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Showing posts with the label YA

The Mystery of the Silver Statue

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Book Description   Follow the adventures of young sleuths B.T. Stevens and Jimmy Martin as they solve what is actually a real-life mystery of Colonial History. B.T. struggles with a serious disability and learns to appreciate his own strengths through the adventure and thanks to enduring friendships and strong family ties. Beyond being a charming work of fiction, "The Mystery of the Silver Statue" is also a valuable tool for discussion on both Colonial American History as well as the importance of self worth. Book Review   This was a fun quick read that any kid would love.  First, I absolutely loved the character B.T.  Stevens.  He may have had obstacles to face, however he did not let that stop him from doing anything that he wanted. B.T. and his friend Jimmy run a “detective” agency from his home.  During the summer he is hired to watch over people’s homes while they are away.  Each day, the boys would hop on their bikes and make their rounds.  It was during

Early Review–Breath of Angel

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Book Description   The stranger’s cloak had fallen back, and with it, a long, white, blood-stained wing. When Melaia, a young priestess, witnesses the gruesome murder of a stranger in the temple courtyard, age-old legends recited in song suddenly come to life. She discovers wings on the stranger, and the murderer takes the shape of both a hawk and a man. Angels. Shape-shifters. Myths and stories—until now. Melaia finds herself in the middle of a blood feud between two immortal brothers who destroyed the stairway to heaven, stranding angels in the earthly realm. When the feud turns violent and Melaia becomes a target, she finds refuge with a band of angels attempting to restore the stairway. But the restoration is impossible without the repayment of an ancient debt—the “breath of angel, blood of man,” a payment that involves Melaia’s heart, soul, and destiny. Book Review   This book is the first in the Angeleon Circle.  This was an incredible book.  It was an

Review–Goodbye Hollywood Nobody

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Book Description   Charley’s off to Scotland with her new beau, and Scotty and her dad travel to Maine in search of Scotty’s mom. When they land on her mother’s last known trail, will their questions finally be answered? Book Review   This is the fourth book in the series.  You can find my reviews on the other three books here: Hollywood Nobody   Finding Hollywood Nobody Romancing Hollywood Nobody I was sad to see this series ending.  It was a really great series.  I had quite a few shocks in this book.   Some things definitely didn’t turn out as I had expected them to. One thing that was interesting was seeing this other side of The Karissa.  This was the first time that we did not really see her as her better then everyone actress persona.  It was nice.  Once again, Scotty gets into some really interesting situations and it is only through her faith in God that she is able to manage to figure things out. If you have not read any of the books in this series,

Review–Any Witch Way

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Book Description   Enduring the teasing and ridicule of her school mates, Sadie struggles through life as a pre-teen on the eve of her 13th birthday. Three years ago, a car crash took her mother, but Sadie never saw her body. She refuses to believe her mother is really gone. Holding fast to that feeling earns her the nickname "Crazy Sadie." Despite her one wish to be normal, Sadie only finds solace with a small group of unusual characters. These unlikely friends give her a “semi-normal” life outside of school in a bookstore where strange and mystical things seem to happen. In fact, if Sadie entertains her deepest suspicions, her friends are a little mystical. When her birthday arrives however, Sadie finds herself whisked into a magical world that swirls just under the surface of normal, everyday life. Not only does she learn she’ll soon become a witch, but she also discovers she must battle The Syndicate to save her new world. Faced with fantastical encou

Early Review–The Goddess Test

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Book Description   It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall. Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests. Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess. Book Review   When I first read the description of this book, I was all excited.  I absolutely love reading the various myths.  Greek and Celtic myths are my absolute favorite.  And when I realized that its Hades and Persephone revisited, I was ecstatic. The story was pretty decent.  It just didn’t live up

