"Spectacular" by Stephanie Garber

Spectacular (Oct. 22, 2024) by Stephanie Garber.

   Rosie Fowinkle, illustrator.

<This is a standalone holiday novella.>

Welcome to Valenda, capital city of the Meridian Empire. It’s Great Holiday Eve Eve. Empress Scarlett Dragna loves this time of the year, and she’s planning a spectacular Holiday worthy of a city seeped in magic and enchantment. There are life-size gingerbread houses emitting cinnamon smoke and falling snow inside the castle that never lands on the floor nor musses one’s coiffure. Plus, Julian is looking ravishing. Green is absolutely his color. Scarlett’s younger sister, Donatella (Tella), is searching for the perfect gift for Legend and stressing about it. Legend is aloof which isn’t unlike him. Perhaps he’s envious of the magic of the Holiday when he’s himself magical, but he doesn’t care for the Great Holiday or any of its Eves. Tella’s search for the perfect gift takes her to Garland Street, one that only appears on Great Holiday Eve Eve. She’s snuck away, yet again, from her guards. Here be clockwork boys, beautifully poisoned candy, a mischievous snow globe and a shady avenue in the same city currently boasting magical decor. The Great Holiday is setting up to be full of merriment, magic and mayhem.

            I still find Tella to be like a spoiled child who always gets her way and doesn’t know how to solve the smallest crumb of a problem. She continually annoys me, but my opinion shouldn’t stop anyone from reading this holiday novella. It is steeped in holiday merriment and has me wanting to decorate for Christmas and bake Christmas cookies. It swirls and twirls with magically festive world-building. Fowinkle’s illustrations are lush and gorgeous. There’s sugar and spice and poison. There’s whimsy and wonder and magic. It’s a short tale meant for the Caraval fandom, holiday enthusiasts and fairytale dreamers everywhere.

            Book One: Caraval

            Book Two: Legendary

            Book Three: Finale

"A Curse for True Love" by Stephanie Garber

A Curse for True Love (Oct. 24, 2023) by Stephanie Garber.

<This is the final novel in a trilogy.>

She used to dream of being a princess with a happy ending. Instead, Evangeline Fox has no recent memories. Prince Apollo Acadian says he’s her husband; she’ll have to take his word for it. So, she’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a glorious castle in the magical Magnificent North, but life isn’t happy. She is determined to remember what she’s forgotten. Apollo is hunting Jacks, but is having no luck catching him. When Evangeline Fox’s life is endangered once, twice, multiple times (“How is it that every day someone tries to kill you?” --Jacks), it’s a too-handsome-to-be-human Jacks who saves her. He tells her to call him Archer. When she realizes Archer is Jacks, she can’t believe he’s the murderous monster Apollo says he is (though there really is a vampire). Will things become clear if she reawakens her memories? Or is she just one rose gold-haired Little Fox caught between two rakish villains wondering if love is strong enough in a battle for her happily ever after?

            With this tale, the Once Upon a Broken Heart trilogy closes. It is a sweeping fantasy, gilded in the glitter of fairy tales, the fog of lost memories, the heartrending pain of heartbreak and the frothy feeling of love. There are frills, but there is danger, too.  Did I love the trilogy? No, but it captured my attention overall. I will admit that Evangeline still got on my nerves, but I steadily ignored that. The story started off slow for me, as I was over 100 pages in before I felt that the story picked up speed. The near-ending paints a somewhat ghastly picture in one’s imagination, but finishes with a romantic flair light as gossamer.

            Book One: Once Upon a Broken Heart

            Book Two: The Ballad of Never After

Rutabaga's Reads 2022: Part 24

With 2022 quickly coming to an end, I’m not a moment too soon in sneaking in the third YA compilation post of this year. These are all authors familiar to me.

The Ballad of Never After (Sept. 13, 2022) by Stephanie Garber.

*This is the second novel in a trilogy.* 

“One for luck. One for truth. One for mirth. One for youth.” These are the four stones needed to re-open the Valory Arch. One was found by the previous key. The task now falls to Evangeline Fox, the young woman who used to believe that love was like a house. Now she wonders if love is “more like a war with new foes constantly appearing and battles creeping up.” Love is something to fight for, over and over. And Evangeline is fighting ... to live. Her first love has made a reappearance (as a vampire), her husband has been cursed to kill her (like The Ballad of the Archer and the Fox) and Jacks is as aloof – but sometimes protective – as ever (for his own agenda). She knows that she cannot trust Jacks (a.k.a. the Prince of Hearts), and she swears she won’t look for, rely upon or think about him, but that’s all easier said than done, especially when Jacks always tends to show up. But when a new curse surfaces – one turning Apollo’s eyes a glaring red – Jacks might be the only one she can trust. As much as she desires to loathe him, she also desires him, as says her traitorous heart. But Jacks can only kiss one person without killing her, and that kiss never belonged to Evangeline. With new foes, fresh betrayals by one considered a friend and magic that is as mischievous as it is wondrous, the Magnificent North is a crafty place.

