School of Deaths by Christopher Mannino has a plot that is quite different from your typical YA novel. Suzie, a teenage girl, suddenly finds herself in the world of deaths where she is supposed to be trained to become a death herself. Deaths are the...

Breath of the Titans: Little Black Stormcloud by Riley A. Westbrook and Sara L. Westbrook is a story that centers around a half elf, half dragon boy who just turned 16, named Lovonian. The story begins with Lov and his uncle Nord taking their annual...

“Oooh,” I thought as delicious chills ran down my spine. “A book about vampire-zombies…what could be better?” That was my thinking as I picked up The Journal of Vincent du Maurier, the short novel by author K.P. Ambroziak. And my initial thinking certainly wasn’t off-base....

Lucy London is a bona fide genius, having been at university since the ripe old age of thirteen. Unfortunately, Lucy’s genius status means she doesn’t have the best people skills, which is a shame since she’s currently working in the peer counseling clinic in an...

Despite a bit of a slow start, Leighton's Summer by KC Finn soon drew me in. This is the story of a young man with an unusual gift on the cusp of his sixteenth birthday. It is 1945, after the end of World War II....

Logan and Hailey were excited to get a postcard from their grandma and grandpa while they were in Africa. This postcard was an addition to Logan's collection of postcards, and Hailey had her own collection of beautiful dolls. On this special postcard was a picture...

Sons of the Sphinx by Cheryl Carpinello is a historical, time travel fantasy suitable for young adult and pre-teen readers. Rosa is not your ordinary tenth-grader; she hears the voices of dead people and can communicate with them. Her grandmother had the same gift, but...

Goddess In The Silence by Robert Ahanes is a beautiful book full of the most delightful poetry. The author offers some diverse and interesting pieces. Greek mythology is an obvious influence in several of the poems and for me, personally, they were by far my...

Moon Jump (The Boy Who Bounced to the Moon) is a nice fantasy by Aviva Gittle and Mark Megson. Timmy enjoys learning about the moon. His teacher, Mr. Garcia, tells him that the moon contains a great treasure. If Timmy finds it, Mr. Garcia will...

Mr. Green wants to go on strike from his job in Paint Town as the painter of the leaves, bushes, and all things green. He feels he is the most important color and should be ruler of the land and not the primary colors who...

Billy and the Cloneasaurus is one of the most brilliantly constructed and elegantly written satirical stories I have ever read. The entire population of the world is made up of identical clones of a single unassuming and frequently annoying individual. All go about their tasks...

Book three in Miss Amy’s Rhyme Time Collection, Can Angels Do Loop Dee Loops? will put a smile in your heart as well as on your face. Amy Sellers both writes and illustrates this collection of children’s poems that reach a little bit deeper than...

In The Funeral Singer by Linda Budzinski, Melanie Martin has always been that weird girl who sings at her parents’ funeral home. After an unplanned but amazing performance of “Amazing Grace” at a rock star’s funeral, she is suddenly thrust into the spotlight and is...

The Key-Stone of the Bridge by Craig Meggy is the story of four friends trying to fulfill a last wish for their departed pal. The will requests for them to go back up to the Ben Alder Bothy and scatter their friend’s ashes on the...

In Men of the Cross, author Charlene Newcomb opens the Battle Scars series with a resounding, epic novel of love and war. This historical romance novel, set primarily during the Third Crusade led by King Richard the Lionhearted of England in the 12th century, is...

Marcia Goldman’s Lola Goes to the Doctor is a well-written story that explores a topic familiar to children. Most kids have had to see a doctor at some point, even if only for a regular check-up. Lola the dog describes her feelings about having to...

Wheels of Change by Darlene Beck Jacobson is the heartwarming story of twelve-year-old Emily who is the daughter of a carriage maker in Washington, DC, in the early 1900s. Emily's mother takes care of the family. Emily likes to help her father in his carriage...

In this brilliant novel, Xavier: St Griswold College for Abandoned Boys, the story is told of thirteen-year-old Xavier Jones who seems to have a normal life with his parents and younger sister. But one day, for no apparent reason, his parents drop him off at...

Beautiful Monsters by Cynthia Ogren takes us into the famous land of Tinsel Town, La La Land, Movie Capital of the World, Hollyweird, Gomorrah, Land of Broken Dreams, hell ... also known as Hollywood. Once there, we meet the beautiful and talented Riley Rindaldi, envied...

I have now had the pleasure of reading Trinity Icon, the third installment of Steve Wilson’s Michael Neill Adventures. The story opens with a tale from days long gone, when the Swedes invaded Poland. The story of the Swedes’ raid is passed through the ages,...