A Bookworm's Book Reviews

The Red Queen’s Daughter – Jacqueline Kolosov

Title: The Red Queen’s Daughter

Author: Jacqueline Kolosov

Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Young Adult

Plot: Mary Seymour has just lost her guardian. Her mother, Jane Seymour passed just after she was born. Her father, Thomas Seymour, was executed a year later. Now she finds herself in the care of Lady Strange, a former resident of the court. Lady Strange tells Mary that she’s destined for greatness. If she accepts her destiny, she can learn the ways of the white magician. Mary heartily accepts. Over the years, Lady Strange teaches Mary all about white magic. When she tuns 16, Queen Elizabeth invites Mary to be a lady-in-waiting. Mary goes knowing she can’t pass up the offer. She bring her dog, Perseus, whom she has a special bond with. Mary uses the skills she’s learned to protect the Queen and her friends. Soon Mary learns of a plot that threatens relations with Russia and endanger the Queen. Mary must use her allies and friends to stop the culprit. But the culprit is her cousin, Edmond Seymour. He is her opposite, dangerous and cunning, and a black magician. She’s encouraged to distract him by pretending to like him. But will she fall for him? Or will she keep her promise to herself and not fall in love? Then Perseus disappears. Will Mary be able to find him? Who’s behind his disappearance? Can Mary succeed in changing Edmond’s mind? Will she foil his plans?

Rating: 3.3 – a good take on history with magic

Opinion: I remember reading this book in high school and decided to give it another shot because I enjoyed it. My high school book club got a couple advanced copies of books each month. It combined what I like to read, history and magic. While it is a great book, I’d forgotten how long it takes for the plot to get going. There’s a fair amount of time spent learning the details of being a white magician. While they are important to the story in the end, I still found them a little distracting from the story. It was interesting to learn more about what ladies-in-waiting did. I wish the story had spent a little bit more time developing Edmond and Mary’s relationship. Mary’s behavior seems to change instantly with very little reasoning. What I did enjoy was Mary’s independence. Though she was willing to ask for help when she needed. Even though the book started out slow, I did enjoy it overall. It kept me interested. This is a good book for young adults who enjoy historical fiction with magic mixed in.

The Paper Magician Series – Charlie N. Holmberg

Expanded storyline for this trilogy is here: The Plastic Magician

Title: 1 – The Paper Magician, 2 – The Glass Magician, 3 – The Master Magician

Author: Charlie N. Holmberg

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult

Plot: 1 (The Paper Magician) – Ceony Twill has just finished her general schooling at Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined. Now she can start her apprenticeship. Ceony desperately wanted to be a Smelter, a magician who works specifically with metals. Instead, she’s assigned to Folding, a magician who works with paper. Magician Emery Thane is her mentor. But lucky for Ceony, she’s a quick study. She tries to make the best of her situation. Not long after her apprenticeship begins, a woman, Lyra, breaks into Emery’s house. Lyra takes his literal heart from his chest and vanishes. When the investigators come, Ceony is confined to the house. She defies orders and searches for Lyra and Emery’s heart. But will she be able to track down Lyra? Can she stop her in time? Can she save Emery in time?

2 (The Glass Magician) – Ceony stopped one of the Exsicionists, some who uses dark magic, but the world still isn’t safe. Laura’s teacher, Grath Cobolt, is still at large, as well as the teacher’s colleague. Both are dangerous and looking for Ceony. Ceony holds a secret; a new spell that can trap people forever. Grath wants Ceony to help him. But with what? When Grath threatens her family, Ceony becomes desperate. With help she tracks him down. But will she be able to save her family? Can she stop Grath? Or will he destroy everything?

3 (The Master Magician) – Grath Cobolt has been stopped by Saraj Prendi is still on the loose and looking for Ceony. But Ceony has other things on her mind. Her exam to become a master magician are coming up. She has also learned she can change what type of magic she can use. Ceony is also starting a romantic relationship with Emrey. To avoid any bias, Ceony goes to take her test with another Folder. With Saraj on the move, and though Ceony promised not to look for him, she found a way to find him. Slipping out, she tracks him down, but he’s already gone. Will Ceony be able to find and stop him? Will she pass her test? What about her relationship with Emrey?