            Amidst the tulle and the beauty are sharp-edged daggers and curses that draw blood. It is, at turns, as gorgeous as a decadent ball, but also dark with menace and violence. Evangeline’s seemingly endless hope grated my nerves, because, from the reader’s perspective, you know she’s making a terrible decision, but I remained drawn to the story with its dangerous allure and graceful edginess. It’s a world that I get lost in with characters that’d be intriguing to interact with, Jacks especially. Despite that he’s a Fate, dazzlingly inhuman, untrustworthily charming and potentially deadly, or perhaps because he is. The middle novel in the Once Upon a Broken Heart trilogy manages to glimmer and dazzle with magic, mystery, deceit, passion, hope and danger. The novel’s ending has me wishing I could read the final installment yesterday.

            Book One: Once Upon a Broken Heart

            Note of interest: The original Great Houses: Fortuna, Slaughterwood, Merrywood, Redthorne, Hawkleaf, Casstel, Bloodgrave, Verita, Ravencross, Darling, Havok, Bellflower, and Acadian (p. 131).

            Wondering: How did the Fates come to be? Without giving away spoilers, more than one Fate seems to have ties to the original Great Houses. I’m just putting it out there that I wouldn’t say no to reading a story from Jacks’ POV or even a story of how all the Fates became Fates.

Bravely (May 3, 2022) by Maggie Stiefvater.

*This is a standalone novel, but is marketed as a sequel to Disney’s Brave​.*

Stagnation has come to DunBroch and with it, a threat to the kingdom in the form of Feradach, the god who wears many faces and appears differently to each person he encounters. He demolishes and destroys so that what’s gone stagnant can be made new (“I am not cruel, Merida. I am nature.”). But it’s been so long since change has come to DunBroch. Merida continues to prefer archery to embroidery, the triplets are chaos manifested, King Fergus remains jovial and Queen Elinor is as eternally regal as can be with DunBroch itself looking lackluster. Shingles need replacing, various things need fixing, and DunBroch is falling into neglect, but Merida refuses to watch her beloved home be destroyed along with her and her entire family. A small light of hope surfaces with the intervention of the Cailleach, an ancient goddess of creation, the goddess of Scotland (“Bringer of rain, of life, of justice.”). Merida has a year to change her family or be destroyed, but she can talk to no one of this deal outside the three who made it. Feradach must see her work and she must see his. Feradach’s work balances life, which Merida doesn’t at first understand. She only sees him as a destroyer, rather like the Dasachtach, who pillages and gruesomely kills because he’s a violent, vicious tyrant with a god complex. The Dasachtach (Domhnall mac Alpin) will never change, but Feradach, against all expectation, might. Through all of this, Merida will voyage to three kingdoms to inspire those she loves, but she’s forgetting the one Clan member who’s grown the most stagnant. Herself.

            A novel that accepts the movie, Brave, as canon, this is a different sort of fairy tale, one for older readers. Since the movie’s events, Merida and Queen Elinor have negotiated a truce to never discuss betrothals or marriage. Merida has spent a year traveling before having to travel yet again (to save DunBroch). As I expected, Stiefvater has crafted a wonderful world, not only pulling from the familiar movie, but incorporating her understanding of medieval history (see her author’s note) and her own skill at writing. Despite the pressure Merida feels to change those she loves, the novel has a languid quality to the reading. To be fair, stories often journey slower than movies do, but the story does contain adventure and ruin, pluck and tenacity. Central to the story is Merida having to grow up and the growing pains that come along with that. It’s also a story of how saving loved ones can mean altering what one knows and is familiar with. In other words, change can be hard and hard to accept. I love the unexpected depth written for Feradach and Queen Elinor. It had me seeing both of them through a different lens, which feels heavy and notable. Not all will fall under the literary spell the movie started, but it should be a win for readers of YA looking for something familiar but maturing.

The Dragon’s Promise (Aug. 30, 2022) by Elizabeth Lim.

