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Review: Monster Camp by Sarah Henning

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Monster Camp by Sarah Henning

Monster Camp
Sarah Henning
Simon & Schuster
Published May 9, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Monster Camp

Ghost Squad meets Hotel Transylvania in this sweetly spooky fish-out-of-water middle grade story about a human girl who must put on the performance of her life when she realizes what she thought was a LARPing summer camp is full of real monsters!

With her stick-on fangs and widow’s peak drawn in waterproof eyeliner, Sylvie is an expert at pretending to be a vampire. More kids at school would know that if they bothered to join her monster LARPing (live action role playing) club. Not even her dad understands her passion for the undead and denies her request to attend a monster LARPing summer camp. But Sylvie is not so easily deterred.

She decides to tell her dad she’s attending another camp located near Monster Camp then sneak over to her real destination after he drops her off. Sylvie feels bad lying to her dad, but there’s no way she’s going to miss the chance to finally meet other kids that share her interests. And when she lays eyes on Monster Camp, she knows it was all worth it—the immersive campgrounds look like they came off a Hollywood lot!

But when an obnoxious kid dressed like a werewolf gets punished by being magically turned into a Pomeranian, Sylvie realizes she made a critical miscalculation. These aren’t LARPers, they’re real monsters, and Sylvie’s preferred costume means she’s placed with blood-sucking, human-biting campers who would breathe fire if they knew the truth about her. She has no choice but to try to stick it out by doing exactly what she does best: pretending to be a monster.

My Review

I really enjoyed the SEA WITCH duology by Sarah Henning, so when I saw this debut middle grade novel, I knew I had to read it. I loved the passion that Sylvie has to LARPing and the way that it impacts what happens in the story.

It was also really cool to see a book celebrate this niche activity. The story made it easy to understand why Sylvie loved LARPing so much, and how it actually works. I had a passing familiarity with LARPing but not a deep understanding. The book does a great job showing what LARPing is and how it works without slowing the story down to explain.

I really liked the relationships Sylvie forms with the other campers, especially the ones that surprised her. I also really liked that first impressions, trust, and secrets played such a key role in the story, too.

All in all, this is a super cute book, perfect for summer. I think fans of paranormal middle grade stories will find lots to love here.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Sylvie meets kids who are literally ghosts, werewolves, vampires, and other monsters.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Some characters are ghosts, monsters. Sometimes they have superhuman abilities or magic.

Violent Content
When Sylvie plays LARP sessions with her friend, Dustin, he is always a knight whose quest is to kill her. She learns through monster camp that there are people who still want to hunt and kill monsters.

Drug Content
None.

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 MONSTER CAMP in exchange for my honest review.

Marvelous Middle Grade Mondays

Check out reviews and more middle grade book fun for Marvelous Middle Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle, where Greg shares a roundup of bloggers featuring middle grade books on their blogs. I joined recently, and have really enjoyed checking out everyone’s posts.

Review: Cazadora by Romina Garber

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

Cazadora (Wolves of No World #2)
Romina Garber
Wednesday Books
Published August 17, 2021

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Cazadora

In Cazadora, Romina Garber weaves together Argentine folklore and what it means to be illegal in a timely, intimate, and emotionally powerful narrative.

Werewolves. Witches. Romance. Resistance.

Enter a world straight out of Argentine folklore…

Following the events of Lobizona, Manu and her friends cross the mystical border into Kerana–a cursed realm in Argentina–searching for allies and a hiding place. As they chase down leads about the Coven–a mythical resistance manada that might not even exist–the Cazadores chase down leads about Manu, setting up traps to capture and arrest her.

Just as it seems the Cazadores have Manu and her friends cornered, the Coven answers their call for help. As Manu catches her breath among these non-conforming Septimus, she discovers they need a revolution as much as she does.

But is she the right one to lead them? After all, hybrids aren’t just outlawed. They’re feared and reviled. What happens when the Coven learns of Manu’s dual heritage? Will they still protect her? Or will they betray her?

And after running this far, for this long–how much farther can Manu go before her feet get tired, and she stops to take a stand?

