Wilderlore: The Accidental Apprentice

 Barclay Thorne is an apprentice to a mushroom farmer ahe he is happy to be there.  One day while out looking for specific mushrooms he ends up entering the Wilderwood Forest, which is a no-no.  In that forest is magic or Lore.  He encounters a girl, Viola, who is trying to capture a beast to make it hers, but it ends up "marking" Barclay.  Because magic is forbidden in his town, he ends up running away to find out how to remove the mark. Viola helps him get to a Lore town in the middle of the Wilderwood and once there in order to remove his mark he must participate in a competition to find a Loremaker to be an apprentice to.  

Reminiscent of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, this is a fantasy book that has a slow start, but definitely has some fast paced action in parts.   

The Blackbird Girls by Anne Blankman

 Told in three voices:  Rifka (1942), and Valentina and Oksana (1986). Valentina and Oksana are school peers and have woken up to an explosion at Chernobyl.  Both of their fathers work there and they live in the same building, however Oksana doesn't care for Valentina.  Oksana's dad calls Valentina's family dirty Jews.  As Oksana discovers her father has died, she and her mother prepare to evacuate the city, but her mother has been contaminated by radiation.  Valentina's father is in the hospital, and she and her mother are also evacuating.  They offer for Oksana to come with them, and she does.  Valentina's mother has to send them on alone to her mother.  Valentina has never met her grandmother.  As Oksana and Valentina begin to get to know one another, they become close friends.  

Interspersed within their story is the story of Rifka, a Jew, who is running away from the Germans and tells of her story of surviving WWII.  

I really enjoyed this story not only for the WWII aspect, but the history of Chernobyl.  It is rare to have a middle grade novel written about that bit of history.  I think this will be a popular book for many.

Time Villains by Victor Pineiro

 

Javi, Wiki, and Brady are shopping for a table and find one that purrs!  After they are assigned the yearly "if you could bring 3 people to dinner" assignment, they set up the table and BOOM, the three people Javi selected show up!  Once they are finished with their conversation, they send them back, but the pirate Edward Teach escapes the house and threatens harm to them unless they give him access to the table for his evil plans.  They don't know what to do, but in the process find out they are "Chosen Ones" and that their table has a long history of bringing historical/ fictional people into the present.

I LOVED this book.  It is such a fun read.  It reminded me of Time Warp Trio and The Goonies put together.  The characters are awesome and developed from the beginning with all the strong characteristics and personalities.  HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. I hope this is the beginning of a series.  

Just Like That by Gary D. Schmidt

 

Meryl Lee Kowalski has just lost her best friend, Holling Hoodhood, in a car accident.  She is struggling to deal with the loss of him and just can't face all the places and things they did together, so her parents send her off to a boarding school on the east coast.  Matt Coffin has no family or parents and has run away from New York to the same town Meryl is in.  He has some really bad men that are trying to find him and he doesn't want to get anyone else involved in his life.  As Meryl attends school and Matt is befriended by the head mistress of the school their lives intersect and they both learn about dealing with their loss and they find friendship in each other and other people.

LOVED this book.  Kept me reading until the early morning hours to find out what happens to Matt and Meryl.  Has a great historic vibe to it, but not overwhelmingly so.  The characters are very relatable and both grow and develop throughout the book. 

  

Halfway to Harmony by Barbara O'Connor

 

Walter Tipple doesn't really have friends, except his brother Tank, who died in the war.  It is the summer and Evalina and Posey and her three-legged dog Porkchop move in next door. As Walter's mom sends him over with a welcome gift, he and Posey start a friendship by exploring the woods and finding a man who fell out of a hot-air balloon.  He introduces himself as Banjo and thus begins a bodacious adventure of not only finding the lost balloon, but finding friendship as well.

I really liked this book all the way through.  It had some of my "country" language in it like, "Hold on to your skivvies 'cause you will not believe this."  or "Dead as a doornail." It also has some making friends lessons, as well as Walter dealing with Tank's death.

Never After: The Thirteenth Fairy by Melissa De la Cruz

 

Filomena Jefferson-Cho is so excited because the 13th and final book of her favorite series, Never After, is coming out today!  As she goes to the bookstore to grab her copy, she finds that there are no copies and there will NEVER be any copies!  She is so disappointed, but as she leaves she encounters someone following her and ends up getting swept up in an adventure.  She meets Jack Stalker, the main character from the series!! He gets her to come with him to Never After and try to save their world, but she gets scared and leaves.  Once she gets home she decides to re-read the books and notices they have changed, and not for the better.  She must go back to help fix things and as she tells her parents she discovers who she really is. 

