Waiting on Wednesday: Rapture of the Deep by L.A. Meyer

"Waiting on" Wednesday was created by Jill of Breaking the Spine, and is a way for bloggers to share the upcoming books that they're longing for. This week I'm waiting on...

Rapture of the Deep: Being the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Soldier, Sailor, Mermaid, Spy
by L.A. Meyer
Released September 28th, 2009
Sequel to: Bloody Jack, Curse of the Blue Tattoo, Under the Jolly Roger, In the Belly of the Bloodhound, Mississippi Jack, and My Bonny Light Horseman

On the very day that Jacky Faber is to wed her true love, she is kidnapped by British Naval Intelligence and forced to embark on yet another daring mission—this time to search for sunken Spanish gold. But when Jacky is involved, things don't always go as planned. Jacky has survived battles on the high seas, the stifling propriety of a Boston finishing school, and even confinement in a dank French prison. But no adventure has quite matched her opportunistic street-urchin desires—until now.

Why I'm waiting:
As I have said before, Jacky and her adventures are some of the best in YA and make me go squee. Enough said.

Books I'd Recommend to Anyone

A friend asked me to create a list of my favorite books in different genres so that she wouldn't have to wade through the 100+ posts on this blog. I thought the rest of you might enjoy seeing as well, so here they are:

Historical

Bloody Jack Adventures (series)
by L.A. Meyer

Suspenseful, funny, amazing series with a main character who simply can't keep herself out of scrapes if her life depends on it (which it often does). Read my full review/plot outline/gush.



The Forestwife
Child of the May
(and if you can get it) Path of the She Wolf
by Theresa Tomlinson

Robin Hood retellings focusing on the females of Sherwood, and with a different look on Marian's character. Really good! I've never been able to read the third book in the trilogy because the publisher finds it too "adult" for the US and I don't want to pay to have it shipped from the UK.

Ophelia
by Lisa Klein

Hamlet--from Ophelia's point of view! Although it was the same storyline, it wasn't predictable, and I love seeing Ophelia as an interesting and smart character rather than a somewhat pathetic one (why does she have to drown herself over a man?). Full summary and review here.


Annie, Between the States
by L.M. Elliot

Torn loyalties and danger that will make even a non-history lover happy. This book made the Civil War really come alive for me; the characters and the descriptions are great--and I've been to so many of the places mentioned! Full summary and review here.


Pirates!
by Celia Rees

Dashing pirates, adventure, romance...
Not everyone I've recommended this to has loved it, but I do. I'm not sure why; maybe because I somehow identify with the main character a lot.



Dystopian

The Giver
Gathering Blue
Messenger
by Lois Lowry
It's a Utopian world that practices "sameness," a way of life invented for minimal pain and suffering, and everyone equal. Or are they? If you haven't read these yet, you should. NOW. Very thought-provoking and in a way, beautiful.

The House of the Scorpion
by Nancy Farmer

Opium, a strip of land between Mexico and the United States, is a dark and frightening world run by rich drug lords...and powered by human clones.
Different than The Giver trilogy, but somehow scarier. I guess the world painted seems more likely to happen. The prologue is very weird when you first read it, but don't give up. If you can't get into the prologue, skip to the first chapter and come back later.

Fantasy

Nightpool
The Ivory Lyre
The Dragonbards
by Shirley Rousseau Murphy

Okay, I read these a LONG time ago and it's been a while, but I thought they were amazing when I originally read them. They're pretty unique, especially in the dragon-fantasy genre.
(Couldn't find a good cover for this one.)

The Hollow Kingdom
Close Kin
In the Coils of the Snake
by Clare B. Dunkle

Really amazing goblin and elf stories, anyone? Sisters Kate and Emily are sent to live with their relations, far out in the country. One night when walking home in the dark, the girls come across a band of what they think are gypsies.

The Naming
The Riddle
The Crow
The Singing
by Alison Croggon

If you like epics (Lord of the Rings, the Inheritance Cycle, etc.), you should love this. It's the story of Maarad, a girl who is the Chosen One.

