Isle of Stars

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - Cat and Ann are about to be married. At least, they were engaged but the author never wrote the wedding, which has Kaylie Keaton, a Dreamtreader, upset. While wishing she could read more of their adventure, Kaylie suddenly finds herself aboard the Robert Bruce, with no idea how she got there or how to get home. The good news is, the wedding is not far away. The bad news, they are currently chasing a mad pirate who is in search of the Isle of Stars, an island filled with glowing gems said to be the last corner of Eden untouched by man. Not only is Kaylie now involved in a story she loves, but it might just cost her life as the danger mounts.

Author - Wayne Thomas Batson

Publisher - Spear Head Books

Age Group - 13 and up
 
Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Fights and skirmishes ensure between the pirates but no gory details. A man it tortured but the there are only screams. Kaylie is willing to risk her life to help her friends and save others. Forgiveness and willing to change is also a theme.

Personal Opinion - We returned to the Robert Bruce. Yay! This was short read but fun to see another enlightening adventure with these pirates on the high season. One interesting part was that is wasn't completely just a Isle Chronicles story but also a Dreamtreaders (another novel series by Batson) story too. In fact, the story was short enough and had both these characters in them that the book could be considered a 0.5 story in both books' series. Most of the story was from the view point of Kaylie, a  Dreamtreader, who somehow ended up with the crew on board their ship. It made for an interesting reading experience and the reader got to see characters from both series and a few quick walk-ons from other books (I didn't identify them all but I enjoy when authors write those cameos). While this was fun, I could see a couple negatives (experienced one of them) form this. One, I didn't get to see as much of Ann and Cat or their perspectives and thoughts as much as I wanted to (but the book ended making me think that there might possibly be another full length story someday so here's hoping [I know, the author finally writes another pirate story and, after finishing it, I'm asking for another. I guess I can't be satisfied]). Second, if the reader hadn't read the Dreamtreaders series before this, they might not appreciate it as much (maybe even lost). Still, it was a fun little adventure with an interesting and deep lesson inside it. Anyone who has read the The Isle Chronicles will want to read this and anyone who has read the Isle Chronicles and Dreamtreaders will really enjoy it.

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Other Reviews for this Author

The Berinfell Prophesies - Review
The Dark Sea Annals: Sword in the Stars and The Errant King - Review
Dreamtreaders: Search for the Shadow Key and War for the Waking World - Review
The Isle Chronicles: Isle of Swords - Review

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Space Kitties 2

"Searching the Cosmos"

(Picture Copied from Amazon)

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - The cats are off again into space with Hearth Books newest anthology, Space Kitties 2. In this collection, cats fight aliens, fly spaceships, and save their world from various dangers. A puuurrrfect lazy read for the beach (or curled up on the couch in a blanket once the snow hits) for cat and space readers.

Editor - E. Kaiser Writes

Authors - A.J. Bakke, Lesa McKee, H.L. Burke, Faith Blum, Rachel Ann Michael Harris (That's me!), Jamie Mortensen,

Publisher - Hearth Books

Age Group - All Ages

Personal Opinion - This was a charming read. Some had me smiling, some in an adventure, and some just enjoying cats in space. I think this anthology is almost better than last year's (no, I'm not being biased), not to say last years wasn't good, but I engaged with this year's stories better. Some of my favorites is the Operation Space Cats book 2 story and the one that is reminiscent of Star Trek and the beautiful poem at the beginning. If you want a simple, quick read or just to get a full story in short snippets of time, this is fun, charming, and full of various types of cats.

Buy - Amazon

Interview - Here is an interview I had with the author Lesa McKee who wrote Operation Space Cats. 

Disclaimer - I am the author of Star Hopper Engineer, published in this anthology, and such this review is based upon the other stories not mine.

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Thieves of Greatness

 

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - Elizabeth is the second daughter of King Henry the VII and unlikely to ever receive the crown or be remembered. Shunned by her family, she feels alone and wishes to be great. Yet, when she starts seeing a flying sailing ship, she begins to worry that she is going insane like her father is rumored to be. When the ship lands atop the palace and the man called Captain invites her aboard, she begins an adventure where animals talk, travels through time, and meets the other children invited on board like King Tut, the boy king of Egypt, Neal Armstrong, an adventurous boy who jumps into everything, and Coaxoch, a shy Aztec princess. But, their adventures are interrupted by someone taking children out of their time and abandoning them. As they race to stop whoever is doing this, the hunters become the hunted and they will have to find a way to send the world's and time's children back to where they belong and find in themselves all they can be.

