Will She Be the One?

Oh, the Land of the Beautiful and Frilly Dresses! It is funny, because these dresses are what drew me to this series, but I also fear they might be what keeps people from reading this interesting story. In The One by Kiera Cass, The Selection series comes a final conclusion as Prince Maxon must choose his final bride.

For America, the Selection started just as a means to better life for her family. All girls in the Selection move up in caste and their families get compensation that could mean the difference between abject poverty and food on the table. So, despite the fact that she cared deeply about Aspen, a boy who was a caste below her, she did her duty and joined the Selection. What she didn't expect was to care deeply about Maxon. And Aspen's appearance on the guard in the castle made things confusing for America... at first. It became clear fairly quickly that America wanted to be with Maxon. For the other girls, the crown was the goal, and Maxon was the means to get it; for America, the crown was just a hassle that came with the man she truly cared about.

Unfortunately, the path to the crown was not so easy. it was clear the king did not feel the same about America as Maxon and his mother did. She did not bow to societal pressures. She would not allow people to be punished beyond their crimes of necessity, like feeding their children. Despite the needs of a princess, America had been brought up to stand up for what she thought was right, and she would let no one, not even the king, intimidate her. She had everything to lose and everything to gain, but America wouldn't be scared away from doing the right thing.

OK. This started out a puffy, goofy story for me, but quickly, in the first book, I new I loved America. This girl had a metaphorical right hook that would knock you on your butt. She was a lot of fun and still a very strong young woman despite her years. I loved her. I also really liked Maxon. He grew up under a tyrant, and he would not let that control the person he was destined to become. I know the premise of this book was a love triangle, but I think if you read the first two books, you would agree with me that Maxon was always going to be the clear winner in our hearts, and I am quite simply OK with that! Don't get me wrong, I liked Aspen and respected that he cared about America, but she and Maxon were wonderful together. In fact, she had the ability to make Maxon rise to the true king he was destined to be.

I still think the story lacked real world-building, but my love for the characters overshadowed that need for me. It was more important for me to hear about the amazing people they had all become, even Celeste, the stereotypical mean girl in the competition! There were so many back stories to the girls and transformations, that it really became a character driven story and even if there was a rich world around it, that world would have quickly faded into the background. I loved the final conclusion, and I will miss this series. It might have started with the frilly dress, but it ended with the revolutionaries who won't settle for a broken world that harms its people.

Find the Rebel Within

Three small kingdoms all together could not possibly be more different. Neither could the people they produce. Despite their differences, Cleo, Jonas, Magnus, and Lucia all play a part in the story of magic and rebellion in the second book of Morgan Rhodes' Fallen Kingdom Series: Rebel Spring. 

Cleo has watched all of her family destroyed and King Gaius has conquered her kingdom. Now, the three separate kingdoms have been merged into one, Mytica, under Gaius' control. He is determined to win over her people with ease rather than force, and isn't afraid to use her to get what he wants. When he announces she is no longer betrothed to Lord Aron, and will instead marry Gaius' son Magnus, Cleo can't imagine a more despicable husband than the man who killed the stableboy she had fallen in love with. For Magnus, who always does as his father tells him to, he knows he can't have who he truly loves, his adopted sister Lucia, so marrying Cleo is no more distasteful than anyone else he would have to marry. 

Meanwhile, Jonas is created a rebel army to fight again Gaius and reclaim their kingdom. Unfortunately, he is having trouble getting many people to join a cause that will most likely get them killed, especially when the king seems to be making improvements to their lives, like a road that connects the former three kingdoms. While he isn't gaining rebels in droves, he certainly has a faithful few who want nothing more than to punish the new king. When they realize their small numbers need a large-scale action to take the king down, they really believe Cleo is the key to their success. All this takes place with Lucia, the hidden sorceress still in a coma after performing the magic her adoptive father called upon her for. But there is more to these four individuals than their individual hopes, desires, and vengeances. From vastly different backgrounds, they might have more in common than they ever thought possible. 