Sorcery and Cecelia
by Caroline Stevermer & Patricia C. Wrede

If you like magic and High Society, this book (and its two sequels) is for you! Cousins Cecy and Kate are about to have their debut Season, but there's magic afoot, and it's not always working for them. Full summary and review here.


Flora Segunda
by Ysabeau S. Wilce
I would recommend this book to everyone, but I don't think it's for everyone. Personally I found it hilarious, despite its being slightly bizarre. I guess you'll have to see for yourself. Full summary and review here.




Guilty Pleasures

The Seer and the Sword
by Victoria Hanley

This book definitely isn't total fluff, but it's enough of a romance that I feel sort of sappy when I read it. But it makes me happy, which is good. So there.




Crown Duel
by Sherwood Smith

In my category, this is about as much of a romance as I can stand. It's not corny, and the court intrigue is delicious. If you like it, check out its prequel, A Stranger to Command (which I found quite a bit drier).



The Raging Quiet
by Sherryl Jordan

More of a historical witch-burning-sign-language story with a love story on the side than a true romance.





Fairytale Retellings

East
by Eddith Pattou

A retelling of East of the Sun, West of the Moon, an old Norwegian folktale. I think I loved it partly because it is a more unusual tale to retell, and partly because of the wonderful way it was told.



Birdwing
by Rafe Martin

What happened to the youngest brother in The Six Swans when his one arm remained a wing? Read his story. Full summary and review here.

Random Music Gush

The Magic of Ink does not normally have anything to do with music, but a lot of things I love have been posted here, so I am going to write about music I love. More specifically, a band that I love:

Enter The Haggis

What is it? Four Canadians and a native Scotsman who write, sing, and play the most amazing Celtic rock fusion ever. Seriously. Their instruments include keyboard, fiddle, bagpipes, acoustic and electric guitars, saxophone, tin whistles, drums, and harmonica and their music ranges from electrified traditional ballads...

Lanigan's Ball


and dance tunes...

Fiddle Set/Tune


to original instrumentals...

Congress


and vocals...

One Last Drink [ignore the complete randomness of the "music video." I wouldn't use it except it has the best sound]


with progressive lyrics...

Marti's Last Stand


which include many different music styles (jazz, Caribbean, Celtic, anything else you can think of) combined. Band member Trevor Lewington describes it better in the Enter The Haggis: Kicks in a Kilt interview.

There is only one person I know of who was introduced to ETH and didn't like them (I still haven't forgiven him!), saying that their songs all sounded "the same." But everyone else has become die-hard Haggis Heads, myself included after I attended one of their concerts in June... and then another concert right after Thanksgiving when they were touring in the area with some of their new music... and now I'm anxiously awaiting their new album, Gutter Anthems, which will be released on March 24th. Yay!

Go listen to the entirety of the group's three most recent albums (Casualties of Retail, Soapbox Heroes, and Northampton—a live recording and my favorite so far because they are so awesome live, and I think it has the best selection of songs) for FREE on their site—and listen to them LOUD. It's the best thing after a live performance. But really, if ETH is touring in your area and you even like their music a little bit, go and see them live.

Become a fan of them on the ETH Facebook page!

Graceling

by Kristin Cashore

Katsa killed her cousin at the age of eight...with her bare hands, and without any training in fighting. Her Grace is killing, and her uncle, King Randa, decides to have her trained by the best warriors and use her for his own purposes. Now ten years later, known as the Lady Killer, and kept in the palace as her uncle’s secret weapon, Katsa has no friends aside from her cousin Raffin. The rest of the court finds her Grace-marked eyes (one blue and one green) disconcerting, and fear for their lives if they angered her. One night, on a mission of her own, Katsa meets another Graced fighter, a Lienid who, strangely, trusts her. Wary, Katsa can’t believe she’ll have anything to do with him other than go back on her stupid choice to let him live.

