Review of Castle of Shadows

Ellen Renner's debut novel is a charmer.  What's not to like?  Eleven-year-old Princess Charlie is scappy and hates to wear dresses; her buddy Tobias is mysterious and resourceful; her mother disappeared years ago and her father, the king, seems to have gone mad.  Will she find her mother and save her father? Full of plot twists and thrilling adventures, the ending leaves an opening for a sequel.  3Elves- Recommended

Review of Magic Below Stairs

This is a charming, short fantasy novel.  Frederick is an orphan whose luck suddenly changes, joining a household led by an eccentric wizard.  Worth reading.  3 Elves - Recommended

Review of The Apprentices - Maile Meloy

In this sequel to The Apothecary, Janie has been separated from her friend, Benjamin, and is now living in New Hampshire.  She is attending Grayson Academy while her parents are working in Wisconsin, and Janie misses her parents, Benjamin and Pip, plus Jin Lo and Benamin's father, the apothecary.  But evil has followed Janie to her new school and with Benjamin traveling in Asia with his father, she is all alone.  Soon, she is kidnapped for a formula she developed at school, and her captor is waiting for Benjamin to rescue her so he can obtain his magical formulas, too.  The ending is exciting and since one of the bad guys escapes, we can expect more action in the next book in the series.  3 Elves - Recommended

Review of A Discovery of Witches & Shadow of Night

These two novels by Deborah Harkness are for adults, but a teen who likes a challenge would enjoy both of them.  The first book starts out a bit slow, but soon you're engrossed in a world of witches, vampires, daemons and alchemy.  The historical references are fun to follow and the love story compelling.  Shadow of Night takes us into the past, with a great feeling for living in earlier times surrounded by famous characters from history (many turn out to be daemons or vampires).  I'm really looking forward to the third and final book in this series.

Review of PRINCESS OF TRELIAN - Knudsen

This sequel to DRAGON OF TRELIAN has everything: lovely headstrong princess, brave young magician, fabulous dragon and an evil mage threatening their kingdom.  It's rare that a sequel is as good as the first book, but this book succeeds where others have failed.  The ending leaves you wanting the next book in the series to be ready to read immediately.  4 Elves - Highly Recommended

Review of LOKI'S WOLVES by Armstrong & Marr

This thrilling new middle-grade series from YA authors K.L. Armstrong & M.A. Marr, subtitled The Blackwell Pages, is loads of fun with plenty of Norse myths, wonderful characters and some teen angst on the side.  It reminded me a bit of Percy Jackson & The Olympians, but the characters in this series are descended from Vikings and it's up to them to gather other kids to save the world.  I can't wait for the next installment and highly recommend this fast-paced book.  4 Elves - Highly Recommended

Review of Wildwood by Colin Meloy

What a wonderful book!  Colin Meloy, singer/songwriter for The Decemberists, has created such an incredible world - set just outside Portland.  Full of magic, danger and fascinating characters with fabulous illustrations, I highly recommend this fantasy.  4 Elves