Tag Archives: indie

Review: A Summer Taken by Jason Milgram

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,
A Summer Taken by Jason Milgram

A Summer Taken
Jason Milgram
Published July 4, 2020

Amazon | Goodreads

About A Summer Taken

“The old green sign with painted yellow letters confirmed it–I was back. And like it or not, this was happening.”

14-year-old Julia is back at Lake Bradford for a very different reason than last time. Two years ago, she and her cousin Lizzie got to experience Camp Auctus, a leadership camp for gifted girls rooted in tradition, a place where even their mothers and grandmothers attended as girls. Campfires, fireflies, talent shows, races by the lake, friendships, and a mysterious Writer’s Hut nestled in the woods were just a few of the things that made Camp Auctus special.

But after a tragedy takes her cousin away, the best summer of Julia’s life becomes her worst. And now, she’s back, tasked with writing a tribute to the cousin she loved so deeply. Except…Julia isn’t sure she can do it. How can she put into words what she still has not been able to understand? Lizzie wasn’t just her best friend–she was her inspiration for change in the world.

A book series about multi-generational family and friendship, loss and grief, gun violence, the growth of divisive anger and hate we have allowed in our country, and a story of love and hope.

My Review

I love that this book takes a hard look at gun violence and the devastating impact it can have on a family and community, especially in a divisive political climate. I thought the setting of a summer camp to empower girls was a cool idea as well.

One thing I struggled with, though, was Julia’s character. She complains a lot, and I want to give her a pass for the parts of the story where she’s brittle and angry because she’s grieving her cousin’s death. But even when we flash back to a time before that, her character felt pretty much the same to me then. Kind of resentful and complaining.

I wanted to see more relationships develop between Julia and the other camp girls, who it seemed at been close to her cousin, and so would be grieving for her loss as well. Instead, the people Julia responded to the most were the adults in the story, like her camp counselor and her aunt. Those were neat scenes, and I loved seeing good mentors represented, but sometimes it felt like they handed Julia the answers she needed rather than her fighting to discover answers for herself.

On the whole, I liked the message of the story and the positive examples of mentors and role models, but I feel like Julia’s character lacked agency, and I wish there had been more relationship building or problem-solving or grieving together with the other campers.

Fans of summer camp stories or readers looking for stories with a strong message may want to look into this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 10 up.

Representation
Main character and her family are white. Julia battled an eating disorder in the past. I’m not sure about the quality of the representation there, but mostly the timeline of the story doesn’t focus on it.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Julia attends a funeral service for her cousin at a church.

Violent Content
Julia learns that her cousin was shot by a gunman at a political rally. She also overhears strangers laughing about her cousin’s death because they oppose her aunt’s political values.

Drug Content
None.

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

Review: Peter Green and the Unliving Academy by Angelina Allsop

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, Paranormal, , , , , , ,

Peter Green and the Academy of the Unliving
Angelina Allsop
TCK Publishing
Published November 20, 2018

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About PETER GREEN AND THE UNLIVING ACADEMY

Fourteen-year-old Peter Green can’t remember how he died. 

All he has are his pajamas, a silk tie, and a one-way bus ticket to Mrs. Battisworth’s Academy and Haven for Unliving Boys and Girls, a strange and spooky school for dead orphans like himself. But that’s all he needs: the Unliving Academy has everything, from vampires in the hallways, to monsters in the cafeteria, to ghosts in the basement. 

And that’s just the teachers; the students are far stranger.

As Pete learns to fit in with his new supernatural schoolmates, he starts to discover his own uniquely undead abilities, and even begins enjoying his life after death…but he just can’t shake the feeling that he’s forgotten something (or somebody!) important. 

Somebody he left behind in the land of the living. 

Somebody he loved very much. 

Somebody who’s in terrible danger.

My Review

PETER GREEN AND THE UNLIVING ACADEMY is filled with an imaginative story world. The dead have their own school, their own frustrating government forms to fill out, and all sorts of rules for staying safe. At certain moments, it felt like a lot to digest, but for the most part, the story world feels crisp, fresh, and packed with spooky fun.