“In this effervescent sequel full of magic and beautiful imagery, Manu learns to reclaim her own narrative and, together with her lovable found family… stake out a place in the world where she belongs…An inspiring, powerful tale of belonging.” ―Kirkus, starred review

Must-Read 2021 YA Fantasy ―Book Riot

Must-Read Books by Latinx Authors Out in 2021 ―Hip Latina

My Review

CAZADORA picks up pretty much where LOBIZONA leaves off. Manu and her crew are on the run being pursued by Cazadores, a law enforcement group for the Septimus, which includes the Lobizones (werewolves) and Brujas (witches). I know that’s a lot to digest. This is one of those books you shouldn’t read unless you’ve read the first book already.

The story keeps up that fast pace with Manu fleeing, finding allies, enemies closing in, stakes mounting, all the way to the last page. There are some pauses for romance and for Manu to explore her connections with her parents. CAZADORA has a big cast, so it doesn’t go deeply into many of the relationships between characters, though.

One of the things that does get explored a lot is the issue of gender identity in what is a very binary culture. In the Septimus world, boys are Lobizones. Girls are Brujas. A person’s whole identity within the community is based on those facts. So what does that mean for someone who doesn’t fit those binary definitions?

Manu being a girl with werewolf powers, a Lobizona, at first feels to her like a personal fight for recognition of her identity. But as she pursues a place in her community, she meets others who are in hiding or on the run because of who they are. One Lobizone lost his ability to transform after an attack by a monster. Another is transgender.

So Manu begins to see the restrictive rules of the community as not only impacting herself, but also harming others. In some ways it’s an echo of the fight she’s had her whole life as an undocumented immigrant. So she has to decide whether she’s going to keep running, whether she’s just fighting for herself or for everyone who’s different.

I liked the way those conversations and themes were woven into the story. It felt like those ideas emerged naturally and organically, so it didn’t feel forced to me. I also loved the way the Manu grew as a character through the story. At first, she was just running and surviving. Watching her reach a place where she took control of her story and made her own hard decisions was really moving.

And, of course, like any good second book in a series, this one ends with a new adventure already in its sights. I’m already excited about a third book, and I will definitely be reading it!

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Major characters are Latinx. Two female characters are in a romantic relationship. A minor character has a disability. Another minor character is transgender.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Some scenes showing kissing between couples. A couple scenes show making out and one leads up to sex but fades out at that point.

Spiritual Content
Some characters have the ability to transform into werewolves. Others have magical abilities, like the ability to freeze things or create fire. These are thought to be gifts from a goddess.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Some battle violence.

Drug Content
None.

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

Spotlight: Sanctum by Hannah McBride

News and Fun, Paranormal, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Here’s some fun bookish news… if you’re a long-time Story Sanctuary reader, you may remember that I used to participate in Irish Banana Book Tours. I loved working with Irish Banana coordinator Hannah McBride, so when she announced she was releasing a book, I knew it was going to be something to talk about here! Today I’m sharing some of the fun and amazing details about her debut novel, Sanctum. It’s one I’m eager to check out!

Sanctum
Hannah McBride
Available August 21, 2020

Amazon | Goodreads

About Sanctum

A survivor on the run

After refusing the laws of her sadistic pack, Skye Markham barely escapes with her life, seeking sanctuary with the feared Blackwater pack. Hunted by her former Alpha and his soldiers, she’s determined to create a life even though she knows they will come for her.

An alpha with a pack to protect

As the next alpha in line, Remy Holt has spent years guarding the Blackwater pack and his family from those who seek to seize control and destroy them. The last thing he needs or wants is Skye Markham and the dangers she brings with her adding to the stress on his pack, but his wolf has a different opinion. He wants her, and after one moment that shouldn’t have been possible, he knows he’ll never be able to let her go.

A bond unlike any other

Skye thought she was finally safe, but as her bond with Remy strengthens, the shifter world starts to break apart at the seams. Missing shifters, a dying population, and pack wars are all causing their sanctuary to crumble around them, and Skye is trapped in the middle of it all. Someone is out to destroy the pack and if they succeed, there will bring down everything Remy has sought to protect and for Skye… maybe there is no such thing as a sanctuary.

