Tag Archives: friendship

Review: Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho

Book Review and Content, Dystopian or Post-Apocalyptic, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,
Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho

Aisle Nine
Ian X. Cho
HarperCollins
Published September 24, 2024

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About Aisle Nine

“It’s Black Friday—and the apocalypse is on sale!

Ever since the world filled with portals to hell and bloodthirsty demons started popping out on the reg, Jasper’s life has gotten worse and worse. A teenage nobody with no friends or family, he is plagued by the life he can’t remember and the person he’s sure he’s supposed to be.

Jasper spends his days working as a checkout clerk at the Here For You discount mart, where a hell portal in aisle nine means danger every shift. But at least here he can be near the girl he’s crushing on—Kyle Kuan, a junior member of the monster-fighting Vanguard—who seems to hate Jasper for reasons he can’t remember or understand.

But when Jasper and Kyle learn they both share a frightening vision of the impending apocalypse, they’re forced to team up and uncover the uncomfortable truth about the hell portals and the demons that haunt the world. Because the true monsters are not always what they seem, the past is not always what we wish, and like it or not, on Black Friday, all hell will break loose in aisle nine.

Perfect for fans of Grasshopper Jungle or The Last of Us comes Aisle Nine, the debut young adult novel from rising YA star lan X. Cho.

My Review

Reading a book about the apocalypse that’s weird and funny was a lot of fun. This isn’t the kind of book I’d normally find myself drawn to. The balance of humor and high-stakes drama of the apocalypse definitely had me intrigued.

Jasper’s amnesia made him an interesting character in that he continued to look for clues about his previous life. His nightmares about the portals, his relationship with Lara, the cat-who-is-not-a-cat, and his awkward connection to Kyle offer a lot of threads for him to unravel as the story progresses.

While some of the moments of tension resolve quickly, the story rockets Jasper into one dangerous situation after another. I found it easy to keep reading from one chapter to another. The book is also on the shorter side of young adult fantasy, at 260 pages.

I think readers who enjoy apocalyptic stories paired with humor, especially in the cast of goofy characters, will love this one. It reminds me of the end-of-the-world movies from the 90s.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Kyle’s parents are from Taiwan.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Some f-bombs and profanity used fairly frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
Portals from the abyss have opened up at various points worldwide. These are often referred to as portals from hell, and the monsters that emerge are referred to as demons. Four powerful beings are referred to as the horsemen (a reference to the four horsemen of the apocalypse from the Bible.) Beyond the use of those names, there’s no real connection to Christian theology.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Some scenes include graphic violence as monsters attack people and soldiers fight back. The monsters sometimes have an almost comical appearance. At other times, they more closely resemble nightmare material.

Drug Content
In one scene, a mercenary reports that soldiers are often required to take medication meant to combat narcolepsy when they work long shifts. Someone else takes it to stay awake while they work.

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

Review: A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , ,

A Fragile Enchantment
Allison Saft
Wednesday Books
Published January 30, 2024

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About A Fragile Enchantment

In this romantic fantasy of manners from New York Times bestselling author Allison Saft, a magical dressmaker commissioned for a royal wedding finds herself embroiled in scandal when a gossip columnist draws attention to her undeniable chemistry with the groom.

Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland.

But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more—until an anonymous columnist starts buzzing about their chemistry, promising to leave them alone only if Niamh helps to uncover the royal family’s secrets. The rot at the heart of Avaland runs deep, but exposing it could risk a future she never let herself dream of, and a love she never thought possible.

Transporting readers to a Regency England-inspired fantasy world, A Fragile Enchantment is a sweeping romance threaded with intrigue, unforgettable characters, and a love story for the ages.

My Review

I’ve been a fan of Allison Saft’s books since her debut, DOWN COMES THE NIGHT. She is so good at delivering intricate story worlds and complicated characters navigating some kind of mysterious circumstances. In A FRAGILE ENCHANTMENT, a tailor who can imbue the clothes she makes with magic and a younger prince fight their growing attraction to one another as an entire kingdom seems ready to crumble around them.

