middle grade fantasy

Book Review: Falcon Quinn and the Black Mirror

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Falcon Quinn and the Black Mirror by Jennifer Finney Boylan

Falcon Quinn and the Black Mirror (Falcon Quinn, #1)
by Jennifer Finney Boylan (Goodreads Author), Brandon Dorman (Illustrations)

4 out of 5 stars

Falcon Quinn and two neighbor kids board the school bus one morning and are whisked away to the Monster Academy, where they will discover their monster natures. Max finds out that he is actually a sasquatch, and Megan appears to be some sort of elemental. But no one is sure what Falcon might be. The teachers and nursing staff do all sorts of tests, but they can’t find out what type of monster he is. All around him the other kids are turning into werewolves, zombies, vampires, and even a little tiny Chupacabra from Peru. But Falcon is a mystery.

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Book Review: The Serpent’s Shadow and The Kane Chronicles Survival Guide

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The Serpent's Shadow by Rick Riordan

The Serpent’s Shadow (The Kane Chronicles, #3)
by Rick Riordan (Goodreads Author)

4 out of 5 stars

In this final book of the Kane Chronicles trilogy, Sadie and Carter are facing off against the evil Serpent Apophis. They have gathered many allies around them, but their enemies are more powerful than ever. There is only one way to stop Apophis from rising and devouring the sun; they must discover an ancient spell hidden by a magician who died centuries ago. Fortunately, their father has power in the Duat to locate the magician’s ghost. Unfortunately, the ghost is insanely murderous and sure to betray them. It’s just another day for the Kane siblings, fighting off monsters and doing the impossible.

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Book Review: Kane Chronicles The Throne of Fire

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The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan

The Throne of Fire (The Kane Chronicles, #2)
by Rick Riordan (Goodreads Author)

4 out of 5 stars

Sadie and Carter Kane have started recruiting new magicians to their cause to restore the balance between the Egyptian gods. They have a whole school of kids and teens who want to learn Egyptian magic, but will it be enough to fight the coming battle against chaos? The school can only hold off the magicians from the House of Life while Sadie and Carter go on a dangerous quest to awaken the ancient sun god Ra. They get help from a dwarf god to find three magic scrolls that will awaken Ra. Sadie gets closer to one of the students her own age, and Carter is desperate to find Zia, who has been hidden away by a powerful enchantment.

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Book Review: The Ogress and the Orphans

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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.

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Book Review: Mwikali and the Forbidden Mask

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Mwikali and the Forbidden Mask by Shiko Nguru

Mwikali and the Forbidden Mask (The Intasimi Warriors Book 1)
by Shiko Nguru

3.5 out of 5 stars
On her first day at a new school, Mwikali discovers that she is descended from a long line of Kenyans with mystical powers. She and her friends must find and destroy the dreaded Forbidden Mask before the powers of darkness can gather and unleash its evil power.

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Book Review: A Spoonful of Time

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A Spoonful of Time by Flora Ahn

A Spoonful of Time
by Flora Ahn (Goodreads Author)

4 out of 5 stars

Maya’s grandmother moves in, and the two begin cooking their favorite Korean recipes together. Maya discovers that her grandmother has the ability to revisit moments of her past, using food as the memory trigger to time travel. They can’t change the past, but can only watch themselves reliving those same moments, frozen in time. Maya has many questions about her Korean family, her father’s death, and why her mother is so sad and distant. She hopes that these visits to the past will provide answers, but the more Maya finds out about her family, the more questions she has.

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Book Review: Over Sea, Under Stone

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Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper

Over Sea, Under Stone (The Dark Is Rising, #1)
by Susan Cooper (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

The Drew children are on holiday in Cornwall, renting the old Captain’s house while he is away. They explore through the dusty attics of the house and discover what appears to be an ancient map with the name Arturus Rex. They embark on an adventure to recover a lost treasure that tells the true story of King Arthur. But there are others who also search for the treasure for their own nefarious purposes. The children’s Great-Uncle Merry warns them of the constant battle between good and evil, and tries to protect them as they search for the treasure.

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Book Review: The Rat Queen

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The Rat Queen by Pete Hautman

The Rat Queen
by Pete Hautman

2.5 stars
Annie’s father teaches her to write down all the bad things she does and feed the paper into a little hole in the floor of their house. After she drops the paper into the “sin eater” hole, her regrets and guilt go away and she feels better. Annie hears a mysterious skittering and chattering in the cellar, and the neighbors begin to report seeing rats around the neighborhood. Annie learns about her Litvanian heritage and the dark secrets of her family past.

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Book Review: Always, Clementine

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Always, Clementine by Carlie Sorosiak

Always, Clementine
by Carlie Sorosiak (Goodreads Author)

3.5 out of 5 stars
Clementine is a lab mouse. A genetic experiment has given her super-intelligence and she does her best to solve every maze and puzzle that the team of scientists give her. Clementine befriends a chimp named Rosie in one of the lab cages. When a scientist with a guilty conscience sets Clementine free, she begins a wild journey to prove her worth and hopefully save Rosie from the lab too. In the meantime, Clementine writes letters to Rosie (which are never written or posted) and tells Rosie all her adventures.

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Book Review: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

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The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia, #3)
by C.S. Lewis, Pauline Baynes (Illustrator)

5 out of 5 stars

Lucy and Edmund are back in Narnia, this time accompanied by their annoying cousin, Eustace. The siblings join King Caspian again, this time on a quest to the Eastern edge of the world. They sail through rough seas, encounter sea monsters, chart magical islands, and fight battles. But the greatest adventure of all is what they find at the edge of the world.

This one is my favorite of all the Narnia books! It appeals to something deep inside me on many levels. The magical adventures, the spiritual themes, poor sad Eustace and his character development, the beautiful imagery, and the imaginative settings all resonate with me in special ways. There are so many sweet little moments that tug at your heart!

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