Maid War Chronicle by Ran

When a kingdom is doomed for destruction the only people to save the price are his maids! They must get him out and seek refuge in a fort a little ways off. Though before they go they must go to the shrine of Martin. This is where the 12 holy weapons of their kingdom are held. Are these maids fit enough in order to receive these weapons or will they fail and do their real job which is pouring tea. Join the court maids and the prince on an adventure you will never forget.

This book was great though in the beginning it was a little boring because the book was setting down facts the reader should know. After this though it was great. The contrast of war with maids made the whole storyline funny. It was also interesting what the choices they had to make to keep the prince safe. I also loved how the author tied in the stories of the individual maids in because there was no stop it flowed nicely. All in all a great manga. Recommend this for any manga fan or a person that wants to start manga though may be a little bit more suited for women!

Some nude scenes and some inappropriate words for children

Reviewer Age:16
Reviewer City, State and Country: Northport, New York USA

Children of the Dawnland by Kathleen O'Neal Gear

Children of the Dawnland takes place in Canada and most of North America around 12,900 years ago. It's about a twelve-year-old girl named Twig, who has exceptional Dreamer powers. She has terrible nightmares about the world ending with a flash of green light and a meteor. But her mother discourages her training to become a Dreamer because she fears that Twig will become too powerful and be cast out of the tribe like Cobia and Screech Owl. Despite her mother's wishes, Twig goes to see Screech Owl for advice and to become a Spirit Dreamer. While Twig tries to become a Spirit Dreamer but fails, Thornback Raiders attack the camp of Twig's tribe. Twig later finds her friend, Greyhawk, and together they set out in search of Cobia's cave for help with the upcoming Doomsday.

I liked Children of the Dawnland mostly because it reminds me of a series that I enjoy very much. The Warriors series, by Erin Hunter, is similar to Children of the Dawnland because the plot of the story mostly revolves around spiritual themes, much like the "prophesies" the medicine cats' have. In the Warriors series, the medicine cats' dreams allow them to predict the future and receive signs, which is like Twig's vision of the world ending. Children of the Dawnland also has the same general way of life as the Warriors series where the characters have names and daily rituals that connect to the environment. I would recommend this book to fans of the Warriors series because of the similarities in theme and suspense.

Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Round Rock, Texas, United States

Buggy Crenshaw and the Bungler's Paradox

Buggy Crenshaw is an imaginative 11-year-old girl. She enjoys writing, and in her stories she always ends up saving the world. When her family moves to Lloyd’s Hollow after her father blows up her garage, her eyes are opened to world she never knew existed, including the battle between Good and Evil that is going on. She also learns a little bit about magic and can’t wait to get her Talisman, or a special charm that helps in the use of magic, on her 12th birthday. Who knows? Maybe Buggy is more powerful than she seems. Maybe Buggy is truly meant to save the world. Read Buggy Crenshaw and the Bungler’s Paradox to find out!

Buggy Crenshaw and the Bungler’s Paradox is a very interesting book for fantasy lovers like me. There were a few boring parts in the book, but once the ride started, there was no getting off. I learned that to really get into this book, you have to use your imagination, just like Buggy. This book is also appealing to people who like to write. Since Buggy is a writer, her mother is always giving her word games and a Word-of-the-Day, where Buggy has to use the word of the day in all its different forms. That game taught me some new words. Overall, I think that R.M Wilburn did an amazing job with this book!

Content: 1
Rating: 8
Reviewer Age:12
Reviewer City, State and Country: Harleysville, PA USA

Is It Still Cheating If I Don't Get Caught by Bruce Weinstein, Ph.D.

"Is It Still Cheating If I Don't Get Caught?" by Bruce Weinstein, Ph.D. is essentially a modern self-help ethics book. It discusses common teenage issues and teaches teens how to think, not what to think. The author's main points revolve aroung five life principles. They are to be respectful, be fair, be loving, do no harm, and make situations better. The book has a question and answer type feel, almost like an advice column.

