Category Archives: Fantasy

Review: Elena the Brave by Julie Mathison

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,
Elena the Brave by Julie Mathison

Elena the Brave (Old Rus #2)
Julie Mathison
Starr Creek Press
Published March 1, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Elena the Brave

Old Rus, a land of witches and ogres, bogatyr warriors and six-headed dragons, magic and myth. A land lurking below the waking world, a fabled land – except for the chosen few.

It’s 1942, and the world is at war. Elena Petrovna Volkonsky is just a schoolgirl in a Pennsylvania steel town, the Russia of her forebears long forgotten – except in tales, sung by her babka in haunting tones. Elena can picture Old Rus clearly as she ponders her pet rock, its surface black and smooth, but its depths strange. Such visions! The snow-swollen Dnepr, wending southward through the wild steppe all the way to Byzantium. Vladimir of the Bright sun, ruling from glorious Kiev!. If only it were real. If only hers was not just an ordinary family in trying times. An ordinary family – with an extraordinary destiny.

Be careful what you wish for.

Meanwhile, Old Rus is in crisis. A dragon flies, a maiden is captured, and the great bogatyr, Dobrynya, is tasked with her rescue. But his son, Mitya, senses treachery on all sides. How can you save a man who will not save himself? And must he venture alone, trailing his father across the steppe where warring nomads range, even to the distant peaks of the Sorochinsk Mountains? He is prepared to do just that when a strange girl appears in the prince’s stables and upends all his plans.

What happens when two worlds – and hearts – collide?

My Review

I think the toughest thing about this book, for me, was reading it in the middle of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Mitya lives in Kiev, and the city is part of Old Rus. So I felt like, for me right now, every time I read about Kiev (spelling from the book), I found myself thinking of Ukraine and the conflict happening there from Russia’s invasion. I’ve listed a couple of charities below for anyone interested in contributing aid.

ELENA THE BRAVE brings the same strong characters and rich landscape of folklore that VASILISA (Old Rus #1) delivered. I really enjoyed the connection between Mitya and his dad and exploring that complex relationship and the things he learned about himself through that journey.

I also loved Elena’s impulsivity and sense of humor. She often approached a conflict with an out-of-the-box idea which was just what the team needed. There were a couple of moments where I wondered if the book would wind up being more Mitya’s story, but Elena is every bit the heroine that having her name in the title implies she should be.

All in all, I feel like there’s a lot to love about this book and the series. I think fans of reimagined fairy tales or stories based on folklore will love ELENA THE BRAVE. Fans of TRAITOR’S MASQUE (another fairytale favorite of mine) definitely need to check out this series. Also, I would call this book more of a companion story than a straight up sequel. You don’t need to read VASILISA before reading ELENA THE BRAVE. (But they’re both really good.)

Support for Ukraine

If you’re active on social media, you’ve probably come across posts about reputable charities for donating money to support Ukrainians. Here are a couple more for you to consider:

Voice of Children provides psychological and psychosocial support for children affected by war. Their website lists some specific projects and ways they help. (Thank you, Beth Revis, for posting about this!)

World Central Kitchen is an organization that my family has supported, too. They’re currently working with restaurants in Ukraine to help provide meals for those who need them as well as feeding refugees fleeing into Poland. More information is available on their website, too.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 10 to 14.

Representation
Major characters are Russian.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
Some magical elements and references to Russian folklore. Some characters worship a pantheon of old gods, but Christianity has been introduced in Old Rus. The prince and others worship one God.

Violent Content
Brief battle violence and situations of peril.

Drug Content
Some scenes show social drinking.

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

Review: Wingbearer by Marjorie Liu

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Graphic Novel or Adaptation, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , ,

Wingbearer
Marjorie Liu
Illustrated by Teny Issakhanian
Quill Tree Books
Published March 1, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Wingbearer

Zuli is extraordinary–she just doesn’t realize it yet. Raised by mystical bird spirits in the branches of the Great Tree, she’s never ventured beyond this safe haven. She’s never had to. Until now.

When a sinister force threatens the life-giving magic of the tree, Zuli, along with her guardian owl, Frowly, must get to the root of it. So begins an adventure bigger than anything Zuli could’ve ever imagined–one that will bring her, along with some newfound friends, face-to-face with an ancient dragon, the so-called Witch-Queen, and most surprisingly of all: her true identity.