It’s got a bit of a grumpy vs. sunshine vibe, which I really enjoyed. The story also explores chronic illness and addiction pretty openly. Neither of those is often explored in fantasy novels, so that was nice to see.

The romantic arc absolutely hooked me. I read this book in two sessions because I really could not stop thinking about it and needed to know how it would end. I loved the directions the story took, especially the ones I hadn’t anticipated. There were a couple of times that things took me by surprise. That was fun.

All in all, I had a fabulous time reading this book, and I’m as big an Allison Saft fan as ever. I’m already excited about whatever story she has coming up next. I think fans of Kiera Cass would like this book a lot.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Regency-England inspired. Some people groups seem to be inspired by Spanish or Irish people. The main character had a past relationship with a girl. Some characters are interested in same-sex relationships, but it’s stigmatized in their society. One character is an alcoholic in recovery. Another is chronically ill.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Kissing between two girls. One scene contains explicit sexual content.

Spiritual Content
Some characters have the ability to perform magic. This is passed down in families from the old days when the Fair Ones walked among people.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. One character can control plants and threatens violence through them. Another can control lightning and tries to kill someone.

Drug Content
One character is a recovering alcoholic who has been sober for a year. In several scenes, people around him drink alcohol. Sometimes, people make disparaging remarks about his drinking or assume he is drunk again.

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 FRAGILE ENCHANTMENT in exchange for my honest review. All opinions my own.

MMGM Review: Squire & Knight: Wayward Travelers by Scott Chantler

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Squire & Knight: Wayward Travelers (Squire & Knight #2)
Scott Chantler
First Second
Published October 15, 2024

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About Squire & Knight: Wayward Travelers

In the second volume of this middle-grade graphic novel series, our heroes search for the mysterious school of wizardry, but are thwarted at every turn by thick mist, winding woods and fearsome creatures!

Our heroes are lost.

Squire and Sir Kelton have promised to get Cade to the school of wizardry. Strangely though, the path they’ve taken has brought them into a bewildering, misty forest, rife with fearsome gnolls and a boisterous rival knight. To get them out, Squire tries every trick in the book, but books don’t hold all the answers. Can he muster up his confidence, remember his duties, and find a way to escape the forest?

My Review

This fun continuation of the Squire & Knight series delivers more of the humor and thoughtfulness from the first book. One of the things I liked a lot is that this is a different story from the first one. In the first book, the squire uses intelligence to figure out whether a dragon is the true source of a village’s problems. In this book, the squire still depends on intelligence and things he learned from books to aid him when he’s in trouble, but the story points up the fact that not every problem can be solved that way. And, intelligent people are as vulnerable to overlooking things out of pride as strong people are.

This story has a small cast of characters, with a few notable new ones. Cade, the boy that Sir Kelton has promised to accompany to Wizard School, is a cute character who adds a lot to the story. He seems in awe of Sir Kelton at first, but as the journey continues, he adds many of his own observations to the story. I liked him and especially enjoyed the surprising comments he made later in the book.

I’m still a fan of the series, and I’m excited to see what adventures Squire and Sir Kelton get up to next.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Human characters are white. There are some monster characters each based on a different breed of dog.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
The story contains fantasy characters and monsters. Some monsters believe they need to sacrifice captives to appease their god.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. A group of dog-like monsters threaten to kill and eat their captives.

Drug Content
None.

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

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

I’m sharing this post as a part of a weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday. Check out other blogs with posts about middle-grade books today on Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle with Greg Pattridge.

Review: A Constellation of Minor Bears by Jen Ferguson

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

A Constellation of Minor Bears
Jen Ferguson
Heartdrum
Published September 24, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About A Constellation of Minor Bears

Award-winning author Jen Ferguson has written a powerful story about teens grappling with balancing resentment with enduring friendship—and how to move forward with a life that’s not what they’d imagined.