*This is the concluding novel in a duology.*

To uphold the promise she made to her stepmother, Princess Shiori’anma (the youngest of seven and only daughter of Emperor Hanriyu) will journey to Ai’long, the realm of dragons, at the bottom of the Taijin Sea. She has vowed to return the dragon’s pearl to its rightful owner, but Dragon King Nazayun expects her to give the pearl to him when she only stated she’d bring it to him. It doesn’t belong to Nazayun, but to the Wraith. The Wraith’s pearl is unlike other dragons’ pearls and not only because it’s broken. Escaping from Ai’long is harrowing, and Shiori learns that she should trust Seryu’ginan, while also falling victim to betrayal. It is here that she first meets Gen (turning to stone). Being home in the Imperial Palace in Gindara is weighted, not only because she still has the pearl, but because the realm now knows she’s a sorceress in a land that’s not supposed to have magic. As the Kingdom of Kiata’s bloodsake, there are many that would condemn her and harm her. The most frenzied want to kill her, thus keeping the demons sealed in the Holy Mountains of Fortitude. But there’s one demon that won’t be sealed in. He was once an enchanter, turning demon when he broke his oath and killed someone. Fueled by greed and the power of magic, he greedily wants more power from the pearl. He plans, of course, to kill Shiori. To locate the Wraith, Shiori will need to venture across the Cuiyan Ocean and over the enchanted waters of Lake Paduan to the Forgotten Isles of Lapzur. She won’t be alone. She’ll have her six brothers (back in crane form), Bushi’an Takkan (her betrothed) and Kiki (her paper bird). Unfortunately, she’s still got the pearl (thrumming with malevolent, usually unpredictable power) and a powerful demon semi-trapped in an amulet. Shiori’s going to need more strength than she’s ever imagined having if she’s going to survive and defend those she loves.

            A concluding novel in the Six Crimson Cranes duology, this story is a literary work of art, as vibrant and sweeping as a painter with paints on canvas filled with colors bright and bold, graceful and light, but also dark and murky, dangerous and wild. With more than one quest for the heroine, there’s no shortage of adventure in this YA tale. Shiori remains stubborn and impulsive, though her impulsivity is sometimes quelled when listening to others’ advice finally wins out. This is a tale of love and keeping promises (no matter the cost to oneself) and of allies who help grow the main character, just as much as it’s a story that integrates Chinese legends, young love, powerful dragons and treacherous demons. It’s not a relaxing read, but a dramatic one. It’s an adventure that I’m glad to have gone on.

            P.S. For someone who’s read Lim’s The Blood of Stars duology, it was nice to meet Gen before he’s a full-fledged enchanter.

            Book One: Six Crimson Cranes

Rutabaga's Reads 2022: Part 19

Despite the amount of YA novels I read each year, this is only my second YA compilation post in 2022. This is because I have published multiple solo posts to balance the number of inspirational fiction solo posts on The Reading Rutabaga.

In Every Generation (Jan. 4, 2022) by Kendare Blake.

*This is the first novel in a series.*

The previously-destroyed-by-Buffy Hellmouth may be leaking … residue. And there’s a new Big Bad in New Sunnydale called the Countess, and she has a penchant for virgins’ blood. Buffy can take her out, right? Maybe, if Frankie Rosenberg (daughter of Willow) knew if Buffy was alive. After a bombing at Slayerfest, the fate of all Slayers is in question, except for the dead Slayers that were actually found. Frankie finds her Slayer abilities awakening, but she isn’t any regular Slayer, as she also possesses some magical ability thanks to her mom. The new Scoobies include fellow teens Jake Osbourne (werewolf), Hailey Larsson (whose Slayer half-sister, Vi, hasn’t been seen since the bombing) and Sigmund DeWitt (a Sage demon, but only half, as his father is human). (Also, Sigmund DeWitt isn’t his real name, but it’s “the closest thing most people can manage.”) Her Watcher is the vampire, Spike, and Jake’s uncle-cousin, Oz, is there to help fight, too. (Oz is his cousin, but Jake calls him uncle because he’s “too old to be my cousin.”) Don’t count out Willow just because she hasn’t used magic since before Frankie was born and Grimloch, the Hunter of Thrace, may show himself to be an ally despite his fondness for eating hearts. Hailey hasn’t given up hope that Vi is alive as Frankie wonders how she can be a Slayer the likes of Buffy. That’s what she must learn, though, that she isn’t like Buffy. She’s the first of her kind, the first Slayer-witch.

            As someone who never got into the Buffy the Vampire series, I was skeptical about this book. I purchased it because I’m a steady fan of Blake’s stories, and I’m glad I did. While I’ve heard of some of the key characters, I’m not familiar with the Buffyverse, so I greatly appreciated the background and additional context which those already familiar might find redundant. The amount of quipping and humor gave the YA novel comic relief to balance the grimness of death and the intensity of suddenly having the world (or at least New Sunnydale) on one’s shoulders. The story sets a fast pace right away with lots of action, a wicked villain with an equally vicious right-hand henchman in Anton (who’s obsessed with hot pokers) and that cheeky banter. The story ended on a satisfying note while also setting readers up for future installments. I expect that Buffy aficionados and supernatural fans alike will enjoy the start of this new series. I may not know the original Buffy series, but it sure reads like a worthy successor to me!