This captivating middle grade graphic novel, the first of a series, is perfect for fans of the Amulet books and the Wings of Fire series.



My Review

I feel like I have a tendency to describe illustrations in graphic novels or children’s books as being really emotive. When I read WINGBEARER, though, I was blown away by how expressive Teny Issakhanian’s illustrations are. There are several panels that show closeups of Zuli’s face or just her eyes, and those were so powerful. I loved the way the images communicated a LOT of story, too. I felt like I got a deep sense of how the characters felt about each other from the way they were positioned in the illustrations and some of the looks exchanged between them.

The story is really moving, too. I love Zuli’s courage and her protectiveness over her allies. She has such a pure and loving heart. I couldn’t help holding my breath in some moments, wondering what would happen next and how she was going to navigate some of the obstacles in her way. I loved Frowly, the owl, too! Their friendship was so sweet.

I didn’t realize when I started reading this book that it’s the first in a series. I don’t read a lot of graphic novels (I didn’t realize this was a graphic novel when I agreed to review it, either), and I’m really bad about following a whole series, but I would definitely read this one.

Fans of ESTRANGED by Ethan Aldridge will love the otherworldly fantasy elements and beautifully illustrated panels in WINGBEARER.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Zuli is Black.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Characters have magic abilities. Souls of animals come from and return to individual places. For birds, it’s a special tree. Zuli grows up there.

Violent Content
Situations of peril.

Drug Content
None.

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

Review: Edgewood by Kristen Ciccarelli

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

Edgewood
Kristen Ciccarelli
Wednesday Books
Published March 1, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Edgewood

No matter how far she runs, the forest of Edgewood always comes for Emeline Lark. The scent of damp earth curls into her nose when she sings and moss creeps across the stage. It’s as if the woods of her childhood, shrouded in folklore and tall tales, are trying to reclaim her. But Emeline has no patience for silly superstitions.

When her grandfather disappears, leaving only a mysterious orb in his wake, the stories Emeline has always scoffed at suddenly seem less foolish. She enters the forest she has spent years trying to escape, only to have Hawthorne Fell, a handsome and brooding tithe collector, try to dissuade her from searching.

Refusing to be deterred, Emeline finds herself drawn to the court of the fabled Wood King himself. She makes a deal—her voice for her grandfather’s freedom. Little does she know, she’s stumbled into the middle of a curse much bigger than herself, one that threatens the existence of this eerie world she’s trapped in, along with the devastating boy who feels so familiar.

With the help of Hawthorne—an enemy turned reluctant ally who she grows closer to each day—Emeline sets out to not only save her grandfather’s life, but to right past wrongs, and in the process, discover her true voice.

My Review

I always love reading about musicians and magical woods, and EDGEWOOD is loaded with both those things. Emmeline’s struggle for her career and her conflict about her home and the weird things her neighbors believe about the woods drew me into the story. I loved the cast of characters from the woods, too– Rook, Sable, and Hawthorne. This is the kind of story that sets itself up perfectly for fan fiction to be written about those characters. I would absolutely read that.

There were a couple of things that felt weird to me about the book, though. I guess Emmeline had to be older in order to be on her own, but the fact that she was nineteen but paired with other story elements and writing that felt definitively YA left me feeling a little off-step or something.

I also thought it was kind of weird that no one else in the woods knew who Emmeline was. Because of some other circumstances, it seemed like at least somebody would have put two and two together before she did. (Trying to avoid spoilers, sorry.)

At any rate, I liked the woods and its magic and the mystery of the curse. Overall, I’m not sorry I read the book. I think I was expecting something more like INTO THE HEARTLESS WOOD by Joanna Ruth Meyer, and it’s a different kind of story.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Main human characters are white. Two minor characters are lesbians.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. A couple of scenes show explicit sex. Several scenes show nudity, sometimes for the purpose of studying drawing.

Spiritual Content
A powerful curse spreads through the forest. Magical creatures fill the woods, some intent on killing anyone they encounter. Others are shapeshifters or other magical creatures.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Some battle violence. The king has a long history of executing those who do not please him.

Drug Content
One character is known for putting unwanted spells in the drinks of others. She spikes Emmeline’s drink at one point.

