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Brief synopsis (no spoilers) The Ninecloud Court has invited the entire world to a competition. The best, young Underlords and Underladies will face each other in the Uncrowned King tournament. These are the rising generation of sacred artists that will eventually be Heralds and Monarchs, in charge of the world. And there's some competition even before everyone gets to the tournament. Which Monarch will have the strongest champion, or the strongest team? Category Fantasy, maybe Sci-Fi Why I chose this book Next in series My personal opinion (the review) Excellent book. My only complaint was that it went too quickly. I couldn't put it down and finished it quickly, so I read it a second time. This series is definitely at the top of my list. This particular entry in the series did not disappoint! Warnings Language: None Violence: Frequent fighting "Adult" situations: None Death: Yes, including major character(s) Movie rating equivalent PG-13 Protagonist description Lindo...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) Roselle is haunted by her old nemesis Agent Crow. She also feels a need to protect basically the entire earth. Category Sci Fi Why I chose this book Kindle First My personal opinion (the review) What a great story! I really enjoyed the pace, the futuristic setup, the class system, and the characters- they felt real. If it didn't have the sexuality, I would definitely recommend this to all- including YA readers Warnings Language: None Violence: Regular, but not graphic "Adult" situations: One explicit scene Death: Yes, of mostly minor characters Movie rating equivalent R, for sexual situation Protagonist description Roselle has become more than what she was born as, and is taking a little time to grow into that new role Point of view of story First (sometimes third) Book length Medium Story flow Excellent. Except for one massive jump, one year into the future, at the end. It felt like the author was just trying to wrap up the story as fast as...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) Roselle is basically the plaything of several important people. She tries her best to protect the people she loves, and do her duties as a Secondborn. Her mother is making her life increasingly complicated. Category Sci Fi Why I chose this book Kindle First My personal opinion (the review) What a great story! I really enjoyed the pace, the futuristic setup, the class system, and the characters- they felt real. If it didn't have the sexuality, I would definitely recommend this to all- including YA readers Warnings Language: None Violence: Regular, but not graphic "Adult" situations: One scene Death: Yes, of mostly minor characters Movie rating equivalent PG-16 (not R, but I won't let my 14-year old read it) Protagonist description Roselle is gaining influence and autonomy Point of view of story First Book length Medium Story flow Excellent Grammar and spelling issues None Character connection (no spoilers) None, for now For series: Indep...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Ava has a love/hate relationship with her adopted mother. She is determined to learn more about the circumstances of her birth, so she drags a cop and a paralegal friend along with her on that journey. Not only is there more to her story, there's also much more to her adopted family's story. Category : Fiction, crime Why I chose this book : Probably Amazon First Reads My personal opinion : I didn't enjoy it. It took me several weeks to slog through, even though it wasn't very long. It just didn't capture my attention. Add to that the language and the inappropriate situations. I don't recommend it to anyone. Warnings Language: Yes Violence: Yes "Adult" situations: One drunk scene Death: Yes, including major character(s) Movie rating equivalent : R Protagonist description : Ava is petite and pretty, and has no regard for anyone else around her. But she's not the only psychopath in the book Point of view of story : Thi...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Children start disappearing in a town in North Carolina in the early 1980s. A young father of a Mormon family moves into town, working to keep bread on the table. Most of the book is spent exploring computer science and membership in the Church, while the real plot takes a back seat until the end. Category : Fiction Why I chose this book : Orson Scott Card My personal opinion : There are LOTS of reasons not to read this book. If you don't like language, stay away. It's not the "heavy" stuff, but there's more than there should be. If you are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and you don't like any negativity around the Church or its members, stay away. If children being harmed is a trigger for you, stay away. If you don't like getting close to a major character, only to have them killed off, stay away. I cannot recommend this book to anyone, really, unless none of those warnings bothers you, ...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Two alien groups are vying for dominance in the universe. One seeks out worlds that can be conquered, the other chases behind and tries to stop the other. Both are currently locked in conflict over Earth. And then there are the humans- a group of super-intelligent people is trying their hardest to protect the planet, while a different group of "assimilated" people is trying to hand it over to the first alien group. And then there are the AI entities. Several of them. There's a lot going on. Category : Sci-Fi Why I chose this book : Recommended by Amazon My personal opinion : I like the plot line, I like the characters (I didn't mind that there are about 1200 characters to track and 58 plot lines to keep straight), and I like how engaging the story is (the author tells stories well). It was good, but not great. I read it once, and I probably won't reread it. Warnings Language: Mild Violence: Frequent, some of it fairly graphic "Ad...