I really, really loved the first half of this book. Katsa’s character is so well developed—her reactions to new things like trust and finding that she’s not as heartless as everyone lead her to believe are so realistic. And her friendship with Po (whose name unfortunately reminds me of the littlest Teletubby) is completely believable and very sweet.
However, the second half became a lot more generic and didn’t capture my interest as much. Perhaps it was because I was distracted from the book at an inopportune time—right before Katsa and Po’s relationship became romantic—and it made it seem like the two halves didn’t quite fit together. (That was a very slight spoiler because despite the description of Katsa and Po being “insurmountably incompatible,” you can tell right away that they’re not going to be.)
The plot was fast-paced and the characters’ missions changed throughout the course of the story, giving it a good range of situations and keeping it interesting, but at times I wanted to scream at the characters. They could be so dumb! It took them forever to realize things sometimes, while I’d been suspicious about it for the last fifty pages. Graceling is a stunning debut novel, and a pretty darn good novel at all. I highly recommend it, especially for fans of Tamora Pierce. Also, The Hunger Games (which I have yet to read because too many people have it ahead of me at the library) is said to be on some levels similar, so if you’ve already read Graceling, check that out, too.

And because there's a book trailer for it that I actually like (except for Po! He's supposed to be blond!), I'll provide that, too:

Flora's Dare

How a Girl of Spirit Gambles All to Expand Her Vocabulary, Confront a Bouncing Boy Terror, and Try to Save Califa from a Shaky Doom (Despite Being Confined to Her Room)
by Ysabeau S. Wilce

While it is possible for it to be read as a stand-alone, Flora’s Dare is the smashingly good sequel to Flora Segunda (my review), so go read that first, as it is also an imaginative work of Extreme Originality. I shall try to refrain from spoilers for those who have yet to read the first.

Flora Segunda’s latest adventures begin with an essay on what she learned last term, made up of the most unusual lessons that also serve as a cleverly un-boring reminder to readers of what transpired in the last volume. This time around, Flora has to deal with a now-sober father who tries to keep Crackpot Hall in military order, from Flora’s lessons to what time she goes to bed. But Flora is desperate to learn the magickal language of Gramatica, an essential for becoming a ranger like her role model, the legendary Nini Mo. When the chance to see disguised magician Firemonkey play in the band he uses as a cover, she leaps at it.
During the concert, a large tentacle suddenly grabs Flora, who believes she has discovered the cause of the mysterious earthquakes that recently began shaking Califa. She has to stop it before the entire city collapses on itself, but how will it ever be possible the only people she can turn to for help is one of her mother’s enemies (and a dashing one at that), Crackpot Hall’s whiny, dissipating Butler, her overly fashion-conscious best friend Udo (who is also obnoxiously obsessed with the supercool, sophisticated Zu-Zu), and a plushy pig? Oh, and she’s confined to her room until her mother (Commanding General of the Warlord’s Army) returns from Fort Jones, and who knows when that will be?

After the highly exciting, extremely original and, quite frankly, bizarre first novel in the series, Flora’s Dare does not disappoint. The characters develop nicely (although some things Udo does don’t seem to fit him at all), the action and adventure move along at breakneck speed, and it never, ever lacks in inventiveness in any way. The only thing left to say is, Ms. Wilce, when shall the sequel be released?
There are a few more mature themes in Flora’s Dare than there were in Flora Segunda.

Queen’s Own Fool

A Novel of Mary Queen of Scots
by Jane Yolen & Robert J. Harris

One wet day Nicola Ambruzzi is performing in the streets with Troupe Brufort in Rheims, France, when a royal gentleman stops and asks them to come and put on their show for the kind and queen at the palace. Her oily Uncle Armand can hardly believe his luck and tells Nicola to “keep her tongue to herself,” though it is her sharp tongue that rewards him in the end. The court has seen most of the tricks the troupe performs and is not impressed. When Nicola makes a mistake and turns what could have been a disaster into an entertaining sideshow the court applauds and admires her quick wit. Queen Mary is offers to buy Nicola’s freedom and take her into her service. So, Nicola becomes the queen’s own fool, is given new clothes and has plentiful food to eat. Though not everyone is her friend, she has the ear of a queen, who could ask for more? Then plots for power and the throne increase and Nicola is caught in the middle of the court games of who will rule and who will die.

