Review of The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

Razorbill

The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines #3)
by Richelle Mead
5 Scribbles

The female students at Amberwood Prep are in trouble. There’s a murderer in town, killing the youngest and prettiest of girls. Mrs. Terwilliger suspects it’s a witch intent on absorbing the girls’ youth, power and beauty, but because she has personal connections to the witch in question she must rely on Sydney’s help to find the killer. Can Sydney overcome her aversion to magic long enough to come to Terwilliger’s aid and put a stop to the killings?

As a die-hard Mead fan, I hesitate to review Mead’s work because it’s always so engaging and the plotting is so well done! Truthfully the main conflict above only scratches the surface of the massive amounts of action that occurs throughout. And the character development taking place in this book is superb. The conflict between Sydney and Adrian that began at the conclusion of The Golden Lily is set aside in the wake of the murders, and the two return to their established friendship to try and catch a killer. Or do they? The romantic tension between these two is palpable—will Sydney finally grow a backbone and realize that the doubts she has about the Alchemists and the intolerance she has been taught is not the whole truth? Will she realize that magic may have a place in the world, and that not all vampires are evil? And more importantly, will playboy Adrian finally abandon his partying ways and stick to his new-found chivalrous ways? While markedly different from the romance between Dimitri and Rose in the Vampire Academy series, this potential romance packs just as much heat—in fact, it’s probably a relationship that many of us find we can relate to more easily, because the protagonists are, for the most part, everyday people. Yes, they may be witches and vampires, but neither has any real super-skills or can fight like a ninja! The difference from our reality is that Sydney risks everything and everyone she has ever known and trusted to grow that backbone and “have” Adrian. For many of us, such loss would not be worth it. Additionally, a new little romance is blossoming—will Eddie and Angeline stay together or will Jill take the plunge and reveal herself to Eddie? And just when you thought it was all being worked out, a new character is added to the mix that will shake up Amberwood, and Sydney, in a way the reader never anticipated! I’ve already pre-ordered The Fiery Heart, set to be released November 19, 2013.

Review of Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

Simon and Schuster Books
for Young Readers

The Poison Princess (The Arcana Chronicles Book 1)
by Kresley Cole
5+ Scribbles

After a summer in a psych ward to overcome her powerful and distressing hallucinations, Evie Green returns to high school and recovers her coveted reign as one of the popular and pretty rich girls on campus.  In the midst of patching it up with her boyfriend, Brandon, and covering up her summer hospitalization with her best friends, a new group of Cajuns waltz into school, led by Jackson Deveaux, bad-boy-about-the-bayou, and despite her disgust, Evie can’t take her eyes off of him. And then “The Flash” happens, and there is virtually no one left to look at—

Call this a story, within a story, within a story—all brilliantly interwoven—past, present, and possible future, serving to titillate and captivate the reader.  Take the first chapter, which seems as far from Evie’s high school as it could possibly be; and it is, because this riveting, spine-chilling first chapter takes place in the present. The reader experiences Evie’s past, both before and after The Flash through the eyes of the two characters chatting over hot chocolate, and discovers Evie’s highly unusual and extremely useful supernatural skills.  The hook in chapter one is enough to leave readers breathless and wanting more, but moving forward into the novel (and into Evie’s past) the tension and anticipation intensifies. It doesn’t take long to see that handsome bad boy Jack is really into Evie, even though she doesn’t admit her attraction to him, at least not at first. The cat-and-mouse of their relationship is a delicious tease, and once the real feelings between these two begin to emerge, the action between them is so hot it burns the pages. (I’m talking spontaneous combustion here!) Toss in a wonderful new twist on the paranormal, characters with special skills based on the Tarot, and you have the foundation for an exciting new series.  This is one of the most original and engaging works of the paranormal I’ve read in ages—my only regret is that I have to wait until October 1^st, 2013, to get the second book, Endless Knight. And since this novel has become the standard by which I’m judging all the other paranormal YA I read, I’m not quite sure I’m going to make it that long!

One last thing--this book rocks on audio! The accents are amazing and Jackson's French-Cajun is to die for!

Review of Dark Star by Bethany Frenette

Disney

Dark Star
by Bethany Frenette
3 Stars
To be released, October 23, 2012

Audrey comes from a family of very powerful and unusual women. Her mother is is a superhero, the “Morning Star,” a woman who spends her nights in The Twin Cities preventing crime, her grandmother is a"Seer," and Audrey herself has powerful psychic abilities. So when girls from Audrey's high school turn up murdered, Audrey's figures her mom will stop the killer. But when Audrey's BFF, Tink, is attacked, Audrey uncovers evidence that her mother may be the killer's next victim. Now, Audrey must use her psychic gifts to save the only parent she has left, and in so doing she discovers secrets about who she really is.

In an unusual blend of superhero crime fighting and the paranormal, bored sci-fi readers may find a welcome change. Manga, mystery and graphic novel readers will be attracted to the concept, and if they can stick with the first 70 or so pages of backstory, they will be rewarded. In spite of the slow start, the fight scenes eventually become plentiful, the setting suitably creepy, and fans of Daren Shan will appreciate the gruesome descriptions of the "Harrowers" when they first appear on the scene. Audrey's family dynamic will attract female readers, although the love connection at the end is unneeded and predictable. This will likely be a first in a new series by debut author Bethany Frenette, and readers who want to know more about Audrey's mysterious past will certainly be unable to resist reading a second installment.

Review of Hero by Mike Lupica

Puffin

Hero
by Mike Lupica
2 Scribbles

Let’s face it, the closest thing to a sport I will ever take part in is a race to the bestseller shelf at Barnes. Yet, I love how Mike Lupica can take a subject that would typically put me to sleep, like baseball and football, weave it into a cast of awesome characters, and keep me riveted to the action. The novels, Heat and Million Dollar Throw captured me for that reason, and it is because of those novels that I chose to read Hero. Sadly, however, Hero didn’t keep me nearly as glued as the others.

Zach’s dad is something of a hero, he’s the president’s right-hand man, scares the bejesus out of “The Bads” (or bad guys) and has the love of everyone around him—especially Zach—who doesn’t get to see his dad nearly as much as he’d like.  When Zach’s dad dies in a plane accident, Zach and his family are stunned, but Zach is more stunned when he discovers that his father had a secret, and now it’s up to Zach to discover what that secret was and what it has to do with Zach. Chapter one begins with butt-kicking action, but then the action slows instantly.  Zach and his friend Kate live in New York City, the city that never sleeps, and yet I was finding myself hard-pressed to stay awake while Zach explores first the plane crash site, and then the park in search of answers. Even when Zach encounters trouble and has to fight for his life, the action slows immediately after each conflict, making the story’s momentum stagger. Couple that with the fact that each conflict is followed by long, suggestive conversations between Zach’s “Uncle” John and the mysterious Mr. Herbert, and it can be easy for even the most motivated reader to stay invested in the outcome. Too little information is provided as the story moves on, and frankly, the identity of the villain and the good guy are a little too easy to figure out.  The best part of this story is Kate’s tough-as-nails attitude, and reading about what living in New York City is like for the well-to-do.  Overall, I prefer Lupica’s previous efforts.