Once Upon a Broken Heart (Sept. 28, 2021) by Stephanie Garber.

*This is the first novel in a trilogy (originally marketed as a duology).*

Does the broken heart belong to Evangeline Fox when the love of her life, Luc Navarro, betrays her by abruptly proposing to her stepsister, Marisol Tourmaline, or to the Prince of Hearts (a.k.a. Jacks), a Fate whose wicked heart toys with the hearts of others, even as he’s rumored to have a true love who isn’t reciprocating? For forever, Evangeline has believed in “love at first” and happy endings. So when Luc suddenly proposes to another, Evangeline is desperate to stop the impending nuptials. She’s so desperate that she makes a bargain with a Fate. Fates won’t break bargains, but they often hurt those they’re supposedly helping. The Prince of Hearts is immortally alluring and gracefully charismatic, but he’s also the wicked bad boy one’s parents should never want their daughters to fall for (or sons). In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to be granted at the time and place that he chooses. He will also choose the three she kisses, because while the kisses may be somehow for Jacks, they aren’t with him (to kiss him is lethal to anyone but his true love). When Evangeline and Marisol venture from their home in the Meridian Empire to the Magnificent North, where her late mother grew up, and she sees Jacks, she soon realizes that Jacks has plans. Will Evangeline get her happy ending? Or will she be led along a deliciously exquisite tragedy orchestrated by the Prince of Hearts?

            Set in the world of the Caraval trilogy, Garber returns readers to a magical land of enchantment, heady romance and messy choices with a heroine with rose-gold hair and a heart for happy endings. Reading Garber’s stories is like wandering through a richly-imagined fairy tale of charm and danger, lush world-building and a roiling plot, twists and tangles, deceit and wishes. Although the writing is decadent and shimmers with magic and the author’s sparkly imagination, it’s at times verbose, like a dessert that contains too much sugar. It can also read as sometimes frothy, but with themes of family influence and holding onto one’s beliefs, it also contains depth. Overall, it’s a well-paced story of romance, adventure and bewitching mystery, though I wish there was some diversity amongst the major characters.

            Caraval Book One: Caraval

            Caraval Book Two: Legendary

            Caraval Book Three: Finale

Six Crimson Cranes (July 6, 2021) by Elizabeth Lim.

*This is the first novel in a duology.*

The youngest of seven and the only daughter of Kiata’s emperor (Emperor Hanriyu), Princess Shiori’anma is a 16-year-old who has the gift of magic in a world where magic is forbidden. On the day of her betrothal ceremony to Bushi’an Takkan, Shiori tries to prevent the ceremony from happening in an unexpected way: she follows her enchanted paper bird, Kiki, into the Sacred Lake, coming face-to-face with a small dragon as she almost drowns. In human form, the shape-shifter is 17-year-old dragon prince Seryu. He’s arrogant, but offers Shiori magic lessons, having been drawn to her magic. Unfortunately, Shiori’s magic also captures the attention of Raikama, her stepmother. Raikama is secretly a sorceress, and she’s a powerful woman, banishing Shiori and turning her six brothers into cranes (Andahai, Benkai, Reiji, twins Wandei & Yotan and Hasho). She forewarns Shiori that she must never speak, for if she does, she’ll lose a brother with every word she utters. Without voice, without money and with naught but a bowl that is so enchanted to her head it might as well be fused to it to hide her face, Shiori leaves Kiata alone, intending to find her brothers. With her brothers as cranes and Shiori banished, Kiata appears to have zero heirs, and a conspiracy to seize the throne is uncovered. She’ll have to find a way to keep the kingdom she can’t currently be in with the help of a little paper bird, a mercurial dragon and the boy whose letters she ignored and has fought hard not to marry.

            “Six Crimson Cranes” blends story elements from East Asian lore (like the legend of Chang E) and European fairy tales (like Cinderella​) in a wonderfully crafted YA mash-up that feels original in a sea of twisted fairy-and-mythology-based tales (and I happen to be a fan of both). The first novel in a duology of the same name, Lim crafts a richly embroidered story of interwoven tales and mythology, an intricate plot that challenges the evil stepmother cliché, magic, adventure and a protagonist who has grit and determination despite the odds that are stacked against her. This duology takes place in the same world as the Blood of Stars​ duology. It explores complicated family dynamics and the story sweeps readers along with every turn of the page.

