Category Archives: By Genre

Review: Into the Free by Julie Cantrell

Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Historical, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,

intothefreeInto the Free
Julie Cantrell
Thomas Nelson (first published in 2012 by David C. Cook)

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Millie has grown up watching the Romany travelers make their yearly trek through her Mississippi town and on into the free. She longs to leave her abusive father and poverty-stricken life behind and follow them, but who would care for Mama if she goes? When tragedy swallows Millie’s family, she’s left with only the memory of her mother’s faith to guide her. A window into her father’s secret life opens to Millie, and she finds an unexpected community among his friends. As the day draws near for the Romany to return and the one person Millie has counted on to save her will appear, she finds herself torn between the life she always wanted and the life she’s learning to embrace. She’ll have to choose one path, and hope it’s the one that leads away from the long history of abuse in her family.

The prose in this story is heart-achingly beautiful. It’s no wonder the first edition of this title won the Christy Award back in 2013. Millie’s relationships are deeply developed and complex, from her friendship with the older man, Sloth, who lives next door to her family, to her relationships with each of her parents in the midst of the abuse that takes place between them.

I felt like Millie’s reactions to things, especially early on through the middle of the story definitely fit with my picture of her as the victim of and witness to abuse. There’s one moment late in the story in which something really big happens, and I felt like Millie’s reaction is much too small and she moves on much too fast. (I’m hoping that in the sequel, we get a better understanding of why this happened and how she didn’t move on the way she might want us to think she did.)

I had a bit of a hard time with the romance of the story. I wanted it to follow an entirely different course, so I had a hard time adjusting when it didn’t follow that course. Eventually I came to understand and respect Millie’s choice, but again, the part of the story where she actually makes her choice for her future felt rushed or forced, and the jilted lover is kind of like, aww, man. Yeah, okay. So I wasn’t sure what to do with that. Did he not care about her the way I thought he did? What was that supposed to mean? Regardless, by that point I was okay with her choosing the other option, so maybe it was okay.

The sequel crosses into a more new adult story, following Millie into her new marriage and watching her deal with the unresolved issues of her past in the context of marriage. I’m really eager to see how that story unfolds. The idea reminds me a little bit of Joy in the Morning by Betty Smith (who also wrote A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, one of my favorite classics.)

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Millie and River sneak away from the gypsy camp and kiss. She feels alive inside when she’s with him, and even spends one night asleep beside him in a field.

Millie suffers a trauma (see spoiler section if you want to know details.) A wise woman tells her that you want to marry someone who is steady and safe, not someone who makes you head-over-heels crazy about them. She reads this advice as true especially considering what happened when her mother risked everything to marry her father.

Spiritual Content
Millie’s grandfather is a preacher who is all about rules. Millie’s mom has a deep faith in God despite the fact that she lives the life of an outcast. There’s a strong theme throughout the story in which a living spiritual faith is juxtaposed against rule-oriented religion. Millie rejects the empty rule-bound religion and clings to the memory of her mother quoting scripture and her messages about God’s love for people.

Violent Content
Millie’s dad beats her mother, once so badly that she has to be hospitalized.

Drug Content
Millie’s mother uses a morphine-like medication to relieve pain from injuries and also to escape emotional pain. It nearly costs her life.

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

SPOILER ALERT AND TRIGGER WARNING
A man rapes Millie. It’s not deeply described, but Millie’s response is included, and reading that was rough. Sensitive readers should take caution. Afterward, she is angry, but she puts the whole event aside very quickly to pursue a romantic relationship with a boy who loves her. I felt like that all happened very quickly. I wasn’t sure I really believed a girl who’d been raped so recently would immediately take off and offer to marry someone. It sounds like the sequel deals more deeply with this experience, so that might explain why Millie shoved it aside so abruptly and show her need for healing.

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Review: Rebel by R J Anderson

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

Rebel
R J Anderson
Enclave

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A disciplinary issue at boarding school sends Timothy Sinclair to live with his aunt and uncle. While there, he meets a bizarre creature he never would have believed existed: a tiny, winged girl named Linden who desperately needs his help.

