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Tag Archives: Young Adult Fiction

Eventide, By Sarah Goodman ~ 4.5 Stars

18 Friday Sep 2020

Posted by By Hook Or By Book: Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff in Uncategorized

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Southern Gothic, Young Adult Fiction

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Thanks to NetGalley and Tor Teen for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 6th, 2020

336 Pages

Synopsis: MADNESS, SECRETS, AND LIES

Wheeler, Arkansas, 1907

When their father descends into madness after the death of their mother, Verity Pruitt and her little sister Lilah find themselves on an orphan train to rural Arkansas.

In Wheeler, eleven-year-old Lilah is quickly adopted but seventeen-year-old Verity is not. Desperate to stay close to her sister, Verity indentures herself as a farmhand. But even charming farm boy Abel Atchley can’t completely distract her from the sense that something is not quite right in this little town. Strange local superstitions abound, especially about the eerie old well at the center of the forest. The woods play tricks, unleashing heavy fog and bone-chilling cold…and sometimes visions of things that aren’t there.

But for Verity, perhaps the most unsettling revelation of all is that her parents have a scandalous history in this very town. And as she tries to unearth the past, sinister secrets come with it—secrets that someone will go to violent lengths to protect…

A haunting tale of long-buried secrets, small-town scandal, and single-minded vengeance by talented debut novelist Sarah Goodman.

Eventide is the debut novel by Sarah Cooper, and while its slow burning suspense might not be for everyone, I thoroughly enjoyed the eerie Southern gothic theme, as well as the fascinating characters and intriguing mystery. I have to be honest and say that Verity annoyed me at first with her rather know-it-all attitude, but there’s so much more behind that initial obnoxiousness. Likewise, there’s similar complexity with all the characters, even the villain who winds up deserving of a small amount of sympathy. The mystery and how everything ultimately comes together, kept me turning the pages even though there were some slow spots. There are some reviewers who have criticized that there weren’t enough fantasy/supernatural elements until the near the end, but I actually liked how they were tantalizingly kept under the surface. Overall, Eventide is an excellent YA debut by Cooper and I unhesitatingly recommend it. I’m looking forward to seeing what she comes out with next.

Spinning Starlight ~ by R.C. Lewis – 3.0 Stars

07 Monday Sep 2015

Posted by By Hook Or By Book: Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff in Uncategorized

≈ 18 Comments

Tags

Fairytale Retellings, Family Relationships, Science Fiction, Young Adult Fiction

24565038 I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Disney-Hyperion in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 6th, 2015

Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old heiress and paparazzi darling Liddi Jantzen hates the spotlight. But as the only daughter in the most powerful tech family in the galaxy, it’s hard to escape it. So when a group of men show up at her house uninvited, she assumes it’s just the usual media-grubs. That is, until shots are fired.

Liddi escapes, only to be pulled into an interplanetary conspiracy more complex than she ever could have imagined. Her older brothers have been caught as well, trapped in the conduits between the the planets. And when their captor implants a device in Liddi’s vocal cords to monitor her speech, their lives are in her hands: One word and her brothers are dead.

Desperate to save her family from a desolate future, Liddi travels to another world, where she meets the one person who might have the skills to help her bring her eight brothers home–a handsome dignitary named Tiav. But without her voice, Liddi must use every bit of her strength and wit to convince Tiav that her mission is true. With the tenuous balance of the planets deeply intertwined with her brothers’ survival, just how much is Liddi willing to sacrifice to bring them back?

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this, but I love fairytale retellings so when I saw this new spin (Sorry, I couldn’t resist) on the classic The Wild Swans, by Hans Christian Anderson, I was quite excited. Sadly for me, despite a fascinating plot, and compelling characters, the story got bogged down by a myriad of technical details and convoluted world-building which had me having to re-read passages in order to make sense of things, and let me tell you that’s not easy to do on a Kindle.

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Given that this is a science-fiction adaptation of a fairytale, there’s lots of world building. When Spinning Starlight begins, there are eight planets (although other worlds are added later). Travel between them is done through “conduits” which are like transportation portals. The problem is they’re starting to break down. The villain of the piece thinks that by trapping the Jantzen brothers inside them, they can be used as some sort of stabilizing anchor. At least I think that’s the method behind the madness. Even now after I’ve finished the book though, I’m still not sure. This is just one of the many, many things I found confusing. Honestly, I felt like a dunderhead throughout much of the book. 

