Tag Archives: historical fantasy

Bad Luck Kids: Trials of Morrigan Crow and Book of Boy

Posted on July 14, 2018 by

Here are two stories of children in very different worlds, but both considered to be bad luck. The first was all over the blogs I read in the middle of Cybils season last year.  It’s just as delightful a few … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Print | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Everfair by Nisi Shawl

Posted on June 22, 2018 by

It’s summer reading time at the library.  I love crowds of kids excited about reading, but it does make it challenging to get anything else done.  But waiting patiently in my own review queue, I have a trio of African-based … Continue reading →

Posted in Adult, Audiobook, Books, Fantasy, Historical | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Rebel Genius by Michael Dante DiMartino

Posted on March 10, 2018 by

This book was a 2016 Christmas gift from my love to my son and I.  We finished the book we were reading and then took several months reading it aloud together. Rebel Genius by Michael Dante DiMartino. Roaring Brook Press, … Continue reading →

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Beast & Crown by Joel Ross

Posted on March 8, 2018 by

Beast & Crown by Joel Ross. HarperCollins, 2017. This most recent book by the author of the 2015 Cybils Middle Grade Speculative Fiction winner, The Fog Diver, features a similarly diverse cast, this time in a historical fantasy world. (I … Continue reading →

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A Little Taste of Poison

Posted on April 19, 2017 by

I have been faithfully making my lists of the top 10 books I’ve missed from the previous year for the last several years now (Here are my lists for books from 2016, 2015 and 2014).  And every year, I never … Continue reading →

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The Magicians of Caprona and The Seventh Wish

Posted on April 5, 2017 by

Here are some short takes catching up on my reading during Cybils season. The Magicians of Caprona by Diana Wynne Jones. Greenwillow Books 2001, 1980. This is a relatively stand-alone volume in the Chrestomanci series, in which he appears (as … Continue reading →

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Sacrifice

Posted on February 8, 2017 by

Sacrifice by Cindy Pon. Month9Books, 2016. Cindy Pon’s previous book, Serpentine, ended on a dramatic cliff hanger, leaving me waiting a year to find out what would happen next.  If you haven’t yet read Serpentine, you might wish to do … Continue reading →

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3 Middle Grade Fantasies: the Left-Handed Fate, Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians, When the Sea Turned to Silver

Posted on December 19, 2016 by

The Left-Handed Fate by Kate Milford. Illustrated by Eliza Wheeler. Henry Holt, 2016. It’s a little hard for me to review this books in part because of how deeply I fell for it.  The year is 1812, and Lucy, the … Continue reading →

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Sorcerer to the Crown and Shades of Milk and Honey

Posted on September 23, 2016 by

First – hooray, I was selected to be on a Cybils panel again this year!  After two years of doing Round 1 Middle Grade Speculative Fiction, this year I’ll be doing the Cybils Round 1 Audiobooks – click through to see … Continue reading →

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Escape from Wolfhaven Castle. The Impossible Quest 1.

Posted on August 24, 2016 by

This is the first book of a five book fantasy series from Australia, each of them short enough not to be overwhelming to new readers, while still having enough depth of plot and character not to be underwhelming to struggling or reluctant middle grade readers. Continue reading →

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