            Regarding starstroke: “Dragons had not always been omens of good fortune.” When they answered to no one, not even the gods, the gods came together to temper their strength and “forged starstroke from a trio of magics: strands of fate from the goddess Emuri’en’s hair; the blood of stars from Lapzur, the source of an enchanter’s power; and demonfire scoured from the Tambu Isles, birthplace of demons” (pp. 149-150).

            The Blood of Stars Book One: Spin the Dawn

            The Blood of Stars Book Two: Unravel the Dusk

Rutabaga's Reads 2019: Part 15

Something YA this way comes (again)!

Children of Blood and Bone (Mar. 6, 2018) by Tomi Adeyemi.

*This is the first novel in a trilogy.*

There is no magic left in the world, but there are still repercussions stemming from the Raid. Eleven years ago, King Saran, a merciless tyrant, destroyed magic and had all maji massacred, including Zélie Adebola’s mother, a great Reaper. Zélie is not off the hook, either. Although magic is gone, she remains visible with the white hair of divîners, those descendants of maji that could’ve one day become maji, wielders of their respective magics. Her brother, Tzain, is not a divîner, but a kosidán (someone without magic). Zélie’s life is further complicated when a young woman desperately reaches out to her to escape, as she is being pursued for an artifact (scroll) she has stolen. This young woman is Orïsha’s Princess Amari, daughter of Saran. What she has stolen could help restore magic back to the world. Amari, Zélie and Tzain, with the Adebola’s family lionaire, Nailah, set off to collect two other holy artifacts (a bone dagger and a sunstone) and reach “a sacred island off the northern coast of the Orinion Sea” and complete the ritual before the centennial solstice. Close on their trail is Amari’s older brother, Crown Prince Inan, who’s always looked for his father’s approval and has even gone so far as to physically maim his only sister. His hatred of magic runs deep, but fate is going to throw a wrench into his life in a very big way. Denial won’t help. The harder he fights it, the tougher it will be on him. Is Inan’s heart as hardened as Saran’s?

            Although the starter in the Legacy of Orïsha trilogy, it already feels epic. In this YA novel featuring a complex cast of West-African characters (who speak the Yoruba language), a captivating and variegated narrative, and an Atlas-like weight-of-the-world on Zélie’s shoulders, this debut is worthy of any and all accolades. The novel is presented in an expansive and immersive landscape with themes current to our world despite its fantasy setting. It evokes the conscience, but instead of brutality revolving around race or religion or sexual orientation, it stems from hatred of those who wield magic or potentially can wield it. Still, justice is needed as much here as in any non-magical society. This story is not always easy to read, but it’s a literary achievement of imagination, emotion, grit and more than one strong female. If you’re a YA reader, and this isn’t on your shelf, it should be!

Finale (May 7, 2019) by Stephanie Garber.

*This is the final novel in a trilogy.*

The Fates are free. Considering how long they’ve been trapped in a special Deck of Destiny, they are not running around wreaking havoc right away, as their powers are weak, but it’s obvious when it begins. A family enjoying an outside dinner is frozen; Scarlett can see their feelings vividly (The Poisoner). Paid servants are forced to dance endlessly along invisible strings; most are no longer conscious, as they were probably animated a full day previous when their employer was killed in a horrible manner (Jester Mad). But Scarlett and Donatella’s mother is also free, and that’s what matters to Tella. Unfortunately, the Fallen Star – the Fate at the top of the totem pole – seems to have come back strong. Certain Fates are less terrible than others, though one would never call them friends. Friendly acquaintance would also be a stretch. Scarlett, Julian, Tella and Legend must find a way to outwit the Fallen Star. Can they do so before utter chaos and irreversible damage descend upon Valenda? Because it isn’t just the four of them that will suffer, but Valenda’s residents, too. And when Scarlett learns a life-changing truth, will she harness it willingly or by force?

            I know I mentioned it for the previous book, “Legendary,” but I do not care for Tella. This remains true for this final installment in the Caraval trilogy. She grates on my nerves, and because I don’t care for her, I don’t see why one boy loves her, much less two. I think it’s her lack of maturity compared to her older sister, Scarlett, which annoys me.

            Negatives aside, I remain a spellbound fan of this trilogy. It ensnared me in its magical force much like Erin Morgenstern’s “The Night Circus” and may also appeal to anyone who enjoyed the lesser-known film “Stardust.” I like that this novel features the perspectives of both sisters. It is darkly lustrous and ominously enchanting. Imagine glitter and beauty and a façade of opulence where the likes of black diamonds and blood-red gems twinkle with millions of sparkles that could hurt you as they mesmerize you. It is a spectacle for the imagination, and I hope the author has a new series brewing.