*SANCTUM is the first book in the Blackwater Pack series. Possible trigger warnings: abuse, violence, language, and bullying.

About Author Hannah McBride

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter |Goodreads

Hannah McBride has been many things in her life – a restaurant manager, a clinical research coordinator, a dreamer, a makeup brand ambassador, an event coordinator, a blogger, and more. But at heart, she’s always been a writer, and in 2020 she decided to make it official with her first release, SANCTUM. 

An Excerpt from Sanctum

He shifted towards me. “This is all new to me, too, Skye.”

A sobering thought crossed my mind. The one that had been plaguing me since the woods. “Do you want this, Remy?”

The corner of his mouth hitched up for a second as he looked at me. Slowly, he raised a hand, tracing the curve of my jaw. I shivered, remembering the feel of his hands stroking when I was a wolf.

This was so much better.

He inched even closer. His breath, minty and warm, fanned over my face. His eyes tracked the movements of his fingers hungrily.

“Yeah,” he answered roughly, thickly. “I want this. I want you.” He dipped his head and covered my mouth with his.

As far as first kisses went, I was pretty sure this was one for the record books. 

Fire ignited in me the second Remy’s lips touched mine, soft but demanding all at once. His hands settled on my hips, pulling me closer. The smell of him from earlier in the evening, pine and soap and something that was entirely Remy, filled my senses. 

I was going to combust in the most exquisite ways.

His large hands almost spanned my waist, his fingers flexing against the soft material of my yoga pants. His tongue teased the seam of my lips until I opened my mouth on a gasp, letting him in.

I groaned as his tongue stroked mine, one hand sliding from my waist up my spine.

My hands had been clenched into fists on his chest, the fabric of his t-shirt bunched in my grip. I relaxed my hold now, letting my hands slide over the hard muscle and up around his neck, pressing my chest flush against his.

Now Remy groaned, changing the angle of his head to deepen the kiss.

Flames licked through my blood, and I was sure I was going to combust any second.

I was one hundred percent okay with death by kissing.

Review: Lobizona by Romina Garber

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

Lobizona (Wolves of No World #1)
Romina Garber
Wednesday Books
Published August 4, 2020

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Indiebound | Goodreads

About Lobizona

Some people ARE illegal.

Lobizonas do NOT exist.

Both of these statements are false.

Manuela Azul has been crammed into an existence that feels too small for her. As an undocumented immigrant who’s on the run from her father’s Argentine crime-family, Manu is confined to a small apartment and a small life in Miami, Florida.

Until Manu’s protective bubble is shattered.

Her surrogate grandmother is attacked, lifelong lies are exposed, and her mother is arrested by ICE. Without a home, without answers, and finally without shackles, Manu investigates the only clue she has about her past–a mysterious “Z” emblem—which leads her to a secret world buried within our own. A world connected to her dead father and his criminal past. A world straight out of Argentine folklore, where the seventh consecutive daughter is born a bruja and the seventh consecutive son is a lobizón, a werewolf. A world where her unusual eyes allow her to belong.

As Manu uncovers her own story and traces her real heritage all the way back to a cursed city in Argentina, she learns it’s not just her U.S. residency that’s illegal. . . .it’s her entire existence.

My Review

As I’ve heard stories about what it’s like to come to the US as an immigrant, I’ve been moved, felt sympathy, wanted to change things. Nothing has ever made me feel like I’ve slipped into someone else’s shoes the way this book did, though.

Manu is smart. She’s vulnerable, yet fierce. She loves her family, but she’s always felt like an outsider who did not belong, even among them. More than anything else, this is the story of a girl who has never belonged not just finding her place, but carving it out of the landscape and building a true family around her.

I really, really like this book. The magic was fascinating, and again and again the story comes back to questions about what makes a person valuable. Is it where someone was born? What gender they are? Whom they love? What they can do for someone else?

LOBIZONA explores all that and on top of it delivers a sizzling romance set in a dazzling landscape. If you like found families, revolution, and unexpected alliances, this is one you’re going to want to grab, fast.