Author - Emily C. Burger

Publisher - Howling Wolf

Age Group - 12 and up
 
Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Elizabeth decides to go with a man on a sailing ship that flies who she just met. Coaxoch struggles with right and wrong. Each child has to face their fear and doubt to overcome the evil they are facing and use their talents.

Personal Opinion - I've been jumping between rating this book at 3.5 or 4 stars because, while it is good and interesting and the characters are great, there were some questions and concerns I had. The story was really good and engaging, having a Doctor Who feel with the Captain and the Explorer and the strange items aboard the ship as well as picking up people who are fantastic (the biggest difference here is in Doctor Who, the companions are just normal people while each kid in this book is a recognizable figure from history but the sentiment is the same for the people who come along). That is one cool thing, that the every kid is an important person from history, which really shows that, "Every child has the ability to make history," as Captain says, and there are hints of how these children do so while reading this book. Speaking of history, while it was fun seeing  different people from various cultures and historical time periods, I did question the historical accurateness at times. The reader gets to see Elizabeth in her home for several chapters before she meets the Captain yet there were times I thought, "Is that right? I thought it was different." It makes me want to do research. That being said, the issue of accurateness also comes into play with point of view. It seemed it was mostly from Elizabeth's POV yet sometimes the author would seem to speak to the reader director, and then, again in the description, an item would be described by being compared to something else, something Elizabeth would not know anything about because of the time period difference. It made me wonder who was telling this story. There were also several POV changes without a scene break or chapter change that went from one character to another with only the change of a sentence. For the antagonist, I am still not clear is what his motivation and goal was. Lastly, and this is more personal, I would have liked to have seen Elizabeth at home longer at the end of the story, had seen how she changed, especially after how long the beginning was before even before a hint of the flying ship. But, this story was good. It wasn't a, "I have to get back to this right now!" story for me but, when I was reading, I was interested and engaged, enjoyed the various characters, human and animal, and seeing how these historical people before they were famous were brought into the story. I think there is a lot of room for it to become a series and continue on but it also works well for a stand alone. This is a good book, maybe one I would not say, "You have to go buy this," but, if someone was interested in it, I would say good things and support them picking it up. The author, Emily C. Burger, has a great future in writing if she wants to continue and work on it some more. I would keep an eye out for her next book.

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Quest for Truth: Unleash

"Claws Raised. Mouth Open.
It Was Coming for Her!"

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - The adventure continues as Oliver, Tiffany, Mason, and Austin unravel the mystery surrounding their parents kidnapping and Ursprung. As they journey from planet to planet, more clues are found, more enemies are made and secrets are revealed. While struggling with all this, They also learn of an ancient truth of one who sacrificed himself to save the world and of those who still hold that truth. As thing get more dangerous and the come closer to their destination, their lives are in even more at risk then before. Can they stay out of the hands of the Ubel and Corsairs, save their parents, and discover the secret to eternal life?

Author - Brock Eastman

Publisher - P & R Publishing

Age Group - 14 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Lots of shoot outs as they fight to stay free and various enemies try to capture them. The kids lie at one point so those who took over their ship would not know what they had discovered about the mystery. The Wikks never leave each other behind and defend one another even when it could get them captured or in danger. Once they even put themselves on the line to save one of their enemies from death.

Personal Opinion - This was a nice edition to the story. The characters have grown, more determined and more capable of facing danger and always looking out for their friends, even when it might derail them from their journey. The is also a lot of action. That being said, this particular book felt like they were just running around from one spot to the next without much headway in the finding of Ursprung. *SPOILER* It was also not very believable when they shut the door in the face of a bad guy who had taken over their ship, held it shut until all the clues they had gathered were hidden and talking with each other on what to do with them, and then open the door and it was almost nonchalant as the bad guy walked in, found some fake clues they had hid and everything was find. This guy was supposed to be smart and devious and it barley phased him and he did very little to the kids who were obviously hiding something from him *END SPOILER*. So, there were believability issues and a lot of planet jumping. One thing that also just gets to me, and maybe this is just me, but, in stories where people convert who have never heard of Jesus in any way, convert on the spot with only a paragraph of explanation given to them, they just believe and it makes a difference to them, and the story they are given of his love and sacrifice is so general it isn't even specific on what happened. Those are not believable and even people who have believed in God for years find it difficult, challenging, and even face doubt. While this story gave me plenty to irritate me, I enjoy the adventure and think the idea of them finding the truth about eternal life intriguing also because I can see the hints dropped that the characters don't because I know the Bible and they don't. I look forward to reading the last two books and seeing how this wraps up.  