Rating: 3.6 – a good young adult fantasy

Opinion: Overall, this was a good trilogy. It was a little cheesy. For the first one, Ceony found Lyra right away. I was wondering what they were going to do. I was a little surprised about where the plot went from there. I enjoyed the use of magic. It was different from most types of magic stories I’ve read. It’s one of things that drew me to this series. That and I’m a sucker for sappy romance. The idea that people could only use magic on things humans have created (fire, metal, paper, plastic, glass, and flesh) was an interesting idea to me. And that a person could only use one material forever was also intriguing. Ceony was a very independent woman who wanted to make her own way in life. She still always made sure to help her family whenever possible as well. I wished I was more like her. This book was a little too cheesy for me to truly appreciate. It would be better for younger adults and teenagers. I would recommend this book for anyone who’s interested in reading a book about a different style of magic and doesn’t mind a sappy romance.

The Girl Behind the Red Rope – Ted Dekker and Rachelle Dekker

Title: The Girl Behind the Red Rope

Authors: Ted Dekker and Rachelle Dekker

Genre: Thriller

Plot: Thirteen years ago, Grace’s eyes were opened to the Fury, demons. Their community’s leader, Rose, was given instructions from Sylous, an angel, to take them to a secluded area and start a new community there, Haven Valley. There were to stay within the community until the Fury were driven from the world. Sylous will protect them in Haven Valley so long as they remain pure. There they remain living as pure as they can and in fear of the Fury. But Grace’s brother, Jamie, is curious and ventures beyond the rope boarder that keeps them save, breaking one of their many purity rules. During chapel, Jamie challenges Rose. Grace supports his claims that he’s been sneaking out. For that, they are punished. They are sent beyond the border in search of Furies. They find Grace and Jamie and attack Jamie, but Grace escapes. They make it back to town, but Jamie’s severely hurt. While Jamie is healing, their father shows up with his son, their half-brother Eli. Rose turns the community against them on Sylous’ orders. She calls them wolves in sheep’s clothing. But Grace is unsure about that. Despite warnings, Grace tries to help Eli. Is Eli really evil? Or is he here to save the community? Who will Grace choose?

Rating: 4.0 – an interesting book about choosing love over fear

Opinion: At first, I was a little unsettled about the book. It deals with a cult like community. It’s a super fanatical Christian cult that focuses on rules to stay pure and those who break the rules are severely punished. Sylous and Rose made me uneasy because their personalities were a little slimy and controlling and manipulating for me to trust them. I didn’t trust them and my gut was proven right. I enjoyed the ideas that Ted and Rachelle talked about throughout the book. Fear is very prevalent in today’s society. We fear many things and it takes many forms. We can create our own fear, as well. What can break fear is love. True love, loving without condition, drives out fear. It’s easy to get caught in the cycles of fear and forget this. This book was a good reminder to let go of fear, drive it out, and turn to love. In this day and age, we all need this reminder. I enjoyed this book for putting this theme in a positive way with a good twist and good explanation. I recommend this book for those who need the reminder and for those who love a good thriller.

Every Tool’s a Hammer – Adam Savage

Title: Every Tool’s a Hammer: Life’s What You Make It

Author: Adam Savage

Genre: Memoir

Plot: Adam Savage of Mythbusters tells of his experiences and what he’s learned from his life. Throughout the book, Adam gives advice for how to be a better maker, whether that be a engineer, designer, artist, writer, etc. Though he mostly uses his examples of building props and cosplay costumes, his ideas, examples, and advice is for anyone who creates something. He encourages everyone to dive into their passions, find a community (especially one that builds you up), use what you have around you, and find a system that works for you. Adam also stressed the importance of making lists. He gave lots of examples of the lists that have helped him and others. Throughout the book Adam also stresses having people that support and encourage you. He tells many stories of people who have helped him and encouraged him along the way. He told stories of bad times and good times. Adam tells the importance of finding a system that works for you. And that it’s not gonna be the same for everyone. He encourages everyone to find their own rhythm and find their own processes. He says what’s worked for him and what’s worked for his friends. Adam also talked about the importance of setting deadlines for stuff for fun or for a job. It can keep you motivated, especially if it’s for a for fun task or project. The book ends with finding what tools you need for making what you want.

