Category Archives: Young Adult/Teen 12-18

Spotlight: Sanctum by Hannah McBride

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Here’s some fun bookish news… if you’re a long-time Story Sanctuary reader, you may remember that I used to participate in Irish Banana Book Tours. I loved working with Irish Banana coordinator Hannah McBride, so when she announced she was releasing a book, I knew it was going to be something to talk about here! Today I’m sharing some of the fun and amazing details about her debut novel, Sanctum. It’s one I’m eager to check out!

Sanctum by Hannah McBride

Sanctum
Hannah McBride
Available August 21, 2020

Amazon | Goodreads

About Sanctum

A survivor on the run

After refusing the laws of her sadistic pack, Skye Markham barely escapes with her life, seeking sanctuary with the feared Blackwater pack. Hunted by her former Alpha and his soldiers, she’s determined to create a life even though she knows they will come for her.

An alpha with a pack to protect

As the next alpha in line, Remy Holt has spent years guarding the Blackwater pack and his family from those who seek to seize control and destroy them. The last thing he needs or wants is Skye Markham and the dangers she brings with her adding to the stress on his pack, but his wolf has a different opinion. He wants her, and after one moment that shouldn’t have been possible, he knows he’ll never be able to let her go.

A bond unlike any other

Skye thought she was finally safe, but as her bond with Remy strengthens, the shifter world starts to break apart at the seams. Missing shifters, a dying population, and pack wars are all causing their sanctuary to crumble around them, and Skye is trapped in the middle of it all. Someone is out to destroy the pack and if they succeed, there will bring down everything Remy has sought to protect and for Skye… maybe there is no such thing as a sanctuary.

*SANCTUM is the first book in the Blackwater Pack series. Possible trigger warnings: abuse, violence, language, and bullying.

About Author Hannah McBride

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Hannah McBride has been many things in her life – a restaurant manager, a clinical research coordinator, a dreamer, a makeup brand ambassador, an event coordinator, a blogger, and more. But at heart, she’s always been a writer, and in 2020 she decided to make it official with her first release, SANCTUM. 

An Excerpt from Sanctum

He shifted towards me. “This is all new to me, too, Skye.”

A sobering thought crossed my mind. The one that had been plaguing me since the woods. “Do you want this, Remy?”

The corner of his mouth hitched up for a second as he looked at me. Slowly, he raised a hand, tracing the curve of my jaw. I shivered, remembering the feel of his hands stroking when I was a wolf.

This was so much better.

He inched even closer. His breath, minty and warm, fanned over my face. His eyes tracked the movements of his fingers hungrily.

“Yeah,” he answered roughly, thickly. “I want this. I want you.” He dipped his head and covered my mouth with his.

As far as first kisses went, I was pretty sure this was one for the record books. 

Fire ignited in me the second Remy’s lips touched mine, soft but demanding all at once. His hands settled on my hips, pulling me closer. The smell of him from earlier in the evening, pine and soap and something that was entirely Remy, filled my senses. 

I was going to combust in the most exquisite ways.

His large hands almost spanned my waist, his fingers flexing against the soft material of my yoga pants. His tongue teased the seam of my lips until I opened my mouth on a gasp, letting him in.

I groaned as his tongue stroked mine, one hand sliding from my waist up my spine.

My hands had been clenched into fists on his chest, the fabric of his t-shirt bunched in my grip. I relaxed my hold now, letting my hands slide over the hard muscle and up around his neck, pressing my chest flush against his.

Now Remy groaned, changing the angle of his head to deepen the kiss.

Flames licked through my blood, and I was sure I was going to combust any second.

I was one hundred percent okay with death by kissing.

Review: Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles

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

Where Dreams Descend (Kingdom of Cards #1)
Janella Angeles
Wednesday Books
Published August 25, 2020

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About Where Dreams Descend

In a city covered in ice and ruin, a group of magicians face off in a daring game of magical feats to find the next headliner of the Conquering Circus, only to find themselves under the threat of an unseen danger striking behind the scenes.

As each act becomes more and more risky and the number of missing magicians piles up, three are forced to reckon with their secrets before the darkness comes for them next.

The Star: Kallia, a powerful showgirl out to prove she’s the best no matter the cost

The Master: Jack, the enigmatic keeper of the club, and more than one lie told

The Magician: Demarco, the brooding judge with a dark past he can no longer hide.

My Review

This might be the best book I’ve read all year. I feel like I keep saying that, but honestly, there have been so many great books this year! WHERE DREAMS DESCEND is definitely near if not at the top of my list.

