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The Blacksmith Queen

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The Blacksmith Queen by G.A. Aiken
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Adults 

Keeley Smith loves her life. She has the best family. She gets to work at her beloved blacksmith forge every day. She is strong (very strong) and she gets to spend her days doing what she loves with the people she loves. So when a prophecy suggests that Keeley’s extremely smart, though odd sister, Beatrix, is destined to be the next queen, Keeley knows she will do whatever she needs to do to protect her sister. But as it often happens in games of political intrigue and the making of kings and queens, nothing is what it seems. Keeley will have to fight for her life and that of her family while also fighting to save the kingdom she calls home. 

G.A. Aiken creates a world filled with magic, battles, betrayal, true love, and a heroine you will want to cheer on at every turn. Keeley Smith is not entirely sure she is destined for greatness, but as you read the story, you will have no doubt that she is. The Blacksmith Queen is the first book in a new series by G.A. Aiken. Find it in the catalog. 

Scooby Apocalypse

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Scooby Apocalypse Vol. 1 by Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, and Howard Porter
Format: eBook
Who it’s for: Adults, Teens

It’s everyone’s favorite meddling kids, re-imagined for a new generation. Meet:

Daphne Blake, host of a low rated cable TV show investigating supernatural phenomenon.

Fred Jones, Daphne’s loyal camera man, who has carried a torch for her for years.

Norville “Shaggy” Rogers, dog trainer for a mysterious science lab called The Complex.

Scoobert “Scooby” Doo, prototype of a Complex experiment to create intelligent dogs to serve in the military.

And Dr. Velma Dinkley, top scientist at The Complex, and maybe the world’s only hope at stopping an experiment gone wrong that’s turning the human race into monsters.

This unlikely gang traverse the land in a literal Mystery Machine (What is the actual purpose of this armored van they escaped The Complex in?) trying to survive… The Scooby Apocalypse.

This dark reboot of the Scooby-Doo franchise is fun for new and legacy fans alike. It’s the end of the world as they know it, but you’ll feel fine, when you check out Scooby Apocalypse on Hoopla right now!

Six of Crows

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Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Format: Book, eBook, Audiobook
Who it’s for: Teens, Adults

In Ketterdam, a center of international trade, Kaz Brekker and his crew fight to survive in the underworld of the city. At its core, Six of Crows is a heist story. A wealthy merchant offers an obscene amount of money if Kaz and the others can travel to a nearby nation, break into the Ice Court, and free a scientist being held prisoner. Complicating matters is disagreement among the crew about what should be done with the prisoner when (if) they get him out.

The crew is Jesper, Matthias, Wylan, Nina, Inej, and Kaz: “a gambler, a convict, a wayward son, a lost Grisha, a Suli girl who had become a killer, a boy from the Barrel who had become something worse.” The story is told in alternating viewpoints and you really get to know these characters and their backgrounds. Six of Crows takes place in the Grishaverse, the same fantasy world featured in Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone trilogy, and some of the characters will be familiar to those who’ve read her other works.

Six of Crows is the first book in a duology. It ends in a cliffhanger – be ready to immediately dig in to Crooked Kingdom! Netflix is creating a series based on Bardugo’s Grishaverse, so these characters will soon be making their way to our television screens as well.

Find Six of Crows in the catalog.

We Hunt the Flame

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We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Teens

Set in an ancient Arabian-like world, We Hunt the Flame follows Zafia, the mysterious Hunter who is determined to provide food for her village. She disguises herself as a man to do so, despite her best friend urging her to reveal herself as a woman. She is the only one able to go into to encroaching, dark forest to hunt and come out not only alive but also sane. On one such hunt, Zafia is confronted by the powerful Witch of the wood. She tells Zafia she can stop the  Arz from consuming her homeland if she travels to an ancient island and retrieves a powerful artifact.

Nasir is a deadly assassin and the son of the king. His brutal father accepts nothing less than merciless efficiency from his son and punishes those he loves whenever Nasir fails. Nasir is tasked by his father to track and follow the hunter to the island to retrieve the artifact then kill the hunter. While on the island they encounter elves, shape shifters and sentient plants with a taste for human blood. The main characters discover new alliances and undercover the truth about those who sent them on this perilous quest.

