A new student review of Gang of Sleuths by PV Lundqvist

arthidj72 posted a new student review of Gang of Sleuths by PV Lundqvist. See the full review.

There were strengths and weaknesses in the book. One strength is that the author made some of the characters believable like Juniper. Juniper is a character who can hold her own in a situation even when the unexpected happens. But other characters did not seem to be very believable.  The author could have eliminated Dirk who was unnecessary to the plot of the story. Sometimes while I was reading the book, I could not tell if a character was acting or thinking about acting. I wondered what happened to the characters after the book ended. I would recommend this book for people that want an independent character that is faced with many challenges but can overcome them.

 

 

A new student review of The Blood Curse by Emily Gee

ongsai posted a new student review of The Blood Curse by Emily Gee. See the full review.

In my opinion, the book could've been a lot better. To be fair, I liked the way that the three stories seemed so far apart in the beginning, but began to intertwine into the big picture near the end, and the characters encountered each other, and I could read the account from both sides. I thought the idea of the curse was very clever, considering it was bound to the water, and since water was a vital thing to people, it made the spread of the curse more intimidating and the quest to stop the curse more urgent.

As much as the curse was cool, a few of its aspects could've been a lot less violent. For one thing, it seemed that a person died every 30-50 pages because of the curse. Also, the fact that the curse drove people to rape as well as kill was just wrong. Gladly, it wasn't descriptive about that, but it was plenty suggestive anyway.

For another thing, the development of some of the characters was a little weak. For Harkeld, his relationship with the other mages is very blunt and not smooth at all, and his relationship with Innis was very choppy, in the sense of how it grew. I really liked, though, the developement of Jaumé as he traveled with the Brothers and Bennick. It was interesting to see his decesions, and it kept you guessing which side he was on, until the very end.

To cap it all, their language was quite crude. There was a lot of sexual references and jokes that were very cringy. Also, the magic part of the book was not very well thought up. It seemed like the author was trying to pull ideas from other "magical" books but didn't totally want to plagiarise so it ended up not being a very good idea.

A new student review of Fairy Godmothers of The Four Directions by Jennifer Morse

MezokaCapturer65 posted a new student review of Fairy Godmothers of The Four Directions by Jennifer Morse. See the full review.

Fairy Godmothers of the Four Directions

A new student review of Gorgon Book 2 WhipEye Chronicles by Geoffrey Saign

Pikachu posted a new student review of Gorgon Book 2 WhipEye Chronicles by Geoffrey Saign. See the full review.

I do suggest reading the first book first. Personally I thought that the first WhipEye book was better because it had more action and was a little more interesting. The first book also had a more satisfying ending. My favorite characters are Samantha and Jake because they are both very brave. I felt as if the story line was dragging a bit. Sometimes it hooked me in and sometimes it got a little boring, but it was still a very good book. I recommend this book for nine to fourteen year olds looking for a fantasy.

A new student review of The Serpent In The Glass by D.M. Andrews

jfhxc posted a new student review of The Serpent In The Glass by D.M. Andrews. See the full review.

I liked the idea of this book, how descriptive the author was, and that there was never any awkward love. Also, I felt that there was an interesting plot for this story. The book was very similar to Harry Potter, but different in its own way. I really felt at certain times that I was observing the story take place, like when Thomas was opening the letter from his father. The story was super slow in most parts and wouldn’t be harmed by more action. I often was confused because there would be a flashback or a dream and I didn’t understand that it wasn’t actually part of the plot until I had read it over a couple of times. In the first dream about the serpent, I thought that it was actually happening.

A new student review of The Drowning Shark by Stormy Sweitzer Will Swanepoel

thudson36 posted a new student review of The Drowning Shark by Stormy Sweitzer Will Swanepoel. See the full review.

Overall, I thought The Drowning Shark was a good book. I found the plot intriguing and to the point. I never found myself bored while reading it, and the way the story continuously built up held my interest. The protagonist, Sierra, is a likeable teenage girl who shows strength, intelligence, and independence. Despite her unusual life, she was easy to relate to. One aspect I did not like about this novel was that some of the situations became unrealistic and confusing at times. I did love how this book touches on issues in modern society, like shark finning and poaching, and included many facts and information about them. Overall, I would strongly recommend The Drowning Shark because it addresses important issues, has a strong female protagonist, and is full of exciting adventures.

A new student review of The Sweetest Heist in History (Randi Rhodes, Ninja Detective) by Octavia Spencer

ethanlax posted a new student review of The Sweetest Heist in History (Randi Rhodes, Ninja Detective) by Octavia Spencer. See the full review.

This book was an incredible action novel with many twists and turns. Some things that I really liked about the book is that the author had many creative ideas. Another reason why I liked this book was how the author did not give easy clues to solve the mystery of the story. 

There was only one thing I disliked about this book, which was that the author did not describe the the details very clearly. Overall, this was an amazing book. I would recommend this book for ages 8-12, and for anyone who is looking for an adventurous novel. Have fun reading!

 

A new student review of Rags and Ruins by Bob Dixon

O.B. WAN posted a new student review of Rags and Ruins by Bob Dixon. See the full review.

I thought this book was fun to read because it had adventure, friendship, and many twists. It left me sad, like I had just lost a hockey game, that I had to stop reading because of the intense plotline. My favorite part was when Rags, Hargo, and Ladin were captured by the Bullfrog King, and are almost eaten. I also loved the battle between the Child of Light and the Child of Darkness. I would recommend this book to anyone who has read Goblins on the Prowl or any books in that series.

A new student review of How To Write A Novel (a novel) by Melanie Sumner

sydney :) posted a new student review of How To Write A Novel (a novel) by Melanie Sumner. See the full review.

To be honest, the book was dull to me. The situation in Aris' family was tragic and depressing. I struggled to stay engaged with this story and I did not feel connected to the characters. I think that readers who enjoy realistic fiction and do not mind dysfunctional families might be more connected to this story. 

A new student review of Lantern Sam and the Blue Streak Bandits by Michael D. Beil

masongill posted a new student review of Lantern Sam and the Blue Streak Bandits by Michael D. Beil. See the full review.

What I liked about this book is that the characters seemed very realistic. My favorite was Sam because he was very sarcastic and humorous. Even though Sam is a cat that talks, in the story it seemed normal and fun. The story was very intruiging and had a lot twists, turns and suprises.  I also think the author did a good job on having Sam's ability to talk and be a detective seem normal. One thing I did not like about the book is that the author didn't really introduce Henry very well at the start. I felt that it took a while to get to know Henry.