Book Reviews

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Rusty
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Re: Book Reviews

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Permanent Rose by Hilary McKay - In the third book about the Casson family, Rose has taken to stealing small items from stores, Caddie is deciding whether or not to marry Michael and we learn who Saffy's real father is. Another fun and fast paced entry in the series.
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Bone: Quest for the Spark Book 3 by Tom Sniegoski - The final book in the Quest for the Spark trilogy brings the adventure to a satisfying conclusion. Percival's skyship crashes in the mountains and the group is separated into several groups who all converge inside a cave deep inside the mountain to battle giant bats and the Nacht. Plenty of action with humor mixed in and nice illustrations by Jeff Smith.
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The Better Part of Valor by Tanya Huff - Staff Sergeant Torin Kerr's 'reward' for successfully completing a mission for General Morris is to be detached from her company for a special assignment. A small group of Marines will accompany a few scientists as they explore a strange alien ship that has been discovered near Federation space. Not quite as challenging a situation as the first book, though still quite entertaining.

Caddy Ever After by Hilary McKay - Valentine's Day is approaching and each Casson child has something special in the works. Rose is busy making Valentine's Day cards for her friend Tom in New York, Indigo is helping plan the school's Valentine's Day dance, Saffy has a date in a graveyard and Caddy is contemplating marriage after meeting the brother of Saffy's boyfriend. Each child gets a chance to advance the story from their own point of view in another fun and entertaining adventure.

Forever Rose by Hilary McKay - Christmas is a month away and Rose is feeling out of sorts. She seems to be home by herself a lot, her teacher is horrible and life just isn't as much fun anymore. Her siblings are growing up and she is being left behind. Her friend Molly comes up with a plan to slip away from their school trip to the zoo and spend the night in the arctic fox enclosure, which has been vacant for months. Things get worse before they get better, just in time for Christmas.
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Caddy's World by Hilary McKay - The latest Casson family book rewinds the clock to 1996 when Caddy's world is turned upside down by the premature birth and subsequent hospitalization of her baby sister as well as the changes her circle of friends is undergoing. Another entertaining adventure with plenty of humor as well.
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The Candy Shop War 2: Arcade Catastrophe by Brandon Mull - Mull is best known for his Fablehaven series that ended a few years ago after 5 books. The first Candy Shop War book was a lot of fun and dealt with a magician who opens a candy shop in town and also provides magical candy to a few kids who do her bidding in obtaining objects. In the sequel, her brother comes to a nearby town and opens a popular arcade. Kids who earn enough tickets can purchase magical rubber stamps that grant special abilities when applied with a special ink. Nate, Summer, Trevor, Pigeon and Lindy find out that two of their friends have disappeared and are believed to be prisoners of the arcade owner. They decide to help investigate by infiltrating the arcade and this leads to a search for rare artifacts of power. The book moves at a brisk pace and is every bit as enjoyable as the first book. A third book in the series is hinted at and would definitely be welcome.
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March to the Stars by David Weber and John Ringo - Prince Roger and the remnants of Bronze Battalion along with their Mardukan forces reach the continent containing the spaceport. Now they have to make their way to the spaceport while dealing with a group of natives who are also religious fanatics and without alerting the humans at the spaceport to their presence. This is a nice continuation of the story begun in March Upcountry and March to the Sea. Plenty of action mixed with humor at various points.
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We Few by David Weber and John Ringo - Prince Roger has learned that his mother is being kept drugged and that a successful coup has taken place. He decides to take what remains of his company along with his Mardukan soldiers to Earth to retake the palace by stealth and rescue his mother. Plenty of action and a good story, though I did enjoy the first three books a bit more.

