Monsters Born and Made

 

My Thoughts:

Although this novel has a lot of potential to be very exciting, culturally relevant and a good non-white fantasy book, I was very disappointed at the end. I kept re-reading the end thinking that I must have read too fast and missed something crucial, but that did not help. Reading other reviews, I realize that I am not the only one that plowed through and left with a bitter taste in my mouth.

I have a copy of the book if anyone wants it. Despite what seems to be a bad review, I think there is potential. The creation of the beast, in this case, the maristags, is very similar to Beast Player. The question, like Beast Player, is about humane treatment of animals. In both novels, the humans seem more beastly in actions towards each other than the beasts. That is what makes this intriguing. I still recommend this as a non-white fantasy. Perhaps start with Beast Player first.

From the Publisher:

Sixteen-year-old Koral and her older brother Emrik risk their lives each day to capture the monstrous maristags that live in the black seas around their island. They have to, or else their family will starve.

In an oceanic world swarming with vicious beasts, the Landers―the ruling elite, have indentured Koral's family to provide the maristags for the Glory Race, a deadly chariot tournament reserved for the upper class. The winning contender receives gold and glory. The others―if they're lucky―survive.

When the last maristag of the year escapes and Koral has no new maristag to sell, her family's financial situation takes a turn for the worse and they can't afford medicine for her chronically ill little sister. Koral's only choice is to do what no one in the world has ever dared: cheat her way into the Glory Race.

But every step of the way is unpredictable as Koral races against competitors―including her ex-boyfriend―who have trained for this their whole lives and who have no intention of letting a low-caste girl steal their glory. As a rebellion rises and rogues attack Koral to try and force her to drop out, she must choose―her life or her sister's―before the whole island burns.

Publication Information:

Author: Tanvi Berwah

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire (August 1, 2023)

Paperback: 352 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1728268842

Grade level: 8-12

Like Thunder: The Desert Magician's Duology: Book Two

 

My Thoughts:

This is book 2 of the Desert Magician Duology by Afrofuturist author Nnedi Okorafor. Because Okorafor spends so much energy building this postapocalyptic world (or worlds), this last book is a little more chaotic. It is told from the point of view of Dikéogu Obidimkpa, the rainmaker who accompanied young Shadowspeaker Ejii Ubaid in Book One.  Taking place several years after the two separate, the book starts at the point where Dikéogu is losing his mind in a world that is also losing its mind. 

Like the first book, Okorafor weaves magic and ecological warfare, world building, as well as world destruction into a cautionary tale reminiscent of Ursula K. LeGuin.  The power of this duology for me, though, is the smaller scenes of mental chaos. It changes the perspective in this novel because Dikéogu is so unreliable as a narrator. 

At the end, because I wanted to hear the correct pronunciation for Okorafor's book, I ended up finishing this book as an audiobook. I would recommend this as a read along. I recommend reading this book and then listening to it again with Délé Ogundiran as narrator on the audiobook. I needed a second "read" to be able to notice things that I rushed through in the first reading so that I could get to the conclusion. 

From the Publisher:

Niger, West Africa, 2077
 
Welcome back. This second volume is a breathtaking story that sweeps across the sands of the Sahara, flies up to the peaks of the Aïr Mountains, cartwheels into a wild megacity—you get the idea.
 
I am the Desert Magician; I bring water where there is none.
 
This book begins with Dikéogu Obidimkpa slowly losing his mind. Yes, that boy who can bring rain just by thinking about it is having some…issues. Years ago, Dikéogu went on an epic journey to save Earth with the shadow speaker girl, Ejii Ubaid, who became his best friend. When it was all over, they went their separate ways, but now he’s learned their quest never really ended at all.
 
So Dikéogu, more powerful than ever, reunites with Ejii. He records this story as an audiofile, hoping it will help him keep his sanity or at least give him something to leave behind. Smart kid, but it won’t work—or will it?
 
I can tell you this: it won’t be like before. Our rainmaker and shadow speaker have changed. And after this, nothing will ever be the same again.
 
As they say, ‘Onye amaro ebe nmili si bido mabaya ama ama onye nyelu ya akwa oji welu ficha aru.’
 
Or, ‘If you do not remember where the rain started to beat you, you will not remember who gave you the towel with which to dry your body.’

