Mini-Reviews: Middle Grade Magic

Frogged by Vivian Vande Velde
Available now from Harcourt (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Review copy

When Princess Imogene tries to help who she thinks is a prince cursed to be a frog, she ends up a frog herself.  But she must pass the curse on to someone else to save herself and Imogene has enough fortitude not to do that.

Imogene is just a little younger than thirteen and it shows in her actions.  She's not unintelligent, just young and sheltered.  Her eventual traveling companion, Luella, is a delight.  She's the butt of a mean joke at first, but she turns out to be more.  This is not my favorite of Vande Velde's books, but FROGGED is a fun little fractured fairytale.  It's also quite funny.

The Colossus Rises by Peter Lerangis (Seven Wonders, Book 1)
Available now from Harper (HarperCollins)
Review copy

I first became aware of Peter Lerangis during the Columbia Publishing Course's Book Workshop.  He's written more than a hundred books for children and young adults, including entries in the popular series The 39 Clues.  His new series, Seven Wonders, is obviously aimed at the Percy Jackson demographic of his fellow 39 Clues author Rick Riordan.

THE COLOSSUS RISES begins with Jack McKinley getting sick, collapsing in the street, and briefly waking up in the hospital before coming to at a strange Academy.  He and the other kids there have special abilities, but the price is that they'll die within the year.  What comes next is a fast-paced adventure with plenty of puzzles to solve.  Lerangis does a good job setting up the world and search for the McGuffins, so I hope future Seven Wonders books will develop the four kids more.

My main complaint would be that Aly is the only girl.  There are three boys - Jack, Marco, and Cass - why not two boys and two girls?  There's no indication as to the kids' race.  All four are thirteen, but I think this book will appeal most to slightly younger readers.

Kevin by Paul Kupperberg
Available now from Gosset & Dunlap (Penguin) in partnership with Archie Comics
Review copy

Paul Kupperberg's novel based on the Kevin Keller character created by Dan Parent may not be as magical as the others I've reviewed today, but it is pretty sweet.  I was a bit worried when I read that the storyline dealt with Kevin's middle school year, when he wasn't a hot out jock but instead a bullied awkward kid.  I was afraid it would be a step back into an older, more stereotypical storyline.

But the bullying is because Kevin's a nerd, not because of his sexuality.  (Not that that makes it alright.)  In fact, he's just discovering his sexuality.  There is some homophobic bullying, but since this is the Archie-verse the strongest insult used is "pansy."   KEVIN is short and simple, but it's a good storyline.  Stand up for your friends, don't be ashamed of who you are, and you should pay attention to your dad's judo lesson.  Older fans of the Kevin Keller comic might be bored, but younger fans should enjoy his foray into novels.

The Symptoms of My Insanity Fun Facts Book Trailer Tour!

THE SYMPTOMS OF MY INSANITY is the debut novel from Mindy Raf, a comedian I'm familiar with due to her work on CollegeHumor.  It came out in April from Dial/Penguin.  It sounds pretty fun to me:

For fans of Louise Rennison, Sarah Mlynowski, and Stephanie Perkins comes a laugh-out-loud, bittersweet debut full of wit, wisdom, heart, and a hilarious, unforgettable heroine.
Izzy is a hypochondriac with enormous boobs that won’t stop growing, a mother with a rare disease who’s hiding something, a best friend who appears to have undergone a personality transplant, and a date with an out-of-her-league athlete who just spilled Gatorade all over her. Yes, Izzy Skymen has a hectic life. But what Izzy doesn’t realize is that these are only minor symptoms of life’s insanity. When she discovers that the people she trusts most are withholding from her the biggest secrets, things are about to get epic — or is it epidemic?

You can find out more about Mindy on her website (linked above), her Twitter, or her Facebook.  But today I'm going to share a little more about THE SYMPTOMS OF INSANITY book trailer.  Without any further ado, here's my fun fact: 

Eric Day who wrote/recorded the theme music for the trailer is one of my good friends from high school. We wrote a one act musical together our senior year about online dating (before You’ve Got Mail) called Love On the Line.

And now, here's the trailer.  Try not to laugh too hard!

Waiting On Wednesday: The Burning Sky

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine.

I love Sherry Thomas.  She's one of my favorite historical romance authors.  (Just read one of my reviews.)  And now she's making her YA debut, and it's going to be fantasy!  I think her lush, descriptive style will lend itself very well to fantasy.

THE BURNING SKY will be available September 17, 2013 and you can preorder it now on Amazon. 

