Book Review: Trials of Apollo The Tyrant’s Tomb

The Tyrant’s Tomb by Rick Riordan

The Tyrant’s Tomb (The Trials of Apollo, #4)
by Rick Riordan

3 out of 5 stars

Zeus punishes Apollo by turning him into a mortal human. Apollo must complete various trials and serve a demigod named Meg, so that he can regain his godly status. In this fourth book of the series, Meg and Apollo are trying to turn back the zombie forces of the Triumvirate from attacking New Rome. A prophecy tells them that if they can capture the breath of a dying god, they could summon godly help to face Caligula’s armies.
Apollo and Meg are joined by Hazel, Frank, and Reyna in their quest. Lavinia, a lesbian with a crush on a Poison Oak dryad, breaks all the rules of the 12th Legion to help Meg and Apollo sneak in and out of New Rome on their quest.

Continue reading

Series Review: The Princess in Black 1-3

The Princess in Black Triple Smash!: Three Books in One

Shannon HaleDean HaleLeUyen Pham (illustrator)

5 out of 5 stars

The Princess in Black (The Princess in Black, #1)

Princess Magnolia has a secret identity as the Princess in Black. At home, she wears frilly pink dresses and glass slippers, but then she changes into her monster-fighting black outfit and charges to the rescue when monsters attack the land. The monsters sneak out of the underground monster land to try to eat the goats, but the Princess in Black has the ninja skills to beat them back!

Continue reading

Book Review: A Wizard of Mars

A Wizard of Mars by Diane Duane

A Wizard of Mars (Young Wizards, #9)
by Diane Duane (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

Wizards have been pondering the “Mars problem” for hundreds of years, searching for a message that may have been left by a long dead and forgotten Martian race. Kit is especially obsessed with exploring Mars and looking for answers. When he discovers a mysterious magical presence, he is swept into a series of encounters that change his very identity, and sweep him away from Nita and all his friends. Nita is desperate to find him, and she has to navigate through an ancient prophecy to fight for him and for Earth against the warlike Martians.

Continue reading

Book Review: DragonFire

DragonFire by Donita K. Paul

DragonFire (DragonKeeper Chronicles, #4)
by Donita K. Paul (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

In this fourth book of the series, Kale and Bardon have been married for three years, but they are forced to go on separate quests and they do not like being apart for such a length of time. Kale goes with her father to recruit as many dragons as they can, to fight in the war against the evil wizards. Bardon is sent to shore up the defenses along the coast against an attack of monstrous octopi. They will both be tested beyond their endurance in the midst of this war, but they trust in God to keep them safe and bring them together again.

Continue reading

Book Review: Bunns Rabbit

Bunns Rabbit by Alan Barillaro

Bunns Rabbit
by Alan Barillaro

5 out of 5 stars

Bunns is a rabbit born with short ears. Her parents worry that the superstitious rabbits in the warren will reject her, and they are right. The entire family is going to be evicted from their burrow, because the other rabbits think that Bunns will bring bad luck on the whole meadow. Bunns runs away on her own, hoping that with her gone, her family will be allowed to stay safely in their home. She meets the Spirit Fox who sends Monarch butterflies to lead her through the forest, where she will be tested. If she is found worthy, the Spirit Fox may grant her a wish.

Continue reading

Book Review: DragonKnight

DragonKnight by Donita K. Paul

DragonKnight (DragonKeeper Chronicles, #3)
by  Donita K. Paul (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

In this third book of the series, the story picks up three years after the previous book. Although, Kale joins the story later on, we mostly follow Kale’s friend Bardon, as he tries to make a decision about whether he wants to become a knight of Paladin. He is sent on a sabbatical to ponder his decision, but is swept up in a quest to assist an old granny to find her missing son, a knight who has been cursed with a sleeping spell.

Continue reading

Book Review: Witchlings Scepter of Memories

Scepter of Memories by Claribel A. Ortega

Scepter of Memories
by Claribel A. Ortega

3 out of 5 stars

Seven, Thorn, and Valley are devastated when an evil warlock uses memory hexes to erase the memories of the townsfolk, even erasing the memories of their own families. They hear of a prophecy from hundreds of years ago that could lead to a magical scepter which has the power to restore memories. But the prophecy leads them out into the wastelands beyond the Twelve Towns where monsters abound.

Continue reading

Book Review: DragonQuest

DragonQuest by Donita K. Paul

DragonQuest (DragonKeeper Chronicles, #2)
by Donita K. Paul (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

Kale is now an official servant of Paladin, but she has barely completed three weeks of training at the Hall, before she is sent away to apprentice with the Wizard Fenworth who is having trouble controlling his dragon. As the DragonKeeper, Kale has a special connection with all dragons, but she finds this particular dragon to be quite a challenge.

Continue reading

Book Review: House of Elephants

House of Elephants by Claribel A. Ortega

House of Elephants (Witchlings #3)
by Claribel A. Ortega 

2.5 out of 5 stars
Seven and Thorn are trying to find a magical cure for one of their friends who has been hexed. They begin to realize that the answers lie in the past history of all the Spares in the Twelve Towns. If they can uncover the secrets of the past, they will be able to restore the magical balance and save their friend from the hex.

Continue reading

Book Review: The Dark Prophecy

The Dark Prophecy by Rick Riordan

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2)
by Rick Riordan

3 out of 5 stars

Zeus punishes Apollo by turning him into a mortal human. Apollo must complete various trials and serve a demigod named Meg, so that he can regain his godly status. But Meg has a complicated relationship with her stepfather, the evil emperor Nero. In this second book, they are travelling with Leo Valdez and Calypso to find the oracle of dark prophecy. Anyone who enters the dark caves will go insane when they are given a prophecy, unless they can sit in the throne of memory and expel the prophecy to regain their sanity. But the throne of memory is missing, and the caves of the oracle are heavily guarded.

Continue reading