The most challenging part for me was the number of named characters popping up everywhere. Sometimes Peter would meet someone only to have that person be like, actually, you need to meet this other person and their two friends. Or someone would go on to name and describe professors that never appeared in the story. This made it difficult for me to keep track of who was who and figure out which names were important, because a lot of them were only mentioned one time.

Other than that, though, it was a pretty fun read. I liked that Peter sees visions of a girl who needs his help and has to figure out who she is before something bad happens to her. I enjoyed his band of friends, especially Charlie and Scoot.

Readers who enjoy dark fantasy (think Tim Burton’s NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS or SHADOW MAGIC by Joshua Khan) will enjoy the spooky creatures and afterlife story world.

Recommended for Ages 10 to 12.

Representation
I think all the major characters are white.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Peter has a bit of a crush on one of the girls in Charlie’s entourage.

Spiritual Content
After Peter dies, he appears in Purgatory, a realm for people who have died but need some closure on a particular element of their lives. There are a few references to other realms of the afterlife, and some reference to having the option to be reincarnated or to have children in the afterlife. People go on to choose careers, including becoming a werewolf or ghost.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Peter faces various monsters, like a werewolf, a large snake, and battles them with the help of his friends.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of PETER GREEN AND THE UNLIVING ACADEMY in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost readers anything but help cover the costs of my blog and help me purchase more books.

Review: Forsaken by Gina Detwiler

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

Forsaken
Gina Detwiler
Vinspire
Published September 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About Forsaken

He was forsaken but not forgotten.

Nine months have passed since Grace Fortune saw the boy she loves, Jared Lorn, die before her eyes. But Grace’s suspicions have her wondering if Jared really dead. Along with her friends, she sets out to find answers, and the investigation leads to an unexpected place: Silo City, an abandoned silo complex that houses as many dark secrets as it does forsaken people.

Very much alive, Jared’s on a mission to save the girl he loves by collaborating with the enemy—a young, brash rock star named Lester Crow who fronts the punk metal band Blood Moon. Jared’s “deal with the devil” will take him on a cross-country journey into the heartland of darkness. The music of Blood Moon is a weapon against God, and Jared must wield this weapon while trying desperately to preserve his mind and soul from its power.

Jared and Grace are desperate to be reunited, but first, they must defeat the demonic forces arrayed against them. And pray that Jared, a Nephilim forsaken in God’s eyes, has a chance at a future.

My Review

I feel like I had a lot of strong thoughts about this book. Some things I really liked a lot. The way the author describes music really pulled me into each scene. I loved that so much of the story followed Grace’s singing (or her inability to sing) and Jared’s talent with the guitar. I wanted to sit in on their jam sessions. The big concerts felt very realistic.

In terms of the spiritual elements, I struggled with some of the doctrine. Jared, the son of a powerful demon and a human woman, had a lot of questions about his value and identity. I like that he’s a complicated character, that he wants to do good and be good despite his origin. Honestly, I think that’s pretty relatable. I don’t think it’s something that’s within the bounds of Christian ideology, though.

Music in the story has a strong spiritual component. I thought this was also pretty cool to show this spiritual component to songs depending on who’s playing them, what the songs glorify, and the motives of the musicians playing them. Early on in FORSAKEN, a mentor character shares a theory that the Beatles and the Rolling Stones artists were Satanists. He cites some interesting evidence.

I looked it up because I wasn’t sure if it was supposed to be an in-the-book thing or a this-is-real thing. The individual things the character points out are true (an occult founder being pictured on an album cover and some lyrics about Lucifer), I felt like those were probably things the artists used for their shock value. I didn’t see any indication that the artists themselves had any real love or worship for Satan, so I had a hard time following that thread of the plot.

Sometimes I felt like I had missed something – I think because I started reading this series with book two. I think FORSAKEN makes a good choice for TWILIGHT or BEAUTIFUL CREATURES fans or readers who like a sweet paranormal romance. I’d recommend starting with the first book, FORLORN.

