Ellen, Laura. Blind Spot.

Ellen, Laura.  Blind Spot.    Houghton Mifflin/ Harcourt Brace    332p  $16.99      978-0-547-76344-6 2012  hs   E-BN        Realistic Fiction

           

When a truck driver tries to cross the shallow section of the Birch River that is used in the winter as an ice bridge, the bridge breaks and he and his truck are plunged into the river.  As rescuers fight the frigid waters in an effort to save the driver and his truck, a girl’s body is discovered.  She is identified as a troubled teen named Tricia, who has been missing for six months.

In other action, Roz is placed in the Special Ed room at school because she suffers from macular degeneration, causing a severe blind spot in her vision.  She meets others in the class who have been placed there for various reasons, including Tricia, who convinces her to buy marijuana for her to help Tricia through her heroin addiction.  This act sets off a spiral of events involving many diverse, intertwined characters and relationships, including an athlete, a teacher, drug dealers and other students.  In the end, Roz and the others discover that Tricia was not the person she was perceived to be, nor were the circumstances that surrounded her disappearance what they seemed to be.

This suspenseful story leads the reader on an adventure that reveals that things are not always what they seem, and the ways that deception can impact and change reality.  Laura Ellen has created a complex and exciting novel featuring unusual circumstances, diverse characters, and physical and mental disabilities as symbolic elements that define and depict friendship, deception, and diversity.  The refreshingly original, fast-paced plot and well-described, multifaceted and detailed characters make this an excellent young-adult novel.

Diversity–Fiction, Suspense–Fiction, Special Education-Fiction   

                                                      --Virginia McGarvey

Fforde, Jasper. The Last Dragonslayer.

Fforde, Jasper.   The Last Dragonslayer.  Houghton Mifflin/ Harcourt Brace 287p     $16.99      978-0-547-73847-5   2012      ms/hs   E-BN      Fantasy    

In Fforde’s newest universe, Hereford in the Ununited Kingdoms, magic is slowly but surely slipping away.  Where magical ability once ruled the world, it is now good for little more than odd jobs.  Pizzas are delivered by magic carpets, pre-cogs predict the colors of floral blooms, and plumbing and wiring are repaired by magical groups.  One of the last repositories for those still holding some skills is the Kazam Mystical Arts Management.  This magical employment agency/boarding house is managed by foundling and indentured servant Jennifer Strange.  Not yet sixteen, she has been in charge since her mentor, the Great Zambini, disappeared.   Jennifer must make sure that her magic makers get their work done properly to keep the institution going and themselves fed.   But, in the course of one week, everything changes.  Jennifer is declared the Last Dragonslayer upon the premonition that Maltcassion, the last dragon, will die at Sunday noon surfaces.  Requests for product endorsements and television interviews come pouring in, kingdom wars are about to begin over land grabs, and Jennifer must temper the ongoing chaos with her common sense and good nature.  This twist on fairy tales provides a wonderfully funny book.  As in all good tales, however, there are questions of morality and philosophy to discuss and evil and greed to overcome.  Fforde holds the reader entranced throughout this engaging and suspenseful fantasy.  It is thoughtful, thought provoking, and wonderfully funny, all at the same time.  Jennifer is a worthy soul sister to Pratchett’s Tiffany Aching.   The next two volumes in the series will be breathlessly awaited.

           

Dragons-Fiction, Magic-Fiction                        --Susan Ogintz

Meyer, L.A. Viva Jacquelina! (Bloody Jack Adventure series)

Meyer, L.A.  Viva Jacquelina!  (Bloody Jack Adventure series)  Houghton Mifflin/ Harcourt Brace 360p  $16.99      978-0-547-76350-7     2012  ms  E-BN      Adventure 

Viva Jacquelina! is another rollicking adventure for Jacky Faber.  This time she starts out in the service of Her Majesty as a spy during Spain’s attempt to repel the French under Napoleon.  She makes her way to Barcelona and gets employment in the studio of the artist Goya.  She does nude modelling for him and his students.  She is tortured briefly by the Inquisition, but of course escapes.  On the run again, she joins a band of Roma (Gypsies).  As the book ends, she is seeking to work on a ship headed back to America.

Interspersed with the plot are short chapters representing letters to Jacky from Jaimy, about his progress.  He was sent to Rangoon to recover his mental health and balance after his crazed run as the Black Highwayman.

In typical Jacky fashion, she bumbles into things and either uses her wits or is rescued by friends each time.  There is plenty of rollicking good adventure, and the novel is more suited to middle school than elementary, as she matures and has more encounters verging on the sexual.  There are also the nude scenes in Goya’s studio.  They are well handled, and much is left up to the imagination of the reader.  This is a great fun read for middle school, especially for girls who seek adventure.

Adventure–Fiction, Historical Fiction                 --Joan Theal

Vande Velde, Vivian. Deadly Pink.