Oddly, the book does not talk much about cheating. For readers that expected a look inside the minds of those that cheat, they did not get that. Still, the book was interesting and flowed well. The diagrams in the book were facetious and kept the book informal. Overall, the book is practical and pleasant to read, even if the contents are a bit surprising.

Reviewer Age:17

Reviewer City, State and Country: Staten Island, NY USA

Negima!? Neo 1

Negi Springfield is a ten-year-old boy wizard who just graduated from magic school in England. This boy prodigy is given the confusing, mundane challenge of teaching English for an all-girls school in Japan. The only rule that Negi is not allowed to break is that he cannot use magic. However, when one of his students is supposedly attacked by a vampire, Negi must save his class and defeat the vampire, without alerting the girls to the fact that he is a wizard!

I thought this manga was extremely interesting and entertaining. The plot line was one that I thought that I had read about multiple times, yet the author was able to put a spin on the vampires and magic idea. I believe that the characters could be real life people and some of the situations could be ones that normal people could be placed into. I thought that the humor placed throughout the story balanced out the action and the seriousness that is in the novel. I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys manga or a well-written tale about a boy wizard.

Reviewer Age:15
Reviewer City, State and Country: Pottstown, PA United States

If We Kiss by Rachel Vail

Finally, after all this time of her best friend, Tess, pestering her to start kissing, Charlotte (aka Charlie) finally gets kissed, but of all people to have kissed her, it was the one she despised the most. Before school officially started, Kevin grabbed Charlie (who's never really felt the need to kiss anyone) by the hand, pulled her to the side of the building, and gave her a kiss that would change her life and the way that she sees Kevin forever. Being too embarrassed by having been gotten caught by Mr. Herman (a ninth grade teacher) for kissing him, Charlie waits too long and decides not to tell Tess what had happened and just to forget that it ever occurred; too bad her feelings aren't letting her forget though. Charlie falls drastically in love with Kevin after that awful but yet totally amazing event and so does her best friend. Charlie, having not told her bff about the kiss and her newfound feelings for Kevin, hooks up her new crush and her best friend against her will. Sneaking around and lying to her best friend just to get closer to Kevin (and maybe acquire one more delicious kiss) certainly doesn't help her relationships at all, well maybe not with Tess, anyway. A few days later during diner, Charlie finds out about the secret relationship that her mom and Kevin's dad have been having and starts freaking out when they announce that over Christmas break Charlie and her mom are going to stay with Kevin's family in their nice home away from home in Vermont. Will this trip be a nightmare for Charlie, or a dream come true?

The everyday drama and deceit of teenagers; you gotta love it! I don't think that I personally would want to be Charlie, she has way too many problems in her life, but she did seem like she could be a fun person to be friends with if you can get past all of the lies she told. I think that Charlie was somewhat easy to relate to since we are around the same age and deal with some of the same issues such as boys and friends. I think that some of the plots were pretty well-written but some of them were very much undeveloped and ended way too quickly that I couldn't at times even really get a feel for what was occurring at the time in the story. I think that Rachel Vail did a pretty good job of writing this book, and I think that If We Kiss is one of the better stories that she has written. I liked how the author threw in a few different surprises along the way, which certainly helped to keep this story interesting. I also liked the cover that the author chose for this novel; it's very cute. Since I am getting older, If We Kiss got boring at times and didn't always appeal to me, therefore I think that girls around the ages of like 10-14 would enjoy this book the most.

There was some usage of alcohol.

Reviewer Age:15

Reviewer City, State and Country: Upper Strasburg, PA USA

Deader Still by Anton Strout

Simon Canderous begins settling into his new job at the Department of Extraordinary Affairs (DEA), and before he knows it, Simon is thrown into a mystery like no other. As an officer of the Paranormal Police, his first official case is an unforgettable one: a vampire incursion. It has been 737 days since a vampire has even been mentioned in the DEA, and it turns out that on his next case, things might get a little tricky. To add to the trouble, a former friend and criminal, Mina, appears in town and tries to encourage Simon to join in on a painting heist. If you like vampires, zombies, retractable bats, secret agencies, and troubling foes, Deader Still by Anton Strout is the book for you!