This book is a great fit for fans of WOVEN IN MOONLIGHT or GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Manu and most other characters are Latinx. A few side characters are gay.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. Kissing between two girls. One scene shows some intense kissing between a boy and girl.

There’s a brief reference to a rape that happened in the past.

Spiritual Content
Because of a demon who fell in love with a human, seventh consecutive daughters become witches with nature-based magic abilities, and seventh consecutive sons become werewolves.

Violent Content
Some intense scenes involving running from ICE and police. Battle scenes. Situations of peril.

Drug Content
Manu takes a medication every month that knocks her out for three days. Some characters drink mate, which heightens their magic.

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

About Romina Garber

Instagram | Twitter | Website

ROMINA GARBER (pen name Romina Russell) is a New York Times and international bestselling author. Originally from Argentina, she landed her first writing gig as a teen—a weekly column for the Miami Herald that was later nationally syndicated—and she hasn’t stopped writing since. Her books include Lobizona. When she’s not working on a novel, Romina can be found producing movie trailers, taking photographs, or daydreaming about buying a new drum set. She is a graduate of Harvard College and a Virgo to the core.

Review: Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

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

Lady Midnight (The Dark Artifices #1)
Cassandra Clare
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published on March 8, 2016

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About Lady Midnight
In a kingdom by the sea…

In a secret world where half-angel warriors are sworn to fight demons, parabatai is a sacred word.

A parabatai is your partner in battle. A parabatai is your best friend. Parabatai can be everything to each other—but they can never fall in love.

Emma Carstairs is a warrior, a Shadowhunter, and the best in her generation. She lives for battle. Shoulder to shoulder with her parabatai, Julian Blackthorn, she patrols the streets of Los Angeles, where vampires party on the Sunset Strip, and faeries—the most powerful of supernatural creatures—teeter on the edge of open war with Shadowhunters. When the bodies of humans and faeries turn up murdered in the same way Emma’s parents were when she was a child, an uneasy alliance is formed. This is Emma’s chance for revenge—and Julian’s chance to get back his brother Mark, who is being held prisoner by the faerie Courts. All Emma, Mark, and Julian have to do is solve the murders within two weeks…and before the murderer targets them.

Their search takes Emma from sea caves full of sorcery to a dark lottery where death is dispensed. And each clue she unravels uncovers more secrets. What has Julian been hiding from her all these years? Why does Shadowhunter Law forbid parabatai to fall in love? Who really killed her parents—and can she bear to know the truth?

My Review
I have so many conflicting feelings about this book. Some things—the relationships between the Blackthorn siblings and descriptions of especially Mark and Julian as well as all the tension between Faeries and Shadowhunters—I loved. Other things—the overall size of the cast (huge), the darkness of the plot, and the spans of info-dump in the narrative—were not my favorite things.

Emma’s character is super different than the heroine of Clare’s earlier Shadowhunter series. I liked The Mortal Instruments (okay, I think I only read the first three, but I liked them) and I liked Clary, the heroine of that series as well. But where Clary’s the emotionally sensitive, thoughtful leader, Emma’s all action and impulse. I liked that contrast and the way Emma’s character paired with her parabatai and bestie, Julian.

The story deals with a lot of demon-y stuff. Dark rituals, battles with demons, etc. I feel like The Mortal Instruments focused a little more on vampires and werewolves, but honestly, it may have been just as dark as this book was. I felt like Lady Midnight had a LOT of spiritually dark content. Enough that I probably won’t finish the series, to be honest.

I did really enjoy the references to the Faerie realm and the group Mark was bound to and all of the politics between the Shadowhunters and Faeries. It wasn’t the main focus of the story, but I found it to be one of the most fascinating parts of the overall tale.

On the whole, this is a tough one for me to review. I really liked some things and really struggled with other things. I think this series is probably not one I’ll continue with.

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Cultural Elements
Cristina and Diego are Mexican. Other characters are white. Mark and his sister Helen face prejudice from both fairies and Shadowhunters because they are half-descendants of each. Mark is also bisexual.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Intense kissing between boy and girl or boy and boy. At one point, a montage sort of sequence fills readers in on the romantic relationship between two boys. There’s very little graphic sexual description, but we’re in no doubt of their level of intimacy.