This was a book that intertwines the real world with a fantasy world.  It was okay for me, I didn't love it.  It was a quick read and I'm sure there are some tween girls who would love it.  

 

Among the Beasts & Briars by Ashley Poston

Disclaimer:  I listened to the audiobook.

 Cerys is the royal gardener's daughter.  When she was young, the prince, princess and her along with a royal guard went into the Wild Woods and as an Ancient attacked, her mother came in to save her.  Only she and Princess Arwen made it out alive and Cerys is wood cursed and her blood can grow flowers.  Now many years later the King has died and Arwen is being crowned because the Crown helps keep the Wild Woods at bay from taking over the kingdom.  On the Coronation day, Seren (the royal guard), shows up and curses the whole  assembly with wild seeds that attach and take over the people and turn them into Bone Eaters.  Arwen tells Cerys to grab the crown and not to let her or anyone get it.  As Cerys runs from the kingdom, she puts the crown on to try to fight off Seren, but the crown overtakes her and her pet fox helps save her.  The fox and Cerys run into the Wild Wood to escape, but are followed by the Bone Eaters and Seren.  The two of them, along with a sweet bear continue on their way to find Voryn to see if they can find the Lady of the Wild to help them break the curse.  

Told in two voices of Cerys and Fox, this is a fast paced adventure and good vs. evil story.  The book has closure, but leaves you wanting so much more.  Has some language, self-harm, etc, so would recommend for 8th and up. 

Namesake (Fable #2) by Adrienne Young

 Fable is captured on Zola's ship and has become a pawn for him to get what he wants.  She discovers Clove, her dad's shipmate who she thought was dead, is working for Zola!  What a traitor!  As she is taken to Bastian to meet Holland, the gem trader in charge, she agrees to do what Zola wants so she can get back to West and the Marigold.  She gets to Bastian, meets Holland, discovers Clove is still working for her dad (but undercover), Zola gets killed, and Fable is "rescued" by West.  She is tasked with finding a rare gem, Midnight, for her and West to be able to be free and on their own.  She is worried that Holland is going to take over the narrows gem trade and kill her father to do it.  

Lots of action, deceit, secrets, and a little romance with lots of feelings of betrayal.  I liked the book, but not as much as the first one.  I really can't pinpoint why, however I would recommend this 2nd book in the duology.

Fable (Fable #1) by Adrienne Young

 Disclaimer:  I listened to the audiobook.

Fable was dumped off on an island for thieves and traitors by her father, Saint, after her mom died on a shipwreck.  He told her if she could get off the island and get to him he would give her what she deserved.  She is a gem sage, who can "feel" gem stones and find them in the ocean.  As she finds pyre and sells it to save enough copper coin to escape Jeval (the island), she gets herself into a tricky situation with another Jevali who wants to kill her and steal her coin.  As she escapes onto a ship  with a small crew, the helmsman, West, tells her once he gets her to Ceros she is no longer his problem.  As they arrive into port, she plans her visit with her father and learns he will not let her crew for him and all he tells her that the Lark (wrecked ship) is her inheritance.  She is so disappointed and sad that she ends up working with West for his crew, making a deal to split her inheritance with them if they will help her get to the wrecked Lark.  Before they can leave, Zola (from a rival ship), beats West up and rips the sails on their ship.  Fable gets the 800 coin to repair the sails and they are able to get away just as Zola is coming for them.  

I LOVED this book, BUT it has several uses of ba***** and a little physical romance.  Would probably recommend for 8th and up.

Hush by Dylan Farrow

Shae lives in a village, Aster, with her mom. Writing and reading are not allowed and can cause you to die from the Blot, her brother passed away from the Blot.  The town is having the Bards come to visit for their tithe gathering.  Shae asks her friend Fiona to tend to her herd, so she can go to see the Bards.  One thing Shae has always been able to do is sew and when she sews she is able to make things appear for a while.  After the Bards visit she goes for a walk with Mads, her friend (who is in love with her), after they talk he heads home and she stays out a bit more and falls asleep.  When she gets home in the morning, she finds her mother has been murdered. The town seems to cover up the murder, so Shae goes out of the village to see if she can find who murdered her mother and she thinks it was one of the Bards. As she arrives to High House, Cathal, the guy in charge, sees her gift of sewing things into being and says she will become a Bard.  As she starts training she falls for Ravod, a Bard, who she met in Aster.   He tells her not to trust anyone, even Cathal, but she is a good, kind and trusting person.  She should have heeded his warning as things are not always what they seem.

