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BLOOD BROTHERS IN LOUISBOURG

Name: BLOOD BROTHERS IN LOUISBOURG
Author: Philip Roy
ISBN: 978-1-897009-72-7

by Philip Roy ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2012

This rather dry offering may find a place in a history classroom; however, the lack of an absorbing story and truly...

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In 1744, two brothers, unbeknownst to each other, arrive at the French fortress of Louisbourg in what is now Nova Scotia and find themselves swept up in what is destined to be an important battle between the French and English.

Jacques, a scholar and musician at heart whose mother resides in France, has been forced by his officer father into the French army and required to accompany him to Louisbourg to help defend the fortress. Jacque’s half brother, Two-Feathers, the son of a Mi’kmaq woman, begins sneaking around the stronghold in hopes of identifying and perhaps meeting the father he has never known. Chapters alternate between the third-person perspective of Two-Feathers and the first-person narration of Jacques, a narrative strategy presumably designed to shed light on the Mi’kmaq and French cultures as well as on their perceptions of each other. In the closest thing to an interesting plot twist, Jacques finds happiness only when he teaches a young French woman to play the violoncello, while Two-Feathers spends his time finding food for, and falling in love with, this same young woman.

This rather dry offering may find a place in a history classroom; however, the lack of an absorbing story and truly compelling characters will cause most casual readers to soon abandon the tale, if they pick it up in the first place. (Historical fiction. 12-17)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2012

ISBN: 978-1-897009-72-7

Page Count: 146

Publisher: Cape Breton University Press

Review Posted Online: July 18, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

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SO THE SIGN SAID

by Natasha Osteen ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 19, 2012

These comic turns of phrase and the novel’s palpable warmth should win it some fans, particularly among readers who like...

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New York City girl goes to small-town Texas. Comedy and romance ensue.

When Jordan’s crazy uncle Jacob is arrested in China for smuggling Bibles, her divinity-professor father decides to fill in at his church for the summer, dragging Jordan and her corporate-lawyer mother along with him. The town of Ashworth has the usual collection of quirky eccentrics: supertalented Latino youth-group leader and chef; little-old-lady bookkeeper and gambler; perky, blonde, hedgehog-toting wannabe superstar; hot, brooding boy librarian and bottle-washer; redneck bad boy; etc. While her father inflicts his university-level theology lectures (complete with PowerPoint) on his brother’s flock every week and her mother goes Stepford after losing her biggest client, Jordan slowly succumbs to the charms of Ashworth, particularly those of Knox, the brooding boy with tragedy in his past. While Osteen’s debut breaks no new ground in the plot department and at times struggles with characterization and language, it nevertheless has its fair share of good one-liners. As Jordan’s father lectures her about the proper use of “y’all,” she reflects that “now, rather than hanging out in Greenwich Village, I had to concern myself with incorrect country bumpkin grammar.”

These comic turns of phrase and the novel’s palpable warmth should win it some fans, particularly among readers who like their romance on the sweet, not steamy side . (Fiction. 12-16)

Pub Date: Oct. 19, 2012

ISBN: 978-1-937327-07-1

Page Count: 232

Publisher: Moonshine Cove Publishing

Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2012

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

BLAZE (OR LOVE IN THE TIME OF SUPERVILLAINS)

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BLAZE (OR LOVE IN THE TIME OF SUPERVILLAINS)

by Laurie Boyle Crompton ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2013

Timely subject matter and an adequate romance, but nothing super.

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Geeky girl with absent father and quirky hobby meets unsuitable boy, then realizes Mr. Right has been under her nose all along.

Blaze's self-centered father, a caricature, left the family to become an actor, leaving her with only her name (from Ghost Rider's Johnny Blaze) and a love for classic Marvel Comics. Now, Blaze spends her time ferrying her 13-year-old brother Josh and his farting, breast-ogling, gay-joke–making friends to and from soccer practice. She has a crush on Mark, Josh's soccer coach, but their relationship fails to progress until Blaze's friend snaps a picture of Blaze trying on lingerie and sends it to Mark's phone. After a confusing and pressure-filled sexual encounter and Mark's subsequent brushoff, Mark posts the half-naked photo on clunkily named Facebook stand-in FriendsPlace, and it goes viral. The resultant bullying is harsh but believable, and it's satisfying to see Blaze channeling her hurt and anger into making comics and redecorating her Superturd of a minivan. Less impressive, however, are some of Blaze's asides to the reader (“Stuart is one of only three black students in our school....I feel somewhat hip and urban having him here at my house”) and the frequent subtle digs at girls being high-maintenance, stalkers, actual sluts and brainwashing feminists.

Timely subject matter and an adequate romance, but nothing super. (Fiction. 12-16)