fantasy

Book Review: The Ogress and the Orphans

Posted by

0

The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill

The Ogress and the Orphans
by Kelly Barnhill (Goodreads Author)

4.5 out of 5 stars

When an ogress moves in just outside of town, the townspeople begin to blame her for everything that has gone wrong for years, even before she arrived! Their bad luck had all started years before when the Library had burned down. Thank goodness for their wonderful Mayor who is working to restore the town and get rid of the Ogress. But there are a few children in the orphanage who begin to wonder if the Mayor is really so wonderful and if the Ogress is really so evil. Anthea is good at problem-solving. Bartleby is a philosopher who asks the hard questions, and his sister Cass is quiet but brave. These three children look at their crumbling town and decide to finally do something to help.

Continue reading →

Book Review: A Forthcoming Wizard

Posted by

0

A Forthcoming Wizard by Jody Lynn Nye

A Forthcoming Wizard (Tildi Summerbee, #2)
by Jody Lynn Nye (Goodreads Author)

3.5 out of 5 stars

Tildi and her friends have almost completed their quest to find a dangerous magical book and lock it up where no one can use it for harm. But now Tildi has fallen into the clutches of a radical group called the Scholardom, who believe that only humans are pure. They want to magically change all centaurs, dwarves, werewolves, and other half-human creatures to be completely human. If they gain control of the magical book, it would be disastrous. Tildi is the only one who can touch the book, so she is at the center of all their plans.

Continue reading →

Book Review: An Unexpected Apprentice

Posted by

0

An Unexpected Apprentice by Jody Lynn Nye

An Unexpected Apprentice (Tildi Summerbee, #1)
by Jody Lynn Nye (Goodreads Author)

4 out of 5 stars

Tildi lives a simple life on the farm with her brothers in the land of the smallfolk. But when her brothers are all killed by monsters, the council says that a woman cannot manage a farm by herself, and they say they will force Tildi to get married. So she runs away and travels out into the world of the humans, centaurs, and elves. Before her brother died, he had applied to become an apprentice to a famous wizard, so Tildi dresses up like a boy and takes the letter of apprentice as her own. But first, she has to get to the city where the wizard lives.

Continue reading →

Book Review: The League of Seven

Posted by

0

The League of Seven by Alan Gratz

The League of Seven (The League of Seven, #1)
by Alan Gratz (Goodreads Author), Brett Helquist (Illustrator)

3.5 out of 5 stars

Archie’s parents are part of the Septemberist Society, a secret organization that has kept evil monsters locked away for centuries. When the Swarm Queen begins to awaken out of her prison, Archie’s parents are kidnapped and brainwashed to release the monster. Archie and his robot servant have to unravel the secrets of the ancient civilizations that imprisoned all the monsters in the first place. Along the way, Archie befriends two other children who are also searching for answers… and revenge.

Continue reading →

Book Review: The Maze in the Heart of the Castle

Posted by

0

The Maze in the Heart of the Castle by Dorothy Gilman

The Maze in the Heart of the Castle
by Dorothy Gilman

5 out of 5 stars

When his parents die unexpectedly, Colin goes searching for answers. He hears of a mysterious wise man who guards the entrance to a maze. Colin enters the maze, accepting the challenge to find a new country where his questions will be answered and his grief assuaged. Along an arduous journey, he meets people who have given up in despair, those who have turned to evil, and those who are willing to help him and guide him through the maze. But ultimately, Colin must answer his own heart and find the inner strength to endure.

Continue reading →

Series Review: Moongobble and Me

Posted by

0

The Dragon of Doom by Bruce Coville

The Dragon of Doom (Moongobble and Me, #1)
by Bruce Coville, Katherine Coville (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Edward becomes the assistant to a new magician who just moved into a cottage outside of the village. But Moongobble is not a very good magician. He is still learning magic and hoping to be admitted into the exclusive magician’s guild. He has to complete several quests in order to prove his worth to the other magicians, and Edward is coming along to help!

Continue reading →

Book Review: Woodwalkers: Holly’s Secret

Posted by

0

Holly's Secret (3) by Katja Brandis

Holly’s Secret (3) (The Woodwalkers)
by Katja Brandis, Rachel Ward  (Translation), Claudia Carls (Illustrations)

4 out of 5 stars

Carag and his shape-shifting friends begin to investigate a strange burglary at the local bank. They wonder if a woodwalker could be involved, but Carag worries that Holly might be up to her old thieving tricks again. She is known for being a petty pickpocket, but she wouldn’t do something as risky as rob a bank, would she?

Continue reading →

Book Review: Elf Dog and Owl Head

Posted by

0

Elf Dog and Owl Head by M.T. Anderson

Elf Dog and Owl Head
by M.T. Anderson, Junyi Wu (Illustrator)

5 out of 5 stars

Clay is tired of being stuck at home during the pandemic, tired of online school, and tired of being trapped in the house with his annoying family. He goes out exploring the woods behind his home and he encounters an elf-hound who has gotten separated from the elven hunt. The elves have all gone back underground to their magic kingdom, and Elphinore is left alone in the world aboveground. The elf-dog leads Clay along secret paths in the woods that lead to magic places, where Clay sees a community of owl-head people. Clay is dealing with mysterious lands and dangerous magical folk and is bound to get into serious trouble, but Elphinore will always be by his side to protect him.

Continue reading →

Book Review: The Rogue Crew

Posted by

0

The Rogue Crew by Brian Jacques

The Rogue Crew (Redwall, #22)
by Brian Jacques, Sean Rubin (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

In this last book of the Redwall series, a nasty crew of vermin pirates are heading for Redwall to plunder and kill. The hares of Salamandastron have seen the pirates traveling up the coast and are in pursuit, hoping to intercept them before they can reach Redwall. They call on the Rogue Crew of sea otters from the North Coast to help them in their mission.

Continue reading →

Book Review: The Dark is Rising

Posted by

0

The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper

The Dark Is Rising (The Dark is Rising, #2)
by Susan Cooper (Goodreads Author)

4.5 out of 5 stars

Will Stanton is the seventh son of a seventh son. On his 11th birthday, he discovers that he is an Old One, a special race of people who are endowed with magical abilities so that they can protect humanity from the Dark. Will is trained in his new abilities by Merriman Lyon (the modern Merlin). Will is sent on a quest through time to retrieve the Signs, which will help the Light to keep back the Dark Rider.

Continue reading →