Review of BITTERBLUE by Kristin Cashore

Bitterblue became queen of Monsea at age 10, when her father, the evil King Leck, was slain.  Now the queen is 18 and trying to heal a kingdom still reeling from Leck's horrid crimes.  Tired of paperwork and not trusting her advisors, she dons a disguise and ventures out into the city alone to try to discover some truths about Lecks' reign.  In the city, she befriends a handsome thief who opens her eyes and complicates her life.  The book slows greatly when she concentrates on deciphering the codes of embroidery from her mother and writings of King Leck, but picks up nicely for the conclusion.  In addition to palace intrigue, the return of Katsa and Fire from the first two books will delight fans.  Looking forward to the next book and Bitterblue's journey.  Highly Recommended - 4 Elves

Award-winner

Very exciting news:  my book, MARIGOLD: Book One of the Elven Chronicles, was picked as the winner in the Children's Fiction category of the 2012 International Book Awards!

Review of FEVER by Lauren DeStefano

In this sequel to WITHER, Rhine and Gabriel have fled the mansion and Rhine's evil father-in-law, Vaughn. But, the world outside the mansion is fraught with danger. The couple struggles to travel to Manhattan to reconnect with Rhine's twin brother, but time is running out. And, time is ever more priceless in a world where young women die by age twenty and men by twenty-five. As Rhine searches for her twin, Vaughn is determined to track them down and bring Rhine back to the mansion. 3 Elves - Recommended

Review of DRAGONSWOOD

DRAGONSWOOD by Janet Lee Carey has a lost prince, dragons, witch hunters and fairies - also, a great cover. I enjoyed this book and found the characters sympathetic and complex. When the main character, Tess, enters the realm of the fairies, it bogged down for several chapters, but the pace picked up at the exciting conclusion. Although there is a companion novel, DRAGON'S KEEP, the novel is complete with no other book needed. Recommended - 3 Elves

Review of THE SCORPIO RACES

I loved Maggie Stiefvater's trilogy SHIVER, LINGER & FOREVER, so I was very excited to read her latest book. Although I love horses, I found that I didn't really get into this book until I was about a third of the way into it. Initially, I just didn't care enough about the characters, but by the end of the book I was involved. Her main characters, Puck and Sean, grew on me and soon, I was rooting for them to win the race and somehow have the outcome benefit both of them (even though only one could win the race). The ending is pretty satisfying overall. Recommended - 3 Elves

Review of LEGEND

LEGEND, the debut novel from Marie Lu, is a fantasy thriller set in a post-apocalyptic Los Angeles. Day, a rebel fighting the Republic, and June, one of the Republic's best soldiers, seem like an unlikely couple, but tragic events throw them together. June eventually begins to doubt the Republic's mission, thanks to Day and some journals that belonged to her brother. The exciting conclusion leaves the reader anticipating the sequel. 4 Elves - Highly Recommended

Review of CINDER

CINDER, a debut novel by Marissa Meyer, is a very creative retelling of the Cinderella story. Set in the future in plaque-ravaged New Beijing, it is populated with cyborgs, androids and Lunars as well as some fascinating humans, including a Prince Charming. There is also an evil stepmother/guardian, stepsisters who obsess about clothes and an android who is the closest to a fairy godmother.

Cinder is a top-notch mechanic, usually covered in grease, who meets the Prince when he comes to her to fix his android. As the plague quickly moves through the marketplace, Cinder's role in finding a cure is layered with a threat of intergalactic war and hints of Cinder's true identity.

The ending makes us long for the sequel, but we'll have to wait because there will be three more books in the series. Highly Recommended - 4 Elves