Publication Information:

Author: Nnedi Okorafor

Publisher: DAW (Nov 28, 2023)

Print length: 303 pages

Narrator: Délé Ogundiran

Audiobook Publisher: Tantor Audio (Dec 5, 2023)

Listening Length: 10 hours 23 minutes

Children of the Flying City

 

My Thoughts:

This action packed first book reads like a Lemony Snicket story in that  the narrator speaks directly to the reader. He warns us, in fact that things will go wrong and we should stop reading, which of course, forces me to read on. It also quickly pulls readers into the street life of a band of orphans banding together to steal enough to eat and pay tithe to the boy "Total King." 

Milo Quick, the leader of his group was brought to Highgate when he was five. Although not quite 13, he is responsible for a family of children, including Dagda, also called Mouse, a "12-year old girl" who unbeknownst to the crew has been 12 for hundreds of years,  and his backup "man" Jules. What he doesn't know is that ever since he arrived in Highgate, there have been powerful men paying The Sandman to both let Milo Quick grow up to be a boy on the streets as well as protect his life should harm come to him. This story is comfortably familiar like Oliver Twist meets Blade Runner.

When we enter the flying city, war is coming in the form of an Armada just outside the gates. These orphans, though, canʻt be bothered by grown up problems. They are just trying to survive. When Milo Quick is called to show up in the court of the Total King, he finds out that the captain of a flying mail ship has just snuck in and revealed Miloʻs real name. They have orders to take him alive  so to stay hidden, the Total King wants Milo and his gang to provide more tithing from their spoils. This starts the series of "unfortunate events" for these groups. Not everyone survives and the story does not end with this book, but it is a fantastic ride: emotional, gripping, sweet and horrifying. Keep reading.

From the Publisher:

Brought to the flying city of Highgate when he was only five years old, orphan Milo Quick has never known another home. Now almost thirteen, Milo survives one daredevil grift at a time, relying only on his wit, speed, and best friends Jules and Dagda.

A massive armada has surrounded Highgate’s crumbling armaments. Because behind locked doors—in opulent parlors and pneumatic forests and a master toymaker’s workshop—the once-great flying city protects a powerful secret, hidden away for centuries. A secret that’s about to ignite a war. One small airship, the Halcyon, has slipped through the ominous blockade on a mission to collect Milo—and the rich bounty on his head—before the fighting begins. But the members of the Halcyon’s misfit crew aren’t the only ones chasing Milo Quick.
 
True friendship is worth any risk in this clever, heart-racing adventure from award-winning author and journalist Jason Sheehan. Sheehan weaves together wry narration and multiple points of view to craft a richly imagined tale that is dangerous and surprising, wondrous and joyful.

Author: Jason Sheehan

Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers

Publication date: March 15, 2022

Iron Widow

 

My Thoughts:

This novel has a polyamorous love triangle, a strong-willed girl who wants to change the gender inequity in her society, a  superstar Chrysalis pilot who kills his concubine pilots without remorse, aliens, mechanical sci fi machines, Chinese historical characters, and an Emperor pilot that has been asleep for two hundred years under  the enemy hive. Add to that Game of Thrones style killings and you have an exciting ride with Zetian, historically the only female Emperor of China, now set on avenging her sister and destroying the misogyny in Huaxia.  I am beyond thrilled at all of the minority-led sci fi and fantasy coming out. Send more!

Spoiler alert - this book is a wild ride that will end with no conclusion as well as no set date for book #2. If that is a game changer, then wait on starting this book until the next book comes out. Instead read other strong willed female sci fi/dystopia like Divergent,  or Hunger Games. At least readers can devour and conclude the series. 

From the Publisher:

The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the mecha aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall. It doesn't matter that the girls often die from the mental strain.
 
When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it's to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister's death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected—she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.​
 
To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia​. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way—and stop more girls from being sacrificed.