The Red Scrolls of Magic (Apr. 9, 2019) by Cassandra Clare and Wesley Chu.

*This is the first novel in a trilogy.*

The High Warlock of Brooklyn, Magnus Bane – suave, stylish and hedonistic – wants nothing more than to enjoy a fabulous European vacation with his boyfriend, Alexander “Alec” Lightwood, a shy yet fierce Shadowhunter whose blood caries that of angels (Nephilim). Magnus’ plans are waylaid almost from the get-go when he is told by a trusted friend that a cult known as the Crimson Hand has been sacrificing faeries in order to raise Asmodeus, a Greater Demon/Prince of Hell. Asmodeus has significance in Magnus’ life, though none of it is positive. Unfortunately, all Magnus remembers of the Crimson Hand is that he founded it as a drunken joke; his other memories of the cult appear to be missing. The Spiral Labyrinth, the warlock’s mysterious underground headquarters, will not be forgiving to Magnus if the Crimson Hand, with Magnus as their rumored leader, continues as is. He teams up with Alec and a Korean warlock they encounter along the way named Shinyun Jung, who has a storied past with the cult. When Alec goes to the Rome Institute, he falls into step with Shadowhunters Aline Penhallow (lives in Alicante, the capital and only city of Idris, the Shadowhunters’ home country) and Helen Blackthorn (of the Los Angeles Institute). With destructive demons and questioning Shadowhunters, Magnus and Alec’s romance will be tested … through battle, pain and fire. Can such a new love overcome such obstacles?

            According to the acknowledgements, this story falls chronologically during “City of Fallen Angels” (2011), the fourth novel in The Mortal Instruments series. “The Red Scrolls of Magic” launches the first in The Eldest Curses trilogy, Clare’s collaboration with Chu. Magnus and Alec are far more star-crossed than Romeo and Juliet; there’s Downworlder and Shadowhunter, immortal and mortal in play here. Action and adventure is plentiful in this installment of secrets, magic, new love, combat, self-doubt and compassion. It is compelling and thrilling, and considering when the story takes place, it’s nice to encounter a certain familiar character in all his sarcastic, undead form (I’m talking about you, Raphael Santiago). I so appreciate the ethnic diversity of this series, especially in introducing a Korean character, but I didn’t choose it for the diversity or the LGBTQ+ representation. At its core, I’m a fan of Clare’s work, and Magnus is my favorite of her characters. He is “a blazing riot of life and color, a source of joy for everyone around him” (p. 204). This includes us as readers!

Rutabaga's Reads 2019: Part 11

To ramp up my young adult (YA) game, I’m posting another compilation featuring YA novels.

Legendary (May 29, 2018) by Stephanie Garber.

*This is the second book in a trilogy.*

Caraval has never happened twice in the same year, and now Legend has given his performers less than a week to recover since it was won. Another Caraval is going to begin in honor of Empress Elantine’s 75^th birthday. The other Dragna sister, Donatella (Tella), is playing this time. In the previous game, to believe it was too real was to go mad, but based on the first clue, is there truth to this Caraval? If it’s real, then the Fates are more than their pictures on a cursed Deck of Destiny, and history shows no kindness in them. There’s a “friend” who has tasked her with winning Caraval so she can discover who Master Legend truly is, and he doesn’t just want his name; he wants Legend himself. The only way Tella will meet Legend in the flesh is to win. And if she doesn’t win and therefore doesn’t deliver Legend to her “friend,” then her mother will remain lost to her, for her “friend” claims to know where she is.

            Tella gains a room at Elantine’s palace when Dante – insufferable, handsome, usually acts like a villain – claims Tella’s the heir’s fiancée. He means it as a jest, but then she receives a note and an exquisite dress from her fake fiancé. Enter golden-haired Jacks, who may be the Prince of Hearts. Known for his fatal kisses, Tella has kissed him. Whoops. All the bravery and cunning in the world will not help Tella if her life is in trouble. And if she can’t figure out Legend’s real name, then she’ll lose someone she loves besides.

            “Legendary,” the second book in the Caraval trilogy, shines with magic and enchantment. Love and betrayal twirl in a sensuous dance in this story with air that tastes like wonder and glitters with opulence. Seams of darkness run close to the surface, ready to ensnare the unwary and tempt the main character. Garber’s imagination knows no bounds, but I actually don’t care for Tella. She’s the epitome of a younger sister, the type that was pampered and constantly looked out for by an older sibling (Scarlett, from the first novel). Still, the story is dark and seductive and sweeps the reader away. Just try not to get caught in any sugared spiderwebs. I can’t imagine that would go well for anyone.

            Book One: Caraval

War Storm (May 15, 2018) by Victoria Aveyard.