As Timothy becomes caught in Linden’s grave mission, he draws the attention of dark faeries. Soon, hunters close in on their trail. The only hope lies in a myth about a white stone that could secure the freedom of Linden’s people, faeries living in the Oak on Timothy’s aunt and uncle’s property. Timothy and Linden must find the stone before the deadly hunters catch them.

Yet again author R J Anderson brings us a unique tale about faeries in modern England and the humans who vow to protect them. I loved that this time the faery world expanded to include other faery kingdoms, each with their own myths and beliefs about how to interact with humans.

While I wasn’t as captivated by Timothy as I had been with Paul in Knife, the first book in the series, he definitely grew on me. I enjoyed the references to his life in Uganda, and the descriptions of his spiritual journey throughout the story. I missed the Oak and its inhabitants, so I hope to see more of them in the next book in the series, called Arrow. I loved the addition of the male faeries, too. I can’t wait to see where those stories go.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Timothy grew up with missionary parents in Uganda. He’s been attending a Christian boarding school in England, but he’s really struggling with whether or not he believes in Christian doctrine. Along his journey, he meets some very kind, very authentic Believers and while their faith doesn’t immediately reinstate Timothy’s he does find himself energized to search and ask deeper questions of the beliefs he’s been raised with, and he feels much more confident about pursuing faith.

As with the first book in this series, Rebel contains faeries who possess magic. The faeries make references to the Great Gardener, whom we understand to mean God. Some faeries believe in living lives invisible to humans while others form friendships or relationships with them. Some evil faeries use their magic to take advantage of humans.

Violent Content
Some brief battle scenes. Nothing gory.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: An Uncertain Choice by Jodi Hedlund

Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Clean Fiction, Historical, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , ,

An Uncertain Choice
Jodi Hedlund
Zondervan

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As Rosemarie’s eighteenth birthday nears, she prepares to fulfill the sacred vow her parents made and become a nun. She struggles to accept this role even as her kingdom is in turmoil at the hands of a sheriff who enforces cruel punishment and unexplained plagues that ravage the poorest citizens. Then, one month before her birthday, an old family friend rides into her kingdom with news: Rosemarie may have another option. If she can find and marry her true love before midnight on her eighteenth birthday, she will not have to enter the convent. Three knights accompany Rosemarie’s advisor. She must find out if one of them is her true love.

I felt like this story was kind of like the Ever After retelling of Cinderella, but with the Prince and Cinderella’s character kind of reversed? I really liked the concept of having this really short timeline to find out which man is Rosemarie’s true love and what is love and that sort of thing, with the clock counting down in the background.

One of the things I always struggle with in reading medieval stories is the way the writing, especially in dialogue, can be extremely stilted. I shall see what may be done about this unfortunate circumstance, etc. I tend not to enjoy that sort of thing because it’s just not how I imagine the characters talking and it sounds really forced to me. But that’s a personal preference. If you prefer that style, this is definitely a book to check out.

There were a couple of plot issues that I kind of hiccuped over, too. The largest was the idea that Rosemarie would become a nun and still also rule her kingdom. I guess I thought that you had to forsake worldly goods when you join a convent. I’m not sure if that’s a faulty perception on my part, or if I was supposed to willingly suspend my disbelief in the reading of this story. Either way, I understand why the stakes were set up that way, but it confused me. I kept wanting someone in the story to be like, yeah, but remember how King What’s-His-Beard was a monk and still ruled? Something to kind of let me off the hook for wondering. But alas.

The romance element of the story was very sweet. I liked that she had to kind of work out what was important to her in terms of choosing a husband and that her chosen knight shared her values. There were definitely some things that happened I didn’t expect, so that was good, too. The plot definitely wasn’t as simple as I expected it to be. I liked that.

The cover art and some of the way the story is told reminded me a bit of Melanie Dickerson’s novels. I’ve reviewed The Princess Spy here if you want to check it out.

Because of some brief graphic description of torture, this might not be a great pick for tweens, though the other parts of the story are certainly light enough. See below for more information on content.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
There’s some sexual tension between Rosemarie and the three knights. She wonders repeatedly what it will be like to kiss them. There is one kiss in the book.

