Review: Fall by A. K. Morgen

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Fall
A. K. Morgen
Curiosity Quills Press
Published October 5, 2013

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Arionna wakes in a hospital bed, wisps of memory from a brutal attack still clinging to her mind. Her wolf form lacks the strength to emerge, and Arionna isn’t sure she, her partner Dace and his wolf form will be able to survive when their enemies, Skoll and Hati, next appear. If they should fail, Skoll and Hati will free Fenrir from his chains and send the world spiraling into destruction unto its end. They must not fail, but at every turn, it seems their enemy is one step ahead, and Arionna’s injuries leave Dace nearly paralyzed with fear that he … Continue reading →

Review: Attitude by Robin Stevenson

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Attitude
Robin Stevenson
Orca Book Publishing
Published October 1, 2013

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Fourteen-year-old Cassandra travels from her home in Australia to a highly competitive summer ballet program. At first Cassie tries to befriend girls who’ve been in the program for years, but it soon becomes clear that Melissa and her pals don’t stop at dancing your best in order to win. When Cassie gets blamed for a prank she didn’t commit, it becomes clear the girls mean to get her disqualified from an important audition. Cassie refuses to back down, though, and soon learns bigger lessons than dance technique.

Cassandra battles homesickness and bullying, making her an extremely relatable character. As a talented young ballerina, … Continue reading →

Review: Cut the Lights by Karen Krossing

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Cut the Lights
Karen Krossing
Orca Book Publishing
Published October 1, 2013

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Young first-time director Briar can’t wait to put her ideas onto a real stage. When she is chosen for a real chance to direct a student-written one act play, she soars. But working with real live actors proves to be more difficult than Briar imagined, and she’s forced to navigate everything her crew throws at her, from absence to bold-faced narcissism to outright boredom. With the date of the performances just a few days away, Briar is desperate to pull her disaster of a show together. Just as she begins to turn things around, disaster strikes, fragmenting the cast and leaving her without a lead. What now? Faced … Continue reading →

Review: Merlin’s Blade by Robert Treskillard

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Merlin’s Blade
Robert Treskillard
Blink YA
Published April 16, 2013

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Scars from a wolf attack leave young Merlin’s eyesight damaged almost to the point of blindness, making it difficult for him to assist his father the blacksmith or find his way around the small village alone and leaves him an easy victim to trickery. When two druid leaders bring a glowing stone into the village, Merlin’s blindness saves him from falling into the stone’s enchantment. As the druids whisper sweet lies to the townsfolk, further bewitching them, Merlin must find his courage and stand up to the powerful men, even if he is forced to stand alone.

The druids’ plans are far more … Continue reading →

Review: Aquifer by Jonathan Friesen

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Aquifer
Jonathan Friesen
Blink YA
Published August 6, 2013

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Fifteen year-old Luca has grown up with a heavy burden of responsibility on his shoulders. In a world plagued by drought, only his father has the knowledge and ability to journey deep underground and negotiate with the fearsome people known as water rats for another year’s supply of water to be pumped up to earth’s surface. Luca painstakingly memorizes his father’s instructions to navigate the caves below, for one day it will fall to him to make that lonely, life-preserving journey as the Deliverer.

Life on the earth’s surface is carefully monitored and controlled by the Council of Nine and their representatives, called Amongus, … Continue reading →

Review: It’s Over by Laura L. Smith

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It’s Over
Laura L. Smith
Playlist Fiction
Published April 14, 2013

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Tragedy greets Kat when she arrives home from college for fall break. Though her three roomies band together in support, Kat can barely find the strength to move through the motions of her life. Claire, still reeling from her own injuries of heart, seems to be the only one who can reach Kat. As Thanksgiving draws closer, each girl faces a shift in an important relationship, and as Claire suggested, each attempts to discover something to be thankful for amidst the rubble that remains. Palmer fields not-so-subtle comments on her waistline from her mother and expertly blocks her boyfriend’s attempts for sex. … Continue reading →