*This is the final book in a tetralogy.*

War is coming. The world where Mare Barrow lives is volatile at best. She fights to secure freedom for Reds and newbloods (or Ardents) like her from the Silvers who would keep using them like they’re expendable. Other Silvers are tentative allies, and they include Cal, though Mare’s struggle is real since his betrayal. Cal is no Maven, but it’s crushing that his vision for the future does not match hers. And even as half brothers, they are still brothers. Despite the enmity, they are both “Constructions of their parents. Cal is built from his father’s dreams, and Maven from his mother’s nightmares” (--thoughts from Mare, p. 458). Their greatest allies are the residents of Montfort, especially the Ardents, some of which have abilities never before carried in a Silver’s blood. Montfort’s Premier Davidson gives them a glimpse of a piece of the world where Ardents, Reds and Silvers are encouraged to live amicably amongst one another. It’s a place where a man can marry a man or a woman a woman (Evangeline “stares at the man with such naked envy I think she might turn green.” --Mare’s thought, p.124). Will Mare return to Montfort where her family now resides? Or will the lightning girl be silenced forever? Is there a chance that the damage Elara did to Maven’s mind can be undone if an Ardent whisper powerful enough exists? Or is Maven truly gone beyond help? After all, “There’s no way to complete a puzzle with missing pieces, or put together shattered glass” (--Mare, to Maven, on his brokenness caused by his mother).

            As a concluding novel in a series, “War Storm” is epic and exciting. It crackles with glorious purpose like lightning in a storm and booms with the thunder and violence of war, revenge and mortal enemies. This dystopian fantasy has been inventive, exhilarating and dramatic all series long. It’s an intense duel of romance and revolution, power and balance, dominance and teamwork. It’s a great show without the theater screen or the stage, so strong is Aveyard’s writing in bringing all 657 pages to life for her readers!

            Book One: Red Queen

            Book Two: Glass Sword

            Book Three: King’s Crown

Winter (Nov. 10, 2015) by Marissa Meyer.

*This is the final book in a tetralogy.*

Things are not looking good. Linh Cinder and company are fugitives, both of the Earthen Union and Luna. They abducted Emperor Kaito (Kai), who has been engaged to Queen Levana, the Lunar queen. In his absence, Earth has been overrun with genetically-modified beings mind-controlled by thaumaturges. So much death. Cinder knows that Levana wants nothing more than to be made empress and control both realms once she assassinates Kai. Cinder is someone very important from the past, and she’s coming to terms with it. This means she isn’t only trying to save the Earthen realm she grew up in, but also a moon that she has no recollection of.*

            Princess Winter is like one of her pets in her menagerie, except she can wander around. Despite the scars on her face (blame Levana), Winter remains the most beautiful person anyone has ever met (no glamour necessary). Her beauty is unrivaled even by Levana’s carefully-constructed glamour of herself. Through no fault of her own, she’s gained an Earthen “pet” in Scarlet Benoit. Wolf (a.k.a. Ze’ev Kesley) is trying tirelessly to save her, though he doesn’t know if she’s still alive. Along with their allies, Crescent Moon “Cress” Darnel, Carswell Thorne, Jacin Clay and Iko, they need to get ahead of Levana once and for all.

            I admit that my interest in The Lunar Chronicles has waned, but since I’ve read the other books in the series, I wanted to finish it. I set this book aside multiple times; it took me months to get through. I don’t mind multiple perspectives, but there are too many perspectives running around this story. I suspect that’s the reason the trade paperback version is 824 pages long, which it definitely does not need to be. That said, I do feel that this series concluded in a satisfactory way. This world which Meyer created is well-developed and imaginatively immersive. I have liked that the author created a mosh pit of fairy tale and science fiction; I think it has worked well. Despite the sheer size of the final novel, this should appeal to anyone who appreciates strong heroines and the fractured fairy tale genre.

            Book One: Cinder

            Book Two: Scarlett

            Book Three: Cress

*Perhaps this is for the best. After all, how hard would it have been to live up to the name Selene Channary Jannali Blackburn?

Rutabaga's Reads 2018: Part 5

While it seems like such a small goal, one of my personal goals for 2018 is to be more active with my blog again. So, I’m presenting to you the fifth compilation of the year. It features YA novels, so if you don’t read and/or don’t like YA novels, stop reading right now! But if YA novels interest you, please read on and leave comments below regarding what you’re reading, if you’ve read any of the featured books in this compilation or if you have any recommendations or un-recommendations (you know, those books you read or tried to but don’t think anyone else should suffer through).

Caraval (Jan. 31, 2017) by Stephanie Garber.