Spiritual Content
Rosemarie has grown up believing that when she turns eighteen, she’ll have to become a nun because of a vow her parents made when they received help from a holy artifact to conceive her. When Rosemarie feels troubled, she spends time in prayer and seeks council from a trusted advisor within the church.

Violent Content
Rosemarie is passionately opposed to the use of torture to punish her people for even serious crimes. The local sheriff disregards her wishes and tortures several criminals by various methods which are described briefly. Torture comes up several more times throughout the story. The most graphic description, I thought was when a woman’s head is placed in some kind of restraining device so that her tongue can be removed. That scene lasts a bit longer than the others, and had more painful descriptions.

Drug Content
A goblet of ale is poisoned at a feast.

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Review: I Woke Up Dead at the Mall by Judy Sheehan

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

I Woke Up Dead at the Mall
Judy Sheehan
Delacorte Press

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

When Sarah wakes up, still wearing the mango-colored monstrosity of a bridesmaid dress, she is surprised by two things: she’s far from her New York home in the Mall of America, and she’s dead. Murdered. Sarah’s mentor encourages her (and the other teen ghosts who’ve taken up residence in the mall) to let go of her past, but Sarah can’t let go, especially when she learns what happened and realizes someone she loves is still in terrible danger. Now she can’t rest in peace until her murderer has been stopped and her family saved.

The concept of this story might be a bit dark, but the playful, frank voice definitely adds some spunk to the tale. As Sarah’s tale unfolds, she relates to the reader as if recounting an adventure to her closest friends. At the mall, she’s surrounded by a colorful group of teens, each with different pasts and baggage. Sarah’s relationship with them is dynamic and challenges her to go beyond her limits. By contrast, Sarah’s relationships with her family feel a bit cliché and underdeveloped. The story centers around Sarah and her friends, kind of a contemporary teen version of the 1990s film Heart and Souls. Readers looking for a warm-and-fuzzy story about unexpected love and second chances will enjoy the humor and romance of this tale.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used with moderate frequency. One character in particular is a bit mouthy.

Romance/Sexual Content
Mouthy girl relates that she loves sex and the others (who all died as virgins) totally missed out. Not much detail about her particular experiences other than that she had a much more pleasurable experience with one boyfriend over another. She humiliates the latter about his lack of ability and he becomes angry.

Sarah shares kisses and sleeps next to a boy. At one point, she removes her clothes in front of him, but they are interrupted before much happens between them.

Spiritual Content
The central characters are all ghosts, teens who were murdered. They are strongly discouraged from trying to craft revenge or haunt their murderers and instead instructed to resolve lingering feelings from their lives and move on to be reincarnated. Or, if the person has died saving someone else, they will have the option to become and angel. Two children rule over the ghostly community, known collectively as the BOY, or Boss of You.

Both Sarah and her mother experienced a kind of premonition during their lifetimes, a warning sense that things were about to happen. Once, Sarah used her gift to save a woman’s life.

One of the boys Sarah meets has died through an assisted suicide. The other teens defends his choice and the actions of the family member who helped him.

Violent Content
One girl recounts her death at the hands of an employer whose advances she refused. It’s brief and not gory, but violent. Another girl is pushed off a bridge and crash lands on top of a car. (That’s about all the detail we get in the story, too.)

Drug Content
References to teen drinking.

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

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Review: The Progeny by Tosca Lee

Book Review and Content, Christian World-View, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, New Adult 18up, , , , , ,

The Progeny
Tosca Lee
Howard Books

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Twenty-one year old Emily Jacobs wakes up to learn she has elected to have her memory erased. In a small town in Maine, she struggles to form a plan for her future. A handsome stranger approaches her in a grocery store, and she reluctantly lets him into her life. Which would be great, but apparently he’s trying to kill her. Emily flees with no clues as to her past, the identity of her allies or her enemies beyond a hidden code recovered in a necklace. The code leads her to a conspiracy spanning generations and linking her genetically to the most famous female serial killer.

Part Davinci Code, part Memento, The Progeny is a roller coaster ride that never stops. As soon as you think you understand what’s going on, hold your breath, because the next page will probably change everything.