I loved the first book in the series, and I really enjoyed this one too, but it certainly had a few slow parts that dragged a bit. I remember devouring the first book, but it wasn't difficult to put this one down here and there. While I still really liked it, that difference was pretty noticeable. There are a lot of hidden plot lines that haven't been fully realized even by the end of this second book, like the Watchers and the Kindred. While I have an idea, I think I have more questions than answers at this point. That isn't always pleasurable when you are 2/3 of the way through a trilogy, and I know it tends to lose my less focused readers pretty easily. Still, the story was pretty great, with those unanswered questions aside, and I couldn't help but get excited for the upcoming conclusion. 

In the first book, Cleo and Jonas were the most intriguing characters for me, but there is something interesting about Magnus that I wanted to see more of. Is he despicable? Or just misunderstood? And the whole story of Lucia and the Watchers was unfortunately a little too confused for me, but Magnus was certainly the one who held my attention the most. The most interesting this about the entire story is how the magic is the entire focus of the series, yet it is always on the periphery. It brings this element of fantasy and mystery into the boundaries of the story and teases you along. That could either be fun or maddening depending on how you thought about it. I liked it, but I can imagine others who wouldn't!

Almost Perfect Ruin

We all know that underneath even the most seemingly perfect utopia lies a hidden dystopia. At the very least, it is a false utopia. Lauren DeStefano starts her utopian series, The Internment Chronicles, with a Perfect Ruin. 

In Morgan's world on Internment, marriages are arranged, people listen to the will of the king, and no one gets too close to the edge. Attempting to go over the edge of Internment can result in death, if you are lucky. Jumpers who survived are scarred physically and emotionally from their attempts to leave Internment. Internment is a city high in the sky where the citizens aren't allowed to see the ground. Saved by the Gods in the sky, before Morgan's generation, Internment was created as an act of mercy. Now they must abide by the rules of Internment to keep life sustained and happy. That includes accepting your betrothal the king arranges, only having children when your number in the queue is called, and accepting all decisions by the government without complaint. This sounds easy enough, but there are always exceptions to the rules, like Morgan's sister-in-law Alice who accidentally got pregnant out of turn and was forced to lose the pregnancy. Or Morgan's brother Lex who tried to jump and suffers the consequences. Or Morgan's friend Pen who finds her betrothed completely insufferable. But Morgan is happy with her betrothal, and she never thought to question the decisions of the king, until she meets a murderer. 

Crime is unheard of on Internment, but when a young girl is murdered, her betrothed is blamed. Morgan's father, a patrolman, claims they have apprehended the boy, but Morgan has seen him around the city, hiding from everyone. Weirder still, she finds him with Amy, the dead girl's sister. Why would a little girl be hiding with and protecting the man who murdered her sister?  Convinced the boy, Judas, is innocent, she hides her encounters with him carefully, even from Basil, her betrothed. Morgan becomes the object of concern to the king's people, but she is careful to keep the secrets of her family. But in a city the size of Internment, it isn't easy to keep secrets. Or is it? 

I struggled with DeStefano's Wither series, so I was skeptical going into this story. I loved Wither, but then the series took a nosedive after the first book. When I started Perfect Ruin, I have to admit it felt a little slow and confusing at first. It is hard to weave a utopia, which we all know is bound to be flawed in the end, but you still want to it appear to be perfect on the surface. Lois Lowry did this effortlessly in The Giver, and honestly, DeStefano did a pretty good job too, but it felt a little forced at times. Not quite effortless. But not a bad attempt either! So while the story was a little slow at first, it quickly picked up and by the end, I was devouring the story. My biggest concern, however, is that The Internment Chronicles will follow the same Wither path and lose steam after a pretty good first book. Hopefully this series will benefit from the experience DeStefano gained from her first series. 

