A pair embarks on a quest for a cure in this inventive and entertaining story that young fantasy readers should eagerly...
To save their cousin’s life, two siblings decide to return to the lair of a villainous great-aunt in this middle-grade sequel.
In McEvoy’s (The Muses: Escaping Montague Manor, 2014) previous fantasy series installment, Sarah and Nickolas McGuire had been sent to live in Australia with their grandmother’s sister, Vivian, after their parents were seriously injured in a car accident. Soon after arriving, however, they discovered that Vivian was an evil woman who had imprisoned 14 mythical Muses in her garden at Montague Manor in the form of statues. Over the course of the novel, the young siblings rescued the Muses and escaped Vivian’s clutches, along with their cousin, Simon, whom she had also been keeping captive for 50 years but who, due to her magic, hadn’t aged a day and still looked like a boy. This new novel picks up a mere week or so after the conclusion of the previous one, with Sarah and Nickolas acclimating to life back at their grandma Vera’s house but now with Simon living with them as well. On the night of Sarah’s half-birthday, however, their lives are thrown into upheaval again when Simon suffers some sort of attack, the symptoms of what seems to be a serious illness that the doctors can’t figure out. Ultimately, Sarah and Nickolas determine that returning to Montague Manor is their only option for finding a remedy. Much like the previous novel, this sequel is filled with beautifully conceived and fully fleshed-out characters both heroic and sinister whose adventures are a pleasure to join in. It also features a similarly uneasy blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements, along with a sprawling page count that could have easily been trimmed with some judicious editing. Putting that aside, however, this is a lovingly constructed tale brimming with imagination and full of fantastic revelations that add further depth and scope to the series’ already rich family history. The book ends on a genuinely surprising twist that promises even greater things to come in future installments.
A pair embarks on a quest for a cure in this inventive and entertaining story that young fantasy readers should eagerly devour.Pub Date: July 15, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-9908933-0-1
Page Count: 470
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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