Goldens by Dana Reinhardt.) I also accepted requests from authors to review some great books (Through the Balustrade by M B Dahl was one of my favorites.)

This year, there are even more books coming my way, and I’m super excited to read and review them. Here are a few you can expect to see posted on The Story Sanctuary in the next six weeks…

The Ruby Airship by Sharon Gosling, Capstone Young Readers – Switch Press
Release Date: 2/2/15
Note: I’ve already finished reading this one, and I really enjoyed it. Lots of action, sweet romance, and fun characters. I have not read the first book in the series, but it didn’t detract from my ability to enjoy this one. And now I have to go buy the first one because I want to read that one, too!

Bricks by John Davidson, Anaiah Press
Release Date: 2/3/15

Author John Davidson will be joining me for an interview on his new book here at The Story Sanctuary next week!

Dragons at Crumbling Castle and Other Tales by Sir Terry Pratchett, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Release Date: 2/3/15

This is a collection of 14 stories, and it looks simply too fun. I’ve never read anything by Pratchett before, but he’s a favorite of many. I’m anxious to give it a go, and eager to read some short stories for a bit of a change from the pace of novels.

Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton, Random House Children’s
Release Date: 2/10/15

I’m probably about half-way through with this novel and it’s been a pretty wild ride so far. The point-of-view alternates between characters, and I’m enjoying getting the different perspectives on what’s happening from each viewpoint.

Two Renegade Realms by Donita K. Paul, Zondervan – HarperCollins
Release Date: 12/23/14

The first book in this series was great, and I’m eager to get into this one. My daughter is in fourth grade, and this is definitely a series on my radar as something she would enjoy. I think older readers would like it, too.

Skinny by Laura L. Smith, Status Updates, Second Edition
Release Date: 12/1/14

Skinny originally released in 2008, and I read it that year, but did not review it. I’ll be giving it another go this time so I can post my thoughts here. Laura L. Smith has a great sense of teen issues and a bold style that confronts without judging. I recently enjoyed her Status Updates Series and am eager to read more of her work.

A Plague of Unicorns by Jane Yolen, Zondervan, HarperCollins
Release Date: 12/23/14

I’m still waiting to receive this one in the mail, but I’ve loved other stories by Jane Yolen. I’m definitely excited to read this one.

Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman, Random House Children’s
Release Date: 3/10/15

I’m pretty much a total sucker for a Random House Children’s release. I want to have lunch with their acquisitions editor(s) and talk shop. I’ve liked nearly every release I’ve read. But now I’m gushing. Anyway, Shadow Scale is the sequel to the highly praised Seraphina, which I have not read (I’m not picky about that sort of thing) about a girl who is part human, part dragon in a world in which these two groups share an uneasy alliance. I am intrigued by the prejudicial elements and and the possibilities of the messages of hope and acceptance there. Plus, dragons. I’m excited.

Silverwood by Betsy Streeter, Light Messages Publishing
Release Date: 3/11/15

I recently read and enjoyed Since You’ve Been Gone by Mary Jennifer Payne about a girl living on the run. This sounds a little bit like that storyline (life on the run) only with fantasy elements.

The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma, Algonquin Books – Algonquin Young Readers
Release Date: 3/24/15

Though it’s not out for two months, I’ve heard some really great things about this novel. The premise is really intriguing. The story is told from the points of view of two girls and relates the details of a third girl’s story. The truth lies somewhere between the two narrators’ versions.

Review: Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

Where Things Come Back
John Corey Whaley
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published May 3, 2011

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

The summer before his senior year, Cullen Witter’s sleepy Arkansas hometown implodes with changes. His cousin dies of a drug overdose. An extinct woodpecker is spotted by a smarmy nature enthusiast. And Cullen’s sensitive, insightful younger brother goes missing.

Woven through this summer tale of loss and love is another seemingly unrelated story about a missionary just returned from Ethiopia, his jaded college roommate and a girl who returns to Cullen’s town following a failed marriage. These threads loop together forming a story as unexpected as the sighting of a bird thought long-dead.

I found Cullen’s character to be alternately charming and obnoxious. His relationships with his family members and best friend were sweet and warming. Outside those treasured few he cared about, he seemed frustrated and judgmental. Protagonists should, of course, have flaws, but I was disappointed that he didn’t seem to grow beyond those in any sense. Cullen’s brother was probably my favorite character. He added brief insights into the things going on around him in this simple, organic way.