The concept of Internment was really fascinating, but there are some holes in its existence that I assume further books will clear up. I loved the utopian angle which was bound to have flaws, but still wasn't a full-fledged dystopia. It will rustle up some great conversations about what the "perfect society" really is. While Morgan wasn't an overtly strong female lead, she also didn't drink the king's Kool-Aid, so to speak. She was happy with her betrothal, but she saw the flaws in the system first hand. In our society, we have a knee-jerk, gut reaction against imposed life-altering decisions, like arranged marriage, so it was an interesting twist to see happy betrothals (Morgan and Basil) and marriages (Lex and Alice) come out of those arrangements. It was an interesting twist on something you won't expect to approve of. The beauty of this story for students is that it is a relatively clean story that can be read in book groups, individually, in class, etc. The story can be complex at times, so it is probably best for a student who can unravel the multiple layers of the society DeStefano created. And I desperately hope that amazing, passionate momentum from the end of the story continues into the sequel!

Defies Your Expectations

Would you be able to hide the very nature of who you were? What if it meant an actual life vs. being used and abused until you died an untimely death? In Sara B. Larson's Defy,  a young girl named Alexa must become Alex in order to stay alive in a world full of hate and corruption.

When their parents were killed by sorcerers, Marcel took his twin sister outside, cut her hair, and transformed her life. Had she stayed a girl, she would have been captured and taken to the breeding houses to produce more soldiers for the king's never-ending war. Marcel doomed Alex to a life of terrified hiding in plain sight, but he saved Alexa in the process. Now they train together, they are inseparable, and they are part of Prince Damien's guard. While it is hard to care much about an apathetic prince like Damien, Marcel and Alex are serious about the duty to protect him, even if his father is a monster who has destroyed the lives of every person in his own kingdoms and the kingdoms around them. 

After an attempt on Damien's life, the king and his adviser, Iker, put a guard in Damien's room at night. When Alex is chosen for the detail, she is terrified he will notice things about her if he spends too much time in close proximity to her. Hiding the fact that she is a girl is paramount to survival in this world. Almost as much as hiding the fact that you are a sorcerer. When Damien asks Alex to deliver a message to a rebel camp not far from the palace, she realizes there are sorcerers all around them. While they assumed they were relatively safe inside the palace, a group sent to kidnap Damien changes that perception. Damien, Alex, and her only friend, Rylan, are taken by a group who means to end the war, even if it takes great sacrifice. 

I really liked this story, but there were also some things I just didn't like. For instance, Alex is a by-the-book super-soldier who could fight better than any man on the prince's detail. She rocks. But when she is kidnapped and Damien and Rylan know her secret, she becomes a quivering pile of goop that ignores any attempt to save her prince and instead focuses on how much she wants to kiss Damien. Oh wait, now she wants to kiss Rylan. No, Damien! No, Rylan! Back and forth, back and forth. I don't mind love triangles, but I do mind when they distract from a really good story and the already established nature of a character, which it did with this story. I was so surprised by how much of the story this love triangle consumed, and if you plucked it out, the story would have been spectacular. I loved the history between the kingdoms, the surprising nature of Damien, how Alex had survived for so many years hidden as a boy, the sorcery, everything! But it felt overshadowed by the pining over two men, which directly defied the nature of Alex. She managed to keep her composure after the death of someone near and dear to her, but she couldn't control her lust for these two guys? It surprised and disappointed me. 

That being said, I really liked this story. The love triangle was annoying, but I still really liked the world, the characters, the history, and the magic. There were twists and turns around every corner that were a little predictable, but fun nonetheless. I really look forward to the second book in the series, because there is so much left to be said and read. I think this "love triangle business" will fade away, because there is certainly one clear winner in that battle. But hopefully, like all good love triangles do, it will work itself out and leave you happiest with the solution. This was a fun fantasy for all types of readers. The language is average, but occasionally the material is pretty brutal, like what happens in the breeding houses. I would use this for older readers, but the language would make it appropriate for readers with struggling skills. 

An Inhuman Journey

In a world where we are already terrorized by swine flu and avian flu, the idea of those viruses infecting people with the animal genetics they carry is the next step we hope could never happen. In Kat Fall's Inhuman brings that terrorizing thought to life as the humans hide behind the walls and the animals roam around the outside.

