middle grade fantasy

Book Review: Skyriders

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Skyriders by Polly Holyoke

Skyriders
by Polly Holyoke (Goodreads Author)

4.5 out of 5 stars

In a land where human riders can communicate telepathically with their pegasus steeds, one man has made a special study of how the ancient peoples fought off a scourge of monsters called chimerae. When the chimerae return, he entrusts a book full of his research to his niece, Kie. She and her stysteed, N’Rah, must take the book to the capital city and somehow convince the emperor to use these ancient battle techniques. Kie has been practicing using special weapons that her uncle taught her about, and she is hoping to demonstrate how effective they are against the monsters.

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Book Review: Handbook for Dragon Slayers

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Handbook for Dragon Slayers by Merrie Haskell

Handbook for Dragon Slayers
by Merrie Haskell (Goodreads Author)

4 out of 5 stars

Princess Tilda thinks that her townspeople hate her because they believe her deformed foot is unlucky or cursed. She hobbles around the castle on crutches, and the maids make a sign against the evil eye behind her back. Tilda wishes she could run away from her princess duties and be free to write her own book as a scribe. When her cousin tries to steal the family lands, Tilda is rescued by two dragon slayers and they start tracking down a dragon to kill. The only problem is… these dragon slayers have never actually killed a dragon.

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Book Review: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Wrath of the Triple Goddess

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Wrath of the Triple Goddess by Rick Riordan

Wrath of the Triple Goddess (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #7)
by Rick Riordan (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

Percy needs three recommendation letters from three gods in order to get into college with Annabeth next year. So he teams up with Annabeth and Grover for a few last quests to earn those godly recommendation letters. Their second task is to pet-sit a polecat and hellhound for the scary triple goddess, Hecate. These pets are terrifying and wild, and Hecate’s home is a creepy mansion full of secrets and weird bathrooms. The pets do not look friendly, but Percy is determined to follow Hecate’s instructions and keep the pets alive and well for the entire week. All while trying to pass his regular school classes and graduate senior year.

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Book Review: Demigods and Magicians

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Demigods & Magicians by Rick Riordan

Demigods & Magicians: Percy and Annabeth Meet the Kanes
by Rick Riordan (Goodreads Author)

4 out of 5 stars

Carter Kane is hunting a wayward Egyptian crocodile monster when he encounters a guy wearing a “Camp” Something t-shirt. Apparently Percy is after the same monster, and he is hefting a serious magical sword. But Carter has his own brand of magic, and the two young men aren’t quite sure what to make of each other. But one thing is for sure… they can’t defeat this monster on their own. They will have to team up and fight side by side!

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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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