Buy - Amazon, Barnes and Noble, ChristianBook, Publisher, Author,

Other Reviews for this Author - Quest for the Truth: Taken - Review
                                                    Quest for the Truth: Risk - Review
                                                    Sages of Darkness: Howlsage - Review

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The Real Force: A 40-Day Devotional

"What lessons may we learn from this galaxy 

far, far away and how do they relate to the beliefs we hold so near, near to our hearts?"

Bookworm's Ranking - 4.5 Worms
 

About - Star Wars is a rich experience of cultures, morality, and action. But, can this beloved series represent and teach us more about the Christian faith? Paul Kent takes readers on a 40 day journey through the saga, using characters and events of the Star Wars realm to show Christian teachings and Bible verses to bring readers deeper in their faith in God. Everyone might want to be a Jedi and use the Force and visit Tatooine and Cloud City, but Kent shows us who the real Force is in this world.

Author - Paul Kent

Publisher - Worthy Publishing

Age Group - 14 and up

Personal Opinion - 40 days of seeing connections between Star Wars and Christianity. For this devotional, I did only read one chapter a day and it was really nice. I just got to focus on that and got to examine my faith through this great story. Since someone at my church has made a Bible study using Star Wars, there were a couple of times the author would take a different approach to the same situation than that study took so I would start thinking "what about this interpretation?" I was just stuck with that other idea, not that what the author was saying was any less pertinent. I did enjoy this. In the beginning, though, there seemed to be times where the chapter, beginning quote, and the information in the chapter didn't seem to go together very well. Like, it started with one idea but covered another. Somewhere within the middle of the book, this mostly went away but made enough of an impression that I still remember it. It also seemed to cover the original three more than the prequels (but the original three were better). It is also too bad the author couldn't have incorporated anything from the new movie (I believe this book was published before the movie was release or really close to). So, if you love Star Wars and want to see your faith through the lens (or, maybe, parable) or the films, check out this book.

Video - This is a video interview with the author about the book and Star Wars films.

 
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Harry Potter Books 2-4

(I told Squirmy that Time Turner isn't real

but he is hoping it will give more time to read)



Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - Harry Potter is continuing his schooling at Hogwarts and learning more about his past and facing more dangerous. In Chamber of Secrets, the school is being terrorized by a monster that is petrifying students and it is only a matter of time until someone is killed. In Prisoner of Azkaban, a notorious inmate escapes and is linked to Harry's past and it is taking everything Harry can do to survive the Dementors, guards of the prison looking for the escapee, around the school and control his anger when he learns the truth about this man. In Goblet of Fire, the Triwizard Tournament is underway and visitors from other wizarding schools come together to compete in these dangerous and deadly games, and someone has added Harry as a contestant! Fun magic, action and adventure, and friendship fill the pages of books 2-4 as things become progressively darker and more serious for Harry and his future.

Author - J. K. Rowling

Publisher - Scholastic

Age Group - 14 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Disobedience and rebellion is something of a staple of the series as well as fighting (and, most recently, hexing) with the bullies. In book 3, when Harry hears of someone who was involved in killing his parents, he want to kill them but comes to willingly giving them to the Dementors instead. In book 4, Hermione begins to black mail a reporter, handling the illegal actions of the woman herself instead of seeking assistance from an adult. The return of Voldemort is creepy. While they are disobedient and try to handle things themselves, they usually come to turning to a teacher they can trust and learn important lessons in the end. Lessons of friendship, justice instead of revenge, and standing up for what is right even when you might get hurt.

Personal Opinion - Harry, Ron, and Hermione are in more adventures and danger as usual. While the characters do make bad choices that never seem to get addressed in the series of them being right or wrong, there is a lot of good in them. Yet, there is definitely actions I would not condone or support. The characters are constantly coming face to face with evil and doing the right thing. Harry especially keeps putting his life on the line to save others. I think the series also shows well how kids think and feel. The characters are realistic and trying to solve puzzles, especially when they can't get teachers to tell them everything, is normal. Also, the main thing of this series is right vs. wrong and good vs. evil. I think the characters keep learning the deeper into the series the books go. Of course, right now the books are still fairly light hearted, making me laugh out loud and chuckle and a lot of charming magic. Yet, I've also moved on to the later books and they get darker, more serious. I think there is meaning in that. While I can see caution with these books and discussions on some of the actions the characters take that are never addressed, it is a good series that I think can teach a lot about good, friendship, and standing up for what is right.

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Awards - New York Times Bestseller
 
Other Reviews for this Author - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - Review
                                                    Very Good Lives - Review

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Dreamtreaders: War for the Waking World

"Would you be willing

to fight

for your dreams?"

