Age: Middle School-High School

Forgive me, Stacy (via recommendation) but I just could not finish this book. I was reading Tiger's Curse while simultaneously reading Paulo Bacigalupi's Drowned Cities which is a masterfully written dive into the human psyche in times of war. It was incredibly intense but expertly crafted and I am still amazed by how sensitive and authentic the writing was.

Tiger's Curse has a much lighter writing style, meant to be read fast without much introspective reflection and the juxtaposition was too jarring for me. In comparison, the writing felt rudimentary including Houck's inability to progress the plot without inserting awkward dialogue that would blatantly tell rather than fluidly describe. However, this has received great reviews from other readers and I will definitely recommend this book to teens. It is an intriguing premise and teens will revel in a fun fantasy book that doesn't feel so obnoxiously intellectual.