Review: Freerunner by Kathy Cassel

Freerunner by Kathy Cassel

Freerunner
Kathy Cassel
Elk Lake Publishing
Published May 16, 2020

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About Freerunner

Night is Kia’s favorite time, when she freeruns to outdistance the memories of abuse she suffered as a young child. But when former reality television star Terrence Jones arrives at their school as the new head track coach, things begin to change in unpredictable ways.

Kia tries out for the team to … Continue reading

Review: Paris on Repeat by Amy Bearce

Paris on Repeat by Amy Bearce

Paris on Repeat
Amy Bearce
Jolly Fish Press
Published July 14, 2020

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About Paris on Repeat

GROUNDHOG DAY gets a hilarious French twist in this delightful upper middle grade novel about first crushes and friendship when an eighth-grade class trip to Paris goes horribly wrong and the worst day of one girl’s life keeps happening over and over.

Fourteen-year-old Eve Hollis is ready to … Continue reading

Review: Being Toffee by Sarah Crossan

Being Toffee by Sarah Crossan

Being Toffee
Sarah Crossan
Bloomsbury YA
Published July 14, 2020

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About Being Toffee

One is trying to forget. The other is trying to remember.

After running away from an abusive home, Allison finds herself taking shelter in a shed behind an abandoned house. But the house isn’t empty after all; an elderly woman named Marla, who suffers from dementia, lives there. And rather than turn her away, Marla welcomes her – she mistakes Allison for an old friend from her past named Toffee.

Allison is used to hiding who she really is, and trying to … Continue reading

Review: Hard Wired by Len Vlahos

Hard Wired by Len Vlahos

Hard Wired
Len Vlahos
Bloomsbury YA
Published July 7, 2020

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About Hard Wired

Quinn thinks he’s a normal boy with an average life. That is, until he finds a trail of clues the father he barely knew left behind.

After Quinn unravels his father’s puzzles, he “wakes up” … and realizes his world was nothing more than a virtual construct. In reality, he’s the first fully-aware A.I. in the world, part of an experiment run by a team of scientists—including the man he thought was his father.

As the scientists continue to … Continue reading

Review: Nevertell by Katharine Orton

Nevertell by Katharine Orton

Nevertell
Katharine Orton
Walker Books US
Published April 14, 2020

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About Nevertell

After escaping a Soviet prison camp, Lina is pursued by a powerful witch and her shadow wolves in a riveting debut that imbues frozen wilderness with fairy-tale magic.

All that twelve-year-old Lina knows of the world is the Stalinist labor camp where she was born, a place of hunger, cruelty, and deprivation. After a daring escape into the frigid Siberian wilds with her best friend, Bogdan, Lina vows to reach Moscow and find her long-lost grandmother, whom she hopes will help her return to … Continue reading

Review: A Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee

Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee

Forest of Souls (Shamanborn #1)
Lori M. Lee
Page Street Kids
Published June 23, 2020

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About Forest of Souls

Sirscha Ashwyn comes from nothing, but she’s intent on becoming something. After years of training to become the queen’s next royal spy, her plans are derailed when shamans attack and kill her best friend Saengo.

And then Sirscha, somehow, restores Saengo to life.

Unveiled as the first soulguide in living memory, Sirscha is summoned to the domain of the Spider King. For centuries, he has used his influence over the Dead Wood—an ancient forest … Continue reading