Yolen and Harris’ richly detailed writing sweeps readers into the characters’ lives, the plots of the court, and medieval life from the very beginning. The seamless blend of believable characters and their emotions with a very close telling of the story of the “queen without a country” makes this an unforgettable book. I have read this novel several times, and it still keeps its magic for me. Read the companion novels—also about troubled historic Scotland—Girl in a Cage, Prince Across the Water, and The Rogues.

Ophelia

by Lisa M. Klein

Ophelia has admired Prince Hamlet since the days when she and her brother Laertes played in the streets of their village. Because she is not a nobleman’s daughter, Ophelia has little hope of speaking with the dashing prince, until her father’s greedy ambitions bring their family to the palace. Noticed by the queen, Ophelia is asked to become a lady-in-waiting. Though she is the lady with the lowest social standing, her quick wit and charm soon make Ophelia a favorite of Queen Gertrude...as well as Prince Hamlet. The lovers begin secret trysts in the village, dressing as peasants and calling each other “Jack” and “Jill,” whose simple lives they sometimes wish they could live. Even with their love a secret from most, Hamlet and Ophelia are happy enough—until King Hamlet’s ghost is sighted. As the Prince begins to go wild with the grief of his father’s death, Ophelia realizes that she must free herself from Hamlet before it’s too late.

Beautifully written, Ophelia begins long before, leaves off far past the end, and delves much deeper into the entire story of Hamlet, creating an Ophelia who is not just Hamlet’s mad-with-grief lover, but a smart, headstrong young woman who comes into her own despite the challenges placed before her.

Bloody Jack Adventures

Being Full Accounts of the Life of the Notorious Jacky Faber, Midshipman, Fine Lady, Pirate, Keelboat Captain, Lily of the West, Soldier, Sailor, Mermaid, Spy, and Queen of the Ocean Sea
by L.A. Meyer

This series centers on spunky Mary Faber, who gets into—and out of—every kind of scrape imaginable. In the first book she starts out as a London street orphan who signs aboard the H.M.S. Dolphin to make an honorable living. Disguised as a boy and newly christened “Jacky,” she hopes to voyage to far lands and see the Bombay Rat and the Cathay Cat. But it’s not that easy: life on a royal warship during the Napoleonic Wars is harsh in many ways, including cruel officers and bloody battles with pirates.
In a strange turn of events, Jacky is discovered as a girl by the Dolphin’s crew, separated from her true love, Mr. James “Jaimy” Emerson Fletcher, and sent to the Lawson Peabody School for Young Girls to be gentrified.
But learning to be a lady by all odds won’t keep Jacky Faber inside making samplers or away from her beau. No way, she roves the world from the streets of London to a gaol in Boston, the hills of Ireland to the mud of the Mississippi, the swells of the Caribbean Sea to the guillotine in France, and everywhere in between.

Along the way Jacky makes friends in high places and in low (very memorable and almost over the top, but never annoyingly so characters), and the acquaintances of many handsome young men....

There is something for everyone in these novels: adventure, romance, humor, sentiment, drama, even a little action. They are filled with lots of fun little references to legends, characters from classic novels, historical figures, and—most particularly—songs from the period. Like most series, Jacky’s adventures have high and low points, but over all are simply amazing and can be described in one word: WOW. The series is definitely one of my favorites, and has its own small fan club on the Bloody Jack Boards (which I don’t recommend visiting until you’ve read the series because of spoilers).
Fans of Celia Rees’ Pirates! and the Piratica Trilogy by Tanith Lee will love Jacky Faber!

Note: These are definitely at least age 12-and-up books due to mature content matter (some violence and sexual references).

Check out this awesome fan-made trailer!