Before that awful Saturday, Molly used to be inseparable from her brother, Hank, and his best friend, Tray. The indoor climbing accident that left Hank with a traumatic brain injury filled Molly with anger.

While she knows the accident wasn’t Tray’s fault, she will never forgive him for being there and failing to stop the damage. But she can’t forgive herself for not being there either.

Determined to go on the trio’s post-graduation hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, even without Hank, Molly packs her bag. But when her parents put Tray in charge of looking out for her, she is stuck backpacking with the person who incites her easy anger.

Despite all her planning, the trail she’ll walk has a few more twists and turns ahead. . . .

Discover the evocative storytelling and emotion from the author of The Summer of Bitter and Sweet, which was the winner of the Governor General’s Award, a Stonewall Award honor book, and a Morris Award finalist, as well as Those Pink Mountain Nights, a Kirkus Best Book of the Year!

My Review

I’ve heard so many great things about Jen Ferguson’s books that I’m only sorry it took me so long to read one. This book tackles some complex issues through characters who struggle to communicate their thoughts and feelings in ways that aren’t hurtful or difficult. (So relatable! Especially thinking of myself as a teenager.)

I really appreciated the author’s content note at the opening of the book, which offers some context for and information about the difficult topics (fat abuse, fatphobia, ableism, and racism) that the story includes. Those things often stay on the fringes of the novel but could still be really difficult for some readers. The author also includes a note at the end of the book in which she shares more about how our culture responds to fatness, disability, and our relationship to the traditional unceded lands of Indigenous people. There’s great stuff to be read in those notes.

The novel also contains some great stuff. At its core, it’s about the relationship between Molly, her brother Hank, and their best friend Tray. The relationships have become more strained since Hank’s climbing accident, and it’s unclear whether they can reconcile.

The narrative mostly shifts back and forth between Molly and Tray’s perspectives. Occasionally, Hank’s AITA posts appear between chapters, describing his thoughts and feelings and commenters’ responses. The book is divided into parts labeled according to the parts of a song. Tray is a songwriter, so some of his conflicts are resolved with and through music. Molly is a science girl, so she thinks about the science of injuries and healing. She thinks about stars and facts.

Ultimately, A Constellation of Minor Bears is a book about dealing with the unexpected. It’s about how relationships change, and how we need each other, but not always in the ways others want us to need them. It’s about figuring out how to listen to one another without judgment.

Plot-wise, the story starts off a little bit slow. Molly and Tray are so uncomfortable together. Once Brynn joins the group, the pace and energy really pick up, and I wanted to read from there all the way through to the end.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 15 up.

Representation
Tray and Molly are Métis. Molly’s brother Hank is white and disabled after a climbing fall. Molly is bisexual. Hank is gay. Other minor characters are queer. Molly and another character are plus-sized.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
A fair number of f-bombs and other profanity. The crew have a joke that when someone says something ridiculous, they’ll call it out as bear sh**. Someone responds by clarifying that they mean no offense to any bears. It adds some lightness to difficult conversations and situations.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to kissing between two girls.

Spiritual Content
References to Métis spiritual practices, rituals, and stories.

Violent Content
Contains some ableist comments. Contains instances of abuse and fatphobia (most happen off-scene). References to anti-Indigenous comments and actions.

Drug Content
Characters drink alcohol. References to side characters smoking weed. One character is hospitalized after drinking far too much.

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

MMGM Review: Wildflower Emily by Lydia Corry

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Wildflower Emily: A Story About Young Emily Dickinson
Lydia Corry
Godwin Books
Published October 15, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Wildflower Emily: A Story About Young Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson is one of America’s greatest and most original poets of all time. When you hear her name, you may imagine the famous recluse whose withdrawal from society became legendary. But it’s time to meet a new side of Emily, one that is powerful, adventurous, and joyful.

Follow along as we delve into Emily Dickinson’s childhood, revealing a young girl desperate to go out exploring―to meet the flowers in their own homes. Wade through tall grasses to gather butterfly weed and goldenrod, the air alive with the “buccaneers of buzz.” And, don’t forget to keep a hot potato in your pocket to keep your fingers warm.