I loved Kallia. She’s a take no prisoners, driven, smart, savvy lady who never gives up. I loved her relationship with Aaros, the thief she takes under her wing to be her magician’s assistant in the competition. And of course, I loved DeMarco, too. (Fun fact– DeMarco was my great-grandmother’s name.)

This story hit so many perfect notes for me. The moral dilemmas. The mysterious dangers lurking throughout the competition and some characters’ pasts. The forbidden romance. The angsty magicians. The strong sisterhood of performers coming together to support one another.

The beginning started out a little bit slow for me, but once the competition began, I was completely hooked. I couldn’t wait to read every page, and I dreaded reaching the final chapter, too, because then it would be over.

WHERE DREAMS DESCEND is one of those books I’m going to want to read again like next week just to savor it all over again. I feel like I can’t even say enough how much I loved it. Seriously, if you can only buy one more book this year, pick this one!

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 13 up.

Representation
Kallia has brown skin and curly hair.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Profanity used somewhat frequently. (Approximately 35 times.)

Romance/Sexual Content
Intense kissing and desire between a man and woman. Some sensual dancing.

Spiritual Content
Some characters possess magic. At least one character is not human/mortal. Shadowy shapes seem to pursue some characters, possibly intending harm.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. One scene shows a monster. In another scene, characters are showered with broken glass.

Drug Content
Some scenes show characters drinking alcohol at social dinners and a bar.

Note: I received a free copy of WHERE DREAMS DESCEND in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support the costs of running this blog.

About Janella Angeles

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JANELLA ANGELES is a Filipino-American author who got her start in writing through consuming glorious amounts of fanfiction at a young age—which eventually led to penning a few of her own, and later on, creating original stories from her imagination. A lifelong lover of books, she’s lucky enough to be working in the business of publishing them on top of writing them. She currently resides in Massachusetts, where she’s most likely to be found listening to musicals on repeat and daydreaming too much for her own good. Where Dreams Descend is her first book.

Review: Vote!: Women’s Fight for Access to the Ballot Box by Coral Celeste Frazer

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

Vote!: Women’s Fight for Access to the Ballot Box
Coral Celeste Frazer
Twenty-first Century Books
Published August 6, 2019

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About Vote!: Women’s Fight for Access to the Ballot Box

August 18, 2020, marks the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution, which prohibited states and the US government from denying citizens the right to vote on the basis of sex. See how the 70-year-long fight for women’s suffrage was hard won by leaders such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Alice Paul, Carrie Chapman Catt and others.

Learn how their success led into the civil rights and feminist movements of the mid- and late twentieth century, as well as today’s #MeToo, #YesAllWomen, and Black Lives Matter movements. In the face of voter ID laws, voter purges, gerrymandering, and other restrictions, Americans continue to fight for equality in voting rights.

My Review

Reading this book, right now, as Federal officers are deployed in Portland and potentially other places (I am writing this a few weeks before it goes live, so things may have changed) was really strange.

I didn’t know a lot about the fight for women to vote before I’d read this book. Here are some of the things I learned that stood out most:

  • Women’s rights and Black rights activists sometimes worked together and sometimes worked against each other. I want to know a lot more about the dialogue between the two groups and people who devoted themselves to one cause at the expense of the other or in opposition to the other.
  • Police attacked women’s rights protestors. I don’t know what I imagined those protests looked like, but there was violence.
  • The book also points out and spends several chapters talking about the rights of Black and POC women and the fight for their right to vote as well. I hadn’t deeply thought of those as two separate battles before, which really just points up more of my ignorance, honestly.

One of the things I love about this book is that it’s packed with personal stories of the women involved in women’s rights activism. I loved learning the names and approaches of these women. Lucy Stone and Fannie Lou Hamer stand out to me the most. I’d love to learn more about both of them.

August 18 marks the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. If you don’t know a lot about the struggle that preceded it, I recommend this book as a great introduction to the topic.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 10 up.

Representation
Follows the stories of women’s rights and civil rights activists.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
References to Christian faith as a motivator for some activists.

Violent Content
References to lynchings. Descriptions of police brutality against protestors. Descriptions of force-feeding prisoners who were on hunger strikes.

Drug Content
References to women’s rights groups that also opposed drinking alcohol and protested in front of bars and saloons.

Note: I received a free copy of VOTE!: WOMEN’S FIGHT FOR ACCESS TO THE BALLOT BOX in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support the costs of running this blog.

8 Most-Anticipated YA Books Coming in August 2020

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All the changes this past spring with lock-downs and social distancing and online learning threw me for a loop. It also delayed a lot of the books I’d been looking forward to reading, which meant I spent the summer scrambling to catch up on the ARCs that publishers had sent me. I’m finally seeing a light at the end of the reading tunnel so to speak, and I wanted to pause and share some of the young adult books I’m most excited about that come out this month.

