In historical England, people give off Smoke. It is generally accepted that this Smoke is a product of sin, and the cleaner aristocracy enforce that idea through their rule. Charlie and Thomas attend an elite boarding school where they are given tests to discourage any and all Smoke, but when they meet Livia, the three of them start to discover a wealth of lies and a world of danger. Together, they fight for their lives to uncover the truth about the Smoke that rules them all.

SMOKE is a fascinating novel set in an alternate version of historical England. Dan Vyleta has a magical way of capturing the atmosphere of the story, setting a serious but adventurous tone as the characters go from boarding school to mysterious estates to London. The intense class divides, portrayal of London, and the attitudes of both Charlie and Thomas suggest a deep Dickens influence, though the speed of the plot follows a quicker, contemporary young adult literature pace.

While the premise is engaging and unique, I had a difficult time connecting with the characters. While the majority of Thomas, Charlie, and Livia’s parts are in third person, certain chapters featuring minor characters use first person, and the distinction creates a distance from the main characters. However, such a choice may reflect the close union of the three characters by the end of the book, as a first person narration would separate them more. Even so, Livia’s character is most sorely affected by this, as it often restricts her role to one as primarily a love interest.

SMOKE is an evocative mix of action, mystery, lies, and battles of all sorts of thoughts. Though some areas of the story leave something to be desired, the premise, refreshing ending, and complex plot make SMOKE a whirlwind of a read.

Originally posted at YABC: http://www.yabookscentral.com/yafiction/19879-smoke

Short and Sweet:

If you love edge-of-your-seat suspense with an #ownvoices Japanese American narration, then I highly recommend this fast paced story of the yakuza, family, and romance.
To Elaborate...

*Note: In the book, Claire refers to her stepfather as her "dad" and her biological, deceased father as her "father." For the purposes of this review, I will do the same.*

I've shamefully had this book sitting on my shelf for a while, and I'm so, so glad I finally read it. INK AND ASHES is about Claire Takata, a young girl with a very curious mind who wants to know more about her father's death when she was a child. She finds a photo and a letter connecting her father to her stepfather, and she had no idea the two ever knew each other. When her parents reluctantly tell her some of their secrets, she discovers her father was once part of the yakuza, a Japanese organized crime group. While searching for more answers, Claire may have lead the yakuza right to her door...and they want her dead.

This story has one of the best suspense plots I've read. Many suspense/thriller books I read focus on building suspense when the main character is alone and often using tactics that could be explained away (the sense of someone following them was actually a stray cat; the mysteriously opened window was actually a sibling playing a prank, etc.). There's absolutely nothing wrong with those methods, but I also love the way Maetani uses very out right scare methods. While there is definitely a mystery as to who exactly is behind all the attacks, there is no arguing that any of what's happening to Claire is a joke. Someone starts a fire in her front yard, someone forces her into a car accident, etc. The 'gifts' Claire gets are specifically tied into Japanese culture and have ominous and deadly meanings. You definitely want to be cautious about reading this alone at night if you're easily spooked.

Outside of the suspense, the family dynamic is touching. Claire's family extends to more than just her immediate family, often having several boys over who are like brothers to her (though with one romantic exception). With such a close cast of characters, Claire, her parents, her two brothers, her three or so close male friends, the author does a wonderful job at making them all distinct. Though I wouldn't have minded another significant female character, all of the brothers (and pseudo-brothers) are the perfect mixture of hilarious, sweet, and frustrating in a very sibling-esque manner. I especially love Claire's relationship with her dad.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one, and I can't wait to see more from this author!

Originally posted at The Forest of Words and Pages: http://www.forestofwordsandpages.com/2016/06/review-ink-ashes-valynne-e-maetani/

Phee’s world is turned upside down now that she’s at the rebellion base. Cash is still missing, possibly presumed dead, her uncle is dead, and Charles Benroyal is out for her throat. Phee is ready to get answers and win the war, but she struggles with grief and PTSD. As the stakes of the war get higher, sacrifices will be made and lives will be lost before it’s all through.

MARKED, the sequel to TRACKED, by Jenny Martin is a strong combination of action, mental health, and family. The story picks up right where TRACKED left off, with Phee taking refuge with the rebellion and trying to process the events that got her there. The focus on Phee’s mental health is absolutely stunning. Phee has PTSD from the actions she witnessed, and that doesn’t simply go away overnight or change with a good day. Since she is still at the heart of the war, she is surrounded by triggers, and she does her best to deal with them the best way she can, though it is clear she will need help and treatment from others. Martin perfects keeping the action ongoing while not sacrificing the protagonist’s characterization.

Though family plays an important role in the first book, it takes a slightly stronger lead in the sequel. Phee has her adopted family with her, but she is still reeling from the loss of her uncle and the discovery of her mother. Family is a crucial motivator for several key characters, and in times of war, people will take drastic measures to ensure their families are safe.