Great first book to the series.  Can't wait for the next one.  Would probably appeal to strong younger readers or 7th and up.  Nothing inappropriate in it.  

 

The Explorer's Code by Allison K. Hymas

 

Anna and her brother Charlie are headed to Idlewood Manor with their parents.  Charlie won a prize and they get a weekend trip.  Idlewood hasn't been open in years to the public, so it is a big deal that they get to go.  They along with 9 other groups are intrigued by the house's history.  Emily is also there with her parents and they are there to save Idlewood from getting sold or torn down.  Emily is there to prove to her parents that she can find evidence to save Idlewood. Anna goes places she shouldn't, but in the process she discovers a hidden 3rd floor and tower room full of secrets.  Charlie is a math whiz and he starts discovering codes and puzzles all over the house.  

Good little book with lots of puzzles and codes.  I kinda like The Inheritance Games better.  I felt like the kids didn't work together for a 3/4 of the book.  Overall,  I liked it, just a little slow.  

The Silver Arrow by Lev Grossman

 Kate writes to her Uncle Herbert, that she doesn't know at all, and asks for him to send her a birthday present.  He sends her one the next day.  A steam engine train called The Silver Arrow.  She and her younger brother Tom are exploring the engine, when it begins moving.  Their Uncle Herbert tries to catch up to them, but he can't.  Kate and Tom arrive at a station where a bunch of animals are waiting for the train with tickets in their mouths.  They said a train hasn't come by for 30 years and that the kids need to go to the yard to get other train cars.  Uncle Herbert meets them there and helps them "build" their train by choosing sleeper cars, dining cars, candy cars, swimming pool cars, etc.  As they embark on their journey Uncle Herbert tells them to keep a look out for the twilight star.  

Lots of adventure and lessons learned about taking care of our planet, BUT not overwhelming or put me off.  I really enjoyed it.  

Embassy of The Dead by Will Mabbitt

Such a fun book.  It reminded me a little of Skulduggery Pleasant books.  

Jake accidentally accepts a box from a man.  The box holds the severed finger and once he opens it he starts a chain of events that will cause him to lie to his parents, find out he is sensitive to ghosts and have to run for his life.  The severed finger belongs to one of the 12 Grim Reapers, who was buried and is now trying to be raised to take over the world.  Jake along with Stiffkey, the undertaker, and Cora, the ghost, are trying to get to the Embassy of the Dead to return the finger and also make sure they don't get sent to the Eternal Void.  

Loved this book.  Very fast read, first in a series, and lots of themes.

 
 

Windswept by Gwen Cole

Have you ever wished you could blink and be where ever you wanted to go?  Well in this book there are drifters who can travel anywhere in the world in the blink of an eye.  Sam encounters such a person on the subway one day after school, but she doesn't know it at the time.  She just knows there is a cute boy sitting across from her.  Reid (the boy) notices Sam as well.  He is a drifter and has dropped out of school, doesn't have a job and is homeless.  He has one friend, Jake, who is also a drifter from Australia.  As Sam and Reid begin to get to know one another he shares his secret with her and she begins to travel the world.  Sam also starts to learn her family has kept secrets from her after they leave on a weekend trip.  Reid learns about drifters starting to go missing and no one can find them.  Sam and Reid begin working together to try to solve the mystery, but will they solve it before they get caught?

Told in two voices, the book reads pretty quickly and after the beginning of them getting to know one another I couldn't quit reading.  I think boys and girls will enjoy this book, and I think it is perfect for middle school or high school.  I could see this turning into a series...please?  

City of Gold by Will Hobbs

The Hollowell family has moved to Colorado to start over after their dad died.  Owen wakes up one night to his mules whinnies and discovers they have been stolen.  He tracks them and finds them, but the man who stole them threatens to shoot him so her returns home.  As he tells his mom what happened they come up with a plan and he sets off to find where the man takes them.  He arrives in a mining town and finds his mules, Hercules and Peaches, but can't seem to get them back.  Then his younger brother Till shows up and they convince the sheriff to go after the mule rustler.  

This is not my favorite historical book, but it did give a lot of history and information about the west and the mining era.  The author also included a note at the end with lots of history and his research from writing the book.  Would be good for older elementary and up.  

