Review: The Hound of Rowan

The Hound of Rowan
by Henry H. Neff

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: September 25, 2007

I’d highly recommend the HOUND OF ROWAN, the first in Henry H. Neff’s Tapestry series. The book follows Max McDaniels as magic suddenly invades his life, forcing him to go to Rowan Academy, where he and those like him learn to use their powers. However, don’t let the standard plot structure fool you, as even with my own nostalgia about the book notwithstanding, Neff intricately creates a one-of-a-kind world, unlike anything I’ve ever read. By weaving together myths and legends from all over the world with little bits of technology, Neff is sure to entertain any reader that picks up THE HOUND OF ROWAN.

Review: Killing November

Killing November
by Adriana Mather

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: March 26, 2019

KILLING NOVEMBER is a thrilling murder mystery that revolves around our heroine, November, a happy-go-lucky small town girl who gets thrown into a world of murderers, assassins, and all-around tricksters when she wakes up at the elite Academy Absconditi boarding school. Completely out of her element in a school where violence and deception are key, November’s life gets thrown even more off balance when she discovers a murdered student on campus. With the help of her uptight roommate and said roommate’s smooth-mouthed brother, November sets off to figure out who the killer really is, while simultaneously uncovering her suspiciously secretive heritage. Unfortunately, November’s suspect list is unbearably high, every student seemingly having a bone to pick with our energetic heroine. With no contact to the outside world, including her beloved father, November hopes that she can solve this murder before she winds up next on the killer’s list.

Regarding the overall plot, KILLING NOVEMBER definitely has a lot going on. I mean, it’s not impossible to follow or anything, but it moves very fast, and my opinions of characters were constantly changing throughout the book. However, that’s what is so fun about it: the twists and turns keep the story fresh and alive up until the very end! I’m trying not to spoil anything here, so let’s just say that if you like murder mysteries, drama, assassins, or even just interesting characters, you should take a peek at KILLING NOVEMBER, stay for a couple pages, and then decide if it’s something you want to invest in! I really do recommend giving this one a read, I definitely enjoyed it.

Review: XL

XL
by Scott Brown

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: March 26, 2019

In his moving new novel, Scott Brown tells the story of 4’11” Will Daughtry. With best friend and stepbrother Drew and longtime crush Monica at his side, Will is set to conquer the world in spite of his short stature. But on the day of his sixteenth birthday, nothing goes right for Will and he is left wondering if he is destined to be invisible for the rest of his life. Then, against all odds, Will starts to grow. And grow. And grow. Suddenly, he’s no longer invisible. But that comes with its own set of problems, problems that Will must overcome with the help of his best friends. XL is a heartwarming novel about what a pain it is to grow up and how to embrace change.

It felt somewhat ironic that I, a 6’3” sixteen year old, was reading this book. I’ve never had to deal with the problem of being short, and so my eyes were really opened by Will’s strife. Throughout XL, I was rapt, each chapter leaving me more engaged with the story and yearning to find out more. The book’s only downfall was an ending that left me wanting just a bit more. Despite this, XL was a fantastic book, filled with humor, intelligence, and irrefutable truths. Let’s just say that the next book I read will have some big shoes to fill.

Review: Batman: Nightwalker

Batman: Nightwalker
by Marie Lu

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: January 2, 2018

BATMAN: NIGHTWALKER is about young Bruce Wayne who's just turned 18 and received access to his trust fund. After an accident on the night of his birthday, he is sentenced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, where he meets a mysterious inmate. Bruce must extract information from her in order to solve the mystery of an anarchist group named the Nightwalkers.

I really enjoyed BATMAN: NIGHTWALKER. Like the other books in this DC Icons series, the origin story of the hero is retold and remade. While not straying too far from traditional Batman lore, we see some elements taken from different continuities of Batman, as well as some original elements. One aspect that I really enjoyed was the Easter Eggs hidden in the book. While rarely referencing it directly, certain phrases give a nod to Batman lore. Those who are not too familiar with Batman will likely not understand the references, but will not lose anything as the references do not do not contribute much to the story. Also like other books in the DC Icons series, this book takes place in what seems to be present day (2017) which presents some interesting changes to the character, mainly how Wayne Enterprises has been renamed to “WayneTech,” which focuses on futuristic technology by today’s standards.

