Foreshadow: Stories to Celebrate The Magic of Reading and Writing YA*The review below is being done on a Netgalley Advanced Reader's Copy of Foreshadow: Stories to Celebrate the Magic of Reading and Writing YA. This review is my own, and I have written it in my honest opinion.
I first heard about the Foreshadow project earlier this year during a virtual book conference and I was so excited to hear that this book was to release this year. Other than hearing it was a collection of stories, I didn't really know what to expect in terms of genres or themes, so it was pleasantly surprising to see that so many different genres were showcased in this collection. I would finish reading one story and felt that there was no way the next one could compare, but before long the next story consumed me and I was caught up in the cycle all over again. The following is a list of the stories that were in the collection and a brief description of each. In this collection you can find something for every YA reader to enjoy: Flight (Fantasy)- A mother/daughter story about identity and society vs. self. Risk (Fantasy)- A story about friendship, transformation, and lobsters. Sweetmeats (Fantasy)- A story of friendship and fairtyales turn Grimm as two girls go missing and are found. Glow (Romance)- Two friends set off an an adventure to destroy the world. Escape (Romance/Legend)- A family who owns a mysterious pochette find that danger lurks closer than they suspect. Pan Dulce (Realistic Fiction)- A high schooler crosses the boarder to party, but finds that it may be harder to get home. SUPER HAPPY THIS ONE TAKES PLACE IN MY HOMETOWN OF EL PASO!! Solace (Romance/ Realistic Fiction)- A young woman tries to find herself among her magical garden amidst turmoil and tragedy. Princess (Science Fiction)- A young girl must choose to change her life in order to survive death. Fools (Romance/ Fantasy)- A witch is given a young baby that was born to a bunch of lovesick fools. The "heartless" girl becomes a gate-keeper who guards a magical world. Monsters (Realistic Fiction/ Fantasy)- A girl moves to the states with her aunt and cousin, but sees some supernatural things along the way. Break (Romance)- Fate tries to bring two characters together a few games of spin-the-bottle. Resilient (Realistic Fiction)- Two cousins make their way to the United States to work in a turkey factory after Hurricane Maria destroys their hometown. Belly (Realistic Fiction)- Two families squabble over land that a magical and tumultuous river cuts through, and one of the members is more connected to the river than even she knows. If you would like to pick up a copy of Foreshadow go to the following websites: Amazon Barnes and Noble
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Yellow Jessamine*The review below is being done on a Netgalley Advanced Reader's Copy of Yellow Jessamine. This review is my own, and I have written it in my honest opinion. Yellow Jessamine by Caitlin Starling is set in a small trade town. From the very beginning of the book we are introduced to our main character, Evelyn Perdanu who is in perpetual mourning after her family died under mysterious circumstances; she has taken over the family business of importing goods, but tragedy strikes as soon as one of her ships makes landfall. Members of the crew have been overcome with comatose states and doctors cannot identify what is the cause of their issue. As the book continues, more citizens succumb to the "plague" and Evelyn begins to wonder if her boats and crew were the cause of them. In addition to the already drama filled plot, Evelyn has found a man on the brink of death, but what makes matters worse is that he is an enemy of the country. Should she harbor a fugitive or let him die? This book has so many twists and turns that it did keep me wanting to read more to figure out what the mysterious illness was. As much as I love a good mystery though, this book does include a little bit of romance, not too much to be overwhelming, but enough to add to the suspense of the novel. All in all, I did enjoy the book, but I do wish the ending was different. When I first decided to request this book, it was listed under Horror, but when I read it I saw it more as a Fantasy novel instead. This may be why I did not enjoy the ending as much. Yellow Jessamine was released on September 5, 2020. You can get your copy below: Amazon Audible Barnes and Noble Better World Books Powell's Kind of a Big Deal*The review below is being done on a Netgalley Advanced Reader's Copy of Kind of a Big Deal. This review is my own, and I have written it in my honest opinion.
The first time I read Shannon Hale was in middle school, my book of choice- Princess Academy. I must admit that other than that series world I have not kept up with Hale, so when I got the opportunity to read Kind of a Big Deal I was excited at the prospect. Kind of a Big Deal revolves around Josie Pie, a popular high schooler who has her heart set on Broadway, not to mention the voice to get her there. When Josie drops out of high school to take her shot on Broadway, she realizes that she may not be cut out for that life after all. In order to avoid returning to her hometown in Arizona, Josie becomes a nanny and moves to Missouri with her new employers. We follow Josie on her journey as she tries to overcome loneliness, heartbreak, and shame. This book has so many things that I want to discuss because I feel that it has a lot of potential, so please keep in mind that although the small summary I gave in the previous paragraph sounds like it is a Realistic Fiction book, it actually falls into the Fantasy genre. What I didn't mention earlier was that Josie Pie tries to take up reading as a hobby, but as she tries to read a book she ends up going into the actual story, literally. As she continues to story-jump she finds that it is becoming harder and harder to return to the "real world." I really wanted to love this book, but I had a hard time staying engaged with the story. The plot line became very repetitive in that Josie would get sucked into a story, she would see familiar faces playing the characters, and then she would try to get back home. This cycled at least three or four times even though the genre of the book would change. In addition to the repetitiveness, Josie was a very difficult character to love because for the majority of the book she didn't grow as a character; she was stuck in the mindset of "I'm kind of a big deal," and "I shouldn't be going through this setback." As much as I tried to sympathize for her, I just couldn't feel bad for Josie because I felt she created those conflicts for herself. Finally, the ending of the book felt very rushed because Josie was battling her demons head on in one moment and then before you knew it, the story ended. (I know this sounds vague, but I do not want to give spoilers). I feel that a character should have flaws, and believe me Josie does, but the way the flaws combine with the story make it very frustrating to get through. I am still a fan of Shannon Hale's, but this was not one of my favorite books of the year. Kind of a Big Deal will be released on August 25, 2020. You can pre-order your copy below: Amazon Audible Barnes and Noble Powell's The WysmanThank you to Inspired Quill for the ARC to “The Wysman” in exchange for an honest review! Jarka is an apprentice to the Wysman, an advisor to the king, and his talent runs deep within him. Although he has so many challenges against him, Jarka is loyal to those he cares about and does his best to learn from all of his experiences as they come. When his town is plagued with fear and stolen children Jarka feels responsible in helping solve this mystery, and matters take a serious turn when someone he loves is affected by this monster. “The Wysman” is a book filled with magic, mystery, and fantasy, so readers of all kinds will be able to find this book enjoyable. One of the things that I found so refreshing is that our main character has a disability that makes him question some of his capabilities at times, but it doesn’t take away from who he is or his goals- this is empowering; we are right there with Jarka as he works on finding his space within a larger world. With this in mind, I do want to say that I feel this book has a lot of potential because I did feel compelled to continue with Jarka on his journey, but there were times (especially in the beginning) where I felt like I was given a lot of information to process all at once. I was stepping into a new world, but I also felt as if I should already know some of the places and people within the story. I do look forward to seeing more from Dorothy Winsor as well as Jarka, so keep an eye out for more to come! You can Pre-Order the book, which releases on June 27, 2020 in one of the links below: Amazon Barnes and Noble Powell's |