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
I think all the major characters were white and straight.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
One instance of mild profanity.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to two characters having sex (off-scene).

Spiritual Content
Jared is the son of a demon and human, but he wants to be worthy of God’s love, and seems to be part of God’s plan as he has visits from other angels. Grace has a guardian angel who tries to keep her safe. At one point, characters start talking about a church where the pastor preaches that God wouldn’t send anyone to Hell because he loves us so much, and that Hell doesn’t really exist. One of the girls scoffs and responds with something like, “Why would anyone believe in God if there’s no Hell?” From a Christian perspective, I didn’t think this made any sense. I could see not believing in Jesus if there was no Hell, since his death and resurrection are the reason people don’t have to go there. I didn’t understand the point being made there, maybe?

See my review for more on the spirituality of FORSAKEN.

Violent Content
Jared has some anger issues and gets into fights when provoked. At one point, the girls venture into a dangerous part of town and a man attacks one of them. At another point, one character stabs one of the girls.

Drug Content
One of Jared’s companions uses a lot of drugs and is very often drunk. He has a girl with him who’s often high or drunk as well. Jared doesn’t participate in any of that.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links which cost you nothing, but help me buy more books.


Review: Athlanmara by J. M. Burrows

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

Athlanmara: Seaborn Series 1
J. M. Burrows
Published on September 1, 2018

Amazon | Goodreads

About Athlanmara
The beautiful Florida Keys is the setting for love, adventure and a family secret that will affect every creature on earth.

When timid misfit Brooke is rescued from drowning by a handsome merman, Adrian, her eyes are opened to a world she didn’t know existed.

Adrian can’t stay away from the human girl he rescued, even though he faces certain death if their relationship is discovered. He is torn between his desire for love and his desire to save his people.

The two teens join forces to save both races as illegal pollution threatens to destroy Adrian’s people and the Athlanmara are planning to fight back against the human threat. Brooke and Adrian’s forbidden relationship will change both worlds, but not without a cost.

My Review
I’m kind of a sucker for stories about mermaids or mer-people, so I was pretty intrigued when I heard about this book. The way it’s written is a bit unusual as it shows a lot of direct thoughts of different characters, but they’re not in italics. I found it a little confusing at first. The story mostly follows the point of view of Adrian and Brooke, but other characters have scenes or moments from their perspectives, too.

The Athlanmara (mer-people… maybe just mermen?) had an interesting culture and the author included some language and history, which were cool and fit with the story pretty well. I wasn’t really clear on whether the genders live separately all the time or part of the time or how that worked. I enjoyed some of the goofy moments between Adrian and his best friend Maksim and some of the inevitable faux pas that happened when they tried to pass for human.

I really liked the way the plot explored pollution and its effect on marine life and thought it was a great message. I also thought the Athlanmara were a neat take on mermaids even if I didn’t fully understand all the elements of the culture.

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Cultural Elements
Brooke is white, and her best friend is Latina. Other characters are white.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Most often the characters say things like, “oh my gosh,” or “dang it,” or “shoot.” There’s one instance of a crude word for female anatomy.

Romance/Sexual Content
When the boys transform from Athlanmara (mer-people) to human, they appear naked. Brooke feels embarrassed by this and unsafe especially before she knows them well. Kissing between boy and girl. One scene shows a girl and boy lying in the sand together making out.

Spiritual Content
The Athlanmara have magical artifacts which have certain powers. Adrian is hoping to find one which has the ability to heal so he can save a family member.

Violent Content
A man threatens people with a gun. More than one scene shows giant crabs brutally killing people.

Drug Content
None.

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

Review: Bullied by J. D. Jacobs

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

Bullied
J. D. Jacobs
Published April 2, 2017

Amazon | Goodreads

About Bullied
When tragedy destroys Ricey Kennedy’s family, Fear is never far behind. Forced to leave everything she’s ever known and move to New York, Ricey thinks life can’t get any worse. But then she meets Katrina, the high school’s mean girl. Day after day Ricey suffers the humiliating onslaught from the smooth-tongued bully, and it doesn’t take long before her self esteem is crushed into nothingness.