Rating: 4.0 – a book about finding what you need to do to stay creative

Opinion: This was a good book about finding what you need to be creative. Some parts were harder for me to relate to because I’m not a builder. But overall, it’s a great way for anyone who creates. It’s good to realize that people don’t have the same process for creating things. Some stories made me chuckle. I really related to other ones. I enjoyed learning about some behind the scenes for plays, movies, and Mythbusters. I hadn’t known that Adam had met some great creators like Guillermo del Toro and Star Wars and Lord of the Rings creators. I smiled when I could read a story in Adam’s voice as he’s got a unique voice and I’ve seen a lot of Mythbusters. This is a great book for anyone who’s a creator. It’s even better for anyone who’s a builder.

Capturing the Devil – Kerri Maniscalco

This is the last book of the Stalking Jack the Ripper series.

Title: Capturing the Devil

Author: Kerri Maniscalco

Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery

Plot: Audrey and Thomas have arrived in New York. A new string of murders have started. On top of that, Thomas and Audrey are engaged. On the day of their marriage, an unexpected disaster strikes. A woman arrives saying she’s engaged to Thomas and has the papers to prove it. Desperate to change things, Thomas fights his father’s wishes tooth and nail. Then he threatens Thomas’s sister. In an act of desperation, Audrey and Thomas track the murderer to Chicago and follow him there. But the murder’s changed his method. Women are disappearing and fewer are being found. They must find him before more women disappear. Who is truly behind the murders and disappearances? Will the police ever take them seriously? Will the marriage issue be solved?

Rating: 3.7 – a good murder mystery but a little distracted by marriage issues

Opinion: This was a good final book in the Jack the Ripper series. Though I was a little upset that there was they got a little distracted by the romance. I love a good sappy romance but not when it takes away from the story. I kind of felt like this one did. The other books in the series do have romance woven in, but the story still focuses on the mystery. I cheered a little when the story goes back to focusing on the mystery aspect again. I did enjoy this book. I liked the additional historical facts about Chicago and New York City. This is a good historical fiction and murder mystery. I’d recommend it for anyone who enjoys them.

Guest Post – Reaching Out, Trusting God

Thank you Brenda of Ruby Hem Ministries for this book.

Title: Reaching Out, Trusting God

Author: Brenda Marie Hoffman

Genre: Christian devotional

Plot: As Christians we’re told that we can live a joy-filled, purposeful life with Christ as our guide. Seeing miracles along the way is a true blessing that’ll help solidify our faith. However, we shouldn’t believe that because “we don’t have enough faith” we won’t be healed, or we’re destined to be poor or unsuccessful. Unfortunately, this is what some Christians tell us that it means to trust in God.

With these words filling our head it’s no wonder that when something doesn’t work out like we expect it to we believe it’s because we don’t have enough faith. This results in us believing that we aren’t loved by God or it may cause us to doubt if we’re really a Christian.

All these things are taken into consideration here in this devotional. Through exploring these things we’ll arrive at a deeper understanding of what it really means to trust God.

Rating: 4.0 – A good book to lead you to a deeper trust in God

Opinion: This book was written for women who have PTSD from child abuse or domestic violence. Throughout the devotional the author looks at why trusting God is so much more challenging when you’re dealing with PTSD. As you’re guided through the pages of this devotional you really will arrive at a point where you have a deeper trust in God.

Return of the Witch – Paula Brackston

This is the sequel of The Witch’s Daughter.

Title: Return of the Witch

Author: Paula Brackston

Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction

Plot: Elizabeth, Bess, Hawksmith has returned from Summerland (heaven for witches) where she’d captured Gideon Masters. She learned that Gideon escaped. Elizabeth rushes home to start her search for him. As promised, Tegan has been caring for Elizabeth’s house. Elizabeth tells Tegan about Gideon. Together they start setting up wards against him. Tegan starts to tell Elizabeth about her travels. While Elizabeth is running errands, Gideon strikes. He kidnaps Tegan and time travels her away. Elizabeth finds a Time Stepper (a witch who can time travel), called Erasmus. He helps her find Tegan throughout their travels. First, Elizabeth must confront her past and where she first learned her witchcraft and learned of Gideon’s darkness. Second, she must determine if she’s powerful enough to stop Gideon. But what does Gideon want with Tegan? Can she find Tegan in time? Will she be strong enough to save her friend?