Read every one of Jacky’s exciting adventures in:

Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary “Jacky” Faber, Ship’s Boy
Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady
Under the Jolly Roger: Being an Account of the Further Nautical Adventures of Jacky Faber
In the Belly of the Bloodhound: Being an Account of a Particularly Peculiar Adventure in the Life of Jacky Faber
Mississippi Jack: Being an Account of the Further Waterborne Adventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman, Fine Lady, and the Lily of the West
My Bonny Light Horseman: Being the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, in Love and War
Rapture of the Deep: Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Soldier, Sailor, Mermaid, Spy
Wake of the Lorelei Lee: Being an Account of the Adventures of Jacky Faber, on her Way to Botany Bay
The Mark of the Golden Dragon (working title)

Secret Sacrament and Time of the Eagle

by Sherryl Jordan

Navoran-born Gabriel Eshban Vala has felt a connection to the gentle Shinali people since he was seven years old, when he witnessed soldiers conducting a horrible act on a Shinali woman. That event changed his life forever, giving him a longing to heal and help people.
His dreams come true when, at eighteen, he is asked to train as a healer at the Citadel, which means seven long years with little contact with the outside world. But Gabriel only wants to heal and shows an immense talent for it, including the rare ability to mind-heal. However, he is distracted by the peaceful harmony of the Shinali people, and their unjust treatment by the Novorans. Perhaps his destiny is to begin the Time of the Eagle and mend the conflicts between the Navorans and the Shinali.

In Time of the Eagle we meet Avala, a young Shinali woman and a “child of love out of nations that hate,” who will finish bringing the Time of the Eagle into its full being. The small Shinali tribe is looking for a leader with the strength of a warrior and the heart of a healer, and they think Avala will be the one to bring the three clans and revolting Navorans together. When she finds and helps a wounded Igaal warrior it seems her destiny might be beginning without her noticing, but not everyone appreciates Avala’s destiny, and challenges will block her way.

Secret Sacrament and Time of the Eagle are two beautiful, powerful stories of love and hate, fear and hope, war and peace, greed and sacrifice that leave strong impressions on the reader long after they are finished. I really am doing them no justice with my summaries. Sherryl Jordan is a creator of amazing stories and descriptions, and believable characters, and I have no idea why her books are not immensely popular.

Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot

Being the Correspondence of Two Young Ladies of Quality Regarding Various Magical Scandals in London and the Country
by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer

Kate Talgarth has gone to London for her Season, a time for young ladies to come out into society and make good impressions and possible matches, while her cousin Cecy Rushton is stuck in the country, which is quite boring indeed. The two correspond by mail, telling of their adventures and misadventures (something the clumsy Kate has frequently), which soon involve more than just the usual gossip when Kate happens into a magic trap of sorts that was set for the “Mysterious Marquis.” Very quickly Kate and Cecy realize there is much more than a bit of matchmaking going on in both Rushton and London. For instance, just whom is Mr. James Tarleton doing a very bad job of spying on, and why? And who could have placed the mysterious charm bag under Cecy’s brother’s mattress? Why are men suddenly falling at Dorothea Griscomb’s feet and then forgetting about her the next day?

Sorcery and Cecelia is a book filled with magical intrigue and mystery. The characters are well developed—each have their faults and habits—and the story being set in 1817 makes for a rather unusual but altogether very pleasing fantasy that holds echoes of Pride and Prejudice and Tamora Pierce’s novels. Read more about Cecy and Kate in The Grand Tour: Being a Revelation of Matters of High Confidentiality and Greatest Importance, Including Extracts from the Intimate Diary of a Noblewoman and the Sworn Testimony of a Lady of Quality and The Mislaid Magician or Ten Years After: Being the Private Correspondence Between Two Prominent Families Regarding a Scandal Touching the Highest Levels of Government and the Security of the Realm.

