Jake and the Gingerbread Wars by E.G. Foley

 

Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Source: I own a copy

This is a charming book about a young boy who once lived in an orphanage but was now an Earl. While walking through town with his cousins and friend, they visit two different pastry shops. This is where their adventure begins. The two bakers who at one time cared for each other were not warring against each other. Jake discovers that there is mischief and magic behind it all.  With the ability of telekinesis and his friends and family with him, he sets out to make things right. His adventures have him chasing an elf and meeting Santa, Yetis, Jack Frost, and the Ice Princess.  This is a short Christmas novella that falls between books 3 and 4 in the Gryphon Chronicles by E.G. Foley.  This can be read as a stand-alone book. However, I personally want to check out the other books in this series—great adventure with a touch of magic.

Student Saturday: All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Source: Young Adult, Mystery
Student Reviewer: Paige H.

 I'm a DIEHARD Naturals fan. So, when I read All In by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, you knew I HAD to do a book report on it. "All In" is the third book from the Naturals series, and OH MY! This book was excellent. I also solved the mysteries with the characters while reading, keeping me on my toes the whole time. Like the plot twists! I was mentally pinning the points, thinking of what would happen next, like who would get hurt? What's this character going to do now? All that stuff. I felt very immersed in the book. Also, the character development in this book!! It was amazing; I learned more about Sloane, Micheal, Lia, and everyone. 

Man, this book was a fantastic read! In this book, "The Naturals" heads to Las Vegas to help solve a string of murders, but suspects don't pop up quickly, so this time, they really must dig for clues. Now, the ways the victims were murdered were typical, but for some reason, they have numbers or codes imprinted on their wrists. It's nothing like any cold cases the naturals have solved before. But wait, that's not all. For the first time in years, there's been a crack in her mother's murder case, which can change Cassie's view on everything. The tension is thick between the Naturals, and people's lives, including their own, are at risk. It is now indeed a race between time. Can Naturals solve this case? Cassie, the main character, is a profiler with a unique set of skills. Her orange hair and blue eyes are just the beginning. She deeply cares about everyone, but sometimes her emotions can cloud her judgment. Dean is also a profiler, and he's dating Cassie. He has blonde hair and hazel eyes. He can be pretty mysterious, but you can see him open to the group throughout the books. Sloane is the definition of an AI. She knows anything and everything, and she's fantastic with numbers. He has blonde hair and blue eyes, and she's a sweetheart. The case that the naturals are solving hits too close to home for her. Lia is a human lie detector; she can instantly identify any lie. She has monolids, black hair and dark eyes. She can be nice, but also very direct. Micheal is an emotional reader. Knowing this, he can hide his emotions well. He has brown hair and brown eyes; he's an extrovert at its finest. The Naturals stay in Las Vegas, Nevada. Where they stay in a fancy high-end hotel (Thanks to Micheal's money). The hotel is near different casinos and shops, which can help the Naturals relax while working on this case. 

To conclude, this book is hands down excellent. The plot twists, characters, everything. This book is PACKED with details, so I learned a lot! It's incredible how the author specializes explicitly in stuff like this. (while doing research I found an about the author on Goodreads) For example, the about her says, "Jen graduated high school in 2002, and from Yale University with a degree in cognitive science (The study of the brain and thought) in May of 2006." So, this book was very descriptive; it made me even more obsessed! I give this book a solid 8.7 out of 10. I recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers or young adult books.

Appointed by Kandi J. Wyatt

 

Appointed by Kandi J. Wyatt

 

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Source: I received an advanced copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This is the seventh book in the “Four Stars Over Ardatz: Sovereigns” series. In this book we meet Shawnahur. His friends and family call him Shawn. He is the youngest of eight children. His three older brothers are away at war. Shawn is a drover of pucklings. He and his dog watch over these wooly haired duck like animals.  When his brothers come home on leave they love to tell stories of the battles they are fighting. One afternoon while watching his pucklings his dog begins to bark. Shawn checks out the situation looking for whatever danger may be headed toward his animals. What he finds is a small lizard like creature who has its leg stuck between two rocks. As he reaches to help it, the creature lowers his beak and touches Shawn's hand. A small burning sensation  goes through his hand. He keeps talking to the creature, hoping to gain his trust so that he can free him. Once freed, the creature starts speaking to him in his mind. He learns the creature is actually a silver dragon. The dragon, named Keenah had touched his hand to see whether he had a good heart. They both pledge to protect each other creating a bond between them. A rabid fox comes racing toward Shawn and he is able to quickly grab it by the mouth. Keenah helps direct his magic through Shawn’s hands killing it. This is the beginning of Shawn’s ability to use magic.