Rating: 4.0 – a good book about witches

Opinion: I enjoyed this sequel. Though it was a little hard to follow at times. It deals with time travel in a good way. There are rules set up for time travel. It’s consistent and there are consequences for those who do travel. Though a few more hints about Gideon’s plans would’ve been nice. There were a few parts where I thought ‘hurray they did it! Wait it’s never this easy…’ It has lots of good historical fiction, more fact based magic based in pagan magic (like all of the author’s books). I enjoy learning about this kind of magic even though I don’t really agree with it. I can understand where they’re coming from. I was surprised about the sparks of romance in it. It’s a realistic example of how a good romance develops. I highly recommend this book for those who love history and magic with some mystery.

Guest Post – The Wolf in the Whale

Thank you Annalise of Who Needs Sleep? for this awesome review.

In 1000 AD, a young Inuit shaman and a Viking warrior become unwilling allies as war breaks out between their peoples and their gods-one that will determine the fate of them all.

“There is a very old story, rarely told, of a wolf that runs into the ocean and becomes a whale.”

Born with the soul of a hunter and the spirit of the Wolf, Omat is destined to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps-invoking the spirits of the land, sea, and sky to protect her people.

But the gods have stopped listening and Omat’s family is starving. Alone at the edge of the world, hope is all they have left.

Desperate to save them, Omat journeys across the icy wastes, fighting for survival with every step. When she meets a Viking warrior and his strange new gods, they set in motion a conflict that could shatter her world…or save it.

The Wolf in the Whale has something that I adore in books, and something that is very hard to find; a rich, foreign setting. You don’t know how many books I have read that take place in a foreign, mystical land, or even just a different country, that feel like they could have taken place in the middle of a crappy American town without changing a thing.

There were some parts of this book that were difficult to read. It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. If you’re in the mood for a “feel good book” this isn’t it. However, if you want something that’ll stand out from the dozen or so forgettable titles in your Kindle, this would be the one you should pick up next.

The Dream Gatherer – Kristin Britain

Part of the Green Rider Series

Title: The Dream Gatherer

Author: Kristin Britain

Genre: Fantasy, Short Stories

Plot: Estral tells two short stories about famous people in Sacoridia’s history. Then the story shifts to follow Estral. She’s journeying back to Selium (a city and a school in Sacoridia). She goes ahead of the group while the others tend the horses. Estral gets lost the woods and comes across a house with sister’s who have met Karigan a few years prior, the Berry sisters. They invite her in to rest and recuperate. Then they invite her to a party. They won’t say who’s coming until it starts. The sisters bring out a dream gatherer. It’s a machine that allows people from dreams to attend and visit with the people there. But something else enters the party. What is it? Can it be stopped?

Rating: 3.6 – a mix of legends within a fantasy world

Opinion: I thought this book would be either a collection of stories or entire short story, not a combination of the two. But it was a good combination. It was well written. I enjoyed the story about the main character of The Green Rider series’ friend. Though the last few books did that as well but this book solely focused on Estral. I liked this story, though it didn’t continue the Green Rider plot along. I was a nice relaxing story. It’s a good expiation story to the Green Rider series.

The Squickerwonkers – Evangeline Lilly

Title: The Squickerwankers – Prequel and Demise of Selma the Spoiled

Author: Evangeline Lilly

Ilustrador: Prequel – Johnny Frazier-Allen, Denise of Selma the Spoiled – Rodrigo Bastos Dider

Genre: Fantasy, Children’s Book, Picture Book

Plot: Prequel – Selma is a child who demands everything she sees. She’ll whine and pout till she gets her way. The Squickerwonkers come to town. Selma is fascinated by them. She wants what they have. So her father makes a deal with them. Selma can stay with the Squickerwonkers and have what they have. Now Selma joins their crew in exchange for the Squickerwonkers being the royal troupe.

Demise of Selma the Spoiled – A new peddler comes to town. Selma looks through his wears, determined to find something. But spoiled Selma already has everything he’s selling. The peddler offers Selma something truly unique. She begs and pleads with the others. Slowly they consent. Each have their own reasons for wanting the unique thing. Everything starts out grand but soon things turn sour for Selma.

Rating: 4.0 – a dark style fairy tale with real life consequences

Opinion: This was a great kids book. It’s dark but relatable. It gives consequences for the characters who aren’t nice. The other characters see this and teach the characters a relatable lesson. The style of the story is very Dr. Seuss like. It’s meant for kids who don’t love to read or have a hard time reading. The author said so herself when I bought the books from her at comic con. I agree with her saying that kids need to hear things like this sometimes. That there are consequences for acting certain ways. I recommend these books for kids don’t mind books that are a little scarier, or kids who need to find a new style of books.