Everything from the east of the Mississippi river is abandoned as the Feral Zone. When a biological disaster allowed animal DNA to mutate a human through a bite or contact with blood, the rest of the country realized quickly they had to abandon the East Coast in order to preserve what was left of the humans on the other side. Meanwhile, scientists worked on a cure, but the sheer amount of animal DNA in the human population makes a cure or even a treatment impossible without samples from every mutation. When a human is bitten by an infected human, the first stage of the Farae virus is a high fever that hits them immediately. Then, they begin stage two:  mutation. The second stage can last for years, if someone is lucky. As they physically transform into the animal, they still retain human conscience and reasoning. These manimals are still feared by the untouched population, but on the other side of the wall, the lines aren't so black and white. When an infected person finally enters the third stage of the virus, they turn into a Feral. The final change can be so abrupt, they can turn on their loved ones, which is why people are so skeptical of the manimals. But when it is your mother, father, brother, child, or spouse, kicking them out when they get bitten isn't so easy. Now thousands of ferals roam the East and even more people are infected by the virus. Meanwhile their families teeter on the balance of love and self-preservation in small civilizations that scrape by a living.

On the other side of the wall, life is different. It isn't necessarily easy, but it also isn't survival driven like life in the east. Lane is fascinated by the Feral Zone, but terrified by it at the same time. When her father, who usually travels for work and leaves her to fend for herself, is revealed by the government to be a "fetch", she can't believe her ears. Fetches go into the Feral Zone to bring back items for people on the other side of the wall, but their very existence is highly illegal and can result in their execution. Lane always knew her father was an art dealer, but she had no idea he spent his life getting on the other side of the wall to collect abandoned art. Now Director Spurling needs her father to fetch something personal. She is offering full immunity for Lane's father, but first Lane has to find him and get him to do the fetch. But finding someone on the Feral side of the wall isn't easy. In fact, it is the most dangerous thing Lane has ever tried to do... until she realizes she has to do the fetch for her father.

Wow! This was such a fast, fun science fiction novel, I couldn't get enough of it! The story behind the virus was as fascinating as the story of what happens to the people it infects. I loved the contrast between the safe zone behind the wall, the intact humans in the Feral Zone, and the manimals. It really demonstrated a class hierarchy that could rival communities existing today. And the descriptions of the manimals and the ferals is so terrifying and creepy, you can just visuals these animal/humans perfectly! It made the story so graphic and vivid, I couldn't get enough of it! 

When Lane started off on her journey accompanied by a green line guard named Everson and a scampish guy named Rafe who makes his living stealing from the guards to deliver to the towns in the zone, I was a little disappointed to see yet another love triangle when I really wanted the action of the story to be the focus. But it actually turned out to be the least offensive and least annoying love triangle I have every encountered! In fact, there was even a point when Rafe outright said, "Ok, I am taking myself out of this silly love triangle!" It was like breaking down the fourth wall for television- if the characters acknowledge the silliness, it makes it not-so-silly! Meanwhile, Everson's "by the book" attitude contrasted with Rafe's "anything goes" attitude perfectly. I loved how they came together to help Lane, protected her, but still did so in wildly different ways. I loved both these boys for very different reasons, and I can't wait to get more of them in the second book. But beware- this ends in a serious cliffhanger, so if you can't wait for the rest of the story, you should hold off until the next book comes out to read this one! This is a good series for strong middle readers through young adult readers. The violence in the Feral Zone is expected, and some of the creature mutations are downright terrifying (I am now having nightmares about weevlings and chimpacabras, Ms. Falls. Thanks for that!), but it is so fast-paced and exciting, it will hold anyone's attention!

The Series Everyone Must Read

The sordid, complex story of Quintana and Froi continues in Quintana of Charyn by Melina Marchetta. While one kingdom has begun rebuilding, another is struggling to overcome the curse that left them without the ability to have children. However, the very breakers of the curse are the least likely to create hope amongst the broken people of Charyn... unless those people truly knew them, of course.

Froi was just a criminal from Sarnak and Quintana was a savage, mad princess from Charyn, but together they came together and created the first innocent, beautiful creation that had ever come from two tortured and disturbed souls: the baby Quintana is carrying. That baby is the first baby to be born to Charyn since the curse of the weeping began and Charyn's babies were taken from their mother's wombs. Now, knowing a little prince grows inside his mad mother, every person in all of the land hunts for his mother: some to protect her, some to kill her and claim the babe for their own, but only one because he loves her, even if Froi can barely admit it to himself. 