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What worked for me though were the characters. I loved Liddi and Tiav. Liddi is this wonderful mix of sass and vulnerability. Great things have always been expected from her, yet so far she hasn’t been able to display any of the technical genius that her older brothers have shown. The story is told from her perspective so the reader is let into all her personal thoughts and feelings. You can completely understand her frustration and insecurity. By the end of the book, she finally comes into her own, and it’s a pleasure to see. Tiav is also a likeable character and even though you don’t get to know him as intimately as Liddi, there’s no doubt he’s courageous and loyal despite battling his own insecurities and responsibilities. The romance takes a backseat through most of the book, which is a good thing because there’s so much going on this would have just been one more unnecessary complication.

I think what I really loved about this book was the relationship between Liddi and her eight older brothers. Because their parents died when Liddi was only six the brothers are extremely protective and caring toward her. Liddi completely adores them yet because of her lack of technical prowess, doesn’t feel like she truly belongs. You can literally feel how much they all love each other, especially when during the passages when Liddi is remembering certain events in her childhood. It not only gives you more insight into her, but also into this rather unique family of geniuses.

I’m giving Spinning Starlight 3.0 stars because due to my own weaknesses concerning technology, I’m just not sure if I’m being completely fair. I think for those of you who are more left brain thinkers, this might be a decent read for you, especially if you like science fiction. I also want to say that this book is supposed to be a companion to the author’s first YA novel Stitching Snow. It’s set in the same universe, but with different characters. Unfortunately I’m left feeling extremely conflicted and frustrated, although because I loved the characters and the premise so much, I probably will try going back and read the first book. Hmph. I hate feeling this way after finishing a book. It makes me quite cranky.

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Silver in the Blood ~ by Jessica Day George – 3.0 Stars

06 Monday Jul 2015

Posted by By Hook Or By Book: Book Reviews, News, & Other Stuff in Uncategorized

≈ 21 Comments

Tags

Dracula, Historical Fiction, Paranormal Fiction, Romania, Shape-Shifters, Young Adult Fiction

9781619634312_p0_v2_s300x  I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Bloomsbury USA Children’s in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: July 7, 2015

Synopsis ~ Society girls from New York City circa 1890, Dacia and Lou never desired to know more about their lineage, instead preferring to gossip about the mysterious Romanian family that they barely knew. But upon turning seventeen, the girls must return to their homeland to meet their relatives, find proper husbands, and –most terrifyingly–learn the deep family secrets of The Claw, The Wing, and The Smoke. The Florescus, after all are shape-shifters, and it is time for Davis and Lou to fulfill the prophecy that demands their acceptance of this fate…or fight against this cruel inheritance with all their might.

I’m a fan of Jessica Day George’s YA fairytale retellings, so between that and the gorgeous cover, I was quite excited when I saw this. Then, when I read the summary and discovered it was set in 1897 and involved a family of shape-shifters in Romania, well, I was even more intrigued.

Cousins Dacia Vreeholt and Louisa Neulander, are actually more like sisters. Dacia is a bit flighty, while Lou tends to be more quiet and thoughtful. The first part of the book is set up through a series of journal entries and letters between the girls as they journey separately to Romania. Lou is traveling from New York with her family, and Dacia is coming with their aunt. Once in Bucharest, the girls realize their strange relatives, the Florescus, socialize only with the Dracula family, descendents of Vlad the Impaler. Dacia meets the scion Prince Mihai, and the girls ferocious and intimidating grandmother does everything she can to push Dacia into the arms of the Prince. While he originally exudes charm, it soon becomes apparent that not only is he unbelievably arrogant, but there is also something quite frightening about him. In addition both girls are being primed to take their proper roles in the family, but they don’t really know what that entails. They do know that everything will be revealed during a mysterious ceremony. Once they discover the true relationship between the Florescus and the Draculas, they will have to choose between family loyalty and what is right.

The weakest part of this book unfortunately involves the characters. Dacia and Lou are quite likeable, although Dacia annoyed the heck out of me at first. She’s a flirt and can’t seem to make up her mind regarding the men in her life. She does mature though, especially once the action starts kicking in about halfway through the story. Lou, who starts out as being very shy and frightened of everything, actually becomes pretty fierce, and it was a pleasure watching her transformation. The girls’ relationship is at the heart of the book, and it’s because of that, they are ultimately successful in their mission. There’s not a lot of romance, which wound up working out for the best because the girls’ romantic interests need a lot more development. Johnny and Theo were just a little too bland for my taste and there was very little chemistry. The secondary characters need more work as well. Except for the almost cartoonishly evil grandmother and Prince Mihai, no one else really stood out. 

The story starts out a little slow, but once the girls meet up in Bucharest the momentum picks up. The storyline is helped by lavish descriptions of Bucharest and the Romanian countryside. It’s obvious that George really did her research. From the way the story ended it’s clear that Silver in the Blood is the beginning of a series. I think it shows a lot of promise if the author can just work on the character issues.

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