Birdwing

by Rafe Martin

What if happily ever after isn’t perfect for everyone?
Meet Ardwin, the son of King Lugh. He and his brothers were enchanted—changed into swans—by their evil stepmother. Through their sister’s determination they were all changed back into humans—all but the youngest, Ardwin. He alone bears the mark of his time as a swan; in place of his left arm he carries a white wing. “Prince Freak,” people call him, staring and warding off evil as he passes. Ardwin is restless, wanting to return to the flock of swans he once flew with, where he would be accepted.
While Ardwin desperately wishes to be rid of his wing, it also reminds him of the wild freedom of the swans, and even gives him the ability to speak to animals. He is torn between wanting to fit in, and wanting to be himself.
But part of him has to choose when he learns of a plot to marry him off—under the condition of replacing his wing with a prosthetic arm. Horrified at the thought, Ardwin sets off for the world with his friends, Stephen and Skye. But soon he discovers the journey must be his alone.
Ardwin’s captivating and original story is born from the Brothers Grimm tale The Six Swans, and it’s not just a fairytale retold, but a fairytale continued, and Rafe Martin pulls it off beautifully; there is nothing stale or drawn-out about this book. If you like stories of self-discovery and -acceptance, adventure, magic, and a little romance, Birdwing is for you.
I’m really not doing Martin’s novel any justice in my description, because it was simply so, SO good. Just read it and find out for yourself!

****Also posted on YA Books Central.****

Queen of Camelot

by Nancy McKenzie

Since the night the old woman spoke the prophesy at Guinevere’s birth, people have looked at her a little strangely, for it was told that she will be a great queen and that her fate will be one no one will envy. This is hard for Guinevere to believe, since she is just the daughter of a lesser king, and besides, it’s her cousin Elaine who constantly dreams over the young King Arthur, though she has never met him. But when people are beginning to look for a new wife for Arthur, an old friend of Guinevere’s recommends the fifteen-year-old princess as a bride for the King. When Arthur cannot come to escort Guinevere to Camelot himself, he sends a few of his knights to fetch her, including Lancelot, who falls almost instantly in love with the wild-haired princess, and she with him. With this new problem added to Elaine’s jealous rages, the fear she has of displeasing the King, and Merlin’s apparent disapproval of her, how will Guinevere survive her new life and be a good partner for Britain’s High King?

I really enjoyed this book a lot; it engaged me quickly and brought the famous names from the Arthurian legends to life with surprising reality. Anyone not yet ready for Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon will eagerly finish this book and will be well satisfied. Queen of Camelot was originally published as two novels, titled The Child Queen and The High Queen.

****Also posted on YA Books Central.****

Flora Segunda

Being the Magickal Mishaps of a Girl of Spirit, Her Glass-Gazing Sidekick, Two Ominous Butlers (One Blue), a House with Eleven Thousand Rooms, and a Red Dog
by Ysabeau S. Wilce

Flora Nemain Fyrdraaca ov Fyrdraaca lives in a rundown house with eleven thousand rooms (but only one working toilet), her mad father, five gazehounds, and no Butler. He was banished, you see, by Flora’s authoritative mother, Commanding General of the Warlord’s army. One day, in a hurry, Flora decides to take Crackpot Hall’s temperamental Elevator to the second floor instead of the very long staircase, but it doesn’t let her off at the expected destination. Instead it takes her to the Bibliotheca Mayor, where Flora finds a faded boy who turns out to be Valefor, the magickal banished Butler himself. He only needs a bit of Flora’s Anima, her magical essence, to become well—and then he could return to his Butler duties and Flora would never again have to do chores. But the sly Butler isn’t telling her everything, and Flora is getting herself into more than she knows. Soon she must go on a long journey...or lose her life.
The beginning may be a little hard for you to get into, but persevere; once Flora discovers Valefor things start to pick up, and Flora Segunda becomes a unique and fast-paced story. It’s a terrific mix of fantasy and adventure, and by the middle I was flying through it and by the end I was wishing that the next book in the series was out NOW.
Visit the author or grab a copy of the Califa Police Gazette to find out more about the forthcoming Flora’s Dare: How a Girl of Spirit Gambles All to Expand her Vocabulary, Confront a Bouncing Boy Terror, and Try to Save Califa from a Shaky Doom (Despite Being Confined to Her Room).