It all began with a ruined elixir and an accidental bolt of lightning…

Iolanthe Seabourne is the greatest elemental mage of her generation—or so she's being told. The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the greatest mage tyrant the world has ever known. A suicide task for anyone let alone a sixteen-year-old girl with no training, facing a prophecy that foretells a fiery clash to the death.

Prince Titus of Elberon has sworn to protect Iolanthe at all costs but he's also a powerful mage committed to obliterating the Bane to revenge the death of his family—even if he must sacrifice both Iolanthe and himself to achieve his goal.

But Titus makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the Bane closing in, he must choose between his mission and her life.

Read an excerpt here.

Movie Monday: Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 was absolutely fantastic.  The change in directors does mean there's some difference in style.  Shane Black loves a bit of narration and has different taste in music than Jon Favreau.  (I missed the classic rock.)  But there doesn't seem to be any animosity in the changeover.  In fact, Favreau's role as bodyguard Happy Hogan was expanded.

But perhaps the biggest change in Iron Man 3 is that it's not all about Tony Stark.  (Although, in the end, it is.)

Much like Favreau, Don Cheadle gets a bigger part to play.  I'm am fully in favor of that, because Cheadle is terrific as Colonel Rhodes.  He's a good guy, but not a boring one.  And when given more screen time, Cheadle imbues Rhodey with enough of a sense of fun that you believe he and Tony Stark could be best friends.

And speaking of cast chemistry, Gwynth Paltrow continues to have tons with Robert Downey, Jr.  Her Pepper Potts is competent, compassionate, forgiving, but not a pushover.  She's firm and has zero time for b.s. from her boyfriend or monologuing villains.  I don't care how you feel about Paltrow; I can't imagine anyone else in the role.

Same goes for RDJ, who really plays up Tony's vulnerability after sacrificing himself in The Avengers.  He's faced tough situations before, but deliberately choosing to die really did a number on his psyche.  It leads to some great scenes when Tony teams up with a kid who can't keep his mouth shut around a real live superhero.

Of course, summer blockbusters and superhero films are all about the big fight scenes.  Iron Man 3 lives up to any expectations I had on that count.  The final battle is kinetic and visually delightful and still allows for some nice character beats.  I would've left the theater with a smile on my face even if the falling action wasn't just as terrific.

Iron Man fans, don't miss this one.  And, like all Marvel films, be sure to stay till after the credits.

Review: The Forever Knight

Books of the Bronze Knight, Book Four
By John Marco
Available now from DAW (Penguin)
Review copy courtesy of TLC Book Tours
Read my review of THE EYES OF GOD

THE FOREVER KNIGHT has been a long time coming.  The first three novels in the Books of the Bronze Knight series were out when I reviewed THE EYES OF GOD in 2008, my first year of blogging.  Given the wait, some might find it especially slim in comparison to the original trilogy.  But THE FOREVER KNIGHT is both a wonderful continuation of the series and a new beginning.  A wise move on John Marco's part, to draw in new readers.  I think THE FOREVER KNIGHT can be easily read by someone who is totally unaware there are earlier books.  (And, well, I still need to read the third book myself.)

Lukien is both the Bronze Knight and the Forever Knight.  He's nearly immortal and a talented warrior.  Perfect for a knight-errant.  But he has his weaknesses.  He's brittle and directionless, a hero without a cause.  Also, he has a gift for making the worst possible decisions.  At least his companion Cricket has the excuse of youth for her bad decisions.  I'm starting to think Lukien is not that smart.

THE FOREVER KNIGHT is a quick read.  Marco's keeps the story moving.  There are several different storylines in play, involving the fate of no less than two countries, but they're all intertwined.  The least involved story is that of Cricket, who wants to recover her memories, but it's pretty easy to guess that her memories of Akyre aren't totally uninvolved with everything else that is happening.  I do wish her character had been a little more deeply defined, but she's a nice foil to the jaded and overly confident Lukien.

The character of Malator, the spirit in Lukien's sword that keeps Lukien alive, is developed more in THE FOREVER KNIGHT.  He can be the typical cryptic mentor, but he's also got a sense of snark.  He also reveals a bit of a nasty streak of hypocrisy in Lukien, given how often Lukien treats Malator like a slave when he gets in a snit.

I mentioned the length of THE FOREVER KNIGHT before, and I'll say that I think it's the right length for this story.  It's a nice epic quest, with zombies and mad kings and good soldiers loyal to the wrong man.  It's an interesting direction to take the series and I'm curious to see what Marco will do with his Bronze Knight next.