The Belles

Description from the Publisher:

Camellia Beauregard is a Belle. In the opulent world of Orleans, Belles are revered, for they control Beauty, and Beauty is a commodity coveted above all else. In Orleans, the people are born gray, they are born damned, and only with the help of a Belle and her talents can they transform and be made beautiful. But it's not enough for Camellia to be just a Belle. She wants to be the favorite—the Belle chosen by the Queen of Orleans to live in the royal palace, to tend to the royal family and their court, to be recognized as the most talented Belle in the land. But once Camellia and her Belle sisters arrive at court, it becomes clear that being the favorite is not everything she always dreamed it would be. Behind the gilded palace walls live dark secrets, and Camellia soon learns that the very essence of her existence is a lie—that her powers are far greater, and could be more dangerous, than she ever imagined. And when the queen asks Camellia to risk her own life and help the ailing princess by using Belle powers in unintended ways, Camellia now faces an impossible decision. With the future of Orleans and its people at stake, Camellia must decide—save herself and her sisters and the way of the Belles—or resuscitate the princess, risk her own life, and change the ways of her world forever. Dhonielle Clayton creates a rich, detailed, decadent world of excess and privilege, where beauty is not only skin-deep, but a complete mirage. Weaving deeper questions about the commodification of women's bodies, gender equality, racial identity, and vanity with high-stakes action and incredible imagery, The Belles is the must-read epic of the season.

My Thoughts:

I do not totally agree with the description here, but I do not want to create spoilers. I think they should at least talk about Sophia, one of the antagonists, especially since the description makes it seem like the queen is the bad person here. She is a minor player, as is the "ailing princess." I actually cannot remember the name of the ailing princess, so that says a lot.

That being said, though, that is just a comment on the descriptor that the publisher puts out. The book itself is good if you like dystopia, female-centric, fantasy (with the royalty and magic, but not the fae). They also throw in a futuristic cloning plot that hints of all the evil science fiction cloning movies and books of the past.

This book reminds me of this generation's The Uglies series (The Uglies, The Pretties, Specials, Extra). Considering the Uglies came out in 2006, that counts as the next generation of YA readers. Dystopia in YA continues to be popular. The grass is not always greener on the other side, which is a harsh life lesson, but the magic of YA literature is that the teen protagonists don't let their age/youth/innocence/naivete let them just curl up and die. They are fearless and brash. They set out to change society as social justice warriors. And they always succeed (most of the time, and usually by the third book). 

Dealing in Dreams

From the Publishers:

At night, Las Mal Criadas own these streets.

Sixteen-year-old Nalah leads the fiercest all-girl crew in Mega City. That role brings with it violent throwdowns and access to the hottest boydega clubs, but Nalah quickly grows weary of her questionable lifestyle. Her dream is to get off the streets and make a home in the exclusive Mega Towers, in which only a chosen few get to live. To make it to the Mega Towers, Nalah must prove her loyalty to the city's benevolent founder and cross the border in a search of the mysterious gang the Ashé Ryders. Led by a reluctant guide, Nalah battles crews and her own doubts but the closer she gets to her goal the more she loses sight of everything--and everyone--she cares about.

Nalah must choose whether or not she's willing to do the unspeakable to get what she wants. Can she discover that home is not where you live but whom you chose to protect before she loses the family she's created for good?

My Thoughts:

One reviewer said that this girl-power, dystopian YA novel is a mix of S. E. Hinton's classic, The Outsiders and Mad Max: Fury Road. I try not to read the publisher description, but I saw the bolded snippet of this review which meant that the whole time I was reading this book, I pictured Déesse, the matriarch of Mega City as Tina Turner/Aunty Entity, the ruthless leader of Bartertown in Mad Max: Beyond the Thunderdome. I do agree that Ms. Rivera does take a similar storyline to The Outsiders moved into a kind of future where girl gangs run the streets and drugs keep the masses "toiling." I think the premise is engaging, although as a YA reader who is not the typical audience of these authors, I need to be patient with the protagonist, Chief Rocka/Nalah, as she goes through her own identity crisis and social justice crisis. 

This is good for readers that are looking for Hunger Games kind of action.

Requiem

The last book in Oliver's Delirium series leads Lena eventually back to Portland. The chapters alternate between Hana and Lena until they eventually collide. The whole romance thing sort of gets resolved by just ending, which I am fine with, but if readers are on some kind of "team," they may be disappointed.

Like I mentioned in the first review of book one, I don't have any desire to read the other sub-books that came out about some of the other characters. I'm just going to let these characters go and I will believe what I believe as far as what happened after the end and what happened when the characters were not part of the immediate storyline.

Pandemonium

This is the second of three books and it started with Delirium.

So in the blog post for Delirium I said that the second book is always a disappointment, but I'm going to read it anyway. Well, I devoured this book and I take back what I said about the "second book blues." Lauren Oliver is smart. She changed up the formatting of the second book to keep me in suspense. Lena, now in the Wilds, is seen in both flashback and present so it is jarring in the beginning and then it is a great suspense tool. It took me all day to cook Sunday dinner because I needed to fit the cooking in between chapters. And the ending. . . I saw it coming, but it was still good when it came. 