While I love the introduction to a few new characters, one major character from the first book is absent for almost the entire sequel. Though the absence is understandable and definitely necessary at points, it makes the character feel almost like a stranger by the end, hindering some of the desired emotional effect. However, the focus on Phee and her journey is the most important part of the story, and the book beautifully captures that.

Readers who want their hearts racing as fast as the cars in this series should grab this emotional, action-packed duology. MARKED concludes Phee’s story with loss, needed answers, and hope.

Originally posted at YABC: http://www.yabookscentral.com/explore-ya-fiction/discussions/review?id=37659

3.5/5 stars

I love the scenery in this story, and the writing is strong, but the plot is a little lacking. This is a great pick for people who love Brave's Merida.

4.5/5 stars
Short and Sweet:

I loved this magical middle grade set in the bayou! I highly recommend for anyone who favors The Princess and the Frog Disney movie.
To Elaborate…

I stumbled onto BAYOU MAGIC when I was browsing in Barnes and Noble, and I have no idea how I’ve missed this author. I love middle grade books, and Jewell Parker Rhodes has not only written several, she’s also received awards for them. She even has a book releasing next month, TOWERS FALLING (set 15 years after 9/11), which I’ve heard next to nothing about. I’m so glad I picked this one up because I’m officially a huge fan, and I want to read the rest of her works.

This story follows Maddy, the last of her sisters to spend a summer with her Grandmère in the bayou. While Maddy is worried she’ll miss the city, she starts to fall in love with the community, fireflies, surroundings, and magic of the bayou. While adventuring with a new friend, Maddy sees a mermaid. Her grandmother explains the history of magic in their family, involving African culture, and Maddy will be the one to carry on the magical legacy. However, something bad is on the horizon, and Maddy must find strength, courage, and kindness to help.

While it took me a few chapters to get used to the writing style (short, quick sentences), I soon fell in love with this atmospheric tale of magic, history, and community. Maddy is smart and easily likable, and the way she sees the world is fascinating. Her conversations with her grandmother, and all of her family members, are moving, often hilarious, and sweet.

One of the big issues explored in this book is environmentalism, something I’m very passionate about. The bayou is threatened by an oil rig immediately, but the story also reflects the bigger picture of some of the destroyed and lost land. There is an immense respect for the land, air, and water in Maddy’s new community, and you can feel their pain when that physical community is under harm. Rhodes has a lovely author note at the end that goes into a little more detail, and it’s very beautiful and heartbreaking.

If you enjoy a bayou setting, firefly and mermaid magic, and a close community feel, then I would highly recommend this quick middle grade read!

Originally posted at The Forest of Words and Pages: http://www.forestofwordsandpages.com/2016/06/review-bayou-magic-jewell-parker-rhodes/

The city of Viyara is the only one still alive since the Ruining. Once the Ruining came, those who were dead rose again and slaughtered all who lived in their path. Mahyanai Romeo and Juliet Catresou are deeply in love, and in effort to save each other, they attempt magic to bind them together, which goes terribly wrong. Paris Catresou, who was supposed to be Juliet’s Guardian, ends up bound to Romeo, his worst enemy, instead. Mahyanai Runajo believes she knows a way to save the city with no more sacrifices, but everything goes wrong when she pulls Juliet from death. The pairs encounter more danger than ever expected as they try to save their city.

Retelling Romeo and Juliet in a unique and fresh way is a steep task, but Rosamund Hodge masterfully and magnificently does so in BRIGHT SMOKE, COLD FIRE. While Romeo and Juliet set the plot in motion, this story focuses on Paris and Runajo (the Roseline character). Paris has lived in the shadows of Tybalt and his own brother for all his life, but loyalty and bravery are deep in his soul, even if he doesn’t always know the direction to point them. Runajo is part of the Sisters of Thorn, a nun-like group sworn to protect the city through sacrifice and magic. While neither character meets, because of Romeo and Juliet (whom they are respectively paired with through magic gone wrong), both want to save the city. With brief glimpses of Romeo and Juliet’s history together periodically, the romance is minor in page count but just as epic as the original in emotion.

Perhaps what makes this version stand out from any other R&J retelling, beyond the character perspectives, is the friendship. Both pairs, Runajo and Juliet and Paris and Romeo, more or less despise the other in the beginning. Runajo guards herself with steel and bite, and Juliet has been told her whole life she is to fit one role: the bringer of justice for the Catresou clan. As the two find corruption and danger in the Sisters of Thorn, they form an unforgettable friendship. Paris believes Romeo has ruined Juliet, and Romeo is in despair from her supposed death. In many ways, both have held the role of underdog, but together, they prove a unique team to take down a surprising source of deception.