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - The Rift between the Waking and Dream World is open. Dreams are coming real and devastation is sweeping the world. It is up to the Dreamtreaders to stop it. But, when the devastation seems to disappear and everyone is in some hallucinative state where they can't see what is true and Archer is up on charges for misusing his Dreamtreader gifts, repairing the damage might be harder than they thought. Yet, help is found, in some of the most unlikely sources.  

Author - Wayne Thomas Batson

Publisher - Thomas Nelson

Age Group - 14 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* The characters, more than just Archer, have to look back on the wrongs they have done, whether or not it was completely their fault, and take responsibility for those actions. Creativity abounds, even to the down right silly. Darkness and destruction is filling the world yet people don't see the danger and terror around them, blissfully ignorant of what their actions are doing to the real world.

Personal Opinion - A really great ending to the series. I even didn't mind 3-5 pages of resolution after the major battle (I usually like a few more pages of rap up after the major event at the end). I think the best part was the change of the characters. Archer didn't just get away with the wrong he did in the previous books but took responsibility for them and even Kara and Rigby ended up being complicated characters by struggling with greedy wants and hurts and yet not completely evil. Makes if more realistic and challenging in this way. Something I personally found while reading it was an allegory to life. The people only say the good they wanted to see, were unwilling to see that they was trouble and danger, it being covered up by a Veil. I think our would, and even ourselves, can be like that. We try to ignore the unseen costs of our actions and want to believe in what see only. The only trouble I had with this book was at the beginning. For some reason, I had trouble connecting the last thing from the previous book to the beginning of this one. I'm not really sure how to explain it. There wasn't anything wrong with it, I just seemed to be going "What's going on here?" It took a little while for it to come back together again. Anyway, a good ending to a thought provoking series (one of which I still need to read book 1. Read this series in order. That would be helpful).

Buy - Amazon, Barnes and Noble, ChristianBook, Publisher,

Other Reviews for this Author - The Pirate Series: Isle of Swords
                                                    The Berinfell Prophesies: Books 1 and 2
                                                    The Dark Sea Annals: Sword in the Stars
                                                    The Dark Sea Annals: The Errant King
                                                    Dreamtreaders: Search for the Shadow Key

Disclaimer - In exchange for an honest review, I received this book for free from the publisher through BookLook.

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How to Train Your Dragon: How to Fight a Dragon's Fury - Book 12

 

 (Hiccup and Toothless from the movies decided to fill in for Squirmy)

Bookworm's Ranking - 4.5 Worms

Storyline - The end is near. Doomsday of Yule is approaching and Hiccup is in trouble and Alvin is about to be crowned king. And the dragon Fury is preparing his army for battle. As the Vikings prepare for a king and war, Hiccup will have to not only get to Hero's End without getting killed, prove he is the king without any of the Lost Things, and be crowned king without getting killed by Alvin and his mother, but also figure out how to overcome Fury without destroying the dragons once and for all. And if that wasn't enough, there are a few more surprises waiting in this conclusion to the How to Train Your Dragon series.

Author - Cressida Cowell

Publisher - Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
 
Age Group - 13 and up
 
Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Several death and battle scenes, not really graphic but the deaths are sad. Hiccup is faithful and true to his quest and responsibilities. He tries to defend and help those he can and forgives those who ask for it.

Personal Opinion - Wow, what a great ending. It almost makes me want to go out and look for dragons. I don't think I will ever be the same after reading this series, and isn't that what great books do? They change you? Take you on a journey, or go on your journey with you in life, and change how you see and think of the world? That is what the end of How to Train Your Dragon is for me. Considering anew, just what I love about books, how I see my world and want to react to it. The end is sad yet hopeful, wanting to make the reader cry yet smile at times. Sometimes at the same time. It also leaves the reader with hope. While dragons aren't real, there is a message at the very end, one I wont share for spoilers, that makes you consider things differently and what you are doing and seeing in this world. If I have one issue with the story, it is the repetition of the same message or very close sentences several times throughout the book which make it longer than it needed to be and was a bit overkill. Yet, I almost hope to read the story again, keep it with me over the years, and hope it has changed me for the better.

Buy - Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Publisher,

Other Reviews for this Author - How to Train Your Dragon - Books 1-7
                                                    How to Train Your Dragon - Book 8
                                                    How to Train Your Dragon - Books 9-11

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5 Enchanted Roses

"Rediscover the Enchantment"

 

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - A rose to mark the enchantment that turned men into beasts and only a woman can free them. The second collection of fairy tale retellings from Rooglewood Press takes the traditional tale of Beauty and the Beast and sets in in various and strange settings. Sailing on the high seas is a pirate ship curse by mermaids. A castle is threatened by the underworld and stone. A ballroom is filled with stone guests while the cursed master and lady-in-waiting must find who did this. Deep within the jungle, a Jaguar watches over one in danger. A Wulver in Scotland is running out of time to break an enchantment done out of jealousy. With each is unique, the collection brings back the story of healing love when all that is seen on the outside is an ugly beast.  