Henni

Author/Illustrator: Miss Lasko-Gross

Publication Date:  January 20, 2015

Publisher: Z2 Comics

Electronic copy furnished by: Net Galley with permission of the publisher.

In short: this graphic novel is about a young girl named Henni who lives in a fantastical dystopia where old traditions and religion threaten to destroy Henni's natural curiosity and wondering about the nature of society, gender, equality and fairness. As she matures, she must leave her community to search for the truth and adventure that she knows is just beyond the boundaries of her life.

My thoughts: I really don't like the cover (above) because she looks scared and alarmed which I think does not accurately portray Henni's nature. She is more calm, brave, and in control than this first cover suggests. The copy that I have shows this cover:

I am not sure if I like this cover either, but at least it shows the ferocity that is Henni. I want to talk about my favorite line and then I have more questions than answers which is never a bad thing after finishing a book, but they are wonderings nonetheless.

No one can know the contents of another's mind - Henni

I like this line because it explains her tenacity and her ability to keep searching and not be complacent or compliant.

Here are my questions:

• What was the significance of the Phoenix fly scene?
• Specifically, who is the man who burns his ring into her hand with the phoenix fly blood?
• What is the connection between the man, the ring, the book with the same insignia at the end and Henni's father?
• Is the man her father?
• Does she ever find her father or is he really dead?
• What is Henni? Human? Animal? Some people look human but she has these ears and when she goes to the second village, she is deemed naked and given clothes to put on over her "fur?" 
• What happened to her sister?
• Does her sister miss her and regret turning Henni in?

Divergent (Book 1 of Divergent Trilogy)

Author: Veronica Roth
Paperback: 576 pages
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (February 2012)
Genre: YA dystopian fantasy
Rating: 5 out of 5

In short:  from book description
In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

My thoughts:
Beatrice, or Tris as she's known once she makes her choice is actually a Divergent, someone who shows an affinity for several different factions, which for some reason makes her dangerous to all factions and must be hidden for as long as possible.

Like Katniss, this is another strong teen protagonist who is small but mighty, able to kick butt while learning a lot about themselves. As usual in YA books now, the adults are not to be trusted. Trust yourself only. Although it fits the formula of many other YA books, this is still a good ride.

2nd book: Insurgent 

Maze Runner Series by James Dasher

Publisher: Random House Books
Publication dates:  10/6/09 (Maze); 10/12/10 (Scorch); 10/11/11 (Death)
E-books


Synopsis: 
Thomas wakes up in an elevator that takes him to a world he knows as the Glade filled with boys who are trying to find their way out of a maze. Although his memory has been wiped, something seems familiar to him, and when an unexpected girl shows up the next day, the routine of the Glade changes drastically and Thomas is in a race to figure out how to leave the maze before more people die.

The Scorch Trials and Death Cure follow Maze Runner through this dystopian world.

My thoughts:
I really shouldn't say this as a predominately YA reader, but I am so irritated by trilogies. The only thing worse than a trilogy is a series that goes longer than three books. It's predominately why although I have the hardcover of Maze Runner from 2009, I refused to read it.

This has nothing to do with the author. If you look at the publication dates, Dasher does a great job of pumping out his books on time. Still, this series is a horrible series if you actually had to wait for the books to be published (another reason why I took so long to start Hunger Games and Twilight).

These books will grab readers who are searching for the next Hunger Games. Dystopian, ecological ruin, action, young protagonists, evil adults. . .you know the formula - it works in this series too.

Manga Friday: The Girl Who Owned a City

Author: O.T. Nelson, adapted by Dan Jolley
Illustrator: Joelle Jones; coloring Jenn Manley Lee
Publisher: Graphic Universe (April 2012)
Paperback: 128 pages
Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary:

After a virus wipes out everyone over 12 on Earth and turns them to dust, 10-year-old Lisa must take care of her younger brother and figure out how to survive in this new world. Not only does she have to feed and house them, but she needs to keep the roving gangs from looting her hard-won supplies. 

My thoughts:

This is a graphic novel adaptation of a 1975 novel by O.T. Nelson. Because of that, the story line is a bit dated in that tween and teen readers are a much more sophisticated lot, and although they like to read about paranormal, the characters need to be realistic, and they want their stories to reflect some kind of learning on the part of the protagonist. 