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

Review: Dance of Twilight and Tears by Zara Mills

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

Dance of Twilight and Tears
Zara Mills
FinnStar Publishing
Published January 20, 2022

Amazon | Goodreads

About Dance of Twilight and Tears

Algae and toe shoes, feathers and tutus

Behind the gilded doors of the Paris Opéra Ballet, two best friends, Madeleine and Lucie, dance the night away. But at first morning light, their human bodies transform into webbed feet, billed lips, and wings.

When enchanted, the girls are the Bois de Boulogne’s famous black and white swans. For ninety years, they have floated in the lake, unable to find true love and break the evil Dance Master’s curse. But when Madeleine meets American transplant Zig Young, everything changes.

Suddenly, Madeleine wins a coveted solo spot in an upcoming ballet, and her growing relationship with Zig means she’s on the verge of breaking the enchantment. However, doing so means leaving the Bois, the ballet, and Lucie forever—something she’s not sure she can bear.

Desperate to not lose her best friend, Lucie will do anything to keep Madeleine with her—including betrayal. She’ll stop at nothing—even if it means breaking Madeleine’s heart and dooming her to life as a swan forever; even if she ruins her own chance at happiness.

In this retelling of Swan Lake, the lines of good and bad blur as Madeleine and Lucie struggle to choose between the life they want and their friendship.

My Review

This is the second book I’ve read in a week with main characters who are ballerinas, and I’m loving that! As a former dancer myself, I can never get enough ballet books.

I loved the way dance was incorporated into this story. It felt really authentic and definitely kept me envisioning moments in the Swan Lake ballet. I really enjoyed the complex relationship between Lucie and Madeleine (the black and white swans), too. The idea to retell the story of Swan Lake and center it around the characters Odette and Odile is an incredible one, and for the most part, I loved how that played out.

There were really only two things that I struggled with in the story. One was the backstory of the characters. So Henri, the sorcerer who cursed the girls to be swans by night and dancers by day, has this dark magic ability, but it’s never really explored how that happened. Is he the only one like that? Are there others out in the world somewhere? I know in the original story, it’s a thing we take for granted, so I was willing to let it pass in the book, too. But then we get some of the history of the girls, which just raised a lot of questions for me.

I think because it’s set in a contemporary world, I wanted more information so that I understood how the characters really fit within the setting. That part wasn’t that big of a deal, just left me with questions I wished were answered in the story.

Those Last Two Chapters

The other thing that tripped me up a bit was the last two chapters. I don’t want to include spoilers, so I’ll try to be really careful here. Things happened really fast in those last two chapters, the last one especially. I wasn’t opposed to the events– in fact some of the things were really cool– but I wish all of that had been built up to just a little bit more. And I wish it had played out over four or six chapters so that things felt more resolved, and I had more time to enjoy those moments. There’s also one part of the story that kind of gets shrugged off, and I found that not very satisfying. It’s a more minor plot, so it wasn’t that big of a deal, I just wished it had a more conclusive ending.

On the whole, I’m still glad I read DANCE OF TWILIGHT AND TEARS. I loved the ballet components and the friendship between Lucie and Madeleine. Also, I read the book pretty quickly. I think readers who enjoy fairy tale inspired stories set in a contemporary world will love this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Major characters are white.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between a boy and girl. Unwanted kissing between the sorcerer and Lucie.

Spiritual Content
A sorcerer has imprisoned Lucie and Madeleine in a curse that transforms them into swans during the day and girls at night. He is the Ballet Master, so he has power over them during their night time lives, too. The curse can only be broken by true love.

Violent Content
The Ballet Master/sorcerer says cruel things to the girls and punishes them by making them dance until their feet bleed or transforming them into swans even at night if they disobey even his smallest commands.

Drug Content
Characters drink alcohol at night clubs.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of DANCE OF TWILIGHT AND TEARS in exchange for my honest review.

Review: A Comb of Wishes by Lisa Stringfellow

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , ,

A Comb of Wishes
Lisa Stringfellow
Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Published February 8, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About A Comb of Wishes

Ever since her mother’s death, Kela feels every bit as broken as the shards of glass, known as “mermaid’s tears,” that sparkle on the beaches of St. Rita. But when she discovers a different kind of treasure, she accidentally summons an actual mermaid—the wrathful Ophidia.