Ranger's Apprentice 6 - The Siege at Macindaw by John Flanagan - The conclusion of the two part story starts with Alice held prisoner in Castle Macindaw after it was taken by a usurper. Will and Horace, along with their Skandian friends and other friends they've made along the way, must find a way to retake the castle, save Alice and thwart a Scotti invasion from the north. Lots of fun as usual for a very good series.
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The Heart of Valor by Tanya Huff - Gunnery Sergeant Torin Kerr is getting tired of giving briefings on the latest species to join the Confederation, so she jumps at the chance to tag along as bodyguard for a major who has is traveling to the training planet Crucible to test his recently healed body. They tag along with a training platoon on what should be a routine 20 day stay, but a number of things start to go wrong right away, including the platoon's staff sergeant, who is having a serious medical issue. Lots of fun, as usual.
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Valor's Trial by Tanya Huff - Torin Kerr is back with her company and they are dispatched to a planet where a pitched battle is taking place. An enemy weapon turns 30 square kilometers to glass, killing her entire company. Except that she somehow wakes up in a strange underground prison and has to find a way to escape. A nice continuation of the series.
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Ranger's Apprentice 7: Erak's Ransom by John Flanagan - Erak decides to go on one last raid before settling down for good as the Skandian Oberjarl. However, the raid turns out to be a trap and he is captured and held for ransom. Will, Halt, Gillen and Evanlyn travel to work out the ransom for Erak and get involved in an adventure in the desert between several different tribes. A nice change of pace in terms of locale and a good story.
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Ranger's Apprentice 8: The Kings of Clonmel by John Flanagan - Halt becomes aware of a group of fake religious fanatics who cheat villagers out of their savings and who also appear to be part of a movement that is destabilizing neighboring kingdoms. Halt, Will and Horace head into Clonmel to investigate. It turns out that Halt has quite a few ties to the kingdom, including the fact that his brother is the king. Another good adventure.

Infinity Ring 3: The Trap Door by Lisa McMann - Dak, Sera and Riq arrive in the South in 1850 and become involved in an attempt by the SQ to destroy the Abolitionists before they really get started. A good historical adventure.
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Shadow of Freedom by David Weber - The latest Honorverse book doesn't feature Honor Harrington at all, but instead focuses in on Admiral Michelle Henke and her fleet of ships as they protect the Talbott Quadrant and make an attack on the main Solarian League forces in the sector. I enjoyed the book a lot more than the last couple of books in the series. Less evil plotting by bad guys and more actual plot.
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The Wild Ways by Tanya Huff - The sequel to The Enchantment Emporium focuses on another Gale girl this time around - Charlie Gale, the wild power of her generation. Charlie has stayed in Calgary for longer than she is used to and fate draws her back to the maritime provinces where her former band is in need of a guitar player/singer during a summer of touring along the Nova Scotian coast as they play Celtic music. There is also a battle between an oil company and a group of selkies in regard to an oil well that is proposed a short distance off the coast. Charlie finds herself up against her Auntie Catherine, another wild power in the Gale family. Charlie takes her cousin Jack along with her. Jack is a 14 year old boy who also happens to be a dragon prince from the Underrealm. There is plenty of music, humor, adventure and fun in this entertaining urban fantasy novel. I hope a third book follows in the near future.
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Ranger's Apprentice 9: Halt's Peril by John Flanagan - Will, Halt and Horace pursue Tennyson and his bandits into the neighboring country of Picta, but are slowed in their pursuit when Halt is grazed by a poisoned arrow. Will has to seek help from his friend Malcolm, a knowledgeable healer who lives outside of Macindaw, a day's ride away. Not quite as much fun as some of the other books in the series, but not bad.

City of Spirits by Paul Bajoria - The conclusion of the trilogy starts in 1829 with Mog and Nick finding out that their inheritance is really just a mountain of debt and that they are again penniless. They travel to India in search of their father and in search of the Eye of Winter, a large diamond that was lost before they were born that belonged to their family. If it is found, it could restore their fortunes, though it is supposed to be cursed. They also want to stop a villainous sea captain who has gone in search of the diamond as well. While in India, they find out more about their family history and the circumstances of their birth. It has been a while since I read the first two books, but they came right back to me as I read this entertaining third book which wraps events up nicely.
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Beyonders 3: Chasing the Prophecy by Brandon Mull - Some time has passed since the second book and Jason, Rachel and the rest are preparing to take on Maldor in a final attempt to end his reign. The book was entertaining enough, but not as fun as the first two books. It was still a decent book, but seemed kind of formulaic and lacking something spirit wise. Still, it was a decent conclusion to the series.
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