With a plot as cutting as a sword’s edge, friendships that run as deep as the blood in the streets, and a city where life and death are a breath apart, BRIGHT SMOKE, COLD FIRE is Hodge’s best work yet.

Originally posted at YABC: http://www.yabookscentral.com/explore-ya-fiction/discussions/review?id=37695

Castella “Castley” Cresswell is part of a big family dedicated to God. Her and her five siblings live with their patriarchal father and injured and quiet mother deep in the woods. Though they attend school, they are bullied for their lifestyle and their clothes, while their bruises are ignored. When Castley is assigned her favorite class without any of her siblings, she slowly starts to see that perhaps she could make her own choices and that, just maybe, her father is wrong, especially as he hints their time on Earth won’t be too much longer.

What I Loved:

THE CRESSWELL PLOT brims with suspense and a creepy tension that can only bring chaos by the end. The premise of the cult family is intriguing, and readers will quickly sympathize with the siblings as the father’s psychotic methods are unraveled. As Castley and some of her siblings start to recognize the mind games, the pages won’t be able to turn quick enough, and the story flies by as trust is broken, relationships are destroyed, and the safety of Castley becomes more and more unlikely.

What Left Me Wanting More:

Though each character is interesting, the character arcs are a bit lacking. Castley’s rebellions are more jagged in development than smooth, and her siblings often fall a little flat. Likewise, while there are attempts to show how the father could have gotten to where he is in the story, readers are left with more questions than answers on how things got so bad, making him more of a one-dimensional villain. However, he is still scary, and the climax will inspire more than a few gasps.

Final Verdict:

Though the characterization leaves something to be desired, fans of a good cult suspense will devour THE CRESSWELL PLOT.

Originally posted at YABC: http://www.yabookscentral.com/explore-ya-fiction/discussions/review?id=37693

Nickel and Flora think they are lost to a blizzard when Teddy saves them. Teddy is a dog who was raised by a poet, Sylvan. Sylvan told him poets and children can hear dogs speak, and when Teddy meets Nickel and Flora, he knows Sylvan was right. While the three find refuge in Teddy’s cabin where Sylvan used to live, they find friendship and comfort in unexpected places.

Though short in length, THE POET’S DOG by Patricia MacLachlan bursts with emotion and magical prose. Teddy, the dog, tells the story, beginning with his saving of Nickel and Flora, and with flashbacks to his time with his beloved companion, Sylvan. Teddy is filled with grief, heartache, and loneliness after losing Sylvan, and the flashbacks show how meaningful the bond between a poet and his dog can be. Though Nickel and Flora are both young, they understand the world in a way that is both vastly different than Teddy, who is a senior dog, and yet quite similar. The friendship that develops is heartwarming and sweet with poignant messages.

MacLachlan captures an atmosphere of loving warmth during a setting of a blizzard so intense it knocks the power out. The imagery of a cabin with no power in the middle of the woods could easily be very scary, but the author makes it seem like the most comforting shelter in the world with Teddy there and the three of them looking out for one another.

Teddy’s story proves that even in the harshest of winters, external ones and internal alike, friendship, comfort, and trust are all possible. THE POET’S DOG is a moving and short tale that readers won’t want to miss.

Originally posted at YABC: http://www.yabookscentral.com/kbc-home/latest-kids-indie/discussions/review?id=37691

Sammy never asked to be a pilot, but when his human, Hank’s, brother puts him in a plane, off he goes. Unfortunately, the plane’s remote gets broken, and Sammy’s plane goes far, far away, all the way into the woods. In unfamiliar territory, Sammy will have to find a way to get back home with the help of a few new friends.

What I Loved:

The premise of Sammy’s story is adventurous and fun, and Sammy is an easy mouse to root for. He is a quiet leader who just wants to get home, and he has a knack for making interesting friends. The sensory details are wonderful, giving a unique view of the woods from a mouse’s perspective. The cast of characters Sammy befriends (and sometimes makes enemies of) along the way are each distinctive and add their own spunk to the story, especially when it comes to the friendly banter.

What Left Me Wanting More:

While there is a nice variety of animals featured, the decent-sized character list includes only a couple of females. The skewed ratio is noticeable and a bit disappointing. However, the two significant female characters, Phoebe and Grace, are written well, and both have great confidence.

While the dialogue has several hilarious moments, it sometimes has a tendency to feel cliché. The illustrations are a little bland, though the mice designs are adorable. The adventure still easily allows readers to get absorbed, and reluctant readers will enjoy the fast pace.

Final Verdict:

THE SOMEWHAT TRUE ADVENTURES OF SAMMY SHINE is a fun, action packed novel ideal for reluctant readers looking for an animal adventure.

Originally posted at YABC: http://www.yabookscentral.com/kbc-home/latest-kids-indie/discussions/review?id=37692