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Young Adult

Kaleidoscope

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Kaleidoscope by Brian Selznick
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Kids, Teens

“We stood side by side, holding hands. I thought about an hourglass, where the sand is pouring down from above until the top half is empty. My head felt like the top half of the hourglass, and I could feel everything pouring out – my thoughts, my memories, my past, all the books of I’d read, all the diagrams of telephones I’d memorized, my family, my dreams, my fears. I was dissolving and becoming something new.”

This collection of short stories is a magical and mysterious exploration of loss, loneliness, and longing. Each story is linked by reoccurring themes and motifs, but most notably by the connection between the narrator and his friend, James. With settings that shift over time, space, memory, and dreams, these vignettes interspersed with Selznick’s illustrations form a tapestry examining love, friendship, and the grief that follows loss.

While Kaleidoscope is suggested for young readers ages 9-12, the overarching themes and speculative writing style will also appeal to teens and adults.

Find Kaleidoscope in the catalog here!

A Head Full of Ghosts

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A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
Format:  Book
Who it’s For: Teens and adults

The lives of the Barretts, an ordinary family, are torn apart when their fourteen-year-old Marjorie shows signs of acute schizophrenia. To her parents’ misery, the doctors cannot stop Marjorie’s descent into madness. Their stable home soon devolves into a house of horrors. The family grudgingly turns to a Catholic priest for assistance. Father Wanderly recommends an exorcism; he believes the helpless Marjorie is the target of demonic possession. He also contacts a production company that is keen to document the Barretts’ troubles. With financial troubles approaching, the family agrees to be filmed, and thus become stars of The Possession, a successful reality television show.  

Fifteen years later, Marjorie’s younger sister, Merry, agrees to be interviewed. As she reminiscences about the events that occurred when she was just eight years old, secrets and painful memories emerge that contradict what they portrayed on the reality show. This book keeps you guessing throughout, making you question what really happened. 

Find A Head Full of Ghosts in the Catalog!

 

A Song of Wraiths and Ruins

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Series Title: A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown
First Book: A Song of Wraiths and Ruin
Who it’s for: Teens

A Song of Wraiths and Ruin is an enemies to lovers fantasy romance that is inspired by West African folklore. While I’m not much for enemies to lovers, I did enjoy reading the first book in this duology. We have Malik, our first main character that has anxiety—yes to mental health representation— and he’s traveling with his sisters to a new city so they can make some money and send it back home. Malik has a kind heart and that ends up being used against him. He ends up having to kill the princess in order to save his youngest sister, Nadia.

Then there’s Karina, she’s a strong and resilient princess that has just lost her Mom. Karina knows that she is not fit yet to rule the kingdom by herself yet so she sets out on a mission to bring her mother back to life, but in order to do that she needs a King’s heart. That’s where the Solstasia competition comes into play, as a prize, she will marry the winner of the competition.

I was definitely invested in this story wondering how these two were going to develop a relationship and can’t wait to read the second book.

Check out A Song of Wraiths and Ruin in our catalog.

The House of the Scorpion

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The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Format:  Book
Who it’s For:  Teens and Adults

Matteo Alacrán wasn’t born; he was harvested.  His DNA came from El Patrón, lord of a state called Opium—poppy fields lay between the United States and land that what was once named Mexico.  Matt’s cells were divided inside a petri dish, and he was then placed in the womb of a cow, where he continued to develop from embryo to fetus to baby.  He is a boy at the present, but most see him as a monster—except for El Patrón.  El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself because Matt is himself.

As Matt fights to understand his existence, he is threatened by a menacing cast of characters, including El Patrón’s tyrannical family, and he is surrounded by a dangerous army of bodyguards.  Escape Matt’s only chance for survival.  But escape from the Alacrán Estate is no promise of independence because Matt is marked by his difference in ways he does not recognize.

Find The House of the Scorpion in the catalog!

Legendborn

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Legendborn by Tracy Deonn
Format: Book
Who it’s for: Teens

What caught my attention to read Legendborn was that it involved King Arthur lore that is rarely included in young adult fantasy. The story follows Bree, a determined teen that is trying to find the cause of her mother’s death after a terrible car accident that was classified to be a hit and run. She ends up getting involved in a secret society that is filled with descendants from King Arthur’s round table. In her gut, she knows this secret society had something to do with her mother’s accident. The society tried to alter or “mesmer” her and her father’s memories while visiting their mother in the hospital. What I liked about Legendborn were the characters and the magic system. I admired Bree’s stubborn spirit to find answers. She didn’t care what others thought of her and did what she needed to do. Legendborn is a good read for anyone that enjoys a modern twist on classic folklore.