However, the hunt is in the middle of trying times where Finnikin and Isaboe are trying desperately to rebuild Lumatere after the Charyn invasion and curse split their kingdom. Charyn is in the middle of a bloody, desperate power struggle. Even Froi himself is split between the Lumaterians he loves and the Charynites he belongs to. But one thing is for sure, and that is that Quintana is the least "queenly" person to be at the center of it all. Even the women protecting her think she is a cruel, savage girl... at first. The more Quintana's life and decisions come to light, the more people see a woman of true sacrifice before them. It might be shrouded in a rat's nest of hair, wolfish teeth, and a savage grimace, but Quintana and Froi have created a true little king, and as the world's most unlikely couple, they will do anything to protect him. With very bad men out to take the little king, this is a feat like no other, but unlikely allies crop up everywhere. Even where you least expect them. And together, they have the opportunity to rebuild all kingdoms, regardless of how destroyed and demoralized they have become at the hands of those with too much powerful and too much corruption.

I want to weep. I actually want to cry, pound my fists on the floor, and scream knowing this is the final Lumatere story. I can't believe it is over. There is some kind of magic that Marchetta weaves with each of these stories that just takes over your life and makes you unable to imagine a life without them. I am devastated to think that I will not have more of Froi, Isaboe, Finn, Phaedra, Lucian, and even Quintana in my life. They truly transformed a simple reading experience into something so special and magical that I find it hard to locate the words that will actually do it justice. 

There was something so beautiful and bittersweet about Froi and Quintana, that by describing them, I cannot do them justice. I am sure, if you haven't read these books yourself, you think they are the most unlikely "heroes" to ever grace the pages, but you would be wrong. It is their flaws, either the wrongs they have survived and prevented for others, their very savage nature, or even the fierceness with which they react to those threatening their interests, that make them so beautiful. These two have lived through such horrors, and neither should ever be able to trust after the way they both separately grew up. But these characters are so deep and dynamic, that they become REAL with each page, and, in all their flawed glory, you will find yourself loving them as much as I did. 

As a conclusion, there was an important piece to Marchetta's final story: the final 100 pages. Any uninvested author or punchy editor/publisher might not have allowed a story to continue for 100 pages in order to fully explore the story after the final apex, but not Marchetta. She took her time in order to do these characters and their stories justice. And justice you have. There is no way to complete this story and not be more than satisfied. In fact, if you have come this far, you are just as devastated to lose this series as I am. I feel like Marchetta just finished the series that will undoubtedly be the "classic trilogy" we will be reading to our grandchildren the same way they are being read the Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter series now. She is going to be one of those authors who is revered for generations to come, because you cannot write a truly perfect series such as the Lumatere Chronicles and not go down in the history books. And thank you, Ms. Marchetta, for bringing these characters and their stories to our shelves. We promise to cherish their stories for years to come!

Where the Shadows Fall

In a world where the canny folk (magical) are hunted and destroyed by the king's men, a 16 year old girl can't expect to survive on her own, let alone make a difference in the world. In Juliet Marillier's Shadowfell, Neryn is more than meets the eye.

Neryn has suffered alongside her father in tough times, but when he bets her in a game of chance, and loses, his choices have now threatened her life. Luckily, the man who won her whisks her off the gaming boat just before a raid destroyed the place and everyone inside it. Terrified of the plans the man has for her, Neryn is careful to keep her secret from him. This is the very same secret that killed her grandmother and kept Neryn and her father on the run for most of her life. 

Neryn knows she shouldn't trust this man, Flint, and even though she leaves him behind, he always seems to find her. She quickly realizes he is one of the king's Enforcers, soldiers who rid the world of canny folk, but there is something about this man that makes her want to trust him. She knows the risks and the very real possibility that he may be leading her right to the king, but her intuition tells her there is more to Flint. Still, the fey (mystical, diverse creatures) don't trust anyone who wears the king's uniform, and they try to protect Neyrn because she is something special, something they have all been waiting for. She might be the key to defeating the king and saving their beloved country. 