Chasing Redbird

by Sharon Creech

Thirteen-year-old Zinnia “Zinny” Taylor’s life is tangled like a bowl of spaghetti; she’s still figuring herself out and she’s not much like any of her five siblings. She’s not moody like Gretchen, boy crazy like May, or noisy like her younger brothers. Zinny’s only refuge from is her Aunt Jessie and Uncle Nate’s house, until she finds a weed-covered trail in the woods behind the house. Zinnia Taylor: explorer! Suddenly Zinny knows she has to uncover this trail—from beginning to end—do something significant so she might be known as more than “the strangest and stingiest dirt-daubing doodlebug.” Along the way Zinny remembers things about her cousin Rose’s tragic death, discovers her family’s secrets, and gets to know handsome Jake Boone.

Chasing Redbird is a great book for pre-teen girls (although I’m sure older readers will also enjoy it!), as Zinny’s quirky thoughts are very real, and she doesn’t just hang around waiting for a boy to notice her. Sharon Creech was one of my favorite authors when I was younger, and I still enjoy coming back to her funny and touching stories today. If you enjoy Chasing Redbird, look for the Newbery Medal-winning companion, Walk Two Moons.

The Heir Series

Cinda Williams Chima’s new series grabs your attention from the first page of the prologue and doesn’t let go until the last word. Although the books are about modern day wizards, the story is nothing like Harry Potter.

The Warrior Heir begins in 1870, when a family’s life is ripped apart by wizards, then shifts to a time more than one hundred years later to where Jessamine Longbranch, a wizard and doctor changes the fate of a baby for her own selfish reasons.

Several years later, Jackson Swift wakes up one morning and, in his hurry to get out the door, forgets to take his heart medicine for the first time in sixteen years. Surprisingly, instead of becoming sick, Jack feels better than ever and breezes through his soccer tryouts. He knows something’s up when, after taking his medicine again, he feels anesthetized. Very soon after, his Aunt Linda shows up to take Jack and his friends on a spur-of-the-moment genealogy trip. Along the way they discover more than a few family records; Jack finds a medieval-era sword and learns that he has a destiny: to train as a warrior and fight a duel to the death, but will he fight for the light side or the dark one?

In The Wizard Heir, Seph McCauley is a handsome teenager who leaves a trail of disaster behind him. Unexplained fires, explosions, and other strange occurrences happen wherever he goes. He’s been expelled from four schools in the past three years, and now he’s on his way to a school for troubled boys in Maine. There Seph learns that he is a powerful—although untrained—wizard, but soon he realizes there is a dark side to the magic performed at Havens. Now he must fight to be free against those even more powerful than himself.

Ms. Chima effortlessly blends Jack and Seph’s modern day world with ancient fantasy, making for fast-paced novels with completely engrossing storylines. If you enjoy these two novels, look for The Dragon Heir. I’m sure it will be an amazing finale that includes characters from the first two books and tying the previous stories closer together.

Horatio Hornblower: The Duel

1998
Director: Andrew Grieve
Starring: Ioan Gruffudd, Dorian Healy, Robert Lindsay

Seventeen-year-old Horatio Hornblower (Gruffudd) is just beginning his service with the British navy as a midshipman aboard the Justinian. Although at first he is terrified of heights and unused to the rocking of the ship, young Horatio is brilliant at calculating, navigation, and mathematics. But jealousy and hatred arises. Jack Simpson (Healy) is senior midshipman, and with his power over the other midshipmen, he “teaches them their places” by eating their food, beating them when he wishes to, and generally making their lives miserable. So when Horatio is being “snotty” and questions the rules made by Jack Simpson, he becomes the victim of Simpson’s wrath. Struggling to adjust to his new life, attend his duties, and stay out of Simpson’s way, Horatio has a seemingly doomed beginning to his naval career. Transferred to the Indefatigable, Horatio believes for a while that he is safe. But Jack Simpson is never far away, and when he goes a step too far, Horatio decides the abuse can go on no longer, and he challenges the senior midshipman to a duel with pistols. Watch this wonderful movie to find out what happens! The Duel is a great film that will quickly sweep you up in its amazing reenactments of battles at sea, duels, and one young man’s intelligence and determination. If you enjoy this movie, be sure to continue watching the series with The Fireship, The Duchess and the Devil, The Wrong War, The Mutiny, Retribution, Loyalty, and Duty.

