Review: Moonkind

Book Three of the Winterling trilogy
By Sarah Prineas
Available now from HarperCollins
Review copy

I loved WINTERLING and SUMMERKIN, the first two books in Sarah Prineas's latest trilogy.  They were fun takes on fae mythology, grounded by a heroine who refused to give up her trust in her friends.  Thus I was ever-so-slightly disappointed by MOONKIND.

Fer, the Lady of the Summerlands, and Rook, a puck, have been uneasy friends for two books.  Mostly because Rook always puts his brothers first.  But Fer's faith has always been rewarded.  Thus it surprised me that once more Fer and Rook's relationship was put to the test -- it felt somewhat repetitive and not entirely true to the characters for me.

But then I fell into the story and fell back in love.  Fer's victory in SUMMERKIN has led to unexpected consequences and it's up to her to make it right.  I really enjoyed the themes of responsibility, friendship, change, and ingenuity.  Fer's humanity helps her shake things up, but the pucks are pretty good at that too.

Thus, the beginning of MOONKIND put me off slightly, but it really is a terrific book and a terrific conclusion to the series.  And as for the friendship being tested again . . . well, the stories have repeatedly emphasized how important it is when things happen thrice.

Review: Secret

Book four of the Elemental series
By Brigid Kemmerer
Available now from K-Teen (Kensington)
Review copy
Read my review of Spirit

"Breathless," the short story at the end of SPIRIT, revealed that Nick Merrick is gay and more into his girlfriend Quinn's dance partner than Quinn.  SECRET opens with Quinn happily helping Nick keep up his facade, but the secrets are about to start spilling out for both of them.  Nick has some serious problems, as anyone following the Elemental series knows, and Quinn is having family trouble that often leaves her without a place to go at night.

I had my hopes up for SECRET since I've had a lot of fun with this series and Nick is my favorite of the Merrick brothers.  It didn't quite live up to my hopes.  There's very little of the series' ongoing action, just a few scenes at the beginning and end about the Guides.  Instead of fantastical, life-or-death drama, there's lots of drama about dating, coming out, and abuse.  It's all well done, but at times I felt more like I was reading a contemporary than a book about a guy who can control air.  The series' romantic elements are still in play and both Nick and Quinn's romances get a decent amount of attention.

I did like that Brigid Kemmerer began the process of redeeming one of the series villains.  One of the strongest aspects of the Elemental series has been the complex morality.  I had trouble with some of the redemption, although I liked that it didn't come easy.  And I love that it all led to an explosive scene at the end setting up the next book.  (And I'm really curious about the focus of the next book since all of the Merrick brothers are now paired up.)

I think SECRET does not standalone as well as its predecessors.  However, it could still be picked up by someone new to the series.  It isn't an overly complicated mythology.  But things are definitely becoming more dense and intertwined.  SECRET wasn't my favorite in the series, but things have moved forward and I'm eager to see the fallout.

Review: Red Rising

Book one in a trilogy
By Pierce Brown
Available now from Del Rey (Penguin Random House)
Review copy

I haven't felt this way about a book in awhile.  Finishing RED RISING left me revved up, ready for more.  I love that I got to read it early, but I loathe it because I have to wait that much longer for more.  I was fully sucked into Darrow's world and didn't want to leave it.

Darrow is a Red on the planet Mars.  He and his people live beneath the surface, mining for the elements necessary to terraform Mars.  Then, after narratively obvious tragedy strikes, Darrow discovers that the Martian surface is already colonized and the upper classes are using the Reds as slaves.  Thus begins his thirst for revenge.

The worldbuilding of RED RISING isn't perfect, but I love how detailed it is.  The book wasn't rushed at all.  It lingers over the details of Darrow's transformation, his infiltration of the Golds, his time at the brutal Institute.  And I love the characters.  The Golds as a whole are awful, but on an individual level they vary quite a bit.  That's something Darrow has to face as he pursues his vengeance.  (Although I did often yell at him to stop going on about how so-and-so was so great because couldn't he see that he was dooming yet another person to poignant death?)

RED RISING is quite grim and violent, but I didn't find it depressing.  In fact, I often found it quite exhilarating.  Darrow's journey is a rough one, but that's what makes it so interesting.  Also, RED RISING is being published as an adult novel, but it reads very similar to YA to me.  Darrow is sixteen and the book is told in first person present tense. 