This book started off with a bang, Flint saving Neryn and whisking her away, and all her conversations with the canny folk, but then it just kind of petered out in the middle. Don't get me wrong, the descriptions were downright beautiful, and the world built was quite extraordinary, but the story wasn't quite what I wanted it to be. The majority of the story was about Neryn's journey, and sometimes I found myself thinking, "Oh just get there already; no more of this wandering about!" And to add to that, her on again off again issues with Flint grew a little tiresome. Unfortunately, this story just didn't hold my attention like the beginning suggested it was going to.

Because it was so slow at first, I probably wouldn't give this book to just any student. I would pass it on to a stronger reader who really loved fantasy, because the world building and language really is exquisite, but I think a weaker reader would be lost about 1/4 of the way through the book. I have a feeling that the next book in the series will really amp up the story, especially the way it ended taken into consideration, but I have no real idea of how Marillier plans to take this story if she writes all installments the way this one was written. Hopefully this book just suffered from "background info dump" syndrome as some first books do, and the rest of the series will recover from its downfalls. Still, the writing is quite breathtaking, and I intend to read the next book with an optimism for its success.

Prepare to Burn Through This One

Fantasy is a peculiar genre, full of worlds completely different from our own to worlds similar to ours, but just different enough to be mysterious. The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson shows a world where both the characters and the reader will be in for a few surprises.

Elisa has married the king of the nearby kingdom, but she knows she was second choice in a necessary deal to form an alliance between the two kingdoms. Surely her beautiful and graceful sister was the first choice, but Elisa is the Bearer of the Godstone. Elisa bears the Godstone in her belly as this century's bearer. Only one bearer comes every four generations, and they must live up to the prophecy of great importance. Unfortunately, frumpy Elisa feels anything but important.

She settles into the new kingdom uneasily, especially when she find she must keep her marriage and the Godstone a secret. The Godstone is a source of great power, and for her protection, no one must know of it. When she is kidnapped and dragged into the desert for a life or death journey, Elisa begins to understand just how much faith people put in the Bearer of the Godstone, even if the bearer is a simple girl who has never done anything heroic. Once she reaches the end of their journey, Elisa not only sympathizes with her captors, she realizes her new husband has abandoned them to the incoming army in an attempt to save the rest of the kingdom. Spurned by the long trek which has strengthened her resolve along with her body, Elisa tries to help them by developing a plan. While their numbers are far fewer than the incoming enemy, they find ways to attack and still live to attack another day. Their efforts are successful, but the enemy possesses an impenetrable ally- the animagi. The animagi are sorcerers who have found a way to harness the power of previous bearer's Godstones. With the animagi helping the enemy's army, Elisa and her new kingdom are sure to lose... unless they can find a bit of their own magic.

This was a superb fantasy that flirts with the mystical and magical without falling into it face first. Very similar in style to Kristin Cashore's Graceling, this story is the perfect blend of history and fantasy to appeal to a wide range of people. It is a very serious book with great losses to the main character Elisa, but that is to be expected during a time of war. Elisa is a fascinating character who transforms throughout the book from a frumpy, insecure teenager to a strong, commanding woman who will risk everything to save innocent people. She is that hero we all love who doesn't really understand how important they are and how much they can achieve. The reluctant hero is one who can inspire the masses!

Being such a serious book, I would suggest this story for junior high students as long as they have the stamina and interest to make it through a 400+ page book. It would probably have more success with high school students, and it may be perfect for that student who rarely reads fantasy, since the mysticism is relatively contained. The story is certainly engrossing, and appropriate for most ages. There is some violence, but nothing gratuitous. I can see this book as a great means to get a reluctant reader going- exciting, interesting, and only the beginning with a trilogy in the works!

Do you Need to be Captivated?

After reading Carrie Jones' Need, I couldn't wait to get my hands on more with Captivate. I love when I find a book and the sequel is already out there! Saves me the agonizing wait! With Captivate, I was dying to know more about Zara, Nick, the pixies and the weres. What I didn't expect was a whole new element brought into the story!