I’m always up for fantasy, so there are a few of those on here. Lately, though, I’ve been a big fan of rom-com, so I’ve included a couple of those that I’m very eager to escape into. Check out the list and let me know which are on your reading list. Better still, use the buy links and order a couple now so you have a pick-me-up waiting for you in the mailbox.

Note: Amazon, Book Depository, and Indiebound links are affiliate links which help support this blog but don’t cost you anything extra to use.

Most-Anticipated YA Books Coming in August 2020

Midnight Sun (Twilight #4) by Stephenie Meyer

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Hades and Persephone inspired story that tells of Edward and Bella’s meeting from his perspective.

I’ve read the other books in the Twilight series, and I remember hearing that Meyer was writing this one. It feels big, because the series was so big, and maybe because right now, we’re longing for the lives we had pre-pandemic? Whatever the case, I’m anticipating a LOT of bookish chat about this book this month.

Available August 4, 2020

Lobizona by Romina Garber

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Follows the story of an undocumented immigrant who is part of a special community of people who are witches and werewolves.

I’ve already read this one, and I loved it so much. Definitely a great escapist story that will make you walk in the shoes of an undocumented girl in a way you’re unlikely to ever forget.

Available August 4, 2020 | My Review

Bookish and the Beast by Ashley Poston

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Poston gives us her retelling of Beauty and the Beast as a tribute to her favorite versions of the story and a funny, sweet reimagined tale in its own right.

Loads of fun, and another dip into the Starfield world.

Available August 4, 2020 | My Review

Set Fire to the Gods by Sara Raasch and Kristen Simmons

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: SNOW LIKE ASHES trilogy and METALTOWN authors team up to deliver a fast-paced, high-stakes story about a rebel leader and magic-hiding fighter who reignite an ancient war between the gods.

I really liked SNOW LIKE ASHES, so I’m anxious to check this one out.

Available August 4, 2020

Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Hindu mythology plus STARDUST by Neil Gaiman. Hailed as perfect for fans of Laini Taylor and Roshani Chokshi.

I am really excited to read this book. I’m a huge fan of Laini Taylor and Roshani Chokshi, so I was pretty much hooked once I heard the comparison to their books.

Available August 11, 2020

Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer De Leon

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Racial tension. Family secrets. #Ownvoices story about a Latinx girl.

Available August 18, 2020

Where Dreams Descend (Kingdom of Cards #1) by Janella Angeles

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Magicians compete in a high-stakes tournament to be the headliner at the Conquering Circus.

Seems a bit like a darker GIRL ON WIRE or something along the lines of CARAVAL maybe? I’m super interested in this one.

Available August 25, 2020 | My Review

Now That I’ve Found You by Kristina Forest

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

What you need to know: Fabulous rom-com, an eccentric grandma, and a race across New York City. This sounds like the perfect pandemic-escape read!

Available August 25, 2020

What are your most anticipated August 2020 books?

Which books coming this month are on your reading list? Have you ordered any of them yet?

I’m toying with the idea of pre-ordering a book or two each month so that I have a surprise in the mail to look forward to. STAR DAUGHTER and NOW THAT I’VE FOUND YOU are at the top of my pre-order wish list!

Review: Bookish and the Beast by Ashley Poston

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Bookish and the Beast (Once Upon a Con #3)
Ashley Poston
Quirk Books
Published August 4, 2020

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About Bookish and the Beast

In the third book in Ashley Poston’s Once Upon a Con series, Beauty and the Beast is retold in the beloved Starfield universe.

Rosie Thorne is feeling stuck—on her college application essays, in her small town, and on that mysterious General Sond cosplayer she met at ExcelsiCon. Most of all, she’s stuck in her grief over her mother’s death. Her only solace was her late mother’s library of rare Starfield novels, but even that disappeared when they sold it to pay off hospital bills.

On the other hand, Vance Reigns has been Hollywood royalty for as long as he can remember—with all the privilege and scrutiny that entails. When a tabloid scandal catches up to him, he’s forced to hide out somewhere the paparazzi would never expect to find him: Small Town USA. At least there’s a library in the house. Too bad he doesn’t read.

When Rosie and Vance’s paths collide and a rare book is accidentally destroyed, Rosie finds herself working to repay the debt. And while most Starfield superfans would jump at the chance to work in close proximity to the Vance Reigns, Rosie has discovered something about Vance: he’s a jerk, and she can’t stand him. The feeling is mutual.

But as Vance and Rosie begrudgingly get to know each other, their careful masks come off—and they may just find that there’s more risk in shutting each other out than in opening their hearts.

