Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George
Though I enjoy some young adult fiction, I don’t read many middle grade books at this point in my life unless my 12 year old really twists my arm. But the idea behind Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George (2011) just sounded so fun that I couldn’t resist when I saw it on the library shelf. Its pages were waving to me, I swear!
Eleven year old Princess Celie and her royal family live in Castle Glower,
July 9th, 2015. Tadiana Jones´s rating: 4 | Jessica Day George | Children | SFF Reviews | 6 comments |
The Fold, by Peter Clines, is a science fiction thriller with a superhero aspect, a bit of Sherlock Holmes and a bit of H.P. Lovecraft thrown in. It’s got dry humor, plenty of pop-culture references and an engaging main character who can be surprisingly vulnerable. This is a perfect summer read; the ideal vacation book. It’s a book you’ll want to pass along to your friends when you’re done.
Leland “Mike” Erickson teaches high school English in a small town in New England.
May 27th, 2015. Marion Deeds and Tadiana Jones´s rating: 3.5 | Peter Clines | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Agniezska is the brave, stubborn, sensitive heroine of Naomi Novik’s recent release, Uprooted — and she’s about to steal your heart. She comes from Dvernik, a remote village on the edges of the enchanted Wood, the dark forest that creeps like a blight over interior Polnya. The only thing holding the Wood back from engulfing the land is the Dragon, a feared sorcerer who lives nearby. For his work keeping the danger at bay, every ten years the Dragon demands one young woman from the village.
May 21st, 2015. Kate Lechler, Tadiana Jones, Marion Deeds and Jana Nyman´s rating: 5 | Naomi Novik | Nebula Award | SFF Reviews | 23 comments |
The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells
The Invisible Man (1897) is a story known by most people, but how many have actually read the book? It’s probably a lot darker and action-packed than you think. Also, like most of H.G. Wells’ books, it is not long and is available free as an e-book, so it’s well worth a day’s reading time.
Imagine you are an ambitious but poor young medical student named Griffin, eager to make a name for yourself and enjoy success.
April 16th, 2015. Stuart Starosta, Tadiana Jones and Kat Hooper´s rating: 4 | H.G. Wells | Stand-Alone | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Half the World by Joe Abercrombie
Joe Abercrombie’s Half the World is book two of his SHATTERED SEA trilogy. Although Yarvi and some of the cast from book one do make an appearance, Half the World isn’t exactly a sequel to Half a King, and I almost think you could read it without having read book one. The overarching storyline follows Father Yarvi’s quest to find allies abroad as Gettland’s enemies close in,
April 7th, 2015. Kevin Wei and Tadiana Jones´s rating: 5 | Joe Abercrombie | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
The Forgotten Sisters by Shannon Hale
I just adore Shannon Hale’s PRINCESS ACADEMY books for young readers. The Forgotten Sisters, released earlier this week, is the third and final installment. This review will contain spoilers for the previous books.
In book one, Princess Academy, the first school was built in Mount Eskel, an uneducated rural mining community. The purpose of the school was to educate marriageable young ladies so that the prince of their realm could choose a fitting bride.
March 6th, 2015. Kat Hooper and Tadiana Jones´s rating: 4.5 | Shannon Hale | Audio, Children | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Firefight by Brandon Sanderson
Firefight, second book in the superhero-dystopian RECKONERS series, is a good young adult novel. It’s fun, it’s lively, and the pacing never drags. I do have a handful of quibbles, but none of them are vastly troubling. If all you really want to know is whether Firefight is worth reading or a worthy successor to Steelheart, then you have your answer: a solid affirmative on both counts.
Anyway, our story starts off a few months after the previous novel left off (and shortly after the intervening novella) with the Reckoners struggling to hold Newcago in the aftermath of Steelheart’s demise.
February 2nd, 2015. Tim Scheidler, Tadiana Jones and João Eira´s rating: 3, 4 | Brandon Sanderson | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
The Gripping Hand by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle
The Gripping Hand (1993) is Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle’s sequel to their popular 1974 novel The Mote in God’s Eye, which you probably want to read first. This review will have a couple of spoilers for The Mote in God’s Eye.
Recall that by the year 3017 AD, humans had designed the Alderson Drive — an interstellar transporter which allowed them to jump out of our galaxy to colonize different star systems.
January 30th, 2015. Kat Hooper and Tadiana Jones´s rating: 1 | Jerry Pournelle, Larry Niven | Audio | SFF Reviews | 2 comments |
Royal Airs is the second book in Sharon Shinn’s ELEMENTAL BLESSINGS series. I loved the first book, Troubled Waters, which was a light romantic fantasy that told the story of Zoe Ardelay, a young woman who was brought to the royal court of Welce to be the fifth wife of its king. She discovered that she had power over the element of water and, using the personality traits that her water spirit gave her, she successfully navigated the dangers of the court and found true love.
December 31st, 2014. Kat Hooper and Tadiana Jones´s rating: 2.5 | Sharon Shinn | Audio | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
Ransom Riggs went to film school, made some award-winning short films, and did travel writing and photography before he published Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, his first novel. This young adult fantasy novel uses a number of strange old photographs Riggs either found or borrowed from several collections, and the photos are interspersed with the text. It’s an interesting presentation that adds a lot to the reading experience.
The book has already been optioned by Twentieth Century Fox,
October 31st, 2014. Marion Deeds, Tim Scheidler, Tadiana Jones and Ray McKenzie | Ransom Riggs | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
Thanks! These are the "easy" ones, ha!
can't wait to get to these after the usual post-end-of-term review backlog gets a little cleared up--your review and David's…
Agreed! I have loved both of these books. I wasn't as perceptive as you at guessing the true target, though,…
What a fascinating exploration of Edwige Fenech's contributions to the Giallo genre! I love how you highlighted her unique blend…
Ever since Tor.com became Reactor they seem to have been focusing increasingly less on books and more on visual media…