Editor - Anne Elizabeth Stengl

Author - Kaycee Browning
               Savannah Jezowski
               Jenelle Schmidt
               Dorian Tsukioka
               Hayden Wand

Publisher - Rooglewood Press

Age Group - 16 and up
 
Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Almost each story had some jerk trying to attack the main female protagonist. The women were strong in their morals and stance on the situation and stood their ground, loving and, sometimes, forgiving the beastly men who were cursed. Defending the innocent and doing what was right was popular in the stories.

Personal Opinion - A great collection of five retellings of Beauty and the Beast told by some up and coming authors. The range of these stories followed the traditional tale to unusual. My personal favorite was a paranormal take of the tale which surprised me because I usually don't go for that genre. Even though they each told the same story, each was unique in who was a beast, why they were cursed, and how it was broken. They were beautifully brought together and gave new light on the situation and message a traditional fairy tale. A couple of times I felt some content in the story was reflective of Disney's movie more than the original tale. Also, guys were leering (or even came close to attacking) the heroine almost in every novella. That was a bit irritating and unnecessary in my opinion and makes these retellings for an older teens and up. Those are perhaps my biggest dislikes about the collection. Yet, this is a great read especially if you want to read a whole story in a day and read multiple versions of a fairy tale.

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Other Reviews Concerning These Anthologies - 5 Glass Slippers

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Back to the Future Day!

Great Scott! Marty McFly, Doc Brown, and Jennifer fly into the future, October 21, 2015, today at precisely 4:29 PM. I have been enjoying the day by sharing stuff on my Facebook account and even found this video of Doc Brown sending out a little message for everyone today.

Isn't that cool. It also sums up the great story that is Back to the Future. Speaking of stories, one you can get today, was just released, is the comic book on how Doc and Marty met and some other great stuff. It is published by IDW publishers and written by Bob Gale, the original writer and creator of the trilogy.

(Picture copied for publishers website)

 

Awesome right? While I'm still waiting on flying cars, self sizing clothes, and trials that take two hours to complete, I don't have to wait for this. If, you are looking for more of a... book... type of read, maybe We Don't Need Roads: The Making of the Back to the Future Trilogy is what you are looking for. A behind the scenes look at the making of the movies. This is heavy.

 

(Picture copied from Amazon)

 

So I suggest making like a tree and getting out'a to your local book, or comic book, store. Or newsstand apparently. Still looking for this one myself.

 

(Picture copied from Entertainment Weekly) 

 

While this does not cover all that is available on the Back to the Future trilogy, it is some good stuff.

Is there something else that has to do with this trilogy? Please share in the comments below. Me and everyone else would love to hear about it.







Comics - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle - Volume 1 & 2, Issues 39-47

 

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - The turtles are living in New York and falling into one dangerous event after another. Mysteries from feudal Japan and scientific troubles fill their days, putting them and their friends Casey, April, Angel, and more in situations where they have to fight back. While each character deals with their own personal issues, they come together as a time to protect their home and each other.

Creators - Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz

Publisher - IDW Publishing

Age Group - 16 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Bloody fights and some swearing. Reincarnation. Abusive father situation early in the series and conflict because of it continues to cause tension. World domination later in the comics. Staying true to family and what you believe in. Following a code and protecting friends.

Personal Opinion - The turtles are fighting crime against old and new enemies while making friends and discovering their past. A lot of things have changed in the story with this new publication yet nodes to and brings in elements of the original tales and parts to the TV shows and movies. It all blends together seamlessly and continues being a tale of family, right and wrong, and fighting for what you believe in. Each month, a continuation of their adventure is released so readers only have to go a short time before a new story is published (by the time this post will publish, I will have read at least one new comic in the series). The art work is great too. There is some content that I could do without, swearing for one, it is still a great story and not as bad as it could be. It is pretty violent and bloody so not for young readers. If you are a turtles fan, start picking this comic up at your local comic shop and enjoy a new phase of the story. (If you are picking up in the middle of this series, there are books with the past comics available for purchase that have about four comics to a book. I am using these to catch up so I have questions that I hope will be answered from where it began to where it is now. Example: the art has changed a little.)

Also, check out the Casey and April comics which is a brief side story for only a few months.

Video -

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Frostfire

"Hidden Deep in the Heart of a Snow-Covered Wilderness Lies the Secret Kingdom of the Kanin - A Magical Realm as Beautiful as it is Treacherous..."

