middle grade fantasy

Book Review: The Burning Maze

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The Burning Maze by Rick Riordan

The Burning Maze (The Trials of Apollo, #3)
by Rick Riordan (Goodreads Author)

4 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 third book, they are travelling with Grover the satyr to find the oracle imprisoned in the burning maze that is part of the Labyrinth. Anyone who enters the maze will fall into fire traps, but the fire is also burning aboveground in some places and causing wildfires throughout Southern California. The dryads and other nature spirits are suffering from drought and fire, and Grover vows to help them. They enlist Jason Grace and Piper McLean to help with their quest, but Jason and Piper have their own problems.

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Book Review: DragonQuest

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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.

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Book Review: House of Elephants

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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.

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Book Review: Magnus Chase: The Hammer of Thor

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The Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan

The Hammer of Thor (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, #2)
by  Rick Riordan

Magnus and his friends are tasked with finding Thor’s missing hammer, but as usual, Loki has his own mysterious plans for them. They receive a tip that the hammer might be buried in a Viking barrow, so they decide to track it down. Loki is up to his old tricks and it will take all of Magnus’ courage and resourcefulness to retrieve the hammer and hopefully not get killed by giants.

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Book Review: Witchlings: The Golden Frog Games

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The Golden Frog Games by Claribel A. Ortega

The Golden Frog Games (Witchlings, #2)
by Claribel A. Ortega 

3 out of 5 stars

Seven and her friends, Valley and Thorn, are excited to participate in the famous Golden Frog Games, but someone is hexing the other participants. The friends start investigating the attacks, but Seven is distracted because she is also hiding a secret that she worries could ruin her magic.

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Book Review: Trials of Apollo: The Hidden Oracle

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The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo, #1)
by Rick Riordan

4 out of 5 stars

Zeus punishes Apollo by turning him into a mortal human. Apollo must complete various trials and serve a demigod, so that he can regain his godly status. The first demigod he meets is a street urchin named Meg, and she claims his service. He agrees to take her to Camp Half-Blood, hoping they will be safe there, but when they arrive, campers are missing and Apollo starts hearing strange voices. The Oracle can’t see the future, so they are blind and can’t authorize any quests until the Oracle is freed.

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Book Review: Magnus Chase The Sword of Summer

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The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

The Sword of Summer (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, #1)
by Rick Riordan 

5 out of 5 stars

Magnus has been living on the streets ever since his mother died. They say it was an explosion, but Magnus knows she was killed by wolves with glowing eyes. In fact, a lot of strange things have been happening, so when Magnus’ weird uncle tells him that their family is involved with the gods of Norse mythology, a lot of things start to make sense to Magnus. His uncle tells him to find the long-lost Sword of Summer, but a fire giant attacks Boston and Magnus has no idea how to fight a legendary giant even if he could find and retrieve the lost sword.

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Book Review: The Perilous Gard

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The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope

The Perilous Gard
by Elizabeth Marie Pope

5 out of 5 stars

Kate Sutton is banished from the Queen’s court and forced into house-arrest at a remote castle with Sir Geoffrey Heron as her guardian. There Kate hears wild rumors about fairy folk and dark magic in the forest and caves surrounding the castle. There is a holy well that seems to grant healing and good fortune to those who drop money into it, but a child was lost down the well and Sir Geoffrey and his brother Christopher warn Kate to stay away from the area. Despite their warnings, Kate begins to suspect that something evil is lurking about the castle and she starts to ask questions about the mysterious fairy folk. She learns of their terrible tradition to commit a human sacrifice in order to gather the power of a human life to sustain their spells.

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Book Review: A Wish in the Dark

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A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat

A Wish in the Dark
by Christina Soontornvat (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

Pong was born in prison, and he escapes with a tattoo that marks him as a criminal. A kindly monk takes him and covers the mark with bracelets. Each bracelet represents a blessing. Pong hides in plain sight, joining the monks in their prayers and charitable deeds.
Nok, the daughter of the prison warden, is determined to prove herself by tracking down the escaped prisoner and bringing him to justice. However, she begins to realize that justice and the law might not always agree.

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Book Review: Skyriders – The Sky King

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The Sky King by Polly Holyoke

The Sky King (Skyriders)
by Polly Holyoke (Goodreads Author)

4.5 out of 5 stars
In this second book, Kie is grieving for the losses her nation suffered during the chimerae war of the previous book. She has terrible nightmares of the people she saw killed in the war, and her greatest fear is that she will again be placed in a position to relay more orders that send skysteeds and their riders to their deaths in battle. When she is asked to accompany the prince on a diplomatic mission to the wild skysteeds, Kie is hopeful that they will be able to convince the king of the wild skysteeds to help them defend their land against the chimerae. However, Kie’s skysteed N’Rah disagrees with her. For the first time, they have a serious disagreement and they have to learn to navigate their delicate relationship in a new way.

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