My Review

I’ve been really looking forward to reading this book, and it did NOT disappoint! Just like I did in GEEKERELLA, I love the quirky, nerdiness of the characters and their obsession with Starfield in BOOKISH AND THE BEAST. I love the banter between Rosie and Vance. And I love her best friends and the enthusiasm they put into everything from teasing her about her dad to Quinn’s quest to become Homecoming Overlord.

There was one tiniest bump in my reading road. At the beginning, of course, Vance is a total jerk. It makes complete sense because this IS a Beauty and the Beast retelling. I can tell you now, it’s so worth those early scenes to watch the cracks in his armor form. To watch his heart change and know how big that is.

Another thing that I loved were the references to Beauty and the Beast. There are a couple of places where there references to minor lines in the Disney version of the movie, and some other references to the story as a whole that were too fun for me to spoil them here.

If you’re looking for a pick-me-up book, something light to take your mind off reality for a bit, look no further! I highly recommend reading BOOKISH AND THE BEAST.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Rosie and Vance are both white. Rosie’s best friend Quinn is nonbinary.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used very infrequently. A couple crude comments.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Some reference to feelings of attraction between two men.

Spiritual Content
Rosie thinks of her mother, who has died, and repeatedly notes that she no longer exists.

Violent Content
Reference to a car accident. Two boys get into a fist fight. A girl punches a boy.

Drug Content
References to Vance getting drunk in the past.

Note: I received a free copy of BOOKISH AND THE BEAST in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support the costs of running this blog.

Review: Lobizona by Romina Garber

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Lobizona (Wolves of No World #1)
Romina Garber
Wednesday Books
Published August 4, 2020

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About Lobizona

Some people ARE illegal.

Lobizonas do NOT exist.

Both of these statements are false.

Manuela Azul has been crammed into an existence that feels too small for her. As an undocumented immigrant who’s on the run from her father’s Argentine crime-family, Manu is confined to a small apartment and a small life in Miami, Florida.

Until Manu’s protective bubble is shattered.

Her surrogate grandmother is attacked, lifelong lies are exposed, and her mother is arrested by ICE. Without a home, without answers, and finally without shackles, Manu investigates the only clue she has about her past–a mysterious “Z” emblem—which leads her to a secret world buried within our own. A world connected to her dead father and his criminal past. A world straight out of Argentine folklore, where the seventh consecutive daughter is born a bruja and the seventh consecutive son is a lobizón, a werewolf. A world where her unusual eyes allow her to belong.

As Manu uncovers her own story and traces her real heritage all the way back to a cursed city in Argentina, she learns it’s not just her U.S. residency that’s illegal. . . .it’s her entire existence.

My Review

As I’ve heard stories about what it’s like to come to the US as an immigrant, I’ve been moved, felt sympathy, wanted to change things. Nothing has ever made me feel like I’ve slipped into someone else’s shoes the way this book did, though.

Manu is smart. She’s vulnerable, yet fierce. She loves her family, but she’s always felt like an outsider who did not belong, even among them. More than anything else, this is the story of a girl who has never belonged not just finding her place, but carving it out of the landscape and building a true family around her.

I really, really like this book. The magic was fascinating, and again and again the story comes back to questions about what makes a person valuable. Is it where someone was born? What gender they are? Whom they love? What they can do for someone else?

LOBIZONA explores all that and on top of it delivers a sizzling romance set in a dazzling landscape. If you like found families, revolution, and unexpected alliances, this is one you’re going to want to grab, fast.

This book is a great fit for fans of WOVEN IN MOONLIGHT or GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Manu and most other characters are Latinx. A few side characters are gay.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Kissing between two girls. One scene shows some intense kissing between a boy and girl.

There’s a brief reference to a rape that happened in the past.

Spiritual Content
Because of a demon who fell in love with a human, seventh consecutive daughters become witches with nature-based magic abilities, and seventh consecutive sons become werewolves.

Violent Content
Some intense scenes involving running from ICE and police. Battle scenes. Situations of peril.

Drug Content
Manu takes a medication every month that knocks her out for three days. Some characters drink mate, which heightens their magic.

Note: I received a free copy of LOBIZONA in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support the costs of running this blog.

About Romina Garber

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ROMINA GARBER (pen name Romina Russell) is a New York Times and international bestselling author. Originally from Argentina, she landed her first writing gig as a teen—a weekly column for the Miami Herald that was later nationally syndicated—and she hasn’t stopped writing since. Her books include Lobizona. When she’s not working on a novel, Romina can be found producing movie trailers, taking photographs, or daydreaming about buying a new drum set. She is a graduate of Harvard College and a Virgo to the core.