 

Bookworm's Ranking - 3 Worms

Storyline - Having never been completely accepted among her kingdom because she is both Kanin and Skojar, Bryn dedicates herself in her work as a Tracker, who leaves the safety of the Trolls' home to find and return with the Changlings placed in our world as babies once they have grown old enough. But, when on a routine mission, she comes face to face with the man who tried to kill her father and stabbed her years ago, Konstantin Black. Unsure what he was doing following a Changling, Bryn tries to focus on events and duties at home but something is wrong. As Konstantin continues going after Changlings, she and the other Trackers have to keep the kingdom safe. Yet, while Bryn wants to bring Konstantin to "justice," there is something that isn't right. Mysteries and fantasy abound in this first installment of The Kanin Chronicles.

Author - Amanda Hocking

Publisher - St. Martin's Griffin

Age Group - 17 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Several characters have "romantic encounters" casually. Swearing every few pages. A diversity in gender preferences for relationships. Faithfull to country and protecting those in danger. Determination to do their duty. Wanting revenge but sees there might be more to the situation that can be seen.

Personal Opinion - Filled with intrigue, action, and mystery, Frostfire was one of the most engaging and captivating books I have ever read. Even though this is based off a fairy tale yet, it is so light and woven together so well, it is its own story. The life of Bryn is complicated and so are the morals and practices of the world, creating conflict. I like how it takes place in our world yet is hidden. The author is also Minnesotan, my home state, which is just cool and, in my opinion, give credibility for writing a world filled with snow and, later, a country with water, two major parts of MN. However, I did rate this at only 3 stars and my reasons for that is the morality presented in the novel. *May Be Spoilers* Within the first chapter, a character makes a video call and connects with another character who is just finishing a "nooner". While there was nothing explicit, all the while presenting this as no big deal, just their way of life, it felt like in appropriate material, this event and subsequent references or desires that were clearly hinted yet not detailed, for teens. People do have different ideas on appropriateness of this stuff but I was uncomfortable with it being in a book meant for this age group. That was my number one issue and is making me question if I will continue reading the books even though I want to know what happens next. Second, there were some laws broken in our world that the characters did in order to escape trouble and they have the philosophy of "the ends justified the means" going for them. There were lastly a few swear words every several pages which I can usually live with so this was not a make it or break it issue. I think I may continue reading the series, not only to see how the story goes and understand the mysteries set up but also to see how the morals of the characters and the practices of the society, the Changling practice which causes some friction between characters, is covered. I want to know if the world created still thinks these ways are still okay or if their way of thinking and seeing things change even though, right now, they are defending them.

Video -

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How to Train Your Dragon Series: Books 9-11

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - The dragon Furious has returned leading the Dragon Rebellion with one goal in mind, destroy the humans, especially Hiccup. As the dragons attack, the Vikings strike back, knowing only one can survive. Mean while, Hiccup has to survive and accept that he is to be the next king of the Wilder West. Yet everything is falling apart. He is losing everything, his tribe, his friends, and his family. Alone, he needs to find a way to stop the dragon rebellion before one side or the other is defeated forever. It is up to Hiccup to save the dragon and Vikings, and stop the wrong man claiming the throne. The dragon rebellion has begun.

Author - Cressida Cowell

Publisher - Little, Brown and Company

Age Group - 13 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Honor and loyalty is tested and choices are made on how to treat one another. Friends are determined as well as how far they are willing to go for each other. How faithful one will be is tested. Death even comes to one.

Personal Opinion - If the summary is a bit dark for this usually tongue-in-cheek series, that's because that is the turn the books have taken. Hiccup struggles with his calling and protecting those he loves as well as achieving his goals. He is devastated by the idea of losing dragons forever and is determined to save both them and the Vikings but as Alvin and his mother work on making Alvin king, they are determined to destroy the beasts. Right and wrong will be determined and loyalty as well as friendship will be discovered. Sacrifices are made, lives lost, and stakes are falling. There is only one book left in the series and I can only see a bitter sweet or a depressing (filled with tears and sadness) ending based off what has been hinted at Old Hiccup's writings. Yet, I'm looking forward to its release this fall. But, also sad at it ending. Here is to a great, crazy, funny, charming, and fantastic series of dragons, adventures, and growing up while becoming a hero.

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Other Reviews for this Author - How to Train Your Dragon: Books 1-7 - Review
                                                   How to Train Your Dragon: How to Break a Dragon's Heart - Review

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William Shakespeare's the Phantom of Menace

"O Threepio,

O Threepio, 

Wherefore Art Thou Threepio?"