*This is the first in a series.*

The governor of the Conquered Isle of Trisda is a cruel man who uses the punishment of others as a way to keep people in line, lest the other person – usually a loved one – be punished again and again. This includes his own daughters, Scarlett and Donatella “Tella” Dragna. Scarlett, the older of the two by just a year, lives in constant fear of his consequences. But she will soon be wed and plans to take Tella with her away from their father. With her impending wedding, she thinks this is her final chance to experience Caraval. It’s a legendary competition that is by invitation-only, and, miraculously, she receives three tickets: one for herself, one for Tella and one for her fiancé. Things go awry early on when it seems that Tella is taken as part of the game, and instead of her fiancé, she is stuck with a handsome sailor named Julian Marrero. Scarlett has oft heard that the game is nothing more than an elaborate performance, but she cannot help but get swept up in it. Those who are swept in too far go mad. But Scarlett must play the game now. She must find Tella before the fifth night of the game is up, lest she lose her sister forever. Or is it forever? After all, it’s just a game, right?

            Magical and spellbinding, “Caraval” is a performance I want to experience. I don’t want to be a player or a spectator; I want to be one of the performers. The mystique which surrounds the setting of Caraval and the enchantment that goes along with it reminds me of “The Night Circus” by Erin Morgenstern, a novel which I also greatly enjoyed. Like that novel, “Caraval” is masterfully written. It isn’t just magic that happens to be in the air all around us. It is magic that tests. It tests one’s mind to differentiate between what is real and what is not. It tests what information you take from others and what you grant that they believe; it tests trust. It even tests the power of one’s love. The design of this story has been glittered in magic, like a fresh and unblemished coating of snow on the ground. But whereas snow may be the color of innocence and purity, what lies underneath could easily be vile and villainous. Are you ready to play?

These Vengeful Souls (Feb. 20, 2018) by Tarun Shanker & Kelly Zekas.

*This is the final book in a trilogy.*

It is London, England, in 1883. Too many continue reeling after the violent and tragic events of the ball days earlier. Evelyn Wyndham and Sebastian Braddock are both wrapped up in terrible guilt, but whereas Sebastian wants to hold it in and avoid others, Evelyn wants to wreak vengeance by murdering the evil mastermind “in thirty-six ways.” Unfortunately, Evelyn’s revenge-seeking often makes things worse by fueling the lies already being spread about Sebastian and their friends. Determined to undermine the one truly responsible for all of the lives lost, many plans are made, but they tend to backfire. Any ounce of good done seems to incite tons of bad from their adversary. What is the use of having powers in which they intend to do good when those that are bad twist and lie and manipulate to continually gain leverage over Evelyn, Sebastian, their friends and all of London?

            This book and the whole trilogy have given me many things I love in books: action, brisk pacing, droll dialogue, strong main and supporting characters – in which there’s a minimum of one strong female lead – at least one antagonist I love to hate, and intrigue. Useless bonus points are given for potential love triangles only when plenty of humor is present, as has been the case with this trilogy. While Evelyn’s rashness grated my nerves on occasion, the magic and the characters in this Victorian romance more than made up for it.

Wintersong (Feb. 7, 2017) by S. Jae-Jones.

*This is the first in a duology.*

What is it like to be a shadow twice-over? Maria Elisabeth Ingeborg “Liesl” Vogler may be the eldest of the Vogler children, but she’s ever in the shadow of beautiful Käthe and musically gifted Josef (a.k.a. Sepperl). She’s got the gift of music as well, though as a composer. Josef sees it, but Papa denies it. In Josef, he has nothing but praise: “… you have the potential to change music as we know it!” until he learns Liesl wrote it, then it becomes, “A decent effort. But you must be less lofty in your ideals, Liesl.” She is resigned to her fate as an “unlovely little girl” who dutifully helps at her parents’ inn and watches out for her siblings until Käthe is taken by Der Erlkönig (the Goblin King). He is exquisitely handsome, but tricky and dangerous. The rules are different outside the world above, and Liesl will have to fight her own mind, the old laws and time itself. Otherwise, the world may be shut to her.

            “Wintersong” abounds with magic, enchantment, trickery and darkness enriched with music that I imagined was haunting and ethereal. Jae-Jones has introduced readers to a main character who has been selfless for so long and sacrifices much in the name of love. Understandably, it makes Liesl very emotional, and that is the only area in which I struggled. I often found Liesl to be very annoying. Yes, she is young, but until that point, she’s appeared to have been dutiful and responsible. If the author wanted to contrast the girl seemingly put together before events swung into motion with one that came across as an immature basket case, then the effect was a success. I wouldn’t mind someday reading the next story in this duology, but for now, I am in no hurry to.