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): The IPCA is in charge of keeping the world safe from paranormals, by containing them. Their chief hunter is a teenage girl who has the ability to detect ones that are hiding. That's normal life for Evie, until she captures Lend. Category : YA fiction/fantasy Why I chose this book : Rated highly on library website My personal opinion : This was a fun read. Very YA, so I didn't "get lost" in it. But it's clean (language, situations), it's funny, and I generally enjoyed it. Kudos to the author! Warnings Language: none! Violence: frequent, but not graphic "Adult" situations: kissing, emotion Death: some, including major character(s) Movie rating equivalent : PG-13 Protagonist description : Evie Point of view of story : First, focused on Evie Book length : Medium Story flow : Great Grammar and spelling issues : None Character connection (no spoilers): I'd like some back story on the mermaid and on Evie's "moth...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Underlord Malachi steps into a village to collect 9 people for a human sacrifice. It turns out that village was not okay with that plan, and a few very powerful members decided to fight back. Category : Fantasy, fiction Why I chose this book : I really enjoyed the Cradle series by the same author My personal opinion : The story is fun, and I enjoyed it. I will probably buy the whole series. But it is unlikely to become one of my top favorites, like the Cradle series. But the book is clean, it's interesting, and it's a well-told story. Warnings Language: none Violence: frequent "Adult" situations: none Death: yes, including central character(s) Movie rating equivalent : PG-13 Protagonist description : Simon is just a regular guy that wants to protect his village, so he sets out on an adventure to gain power Point of view of story : Third, focused mostly on Simon Book length : Medium Story flow : A little jumpy, but not bad Grammar and s...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) The Heart Sage from the Akura clan has invited the Blackflame Empire to participate in a great competition. But first, they have to compete against another kingdom- and that kingdom's best candidates are already Underlords. Lindon and Yerin have some catching up to do. Category Fantasy, maybe Sci-Fi Why I chose this book Next in series My personal opinion (the review) Excellent book. My only complaint was that it went too quickly. I couldn't put it down and finished it quickly, so I read it a second time. This series is definitely at the top of my list. This particular entry in the series did not disappoint! Warnings Language: None Violence: Frequent fighting "Adult" situations: None Death: Yes, including major character(s) Movie rating equivalent PG-13 Protagonist description Lindon and Yerin are finally equals Point of view of story Third person, mostly focused on Lindon Book length Medium Story flow Excellent Grammar and spelling issue...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): A girl wakes up in LA, beside a train track, with a backpack and no memory. There's money in the backpack, a map, and some other supplies. But she has no idea who she is, what her history includes, or where she's going. One thing is for sure- people are trying to kill her. Category : Fiction Why I chose this book : Sale on Amazon My personal opinion : No, thanks. The storytelling was captivating, and the premise was intriguing, but the violence and the sex scenes were too much. I do not recommend it to anyone. Warnings Language: Infrequent, but strong (f-words) Violence: Yes, frequent "Adult" situations: Yes, two scenes Death: Yes, common Movie rating equivalent : R, for violence and sexual situations Protagonist description : "Sunny" (a name she chooses, since she doesn't know hers) is stronger than she looks, and stronger than she feels. She grows in her confidence Point of view of story : Second and third person, chang...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Ryuu's family and traveling party are slaughtered by bandits. He is saved by a warrior named Shigeru, who comes across the bandits just before they kill Ryuu. Shigeru is trained to use a sixth sense to connect with the world around him, and fight "bad guys". He trains Ryuu, who becomes one of the strongest nightblades Shigeru has ever seen. Ryuu's sense of justice drives him to defend those who are unable to fight for themselves. But the kingdom will not tolerate nightblades, and the military is sent to destroy him and Shigeru. Category : Fiction Why I chose this book : Description on Amazon My personal opinion : This is not a happy story. It is actually pretty dark. I enjoyed the martial arts, the Eastern influence, the special powers, and the master-apprentice setup. But this is not appropriate for YA readers. I probably shouldn't have finished it, myself, but I got lost in the story. The author is a skilled storyteller. I...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) The story is set shortly before the Queen's Poisoner- Ankarette Tryneowy has been sent to find the old Duke of La Marche, Alensson, who is under arrest. When she finds him, he tells her the miraculous story of Genette, the Maid of Donremy, who was a maiden warrior of the Fountain, and her unbelievable victories in battle. Ankarette is sent to find information on the sword Genette carried, but her time with the Duke teaches her much more, including information that will save a future King. Category YA fiction, Fantasy Why I chose this book Next in series (prequel, really) My personal opinion (the review) I enjoyed this story. I would have to go all the way back to the Queen's Poisoner to recognize the full impact of what Ankarette learns and contributes. I might even recommend changing the order in which you read them. Maybe this should go first. It's more of a side story, but it might line up well, being the starting point. Warnings ...

Brief synopsis (no spoilers) The story continues to the next generation. Trynne is the daughter of Owen and Sinia. Morwenna is the daughter of Severn. Fallon is the son of Genevieve and Iago. Drew is the young king. Trynne has a special assignment from the Fountain- to be a warrior. Very unusual for those days, but it turns out there's a precedent, an ancient order of warrior women, sworn to serve the Fountain. Category YA fiction, Fantasy Why I chose this book Next in series My personal opinion (the review) It was a little slow at first. And I also had trouble keeping up with all of the names. Definitely start from the beginning of the series, when reading this one. I had to go back a book and review, before I really figured out the characters. But once I got over those two hurdles, the book was very exciting, clean, and fun. I recommend it to anyone. Warnings Language: None Violence: Some, but not graphic "Adult" situations: None Death: Yes, and of major character(s) Mo...