I really liked this book and would recommend it to any Batman fan, or to someone who just wants a quick hero story to read. 

Review: Wonder Woman: Warbringer

Wonder Woman: Warbringer
by Leigh Bardugo

Publisher: Random House
Publication Date: August 29, 2017

WONDER WOMAN: WARBRINGER is about Diana Prince trying to save the lives of everyone she cares about, including a stranger, Alia, that crashed near Themyscira. Breaking every law of her home, Diana swims out to save her. It turns out that Alia is part of a line of “Warbringers,” who unintentionally cause turmoil, as well as war. Diana chooses to try to end the line of Warbringers by venturing into the World of Man, despite her place on Themyscira. 

I enjoyed reading WONDER WOMAN: WARBRINGER, and would highly recommend it. However, there were a few things I felt could have been done better. The story starts with Diana entering a race against her sisters, but Diana diverts from the race in order to save Alia. When we learn what the race meant to Diana, we learn that she is only seen as the queen’s daughter, not a fellow warrior. I could not help but feel a bit sad for Diana when she so easily abandoned her goal to view a shipwreck. I feel it would have been more appropriate to see how Diana does in the race, so we would get a better view of who she is and what she can do a bit earlier on in the story. At the end of the book, when Diana returns to Themyscira, we see a brief glance at the aftermath of Diana’s adventure. However, I really wished that they would have extended the aftermath a bit more. Throughout the book, Diana wonders how her actions would affect her family, and how they would treat her when she returned, but when she actually does return, she has little interaction with any Amazons. 

The story itself is very good and has a diverse cast with an excellent plot twist. While reading, I was trying to predict what the plot twist would be (the seemingly simple task made me certain that there would be one), but I was completely surprised by what it turned out to be. 

As a side note, I was a bit surprised that the author chose to call the inhabitants of Themyscira “Amazons,” and not “Amazonians”. While these terms have usually been exchanged without much explanation, I expected “Amazonians”. Those who are at least acquainted with the Wonder Woman comics or the recent Wonder Woman movie will easily be able to understand how the politics work on Themyscira. While one may think it is an adaption of the movie (due to its recent release), the book is completely its own canon, and not based on any comic book storyline that I am aware of. 

Review: A Shadow Bright and Burning

A Shadow Bright and Burning
by Jessica Cluess

Publisher: Random House
Publication Date: September 20, 2016

Henrietta Howel has the power to burst into flames. She has to hide this power, but when she is forced to reveal it to save her friends, she is not executed, but taken in to train as a sorcerer. She is taken to London and declared the chosen one, but is she really? As she plays her game of deception, she must also train with a group of male sorcerers, fight terrifying monsters, and save the city and the one she loves from destruction. I really enjoyed this book. I loved how the author took the basic “chosen one” book trope and put a spin on it. I also liked how there were some characters that you started off with one feeling towards them, and then ended with a completely different feeling about them. I really enjoyed the main character—Henrietta—because she wasn’t really your typical protagonist. She did a lot of sneaking around and at times seemed like she was playing the system, which only made her more of a badass character. I can’t wait for the next book in this series! I would recommend this book for fantasy lovers because it combines awesome magic with strange yet terrifying demon-monsters.

Review: All the Bright Places

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
Publication date: January 6, 2015
Publisher: Random House

What really makes life worth living? This is the question that Finch and Violet both face. An unlikely pair of teenagers from opposite ends of the high school spectrum; Violet who blends in seamlessly and conceals her troubles beneath the surface, and Finch, a non-conforming outcast whose wild personality is out for the world to see, find themselves exploring their state of Indiana together on a school assigned project. As they wander from one place to another, and really get to know each other for the first time, Finch and Violet help each other confront the dark fears of their past and learn to experience life again after loss.

I became so immersed in both the uplifting and the heart wrenching moments of their story, that I deeply missed the presence of Violet and Finch long after I finished reading. It’s been a long time since I’ve found a story that made me feel as many different emotions as ALL THE BRIGHT PLACES did. Jennifer Niven does a wonderful job illustrating how the simplest moments of everyday life can be made beautiful just by being shared with the right person.