Zara and her friends continue to keep her father's reign of pixies locked in the glamoured house, but with more and more pixies coming into town, the house is getting fuller and more dangerous. When a pixie King comes into town, Zara finds him wounded and tied to a tree and saves him from a Valkyrie who wants to take him to Valhalla. The new king, Astley, has some odd effects on Zara, in particular turning her blue! Astley tells Zara other pixie kings are coming into town and none are as understanding and non-violent as he is, but they all have one desire, including Astley: taking Zara as their queen.

Zara is stuck between a rock and a hard place when her choices involve remaining human and risking the pixies killing Nick to get to her, or turning pixie to protect Nick and losing him forever. Astley seems sincere and kind, but if history has told Zara anything, it is that pixies can't be trusted. When Nick is mortally wounded and a Valkyrie takes him to Valhalla, Zara will do anything to save him from fighting the "final battle".

This was a surprising sequel to the first book, in that it broke from the original premise of weres and pixies and rolled into a whole new element with Norse mythology. Between the Valkyries, Valhalla, and the God Odin, there is another underlying story that could take on a life of its own. My only problem was that the Norse mythology was introduced, but never really explained. The little explanation that existed was superficial at best. When introducing such a huge piece to a story, I feel there should be a clear reason this is being introduced- especially when it is done so in the second installment of the story and never once mentioned in the first. One thing is for sure, there will be a third book to this series, as the second book does not have any closure. I hope the Norse influence will be better explained in the next book. Unfortunately, now I have to wait for that book to be released!

We all Need more Fantasy!

It makes me crazy when every book that comes out is compared to the giants like Harry Potter and Twilight. Now don't get me wrong, I am sure you could find similarities in just about anything within the genre, but why ruin a good story by obsessing with how it compares to other books? if you read Need by Carrie Jones, you have to put Twilight out of your mind! If you do, you will be pleasantly surprised by how this book stands on its own two fantastic feet.

The story starts with Zara arriving in Maine to live with her grandmother after her stepfather dies and she loses her spark. Zara's mother and grandmother think a change of scenery is just the recipe for pulling Zara out of her funk. When Zara arrives, she finds herself pulled between two gorgeous young men, Nick and Ian, and hated by the popular girls. Luckily she finds friendship in Issie, Devyn, and Nick. Unfortunately, that isn't all she finds.

When two boys go missing, stories of the last time this happened begin to surface. Before Zara was born a bunch of young boys went missing, never to be seen again. Now that it is happening again, the town is growing nervous. Zara keeps seeing a man who has followed her from Charleston to Maine and when she shares the information with Issie and Devyn, they share their hypothesis with her: he is a pixie. Pixies are evil creatures that can make themselves look human. If their King is without a Queen for too long, he requires young boys as tributes for him and his subjects to feed from. The only protection humans have from pixies is the weres: werewolves, weretigers, werebears, even a were-eagle. When Zara continues her research, she realizes there is much more to her mother, her stepfather, her grandmother, her friends, and even her own history. Now Zara and her friends and family must find a way to stop the pixies from hunting her and taking any more tributes.

This is a really interesting story with creepy pixies instead of vampires. Their history and culture is so interesting and complex, I just wanted more! I loved both the main character and the subordinate characters. Zara is strong and forceful, and her grandmother is one we all wish we had (OK mine is pretty cool, but Gram ROCKS). I love that Zara doesn't take crap from the popular girls who clearly think she is encroaching on their territory. And when things start to get dark and creepy, Zara throws herself at the problem instead of hiding from it. At one point she goes alone into the woods and shouts, yells at, and even threatens the pixie she is convinced is hiding in the woods. In her spare time, she even writes letters for Amnesty International and starts a chapter in her new high school!

The story is the first in a trilogy and leaves room to continue. It is captivating and exciting, combined with a whole new world of pixies and shape shifters. This is a great book for both boys and girls and is at a great middle-of-the-road reading level- good for middle school to high school. I have already ordered the second book and can't wait for the third! But I am pretty sure I have pegged who the pixies and the weres in my life are!