Review–Fang Me

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  Book Description   The vampires want it. The demons want it, too. And someone is willing to kill Val for it. Val and Fang have to find the powerful Encyclopedia Magicka before either of San Antonio's warring underworld factions locate it or the consequences will be deadly for the entire city. As usual, Val's vampire enemies (they still call her The Slayer) want her dead. Even some of her fellow demons may be less than trustworthy, since they'd like to grab the legendary book of spells before she does. Val has a personal claim to the Encyclopedia--her demon father left it to her when he died--but someone stole it recently. And that can't be good. Battling vamps and dodging demons, Val struggles to unravel the mystery and find the thief. At the same time, she's fighting her attraction to sweet, sexy Shade--her favorite shadow demon. Rumor has it that Val will lose her part-demon, vampire-fighting powers if she gives herself to him. With a crow

Early Review–Swept Away

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Book Description   Decisions, decisions! How is a girl supposed to choose? Lessons of right and wrong are put to the test in the Scenarios series, where you can test your decision-making abilities in an eye-opening, but safe, way. Each book follows a character up to the point where she has to make an important, life-changing decision—then it’s your turn to choose. Will your choices lead to a happy ending? Book Review   I had already reviewed one of the other books in this series, Dare To Be Different .  Once again, even though it is touted as being interactive, the only interactive part is at the end of each story.  You get to choose how they end.  It would have been nice if you could have picked along the way so you can see how different decisions can affect things differently. Even though this book is geared towards tweens, I felt that it might have been more towards actual teenagers.  One of the two stories deals with premarital sex and how you get pressured into hav

Early Review–Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer

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Book Description   In this thrilling story full of adventure and romance, Sleeping Beauty is more than just a lonely princess waiting for her prince—she's a brave, tenacious girl who never backs down from a challenge. With vampire-slaying talents that she practices in secret, Sleeping Beauty puts her courage to the test in the dark of night, fighting evil as she searches for a way to break the spell that has cut her off from her family. In a special twist, readers have the opportunity to make key decisions for Sleeping Beauty and decide where she goes next—but no matter the choice; the result is a story unlike any fairy tale you've ever read! Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer is an entirely new type of fairy tale–one that will keep today's kids guessing and offer them hours of magical fun. Book Review   If you are looking for another copy of that old Sleeping Beauty story that you grew up with, then this isn’t it.  This book is so much more.  I guess you cou

Early Review–The Abused Werewolf Rescue Group

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Book Description   I still hadn't fully absorbed the terrible possibility that I might actually be a werewolf. A werewolf. I kept stumbling over that word; it made no sense to me. How could I be a werewolf? Werewolves didn't exist. When Tobias Richard Vandevelde wakes up in hospital with no memory of the night before, his horrified mother tells him that he was found by the police. At Featherdale Park. In a dingo pen . As if that isn't weird enough, suddenly a very menacing looking guy and a priest show up at his door. As the mystery unfolds, Toby finds himself keeping company with some very strange and sickly looking people - members of a suburban vampire support group. And when he's abducted in broad daylight, he will need all their help to break free ... and to come to terms with his own incredibly rare condition.   Book Review   This is the second book in a series.  I did not get the chance to read the first book.  There were a few places where th

Review–Hollywood Nobody and Special Offer

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Book Description   Fifteen-year-old Scotty Dawn travels to movie sets with her mom, Charley, a food designer. Scotty is determined to discover what she wants from life. She’s even documenting the journey on her “Hollywood Nobody” blog. But as Scotty begins to ask tough questions, will her story have a happy ending? Book Review   I usually don’t like to start a review with the bad part of the book, but here it goes.  The worst part was that I couldn’t put it down.  Literally!  I was unable to sleep last night, so at 1am I started reading.  I didn’t go to sleep after 4am when I finally finished the book.  I read it in one sitting, that’s how good the book was. The way the book was written was very interesting.  It was part blog, part diary, and part live action.  Scotty Dawn has lived her life on the road with her mom.  They travel from movie location to movie location in their old beat up RV.  The little human contact she has comes from internet, CB radio, and on the set