Muse Squad: The Cassandra Curse by Chantel Acevedo

Callie Martinez-Silva is a normal girl living in Miami, Florida.  She has all the typical problems: friends who change, fitting in, school work, etc.  Add to that  her parents are divorced, her dad, who lives in NY now, just told her he and his new wife are having a baby, and  she starts noticing weird things are happening around her.  Callie finds out she is Muse, like one of the nine from Greek mythology.  Her Aunt Annie was also a Muse.  One day as she crawls under her bed to think she is whisked away to London to the V and A Museum where she discovers her identity and meets the three junior muses, AKA the Muse Squad.  The squad is assigned a Fated One (one who can change the world) who just happens to be a student from Callie's school.  Maya is really smart, but socially awkward.  As Callie and the Muse Squad  try to  protect Maya from the The Cassandra Curse and the Sirens they learn that things are not always what they seem and you can't always trust who you think you can.

Great character development, themes of trust, honesty, and forgiveness are woven throughout.  Highly recommend.  It reminded me of Aru Shah series.

  

StoryBound by Emily McKay

WOW!  Loved the book, loved the story, but will not put it in my middle school library because I feel it's geared more toward high school...

Edie has just moved to Austin, TX with her mom.  Her mom is a caregiver to a rich man.  Edie LOVES the Traveler Chronicle series and the last book just came out, but it was a total disappointment.  As she starts her new school weird things start to happen to her, like did she make a stick come to her???  As her mom has to travel with her client for the weekend, Edie delves into trying to find out more about someone calling her an "Untethered Sleeker" and what exactly that means.  As she goes into a bookstore she seems to travel to another dimension and meets her book boyfriend, Kane!!!  She knows the stories so well, that he gets her to help him rescue the princess and the Curator.  

The author apparently loved using some language in this book, because it happens frequently.  The romance part is very clean however.  Would highly recommend to high school.

The Deceivers by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Greystone Secrets 2)

In the second book in the series, Emma, Finn, and Chess are living with Natalie and her dad.  Natalie's mom and Mrs. Greystone were left trapped in the other world.  The kids are working on trying to decode Mrs. Greystone's secret message, but are not having much luck.  They think they have figured something out though and  get back to the house and find the level along with signs it has been moved.  This makes them worried.  They decide it is not safe to use it in their house so they sneak off to Natalie's house to try to go back through that way.  They make it back through and find lots of clues, Natalie's grandma is still alive, the red headed lady who helped them is in Other-Natalie's house as a cleaner and a big party is going to happen.  Lots of twists and turns and the ending leaves room for a third book.  Yay!

Aru Shah Pandava Series by Roshani Chokshi

Aru Shah lives in the Museum of Ancient Indian Art and Culture with her mother.  She doesn't fit in at school and makes up things about herself to try to fit in.  Some kids from school stop by to confront her and she tries to impress them by opening a lamp she knows she is not supposed to touch and ends up releasing The Sleeper who is out to destroy the world.  Aru learns she is a Pandava (demi-god) and meets another Pandava sister, Mini.  Together they try to stop The Sleeper and unfreeze the world.  Great story of Indian mythology.  If you love Percy Jackson, or any of Riordan's books this is a series for you.  

Book 2 starts with Aru and Mini on a mission to get back a missing bow and arrow that have been stolen.  They think another girl, Brynne, stole it but then they see Aru with it!  WHAT??!!  Two Arus?  Now the council thinks Aru stole it and send Mini, Aru, Brynne (who is another Pandava sister) and Aiden off to find the bow and arrow and Boo is put on lockdown.  If they don't find it by the next full moon they will be out of the Otherworld forever!  More action and adventure for all!

The 3rd book in the series will be available on April 7.  If you're curious keep reading if not stop here.

Still curious?

Are you sure?????

Okay, in book 3 Aru and the gang are off to find two sisters who have been kidnapped.  One of the sisters Sheela can predict the future.  The other sister, Nikita, is good with plants and clothes.  The sisters are twins and the next two Pandava sisters.  This adventure starts with the Pandavas looking for the Tree of Wishes, but The Sleeper is looking for it too.  It is pretty much a race of who will find the tree first.  Lots of challenges, clues, and excitement kept me turning pages until the end.  I will say the end left me hanging and I can't wait for the 4th and final book to come out!!

Keystone by Katie Delahraty

Set in the way future of the USA, Ella is an Influencer. She is also “dead”. She has been recruited by the disconnects to be a thief. She learns the trade quickly and moves to the head of the class, right behind Garrett. As they partner up to pull off a heist, she can’t decide what is real and what is fake with him. Then she has an encounter with a guy from her past who she thought was dead. Will he blow her cover? Will they succeed in their heist or will they be caught and jailed?

Lots of twists and turns. Slow beginning, picks up toward the last 1/3 of the book.