Ophidia makes Kela a bargain: her ancient comb, in exchange for a wish. And though Kela knows that what she wants most is her mother back, a wish that big will exact a dangerous price…

My Review

The writing in this book hooked me right away. The chapters from Ophidia’s point-of-view are mysterious and otherworldly. Kela’s chapters felt packed with emotion and anchored in the island setting of the town where she lives. I loved the way the author celebrates oral storytelling through A COMB OF WISHES. The chapters from Ophidia’s POV begin and end with a traditional story cue: “Crick. Crack.” The author explains more about this in her guest post at Teen Librarian Toolbox.

The story is as sweet as it is heartbreaking. Kela’s grief over her mom’s death feels raw and real. Her desperation to use her wish to get her mom back makes perfect sense. I felt myself grasping for hope right along with her at every turn. I love the way Kela remains an active character within the story, even though she’s surrounded by adults who have a lot more power and options. She is the one who makes the moves that drive the story forward, and they feel like reasonable things that she could do.

I also loved the way that Lisa Stringfellow integrated magic and fantasy into this contemporary story. I thought that was really well done.

Readers who enjoy lush middle grade fantasy about family connections, like THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON by Kelly Barnhill or THE OTHER SIDE OF LUCK by Ginger Johnson, will love this one.

Content Notes for A Comb of Wishes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Main characters are Black.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Kela finds a magical comb that belongs to a mermaid. The mermaid offers her a wish for returning the comb to her.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Kela discovers that her dad’s shop has been broken into and ransacked. A man kidnaps two people. Three people are trapped on a sinking boat.

Drug Content
References to a man who drank too much rum and was cruel.

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

Review: For the Good of All by M. B. Dahl

Book Review and Content, Dystopian or Post-Apocalyptic, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , ,

For the Good of All
M. B. Dahl
Elk Lake Publishing
Published August 8, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About For the Good of All

“For the good of all, we give ourselves.”

At least that’s how the mantra goes. Everyone knows the refrain. Everyone responds to it. But Ren seriously doubts how killing off people who are different is good for anyone, especially when she’s hiding her own difference.

Just graduated, Ren follows her friend Bala’s advice, “blend in.” Being overlooked isn’t a problem until a cute guy asks her out. Owen’s handsome, funny, and sees her. He treats her like an equal, not a problem. But he has his own secrets.

His issues aren’t like hers, though. Aberrant with a strange ability even she doesn’t understand, Ren must choose to embrace her differences or run before she becomes the next one sacrificed for the good of all.

My Review

I like that this book is told in multiple perspectives. We follow Ren, a girl born with a gift that, if discovered, will mean her death; Owen, a boy with grand aspirations within the Protectorate, shadowed by the guilt of a terrible secret; and Dart, a girl who lives among lots of people with gifts, but whose own ability hasn’t presented itself yet. She worries the Leader has forgotten her or cast her aside.

This is a dystopian story and has some THE GIVER vibes. People who either aren’t thriving within the society or break the rules are “accomplished,” or removed from society and secretly put to death. Unlike THE GIVER, the land is ruled by a powerful man who preaches doing things “for the good of all,” but rules with an iron hand, and his own self-serving values.

The story reminded me a little bit of the series THE UGLIES by Scott Westerfeld, with its sort of starry-eyed people within the society, and the free-spirited, wilderness groups living outside.

FOR THE GOOD OF ALL is a little different, though, in that it’s really centered around a spiritual message. Tatief governs his people with the mantra, “For the good of all we give ourselves,” but that doesn’t actually play out in a way that fosters the community-minded, loving people that it implies. Instead, the group living in the woods who have been gathered by the Leader and his messengers, are the ones who love and care for one another.

All in all, it’s a cool story that explores deep themes about love versus control or fear. I enjoyed reading it. I think fans of Scott Westerfeld or of dystopian fiction might enjoy this one, too.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Major characters are described as having white or tanned skin.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
There are a couple of made up curses used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
There is some clear romantic attraction between characters.

Spiritual Content
Two characters are messengers on behalf of the Leader, who is a Jesus-like character.

Violent Content
Some situations of peril and brief graphic battle violence and violence against unarmed citizens.

Drug Content
One character uses poisons to manipulate and control others.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of FOR THE GOOD OF ALL in exchange for my honest review.