Struggling through life, romance is the last thing on Ricey’s mind when she meets the cute Tom Wilson. But Tom is determined to show Ricey that she could have a real chance at a new life and love, if only she can face her biggest fear of all . . .

My Review
One of the most intriguing things about this book was the author’s description of the story being narrated by fear. I thought looking at bullying through the lens of fear and how it affects victims and perpetrators alike would make for a really deep and unusual story, and in a lot of ways, I think that’s true here.

I wouldn’t call the story entirely narrated by fear, though. There are sections where we get this kind of sidebar update on how Fear interacts with each of the characters and why that’s significant. But for the most part, the story follows the point of view of a large number of characters, often hopping from one perspective to another without warning, and gives insight into each one’s thoughts and feelings.

On the whole, I liked the book. Toward the middle I felt like the plot dragged a little bit with some repetitive scenes. I wished the scenes from the teacher’s and dad’s point-of-view had been left out as they interrupted the flow and purpose of the story, in my opinion.

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Cultural Elements
Characters appear to be white, often from affluent families.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Ricey begins to feel attracted to Tom and worries about him possibly betraying her. Their relationship isn’t the focus of the story, but it does become an important component as the story progresses.

Her teacher’s dating life also has a role in the story. Again, not the focus, but she worries about being single forever and feels pressure to find a husband, fast.

Spiritual Content
Ricey recalls her mother asking her to promise to keep loving God no matter what. A couple of times Ricey has significant conversations with mentors about her anger toward God. I thought these got a little bit clichéd.

Fear comments several times on working for the Boss, which we assume to mean God. In the story, Fear behaves in the service of God, sometimes driving the other characters toward healthy behaviors by a survival instinct. Other times, Fear directly challenges them, providing opportunities for growth. While I think this worked on a practical level, I occasionally found it difficult to reconcile this with Biblical principles. I wished there had been an aside clarifying how the story world fits into the Biblical worldview. Just to reduce any confusion readers may have.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
Ashley remembers drinking wine at a family wedding and making choices (befriending a guest) she regrets later.

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

 

Review: Twinepathy by C. B. Cook

Book Review and Content, Clean Fiction, Middle Grade 8-12, Paranormal, , , , ,

Twinepathy
C. B. Cook
Available July 14, 2016

Amazon  | Goodreads | Author’s Website

Twins Albany and Brooklyn keep their telepathic connection a secret from everyone. After all, who would believe them anyway? But when a strange girl shows up on their doorstep with no memory of how she got there and an inexplicable power of her own, the twins begin to realize there may be more people with powers, and not all of them use them for good. They learn about an organization of people with abilities and a terrible plot to destroy it. At first committed to sit on the sidelines, Albany soon realizes she and Brooklyn might be the group’s only hope for survival. She and her sister must decide whether they’ll join the fight, even if it means risking everything.

This is such a fun story. I liked all the silliness and joking between characters. Albany and Brooklyn were both great and easy to root for. The rest of the cast of characters does get a little overwhelming at times, since there are so many of them and their code names to remember on top of everything else.

Twinepathy is a pretty short read—I finished it in just a couple hours—but it’s the perfect length for a reluctant reader, and a great fit for fourth or fifth grade readers who are into Marvel or other superhero stories. This novel made me think a little bit of the Twintuition books by Tia and Tamera Mowry, which also feature gifted twins. It’s different in that Twinepathy focuses on the girls’ role in a larger group of gifted people.

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Cultural Elements
I don’t specifically remember descriptions showing a racially diverse cast.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
The girls’ older brother is dating a girl named Ezra. They do not witness any romance between them, though.

Spiritual Content
Brooklyn and Albany share a telepathic connection. Other characters possess special powers like telekinesis, teleportation, the ability to manipulate metal, etc.

Violent Content
Battles between the members of the superhero team and the villain and his clones.

Drug Content
None.

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

 

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