Find Legendborn in the catalog.

The Darkwater Saga

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Recommended Series
Series Title: Darkwater Saga by Patrick W. Carr
First Book: The Shock of Night
Who it’s for: Teens & Adults

Brief Synopsis: A clean (no sex, gore, or swearing) medieval fantasy mystery with twists & turns, warring religions, gifted peoples, secret societies, battles between forces of good & evil, and complex characters that make one feel all the emotions set in one epic story told in 4 parts.

Review: The Darkwater Saga takes place in the fictional kingdom of Collum. Our hero is Willet Dura, a reeve, aka the King’s investigator. He fell in love with a Lady of the realm; so as a favor the King has made Willet a Lord; now they may marry. Willet is not a well-respected Lord or noble since he was not born to it and works a regular job. Willet is also looked down on and basically thought to be a little crazy because he survived a night in the Darkwater Woods. Everybody knows folks die or come out insane after a night in the Darkwater. 😬😨😱 Willet is even more suspect because he cannot remember his time in the Darkwater. Despite these difficulties, Lord Willet Dura is content as a typical working man.

Now the fantasy aspect comes in to play because in Collum there are people who are gifted. After Willet’s time in the Darkwater, he sometimes wakes up with blood on his clothes and no memory of how it got there. All Willet knows is that there is sure to have been a murder. A great thing for an investigator but is it a gift or a curse?

If one starts with book 1, The Shock of Night, many aspects of this world are not fully explained until almost the end of the book. I believe the author, Patrick W. Carr, wrote the free prequel, By Divine Right because some readers wanted more world building before they jumped right into the adventure. I learned about the prequel after reading book 1. The prequel is available on most major ebook platforms for free!😁👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

In Collum, there are folks that are gifted. They are the upper class in society. Gifts of uncanny physical strength, music, mental ability, and other talents can be passed down in families. A relative typically inherits gifts but sometimes they go to an apprentice. The gifted can give it to them before they die. Most gifted train their successors so they know how to use their gift properly. Sometimes gifts can “go rogue” when the gifted person is unable to pass it on their appointed successor. That is what happens to our hero, Lord Willet Dura in The Shock of Night.  Willet wakes up with mystery blood on his clothes and knows he will be investigating a murder. For the first time, Willet finds the victim still alive. The stranger lives just long enough to pass his gift to Willet.  A gift that comes with additional responsibilities which Willet soon discovers he would rather not have. The dying man belonged to a group called the Vigil. The Vigil is a group of gifted individuals who seek to vanquish the evil in their world. They are like magical Navy Seals or very limited in power X-men.  Willet does not like this whatsoever but he has a mystery to solve. 🕵️‍♂️

Thus begins the epic adventure of Lord Willet Dura saving the kingdom of Collum from evil. There are many heartaches. At times, it seems like all hope is lost but good does triumph…eventually. Many battles against evil forces will ensue. Some characters will die or be seriously injured. All of them will have injuries to their soul. Miracles will happen. Revelations will be brought to light. Many (unlikely) lifelong friendships will be formed as Willet is joined/joins others to fight the evil that is trying to engulf the kingdom of Collum. They do win in the end. But every win was hard won with blood, sweat, and tears aplenty.😫😭

If you read Sharon Kay Penman’s 4 book series of medieval mysteries featuring Justin de Quincey as the investigator, you will like Lord Willet Dura and his investigative style. If you enjoyed the Lord of the Rings movies, you will enjoy the medieval adventure, magical happenings, and teamwork found in this series.  I read this series because I liked his Sword and the Staff series. While looking for something similar to Stephen R. Lawhead, I discovered Patrick W.Carr under the tag of Christian fantasy. A Christian publisher, Baker, publishes Carr’s books but neither of his series are what I think of as Christian fiction. Carr’s books are clean and have few things in them that might offend a Christian but are definitely not what I would classify as a Christian fantasy novel like say C.S. Lewis. I recommend the series to teens and adults that can handle violence, character deaths, and hard emotions. None of the books are standalones.  All the novels pickup right where one book ends. Luckily, the series is finished and no need to wait a year or more for the rest of the story.🎉😀

Patrick W. Carr’s Darkwater Saga is available on Hoopla!