Still, the quality of the illustrations by Joelle Jones lends modern elements to a 37-year-old story, and the timing is right to join the dystopian YA market that is always looking for the next Katniss, but for me, the test of a good graphic novel is 1) will I be able to "sell" it to my reluctant readers and 2) will it make them want to read the longer novel that the GN stemmed from?

 What seems to date this character is that in recent dystopian YA novels, authors have been using the YA novel as a platform to teach social mores and ethics through their characters. The selfishness and 2-dimensional aspect of Lisa and the fact that she doesn't seem to grow or learn from her mistake bothered me until I realized that she's supposed to be 10-11. A 10 year old is not able to make the kinds of unselfish decisions asked for in this situation. However, since she's not drawn like a tween character, readers will accept her as older than she really is. Since teens like reading about characters that are their age or older, this is a great "sell" for YA readers, although I'm not sure if they will be willing to read the 204 page original novel.

To recap: the illustrations are enough to sell it, and even at 132 pages, it's a good deal for dystopian and GN buffs. 

Source: ARC provided by Net Galley (dot) com for an honest review

The Water Wars

Author: Cameron Stracher
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire (Jan. 2011)
Reading level: YA
Rating: 5 out of 5

Synopsis:
Siblings Vera and Will live in a dystopian future somewhere in the midwest where people have done so much damage to the earth that the clean water sources have been dried up and remaining sources of water are controlled by governments and the Bluewater corporation. Vera befriends a wealthy teen, Kai, who promises something the kids can only dream of: enough clean water to drink so that their perpetual thirst is satisfied. But when Kai and his father, a water driller, is kidnapped, Vera and Will set out to rescue them. Along the way they are befriended by pirates, captured by environmental terrorists and imprisoned by the shady Bluewater corporation.

My thoughts:
Reluctant readers who enjoyed Hunger Games will enjoy this fast-paced plot. It's a fast read with a feisty female protagonist, and the adults are just sidekicks to the teens.  

Life As We Knew It

An asteroid is coming towards the moon and Miranda, her mom and brother join the block party outside to watch it when BOOM the asteroid knocks the moon off its orbit and brings it closer to earth causing major climate changes in mere seconds. Through her diary entries, I followed 16-year-old Miranda and her family's struggle for survival in their small town in Pennsylvania. This book is like The Road without as much violence and depravity.

The true sign of a good read was that I knew I had to be at work but I started it at school during SSR (silent sustained reading) time (15 minutes x 2 periods), then kept reading it until I finally finished at 1:30 in the morning, knowing my alarm was going off at 5.  Why did I torture myself? The premise was plausible to my non-scientific imagination. While reading it in the middle of a Hawaii "grayspell" with skies like "Reynold's Wrap" I felt like I was with Miranda - I had a desire to turn on every light, wash my hair with hot water to take away the soot and cook large batches of food for canning. In fact, for dessert I took out all the half-eaten cartons of ice cream and I gathered my family and sat around the television eating mindlessly until the ice cream was gone. After all, If I have to live in a post-apocalyptic world, I will miss electricity, television and ice cream.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
This is not a new story - we've seen this type of dystopia before. In fact it's like Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" combined with Stephen King's The Running Man, except that you have a strong, likable 16 year old girl as the protagonist (Katniss), who even at her most ruthless, is still a sympathetic character, as well as a small little love story amidst the violence of the Hunger Games - where 24 teens enter the arena and gladiator style, only one can exit alive. The hidden cameras follow the teens as they hide, try to survive and even kill each other off for the ultimate prize of returning home to a life of luxury and ease.

Katniss lives in a postapocalyptic world where the Capitol, now the rulers of what once was the United States demands a tribute from each of its territories: two children to be used as gladiators in a televised fight to the death. Katniss, from what was once Appalachia, volunteers to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games. Her teammate, and fellow competitor, Peeta, is the character that brings humanity to this book, whereas Katniss, as a poacher and sole food provider for her family, possesses the cold, calculating skill to survive. It's a credit to the author that although Katniss manipulates the game to her advantage, she is still the kind of character that we want to root for and support. Although she doesn't always know her heart, I had faith that she would do the humane thing for Peeta, and for the most part, she did.

The sequel, Catching Fire, will be out in September.