The parts of the story about the missionary and his experience were really interesting and always turned in a direction I wouldn’t have predicted. I liked the way Whaley would take familiar story elements (a Christian missionary, a small southern town) and spin them into something unexpected. This is a novel with some dark moments but also some real mystical beauty. This is, above all, a story about finding hope in the most unlikely places.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used moderately. Main character frequently refers to people on his nerves as an “ass-hat.” While at first this seemed different and maybe a bit clever, it was kind of overdone.

Sexual Content
Brief references to sex. Cullen spends the night at a girl’s house and has sex with her – the event isn’t described. He does offer a short description of an intense sexual exchange with a girl along a riverbank.

Spiritual Content
A bright-eyed missionary becomes frustrated when it turns out the bulk of his work is providing food for the needy rather than collecting salvation prayers. His partner tries to reassure him of the importance of feeding the hungry.

After coming upon a passage from the book of Enoch in the Ethiopian Orthodox bible, a seminary student believes angels would teach humans how to be like God if they hadn’t been stopped by the angel Gabriel.

Violence
A young man dies by suicide by jumping from a bell tower. No details of the act or immediate aftermath. A kidnapped boy is held hostage by a violent, unpredictable man. Very few details of actual violence on the boy.

Drug Content
At the opening of the story, Cullen’s cousin dies of a drug overdose. He identifies his cousin’s body. Brief details given.

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Review: The Thickety: A Path Begins by J. A. White

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , ,

The Thickety: A Path Begins
J A White
Katherine Tegen Books
Published May 6, 2014

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

On the day of her brother’s birth, six year-old Kara witnesses her mother’s sentencing and execution as a witch. Branded as outcasts, Kara and her sickly younger brother struggle to scratch a living out of their failing farmland. Then the forbidden forest known as the Thickety begins calling to Kara. Hidden in the dark soil beneath the trees, Kara finds a powerful book of magic.

Though she’s determined to be a good girl, Kara soon finds herself caught in the pull of the strange book. Tapping into its power awakens a terrible thirst in her. One which is only quenched by using more magic. If anyone discovered her, she would surely share the same fate as her mother. But is all magic evil, as her village believes, or is it only that which is used to harm which should be condemned?

Kara is an immediately likeable character. She divides her time between school and caring for her father and brother as well as managing the finances and limited resources of their small farm. Her fierce love for her family is evident in her watchful care of them.

The story is a bit dark – from the terrifying creature which emerges to discover whether Kara is a witch to the dark ruler of the forest, Sordyr, who calls to Kara, desperately seeking a bargain with her. The village lives under strict rules passed down from an ancient leader. While the rest of the world has moved on, forgetting the existence of witches and magic, the people of Kara’s village subsist on an island plagued by magic and constantly reminded of its evil.

As Kara experiments with various spells, she sometimes causes harm to the animals she summons and the people against whom she uses them. She experiences brief moments of shame or guilt over this. Ultimately there’s not a lot of clarity on which of her actions should be judged evil versus which were good. A bit more self-examination would have made it a more satisfying story for me.

As far as a story goes, the writing is top-notch. Solid characters. Exciting plot with some intense, unexpected moments.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
No profanity.

Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Villagers follow the oft-quoted teachings of Timoth Cray, a famed man who fought and saved his people from powerful witches in a time of dark history. Witches are said to serve the Forest Demon, a creature of evil who lives in the dangerous wood called the Thickety.

Kara wrestles with some dark feelings – mostly wishes for revenge on those who’ve tormented her family – which only get stronger as she begins to experiment with the magic available to the keeper of the grimoire. She has the power to command animals, even unto their deaths. With each spell she casts, Kara burns to cast another.

There’s some discussion throughout the story about whether it’s possible to be a “good” witch. Certainly, Kara’s thirst for more and more magic and spells which cause harm seems to fall under evil magic. But Kara is a good girl. Can she use magic for good and does that make the magic good, too?

Each spell uses a page in the grimoire book. Kara knows when the last spell in the book is cast, the Forest Demon will extract a heavy price, one worse than death.

Some families may really take issue with the good-magic idea. The lines get pretty blurry.

Violence
Kara’s mother is publicly sentenced to execution and a terrible creature comes forth to test whether Kara herself is a witch. Definitely a creepy moment. Later, Kara uses animals to harm some village teens who’ve been picking on her family. No graphic descriptions or anything. A man gives his life to help Kara escape from prison. Kara battles a powerful witch. Brief descriptions of the battle and injuries it causes to participants and bystanders.

Drug Content
None.

 

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