I’ve been a long-time reader and fan of Tosca Lee, going all the way back to her debut novel, Demon. Lee has an incredible gift for taking a familiar story (like the creation story referenced in Demon) and making it fresh and new without veering from its core truths. Though this is a modern-day suspense-filled story, Lee remains strong in connecting readers to the humanity of her characters and their very believable struggles and questions. All of the faith elements in this story felt real and natural. Faith isn’t the central theme, but it’s present and organic in its presence.

This is definitely a great read for fans of the series Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee wrote together, The Books of Mortals. It’s suspenseful and action-packed, spanning across the US to Eastern Europe. Would I read the sequel? Yes. Absolutely. Can I read it tomorrow?!

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing. That characters are having sex is implied but not explicitly described.

Spiritual Content
Among Emily’s allies are monks and nuns. More than once she wonders about God’s role in her life, what his judgment would be for sins committed. She also spends some time thinking about her own faith.

Violent Content
Emily’s enemies are brutal. She witnesses their cruelty in the form of video clips sent to her showing friends they’ve captured and beaten. She witnesses the aftermath of the beating, not the act itself. She also learns of friends who’ve been murdered.

There are some brief details about Emily’s ancestor, the serial killer, but nothing drawn out or gory.

Drug Content
Emily drinks tequila and longs for a glass of wine. She is twenty-one.

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

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Review: The Land’s Whisper by Monica Lee Kennedy

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, New Adult 18up, ,

The Land’s Whisper
Monica Lee Kennedy

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Since he was a boy, Bren has looked up to Darse as a father. When Darse receives word through a portal that he’s been called home to another world, Bren determines to follow his friend. Once through the portal, though, Bren discovers a power he’d never known. The land speaks to him, offers him knowledge beyond anything he could imagine, and Bren hungers for it, even if having it means betraying those he loves. A powerful queen sends Bren and Darse on a quest to find her daughter, and Bren must make a terrible choice. If he locates the missing girl and brings her home, he may lose his ability forever. But if he abandons the quest, his friend may die and he will lose his honor.

The first few chapters of this book jump around from one character’s point-of-view to another’s. Most of those initial characters only appear once or twice at the beginning and then never again as narrators through the rest of the book. Their experiences are important to the story, but beginning there made it a little confusing for me. (I’m easily confused, so really, it could just be me. Hard to say.) I wanted the story to begin with Bren. He was far and above my favorite character, and once his story began, I was a lot more interested in finding out what would happen next.

The relationship between Darse (Bren’s mentor and father figure) and Bren was really cool. I loved watching Darse figure out how to shift from father to mentor to friend and watching Bren figure out his own path apart from his affection for Darse.

This is a bit of an odd story. It definitely has an otherworldly feeling to it. That otherworldliness reminded me a little bit of The Waterborn by Greg Keyes. If you like stories about journeys into strange worlds with a coming-of-age feel, this would be a good book to check out.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Trigger warning for victims of rape or sexual abuse.

A creepy man holds a girl captive and heavily drugged. The narrative describes him fondling her breast. It alludes to further abuse, but doesn’t overtly describe those events. It’s clear that she and a boy who carries the memories of her abuse are traumatized by it.

Spiritual Content
An evil spirit walks the land. At an invitation, it will take control of a victim, but soon the person will die. The spirit will continue to try to use the body of the dead victim to achieve its ends. This gets a little bit icky, but there’s not a whole lot of description.

Characters in the story worship a trio called the Three. One character teaches two men about healing that comes from wading into a river or body of water and speaking one’s internal hurts/sins over it. The sins/hurts are washed away in the water.

Some people possess a gift to communicate with the land. Each land has its own personality and different motives. The gifted can communicate and draw immense power from the knowledge available through the connection with the land. The hunger for power can become a destructive force or a force for good.

Violent Content
There’s less actual violence and more creep-factor. A giant lays traps to collect travelers. He’s brutal to those he catches, causing one captured man a serious break in his femur.

Some people have discovered a way to remove memories from the minds of others. It’s a terrible process for the victim, which one character refers to as his mind being raped. The trauma is clear in the way the characters react, and those scenes bear a pretty big creep-element.

Drug Content
A putrid cream aids in the process of stealing memories from a victim.

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

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