Vande Velde, Vivian.  Deadly Pink.  Houghton Mifflin/ Harcourt Brace    276p  $16.99  978-0-547-73850-5  2012    jr/sr   VG      Fantasy   

Vivian Vande Velde is well-known for her successful teen fantasy novels.  Deadly Pink takes place in a virtual reality game.  Grace Pizelli must enter the virtual world of the reality game to retrieve her suicidal sister Emily, before the game becomes reality. 

Initially, Grace’s task appears straightforward.  Put on the V-R gear, enter the game, knock some sense into Emily’s head, exit the game, re-unite with Emily in “real” life.  The whole experience should only take moments.  Instead, Grace must enter into the spirit of the game and defeat characters, outwit the programming, and so on (including a dragon!).  As pink and girly as the fantasy world initially appears, readers are always aware that suicide is an integral theme of this story.

The topic of suicide is addressed appropriately, and repercussions of suicide are discussed.  Suicide is not presented as an acceptable choice in this book.  Still, it is soon apparent that Emily has kept the dark side of her personality well-hidden behind a happy, upbeat facade.  Even though Grace is Emily’s younger sister, she handles a challenging situation with surprising maturity and strength.

While this is an entertaining read, it lacks Vande Velde’s trademark whimsy and clever dialogue.  The most memorable element of this story is exposed mid-novel, in the loving relationship that the sisters share.  Readers who enjoy the novel will be pleased that there are several others by this author that also feature Rasmussen virtual-reality games (User Unfriendly and Heir Apparent), both of which are more polished and entertaining novels than Deadly Pink.

Mystery–Fiction, Sisters-Fiction                        --Hilary Welliver

Meyer, Carolyn. The Wild Queen.

Meyer, Carolyn.   The Wild Queen.   Houghton Mifflin/ Harcourt Brace    420p  $16.99      978-0-15-206188-3       jr/sr       VG-BN       Historical fiction     

This historical novel focuses on Mary Stuart, who was sent to France at the age of six to protect her from the aggressive English king who wanted to rule Scotland.  She was betrothed to the future heir to the throne and would live with the royal family for about eleven years until the marriage would take place.

Readers will get a glimpse into the subtleties of court life and the intrigues that went on behind the throne.  Mary herself was tricked by her French brothers into signing away her right to the throne of Scotland, and additionally giving Scotland to France if the marriage were to end without any children.

 
One the other hand, readers will enjoy the personalities of various members of the court and the byplay between Queen Catherine and Diane de Poitiers, the king’s mistress.  Controversy also followed Mary when she returned to England to put herself under her sister’s (Queen Elizabeth’s) protection.

Unfortunately, throughout her entire life, Mary’s family was not very good for her well-being.  On February 8, 1857, she walked onto the scaffold to her death. “It took three blows to do the deed.”
    

This is a good book for readers to gain an understanding of court life and historical  personalities.  It is very well written and will resonate well with many young readers.    

Historical fiction, Mary Queen of Scots                     -- Linda McNeil

Kontis, Alethea. Enchanted.

Kontis, Alethea.  Enchanted.  Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt Brace     308p  $16.99  978-0-547-64570-4           VG    Fairy tale     

When Sunday kisses an enchanted frog, he is transformed back into the crown prince.  But Sunday’s family despises the royal family. How can Prince Rumbold win Sunday’s heart?    Enchanted, at its center, is a re-telling of the fairy tale The Frog Prince.  Sunday, the seventh child of a seventh child, discovers a talking frog in a woodland spring near her home.  She immediately recognizes that the frog is under a spell and that they are soul mates.  She bestows the spell-breaking kiss, but does not see the transformation of the frog into the despised crown prince, Rumbold.

Rumbold, from his conversations with Sunday, knows it will be an uphill battle to win her love in his human form.  Prior to being be-spelled, Rumbold was a degenerate character.  He was also responsible for the death of Sunday’s brother Jack. 

Elements from a great number of fairy tales are incorporated into this tale. There are elements of Bluebeard, Snow White, Jack and the Beanstalk, and others. One of Sunday’s sisters, now dead, was the unfortunate recipient of THE red shoes, and danced herself to death.  Another sister ran away to become a pirate. Yet another is reminiscent of Cinderella.  The names may be days of the week, but the plots are recognizable. 

The problem with this novel is that it attempts to fit in too much, which forces the narration to become mundane.  When Sunday describes her sisters’ fates -- especially the death of a sister she loved -- she is emotionless.  Readers may find it difficult to follow the many threads of Sunday’s extended family’s tales.  Kontis admits that the novel is the result of a writing project in which she attempted to fit as many fairy-tale elements as she could into one story.

Readers who wish their lives were more like fairy tales may have second thoughts after reading Enchanted.  Not every tale ends with “happily ever after”.                

Fairy tales, Fantasy – Fiction                              -- Hilary Welliver