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

Storyline - The Trade Federation has taken over the peaceful planet of Naboo, trying to force its queen, Amidala, to sign a treaty to make their occupation legal, allowing innocents to die. With the help of two Jedi knights, the queen escapes but their ship is damaged and has to land on the lonely planet Tatooine for supplies. While there, the Jedi meet a boy, Anakin Skywalker, who might be the one to bring the Force into balance. As the Jedi try to help Anakin and take them with them, Naboo is in desperate need but it is unknown if the Republic will send aid in time to save its people.

Author - Ian Doescher

Publisher - Quirk Books

Age Group - 15 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Queen Amidala, Anakin, and the Jedi are determined to protect Naboo and do the right thing, even at the cost of their own lives. Jar Jar is a bit manipulative. Many of them just want peace.  They call on the Fates and the Force of support and help on numerous occasions.

Personal Opinion - A great retelling of the film in Shakespearian form. The known dialogue and actions are contain within the story as well as going into the thoughts and feelings of the characters as well as adding some small, additional arcs, such as Jar Jar Binks aside dialogue. I also appreciated two Jedi's who talked about seeing a pattern in the Force, mostly because it related to an observation my mom made about the movies but, if I say more I'll spoil it. I think the only thing I would have liked different is knowing what the prophesy is. For everything that is added and expanded upon, this explanation is still missing like it did in the movie. I hope someday to hear what the prophesy actually says besides people just referencing it. Still, a great read for those who like the movies yet would enjoy them told a little differently. (In fact, Squirmy, the Ty, enjoyed it so much, he tried using the force to levitate the book for the picture. Please don't tell him you see his tale.)

Video -

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Other Reviews for this Author - William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return

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Dreamworks Dragons: Riders of Berk; Volumes 1-4

Bookworm's Ranking - 3.5 - 4 Worms

Storyline - Hiccup and his friends are defending Berk, fighting dragons, and meeting new enemies in this comic book series based off the TV show, Riders of Berk. In the series, we meet old and new enemies as the dragons and Vikings get in trouble a well as the heroes using their ingenuity to conquer their antagonists. Ride along with the dragons and riders as the work together and learn new lessons on their crazy adventures.

Publisher - Titan Comics

Age Group - 13 and up
 
Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Hiccup tries to be a good leader but also disobeys his father from time to time. He is determined to protect his dragon and friends. Jealousy also comes into play. All the gang tries to work together and protect their home and dragons.

Personal Opinion - This series is fun and charming but I found some of the stories missing something. These stories are not recreations of the episodes on TV but their own adventures to add to the show which makes them new. That artwork was colorful and bright, bringing the story to life. The new enemies were interesting and challenging, requiring the dragon riders to use their famous ingenuity to win. Yet, something seemed to be missing from the books. For some, it might have been a sense of immediacy with the danger and the stories went fast. One of the comic's art was a bit strange but, I like this series and can't wait to see the rest of the stories.

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The Looking Glass Wars - Book 1

(Picture from Goodreads)

 

Bookworm's Ranking - 3 Worms
 

Storyline - Alyss is the princess of Wonderland until her family is destroyed by her own aunt, Redd, and she escapes into our world. Yet, no one believes her story. Then Alyss meets the one man who seemed to consider it true and then retells her tale incorrect, not even getting her name right. It seems the only way to survive is to forget. But Wonderland is deteriorating under Redd's control and the rebellious force is struggling to survive. When Alyss is finally found, will she have the strength to take back her throne after years of suppressing the memories?

Author - Frank Beddor

Publisher - Scholastic

Age Group - 15 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Lots of killing and blood spurting. Some characters search for revenge for what Redd has done. Alyss is determined to remember her true home but has trouble believing when everyone doubts her in our world. The characters are determined to save Wonderland and bring back White Imagination; staying faithful to their cause when things get tough.

Personal Opinion - While this book has an interesting take on the Alice in Wonderland story, I'm afraid I found it long and slow. Alyss's story is fun and the changes were creative from the story we know and the story that is presented here. The story is also heartfelt and makes one think what is right and wrong as it presents the White and Black Imagination that becomes a center of the struggle. Yet, I found the author spent a bit of time and description that wasn't needed and then on instances where I would have liked to see the events happen they were summarized. This made it long. The reader too was irritating sometimes so I can't tell if my dislike for the story was because it was read to me or the story itself. Anyone who really likes the original tale might enjoy this book the most.