Now that RED RISING has gotten all the setup out of the way, I can't wait to see where this series is going.  I'll be back for book two with bells on.

9 Books to Get in a Winter Olympics Mood!

I mentioned having a Winter Olympics reading list in my BEING SLOANE JACOBS review, and Bookworm1858 asked for more detail.  So I decided to actually post my list instead of burying it in the comments.  This list will be heavy on the figure skating, since that's my favorite.

Let's start with a new book I haven't read before but want to read. GOLD MEDAL WINTER by Donna Freitas is the story of Esperanza, who is advanced to the Olympic team when another skater is injured.  She's younger and less experienced than her teammates, but just as determined.  This title promises lots of competition, a bit of flirting, and a Latina heroine.  It's definitely aimed at the younger crowd, but that means it should be easy to fit in when I have a spare moment!

Now let's move on to some winter sports romances!



BEING SLOANE JACOBS by Lauren Morrill (review linked above) is a cute story about a figure skater and a hockey player who switch places.  Both girls mature and fall in love during their summer of intense sports practice.

THE EX GAMES is one of the books Jennifer Echols wrote for the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies line.  Two exes decide to have a snowboard competition with each other that also ends up reigniting their old flame.  It's not as deep as Echols' later novels, but it's still got her spark.  (And the ex thing works better than it should because they "dated" back when they were 13.)

OUT OF PLAY by Jolene Perry and Nyrae Dawn is another one I haven't read yet.  It's a New Adult/Young Adult romance from Entangled Teen about a rock star drummer and hockey player who fall in love.  I've heard good things, and BEING SLOANE JACOBS certainly put me in the mood for more books about female hockey players.

Now for four childhood favorites, which includes a trilogy about the Olympics!



SKATING SHOES by Noel Streatfeild was out of print when I was a child, meaning that my mom paid around $40 for a copy from eBay!  Streatfeild, if you're not familiar with the name, is an English author famous for her stories about young girls in the performing arts.  This is about two young girls who become friends on the rink, but start to drift apart as one loses interest and one becomes serious.

Melissa Lowell's Silver Blades books were the thing to read back when I figure skated, but they're out of print now.  (They switched on me.)  The Gold Medal Dreams trilogy featured two skaters from the series: Tori Carsen and Jill Wong.  They've both reached Nationals and hope to go the Olympics, but there are complications.  Namely, Tori has just been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy and it's getting harder for her to walk every day, much less skate.  If you can find copies of this trilogy used, it's pretty fun even if you aren't familiar with the characters.  (The series was meant to be picked up at any point.)

And finally, a touch of nonfiction.


There  are books about almost all of the Olympian winners out there.  (I should know; I own a lot of them.)  Ekaterina Gordeeva was a successful solo skater, but first she was part of a team with Sergei Grinkov.  They were a husband-wife team who won gold at two Olympics and four World Championships in pairs skating, before Sergei died of a heart attack at 28.  The memoir MY SERGEI: A Love Story by Gordeeva and E.M. Swift stands out from the crowd of Olympic books because it is very personal and tragic, rather than a pat tale of triumph.  (Also, it's a nice look into the USSR and their training methods.)

I hope that at least on of these nine books catches your eye!  Are there any books you read to get into the Winter Olympics mood?  Or just a book about a winter sport that you love?

Review: The Wavering Werewolf

By David Lubar
Illustrated by Marcos Calo
Available now from Starscape (Macmillan)
Review copy
Read my review of Extremities

THE WAVERING WEREWOLF is the latest book in David Lubar's Monsterrific Tales series.  I haven't read the previous books, but the premise is simple.  In each book a kid is accidentally turned into a monster and must choose whether to remain a monster or turn back into a human.  The star of THE WAVERING WEREWOLF is Norman, a geeky kid who gets bitten while wandering in the woods.

Those who are familiar with Lubar's books know to expect humor.  My biggest laughs came from Norman's strategy to get people to ignore him: start going into detail about random facts.  Don't expect too much complexity, however.  This series is aimed at the Bailey School Kids crowd.  It kind of reminded me of some of the old Goosebumps books, although the writing was better.  I can see this series and the Lovecraft Middle School books appealing to the same kids.

If you've got a young reader in your life who likes monsters, THE WAVERING WEREWOLF is a good choice.  It plays with some classic tropes in a way that's kid friendly but not patronizing.  I'm definitely going to pass this one on to my niece.  (She's reading!  On her own!  It is so cool.)