Another scene describes a couple on the beach. The description leading up to their sexual encounter is intense, but we’re spared a play-by-play of the actual sex.

Spiritual Content
Dark (blood) rituals, demon battles, sorcery… this story has a lot of things some conservative readers might object to. Vampires deliver pizza to Emma and her allies. They stumble onto a cult in which it appears one member is chosen as a sacrifice.

Shadowhunters are said to be descendants of angels and humans. Some seem to worship or pray to certain angels. Some special knives have connections to angels and their powers are “activated” when the user says the angel’s name.

Violent Content
Lots of battle scenes, some pretty gory, some fatal.

Drug Content
Julian’s uncle relies on a drug/potion to restore his mind for short periods of time. The drug leaves him with terrible headaches once it wears off.

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Review: The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett by Chelsea Sedoti

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

The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett
Chelsea Sedoti
Sourcebooks
Available January 3, 2017

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett

Hawthorn didn’t even like Lizzie Lovett, but when the girl disappears and the whole town turns upside down over it, she can’t resist getting involved. At first it’s just a pastime. But as Hawthorn’s unorthodox theory takes shape, she finds herself pulled deeper and deeper into Lizzie’s life. She gets hired at Lizzie’s old job makes friends with her understandably wrecked boyfriend, the guy half the town thinks might have killed Lizzie. As she delves deeper into the girl she never knew, Hawthorn learns how little she understands herself and her own place in the world, and understanding what happened to Lizzie becomes her own transforming journey.

My Review

Hawthorn’s voice has to be the strongest part of this story. I wasn’t immediately crazy about the voice, but the style and its consistency definitely drew me in. This is one of those stories with deeply flawed characters, and my disappointment with those that didn’t rise from the ashes of their mistakes (sorry, no spoilers) made me stop reading for a few moments to grieve. Sometimes you just want better for people—even imaginary ones!

I often struggle reading stories about really unconventional families (probably odd, since I think my family would probably fit that description to those looking in from the outside) and Hawthorn’s family was definitely a struggle. I loved her brother and his best friend.

Fans of Cori McCarthy’s You Were Here should check out The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett. The emotional depth and surprising journey of grief reminded me a lot of You Were Here as did the quirkiness of the main character—though Lizzie Lovett is told only in Hawthorn’s point-of-view as opposed to the multiple perspectives in McCarthy’s novel.

Content

Recommended for Ages 17 up.

Cultural Elements
Pretty generic small-town America.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Extreme profanity used with moderate frequency.

Romance/Sexual Content
Hawthorn reveals the source of her name—her parents conceived her under a hawthorn tree. Later she kisses and has sex with her boyfriend—an experience which leaves her with mixed feelings. She didn’t expect the awkwardness. She wonders about Lizzie’s experience with sex and asks some general questions of Lizzie’s boyfriend. He tells Hawthorn that Lizzie liked sex a lot.

Spiritual Content
Hawthorn explores some unconventional ideas about Lizzie’s disappearance. For instance, could she have transformed into another creature? A group of hippies begins camping in Hawthorn’s backyard, and their leader gives Hawthorn some advice about finding her true name and ways to view life according to his ways.

Hawthorn’s mother told her to be careful what she wished for, especially in terms of wishing ill on others. So when Hawthorn wishes ill on someone, she wishes things that are more often comical or inconvenient, such as wishing that whenever a rival microwaved a frozen burrito, the center would stay cold.

Violent Content
A girl at school makes Hawthorn miserable. She never physically bullies her, but her behavior is emotionally bullying and mean. See spoiler alert below for additional violent content.

Drug Content
Hawthorn goes to a party where teens are drinking. She also gets drunk and sick. At one point her brother comes home drunk and sick. The hippies (and Hawthorn’s mother) smoke pot in the backyard. Lizzie comments that if her mom is smoking pot, she can’t very well condemn her underage drinking.

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

Additional violent content – SPOILER WARNING
Searchers find Lizzie’s body eventually. She died by suicide after hanging herself.