Annie, Between the States

by L.M. Elliot

Annie Sinclair lived a life of peace and serenity until the beginning of the Civil War, when the Yankees invaded her southern homeland. Annie is frustrated that she must stay around the house and bandage men with horrible wounds instead of attending parties and balls like a young lady usually would. With her older brother Laurence fighting in the war, and a hot-headed Yankee-hating younger brother, Annie is her mother’s right-hand during the many trials they face throughout the war; it is she who uses her wit and courage to help her family and the way of life they believe in. When she meets the romantic, Shakespeare-quoting Captain Farley, Annie is swept off her feet, but is troubled by the handsome northern-born Thomas Walker who keeps popping into her life. Will her family and loved ones survive the war? And if they do, will they ever be the same again?

L.M. Elliot weaves Annie’s thoughts and feelings into the narration so seamlessly that I kept forgetting that it is written in third person—and that the characters weren’t real people.
Annie, Between the States is a wonderful historical novel set in Manassas Virginia and the surrounding areas that fans of Ann Rinaldi will love, and even people who aren’t history lovers might find interesting.

****Also posted on YA Books Central.****

John Marsden’s Tomorrow Series

When Ellie Linton and her friends go on a camping trip during the Commemoration Day celebration, they have no idea it will keep them from becoming prisoners in their own country. While the rest of the town is at the Showground celebrating, another country invaded Australia, taking over everything and everything. Ellie and her friends—Robyn, Kevin, Corrie, Lee, Homer, Fi, and Chris—decide that the must do something to loosen the invader’s grasp on their country and families—even if it means killing people. But what can eight teenagers really do to sabotage the enemy’s plans, stay hidden, and most of importantly, stay alive? Tomorrow, When the War Began is a gripping, suspenseful novel with very genuine characters, which at times is so real it’s spooky.

In the sequel series, The Ellie Chronicles, Ellie must learn to fight a new kind of war; a battle to keep her farm, the land she loves, and to survive after her parents are killed by enemy soldiers. This brings a new and different focus to the story but still centering on the same familiar characters.I must warn you, though, that if you begin reading these books you may suffer from sleep deprivation. This is a very well written and suspenseful series and staying up all night to can see what happens next is quite likely

Note: I would not recommend this series for most teens under the age of 14 due to mature content matter.

The Tomorrow Series:

Tomorrow, When the War Began
The Dead of Night
A Killing Frost
Darkness Be My Friend
Burning for Revenge
The Night is for Hunting
The Other Side of Dawn

The Ellie Chronicles:

While I Live
Incurable
Circle of Flight (unknown US release)

No Shame, No Fear

by Ann Turnbull

“He’s not for thee,” Susanna Thorn’s mother tells her after she looks back at the handsome young man who made sure little Deb was unhurt after a fall on the road. But Susanna cannot keep his kind action and pleasing countenance from her head, even though he is clearly not a Friend. And William’s thoughts, as it turns out, keep turning to the fascinating, pretty maid whose gaze lingers with him still, though she is a Quaker. What a surprise for both Will and Susanna when they happen upon each other again at a Quaker meeting at the Seven Stars, an alehouse in Hemsbury. The bookshop where Su has begun work makes for a convenient meeting place, and the two fall quickly and deeply in love. But troubles arise in the town—new laws are passed which make it illegal for Quakers to meet, and prejudice against Susanna’s faith grows stronger. Meanwhile, Will’s father, a wealthy merchant, is much against his son finally showing his long-time interest in a different faith. With such strains added to William and Su’s relationship, will the words Susanna’s mother spoke be proven true or utterly wrong?
The issues of family, faith, and feelings that this exceptionally engaging book deal with make this love story one that can be enjoyed for the good writing and depth alone. Find out of if true love really does exist for Susanna and William in Forged in the Fire.