Find it in the catalog

Shazam!

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Watch the Movie, Read the Book!
Movie: Shazam!  Starring: Zachary Levi
Book: Shazam! (New 52) by Geoff Johns

The movie was marketed as “Big meets superheroes.”  I think that is a perfect summary of the movie.

“The movie follows Billy Batson, a troubled 14-year-old boy living in foster homes in Philadelphia. After running away for the 23rd time, Billy moves into a foster home with the Vazquez family and their 5 foster kids. One day Billy Batson gets on a subway car and he finds himself transported to a different realm. An ancient wizard gives him the power to turn into an adult superhero by uttering the word Shazam! Billy and his new foster brother, Freddy Freeman, have lots of fun learning how to use his superhero powers.” – New Line Cinema

“Shazam has been in publication at DC Comics 40+ years. The movie is based very heavily upon the 2012 New 52 era reboot of Shazam! Writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank reimagined the character’s entire world. There are also some big differences between the movie and the book. Much of the harder edge in The New 52 story is gone and instead the zany ridiculousness of the character’s Golden Age is present.” – ScreenRant.com

I decided to watch the movie because of the trailers, Zachary Levi, and good reviews from friends who had seen it. I was not disappointed. I really, really, hope they make a sequel. Shazam! was as advertised – a fun superhero movie that the whole family can enjoy. As in any superhero origin movie there was a lot of explaining, things happening in the past, characters introduced with no real depth (saving it for the sequel!), and a training montage. I LOVE montages. The one for Shazam explored his powers as a superhero and what a teenage boy would do if he could turn into an adult at will. Almost the whole family can enjoy this light fare. Although the villain is not that scary, he does kill people. In addition, the 7 deadly sins are represented in the flesh as demons. They are vicious and scary looking. Depending on the child, I would recommend this for ages 10+.

As with every superhero of DC comics, there are many Shazam books – from the old comics to present day, the children’s Billy Batson and the magic of Shazam! series, and kid’s early reader books. I only read the graphic novel the movie is based on (via hoopla because the book was checked out!) . (I prefer to read non-superhero graphic novels but really enjoy movies based off of superhero comics.)

The graphic novel was a quick read.  As stated before, there are major difference in the comic and the movie but also a lot of the same story. Differences like there are two villains in the comics but only one in the movie and the 7 deadly sins are imprisoned in people not statues. The comic cleared up some questions that movie reviewers pointed out. For example – why Billy Batson is chosen and why the villain needed Shazam’s power. Depending on the child, I would recommend the comic to ages 7+. I think the killing and 7 deadly sins are less scary visually than in the movie.

The experience on my iPad in the hoopla app was different but nice.  Last time I read a comic as an eBook it was on my 1rst generation Kindle Fire (which I miss greatly.). The viewing experience on hoopla is similar. It shows you one panel at a time or zooms into different parts of a larger panel/page of the comic like my Fire did. Although it does not show you the full page first and then the separate panel like my Fire. The hoopla app may have that capability but I did not search for it. The best parts about reading a comic as eBook is you always read the panels in the correct order, the words are bigger, and you can zoom. I am still requesting the graphic novel in hardback so I can peruse the pics in the regular way.

I hope you enjoy Shazam! in all its formats. Click to see all the Shazam!’s the library offers.

 

Switchback

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Switchback, by Danika Stone
Publication Date: May 28, 2019
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Teens

For best friends Vale, the outdoorsy social outcast and Ash, the gamer geek, the mandatory P.E. mountain hiking trip is the last place they want to be. Ash is ill-prepared and Vale just wants to avoid the people bullying her. Suddenly, nothing matters except their survival when they become separated from the class. Alone and afraid, they must endure wild animals, terrible weather, and a wildfire. Maybe they will a find a new strength in themselves and each other… if they can make it out alive.

Pick this edge of your seat story for a quick and thrilling read before summer ends.

Find it in the catalog