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Breadcrumbs

"Once Upon a Time"
 

 

Bookworm's Ranking - 3 Worms

 

Storyline - Through her imagination and her best friend Jack who she has lived next door to most her life, Hazel survives the demands of school, the dislike of her peers, and her mother's pleas to grow up. But when Jack is suddenly no longer her friend, ignoring and insulting her, her world begins to fall apart. When Jack disappears, should she believe the reasonable answers given to her and remain in the real world or believe in a magical winter witch who took him to an enchanted world that is more dangerous than what she has read in her books?

Author - Anne Ursu

Publisher - Waldon Pond Press; an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers

Age Group - 13 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* A creepy woman cuts Hazel's cheek. Hazel throws a pencil case at someone. Parental figures have no idea what is going on. Hazel makes sacrifices to help others even when it might hurt her. She loves her mom and wants to please her. She stands by her best friend even when he has turned his back on her. Hazel doesn't give up even when the journey becomes difficult.

Personal Opinion - Breadcrumbs retells the fairy tale The Snow Queen while mixing real life with fantasy and the struggles of growing up. Being let into Hazel's life, her family struggles, the loss of a friend, and being expected to grow up, was done perfectly and beautifully to reveal the change that overcomes someone when it seems they are leaving a part of themselves behind. Mixing the fairy tale elements to mirror this struggle, made it that much more insightful. The determination of standing by her friend when he was in trouble and facing the difficult journey is a positive one for others to learn to keep going and learn and discover what they should do even when things go wrong. While Hazel wasn't perfect, she tried to do the right thing and do what she thought was she should, even if it meant stop being herself. One thing that was interesting was, in the real world, she turned to fantasy to thrive; but, in the enchanted world, she turned to the real world to strengthen herself.

The ending was a bit confusing. I couldn't tell if she found a boundary between being her imaginative self and living in reality or if one won out over the other. Besides that, there were a few things I personally felt uncomfortable with. Some of the people Hazel meets on her journey are just creepy and she wasn't always respectful of authority figures but it is hard to be respectful when someone wants you to fit into a mold. While this novel is mostly based off The Snow Queen fairy tale, a couple other Hans Christian Anderson tales where also mixed in. This was interesting but almost had too much happening, especially when so much already happens in the main fairy tale. The last thing that made me uncomfortable, and this is purely personal, was the reference to The Golden Compass only because I have an issue with that book.

All and all, this story beautifully wove reality and fantasy together to reveal the struggles of growing up and being yourself as well as helping your friends and making sacrifices.

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Awards - Publishers Weekly Best Book
               School Library Journal Best Book
              Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book
              Chicago Public Library Best of the Best
              NPR Backseat Book Club Selection
             

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Valiant Hearts Book 1: Dauntless

"Where Legend and History Collide,

One Young Woman Will Fight for the Innocent"

Bookworm's Ranking - 3.5 Worms
 

Storyline - Merry Ellison has lost title, home, and family when her father rebelled against the king of England. Now living in the woods with a band of orphan children, they steal to survive. The only dream she will allow herself to have is to find a safe home for the children to live while she must remain hidden. And not fall in love. Their thievery has been noticed, dubbing them the Ghosts of Farthingale Forest since they are never seen. They are a wanted band. And the first one to catch on to them is Merry's betrothed, Timothy Grey. Fighting between duty and love, Timothy will have to decide to hand over Merry for her crimes or find another way. Yet, unbeknownst to Timothy, someone is out to destroy him. Will Merry find a way to care for the children and welcome love or will choices beyond their control determine their future?

Author - Dina L. Sleiman

Publisher - Baker Publishing Group; Bethany House Publishing

Age Group - 16 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Merry fears for her honor once. The Ghosts steal in order to survive. Timothy searches to do the right thing by his duty and master yet struggles with the idea of allowing Merry to be hurt. A Lord is described to "love" often. Someone seeks to hurt another.

Personal Opinion - Merry and Timothy's struggles to care for others and find a way in their life drives their decisions and causes conflict between them. Even though they love each other, they believe the other doesn't and both have been hurt enough in their life to be cynical. This bring believability and life to the characters for different reasons. Merry can't see another life for herself because she is wanted by the king and thought dead, leaving the only option to steal to survive and protect innocent lives, believing that is the only way her life can go. Timothy is the ninth child and not going to inherit anything so has to find a place for himself yet morns the loss of the woman he loves. These two have a lot to deal with but are not the only ones. The rest of the cast are developed into players themselves with wants, desires, and struggles themselves, such as one of the Ghosts in love with Merry and leaning on God for direction and a man in the castle jealous of Timothy and plans on destroying him. While all this character development was good and interesting, I expected a little more action because the story is based off Robin Hood. The story is good, just would have liked more action sooner in the story.

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Disclaimer - In exchange for an honest review, I received this book for free from the publisher through Bethany House.

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