This is Emily Dickinson as you’ve never seen her before, embarking on an unforgettable journey in her hometown of Amherst, Massachusetts, with her trusty four-legged companion, Carlo.

My Review

I am in love with this book! It really blew me away. I was expecting something cute that would give kids a connection with the poet through an imagined story of her childhood. And this book is that.

It’s also so much more. I love the color palette. Most of the illustrations outside are done in warm tones that evoke a sunny day or sunset. The illustrations inside have this soft plum-colored cast to them that feels appropriately dated. I found even the colors of the pictures engaging. It’s a graphic novel-style story, which at first might seem like an odd choice for a book about Emily Dickinson, but it really worked.

It’s a gentle story that follows Emily and her dog as they explore the fields and woods collecting flowers. A lot of the dialogue that Emily speaks comes directly from her writing, which emphasizes her creativity and the poetic way that she saw the world.

The back of the book includes some facts about Dickinson’s dog, her family life, and the ways in which she relates to others despite being known as a recluse. Those tidbits of information seem carefully chosen to inspire readers’ interest and further curiosity about Emily Dickinson’s life.

I can already tell this is going to be one of those books I can’t stop recommending. It’s one of those rare works in which the author started with an incredible concept and then executed it perfectly. I would love to see other books like this about young writers’ or poets’ lives.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
All characters are white. (The only people appearing in the book are Emily Dickinson and her family members.)

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

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

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

I’m sharing this post as a part of a weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday. Check out other blogs with posts about middle-grade books today on Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle with Greg Pattridge.

Review: Dragon’s Flight by Jessica Day George

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

Dragon Flight (Dragon Slippers #2)
Jessica Day George
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published April 29, 2008

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Dragon Flight

The second book in New York Times bestselling author Jessica Day George’s charming, light-hearted fantasy series.

With the Dragon Wars over, Creel finds herself bored with life as a seamstress. Then word comes that a bordering country has been breeding dragons in preparation for an invasion. Never one to miss out on the action, Creel throws herself headlong into an adventure that will reunite her with Shardas, the king of the dragons, pit her against a vicious new dragon, and perhaps rekindle a friendship with Prince Luka.

Funny, heartfelt, and action-packed, new readers and returning fans alike will dive headlong into this exhilarating follow-up to Dragon Slippers.

My Review

I recently reread Dragon Slippers (though it was like a fresh read, since I remembered almost nothing from my original reading), and discovered that Creel and Shardas’s adventures continue in this and another book. Since I have access to the audiobooks through my library, and I needed something lighter to read over the summer, I decided to finish the series.

A lot of the characters from the first book reappear here in the second one. (Including one goofy monkey seller.) We also get to know the dragon characters more, and see the progression of Creel and Luka’s relationship.

What’s really interesting to me is that the cover art and copy age Creel down quite a bit. In the story, she is running her own business and preparing for her business partner’s wedding. I can’t remember if the text specifies Creel’s age, but I’d guess she’s probably fifteen or sixteen.

The writing feels very middle grade, though, so I think the book is marketed appropriately, it’s just interesting that the book description and cover age the story itself down a bit. For example, Creel isn’t just friends with Prince Luka– there’s definitely some romance happening there, though it stays very sweet and a small component of the story.

Readers who enjoy dragon books will find a lot to love here. The dragons play a bigger role in this book than in the first one and appear in a majority of the scenes. This is a sweet, fun series for upper middle grade readers or middle grade readers interested in stories with a little romance.

Readers who enjoyed Goose Girl by Shannon Hale should check out this series.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 10 to 14.

Representation
One prominent character speaks through sign language.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Creel’s best friend is engaged to be married.

Spiritual Content
Some characters are dragons. A few characters use alchemy, which operates like magic through potions or special objects.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Some brief references to and scenes showing battle. Creel wants to punch more than one person in the face, but she wisely resists.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. All opinions are my own.