This is by far my favorite in this series. As we read further we see Shawn rise in power and in favor among the people. The story reminded me of several Bible stories. He takes supplies on the battlefield to his brothers. They are being taunted by a giant of a man. No one will challenge him. Shawn speaks up willing to do so. This reminded me of the David and Goliath story. Earlier in the story he is called upon to help the commander of the army while he is at home. The rains have put him in a foul mood and he has outbursts. Shawn’s flute playing calms him down. This reminded me of David playing to calm King Saul. I love the characters.  Shawn has quickly become one of my favorites.  The world building is outstanding as always.  This is a series you must read. If you have read the first six books then you must read this one.

Drawing Freedom by Felicia Ketcheson

 

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

Source:  I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This is the second book in this excellent series. Reading it reminded me of "The Hunger Games", and "The Giver" all rolled into one. Breel is a young girl  who managed to fight back against the President and his rules. The only thing she wanted to do was be free to draw. Unfortunately, anything you can think of that you do for fun would be a crime in her world. This second book gives us more background into the early years of President Tatum's rise from poverty to President of Lexum. We get to see how wicked and corrupt he has always been. 

This group of rebels have gone all out in their mission to take down the President. They have a new ally willing to help them. Clonis is President Tatum's only surviving brother. It is obvious he believes his brother needs to be taken out. Why?  Well you will need to read the book to find out why. Breel gets to use her drawing abilities to try   to persuade others to join their cause.  This is one of those books that will stick with you long after you have finished it. The tension in it is high to keep you reading. The only thing that makes me sad is that I will now have to wait for the next book to come out.  If you like dystopian books then you are going to love this one.

Cover Reveal: Appointed by Kandi J. Wyatt - Coming February 11th

 

 

Genre:  Young Adult, Fantasy

 Blurb:

Seventeen-year-old Shawnahur longs to be more—to do more—than just herd wooly ducks. If that means he can make his brothers proud of him, all the better. He doesn’t think much of it when he helps a wounded dragon, but suddenly, he’s gaining attention. First the chief’s mage shows up declaring Shawnahur dragon king of a nonexistent kingdom. Then he receives a summons from the chief’s household to be the chief’s personal musician, which shows him a side of the warrior he’d never expected. With the clans united against a common enemy, Shawnahur’s brothers march to war. When Shawn takes supplies to his brothers, he unwittingly walks onto a battlefield, and with his dragon’s help, defeats the champion. As Shawnahur’s successes mount, the chief’s approval turns to jealousy. Shawn soon finds himself on the wrong end of a glaive more times than he can count. Now he only longs to stay alive; pleasing his brothers and herding would be a life of ease. If you like action, a hint of romance, and dragons, you’ll love Kandi J Wyatt’s epic fantasy. Buy Appointed to enter a world of dragons and heroes today!

Pre-order Appointed direct from the author - https://payhip.com/b/VMUzR

Appointed retailers pre-order link - https://books2read.com/sovereigns7

Read the first Chapter on Kandi’s website here:

https://kandijwyatt.com/appointed-chapter-1/

 

 

 

Stranded by Nikki Shannon Smith

Genre: Middle Grade, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction

Source: Purchased

Ava loves the outdoors. With only two days of school left she is thrilled when their class takes a trip to Central Park. Her friends on the other hand don’t care for it too much. They are into sports, reading and posting online or playing video games.  Ava knows she will be stuck at home with her family unless she can convince them to let her go to her Aunt Ravens cabin in the Adirondack Mountains.. Ava knows it will be an uphill battle convincing her mother to let her go. Her mother doesn’t agree with her twin’s decision to live in the middle of no where. Her brother calls her crazy because “black folks don’t do nature.” What she assumes will be an impossible task, turns into the possible. She never expected her dad to side with her. Just like that they are making plans for her to spend her summer with her aunt.

Ava and her Aunt get along great. She knows a lot about being outdoors, but her aunt has so much more she can teach her. When her aunt is called away and she is left alone, life becomes very real.  I loved this book. I loved how passionate Ava was about being outdoors. I loved that she didn’t try to conform to her family’s ideas of what you should be passionate about. I loved the realistic relationship throughout the story. This is a book I want my students to read. I highly recommend it.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Genre: Adult, Young Adult, Historical Fiction
Source: Purchased

 I was first introduced to this book last year while teaching Pre-Ap English. There was an excerpt in it from three character’s perspective in our textbook.  Once of my students asked if I knew there was a movie about it. I did not because I prefer to read a book first.

 Marie is blind and her father works for a museum. When the Nazi’s invade her father takes her and they leave to live with her great-uncle.  The other character we meet is Werner. He is an orphan. He has a talent for fixing radios. Unfortunately he’s not supposed to be listening to the radio.  The Germans take him and he is forced to use his skills to try to locate whoever has been leaving messages to guide the resistance. This is where his path and Marie’s cross.

 There were a couple of things I really enjoyed about this book, besides the story itself.  The chapters are short. We get glimpses of each of the character’s story as well as what happened to them at the end of the story. I am one of those readers who will often read the ending to find out what happened and then go back to fill in all of the blanks. I didn’t have to do that with this book as the reader knows the outcome of some of the characters before the end of the book.  

By the way, the movie is just as awesome.