I thoroughly enjoyed Deader Still by Anton Strout. Even though this is a sequel to the novel, Dead to Me, you can still read Deader Still and understand the plot. While reading this, I went through lots of twists and turns never expecting what was going to happen next; everything was unpredictable! Deader Still is an incredible page turner and is very hard to put down. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who likes paranormal mysteries.

Language, extremely violent scenes and situations that may be unsuitable for some children.

Reviewer Age:12

Reviewer City, State and Country: Osseo, Wisconsin United States

The Last Days of the Romanovs by Helen Rappaport

This book is about the Romanovs and the terrible ordeal they experienced. Tsar Nicholas and his family ruled over Russia during World War 1. Tsar Nicholas and his family were forced into hiding when the people revolted because the Tsar wouldn't help them get food or water. Tsar Nicholas then took his family to Ekaterinburg to go into hiding. The events that took place ultimately led to the death of the Tsar Nicholas and his family. The author's purpose is to illustrate the chain of command linking Lenin to the execution of the Romanovs. This book has history, adventure and mystery.

The author achieved her goal. She taught me that there was more then one person responsible for the murder of the Romanovs. This book was very powerful, but difficult to read. It would be better suited for adults. If you are a young adult who would like to learn about the history of the Romanovs, I would recommend this book to you. If you are person that doesn't care for history, then I wouldn't recommend this book to you.

I would rate this book a three due to the execution that took place and the adult language.

Reviewer Age:16

Reviewer City, State and Country: Chico, Caifornia USA

Christian the Lion by Anthony Bourke

"Christian the Lion" by Anthony Bourke is a fun little book. It documents the story of two friends adopting a baby lion. Their tale continues up until the point when the lion is sent to Africa to live in the wild. However, the bulk of the plot centers around the lion Christian living with John and Ace. Reading about the lion getting used to being in a city is interesting. It is also very cute to read about how he entertained himself.

Consisting of only 120 pages and a full spread of photos, this book is a quick read. It is quaint and excellent for a dull afternoon. The vocabulary is simple for young readers, but older readers still find the story charming. At the end of the book, there is even a whole set of pages full of fun facts on lions and animal endangerment in general. Overall, this book is a great read and will leave readers with a smile on their face.

Reviewer Age:17

Reviewer City, State and Country: Staten Island, NY USA

Kisses and Lies

In the book Kisses and Lies by Lauren Henderson, sequel to Kiss Me Kill Me, Scarlett Wakefield is tracking down the murderer of Dan McAndrew, her crush that she kissed at an A-list party. As soon as she kissed him he dropped dead. She later finds out that he was allergic to nuts and at that very party she ate chips with peanut oil in them. If only Dan had his EpiPen on him, which would have saved him, but someone stole it from him.

Scarlett and her friend, Taylor McGovern, who's goal is to become a private investigator, try to figure out who killed him and why. But when Scarlett visits Dan's family and stays at their castle for a few days, the case gets more complex. Signs point in different directions and anyone in the castle could be the murderer...

I found this book very interesting. For example it takes place in Britain and has a lot of places and traditions that average Americans wouldn't think existed. This includes castles and manners (you have to say things slower and add in "if you wouldn't mind", "please" and, "thank you".) I also found it confusing at parts where you think one person is the murderer, then it completely changes and you have no idea who the murderer is, but that's what makes a good mystery.

Overall, I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a good book, even if you aren't into mysteries.

recommended for 14 and up has some sexual content (e.g. Dan had porn pictures of every girl he dated)

Reviewer Age:13

Reviewer City, State and Country: Norristown, Pennsylvania USA