Previous SFF Author: John Wyndham
Fantasy Literature for Young Adults (over the age of 12).
Planet of Blood and Ice by A.J. Hartley
Planet of Blood and Ice (2017) is the first book in A.J. Hartley’s CATHEDRALS OF GLASS series for teens. Hartley is billing this story as Alien meets Lord of the Flies, and I’d say that description is fairly accurate since Planet of Blood and Ice is about a group of teens who must overcome the dangers of a hostile alien environment while struggling to live with each other in a safe and civilized fashion.
May 15th, 2017. Kat Hooper´s rating: 3.5 | A.J. Hartley | Audio, Horror, Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 5 comments |
The White Road of the Moon by Rachel Neumeier
In The White Road of the Moon (2017), a YA high fantasy filled with magic and ghosts, 15 year old orphaned Meridy lives in an isolated mountain village with her aunt and cousins, all of whom despise her (and the feeling is mutual). It’s partly because Meridy’s mother Kamay raised her with a love for books and old languages and stories, partly because Meridy is the daughter of a man her mother never named, who bequeathed Meridy her duskier skin and black eyes,
May 4th, 2017. Tadiana Jones´s rating: 3.5 | Rachel Neumeier | Stand-Alone, Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Lois Lane: Triple Threat by Gwenda Bond
Gwenda Bond’s inimitable LOIS LANE series continues with Lois Lane: Triple Threat (2017), as old threats rear their myriad ugly heads and new experiences bring opportunities for stress, “sports ball,” and flowers. (Don’t worry, it’ll all make sense soon enough.) Each book in this series builds on the previous installments, so even though there’s enough exposition to keep previous events fresh in the reader’s mind, I heavily recommend reading them in chronological order.
May 1st, 2017. Jana Nyman´s rating: 4.5 | Gwenda Bond | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Black Witch by Laurie Forest
In an ironic twist, The Black Witch (2017), a book expressly dedicated to exploring the problem of prejudice and promoting diversity and tolerance, has been accused by many voices of being the very thing it is most devoted to showing as wrong. Words like “offensive,” “racist,” “ableist,” and “homophobic” have been hurled at the author and this book. It’s understandable, because the society and most of the characters depicted in The Black Witch ― including the main character,
April 28th, 2017. Tadiana Jones´s rating: 3.5 | Laurie Forest | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 10 comments |
The Edge of Everything by Jeff Giles
It’s not been the best year for Zoe. What with her father’s death in a caving accident, her neighbour’s disappearance and then the fact that she is brutally attacked with her younger brother in a cabin in the woods, it’s fair to say things have been better. But with the arrival of the mysterious paranormal bounty hunter “X”, everything is about to change.
On the surface, The Edge of Everything might look like your average contemporary YA novel, but it is far darker than many readers will expect.
April 17th, 2017. Ray McKenzie´s rating: 3 | Jeff Giles | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
I was so excited by the premise of Stephanie Garber’s Caraval (2017) that I listed it as one of my most anticipated books of 2017. Word has it that there are already plans to make Caraval into a film and I expect it is going to get a fair amount of hype. I can understand why and yet I find I cannot give it more than three stars. I will attempt to justify the reasons why.
Scarlett spent her childhood dreaming of the magical show called Caraval and its mysterious proprietor,
April 12th, 2017. Katie Burton and Ray McKenzie´s rating: 3 | Stephanie Garber | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 3 comments |
Ashley Poston’s debut novel Geekerella (2017) is definitely not just another Cinderella revision. Classic elements of the familiar story are all present in one shape or another, but Poston brings a distinctly nerd-friendly flair to her tale, and modernizes the characters in ways that turn impossible archetypes into accessible, complicated people.
Danielle “Elle” Wittimer lives with her stepmother and twin stepsisters in a crumbling old Charleston, SC house. Sadly, her mother died when Elle was just four years old,
April 7th, 2017. Jana Nyman´s rating: 4.5 | Ashley Poston | Stand-Alone, Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Magic of Blood and Sea by Cassandra Rose Clarke
Magic of Blood and Sea (2017) combines two of Cassandra Rose Clarke’s novels, The Assassin’s Curse (2012) and The Pirate’s Wish (2013), into one volume. Originally, these novels were published by Strange Chemistry, the YA branch of Angry Robot Books, but the imprint went defunct (as sometimes happens) and the publication rights to their various books were scattered to the four winds. In this particular case,
March 20th, 2017. Jana Nyman and Ruth Arnell´s rating: 4.5 | Cassandra Rose Clarke | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
In Warm Bodies (2010), our world has been overrun by the zombies, and the few humans who are left are fighting a rearguard action. They huddle in walled enclosures, sending out occasional armed expeditions for food and supplies. Regular school classes have fallen by the wayside, replaced by classes and demonstrations on how to best kill a zombie permanently (head shots).
R is a zombie who doesn’t remember his past life, except that his name maybe started with the letter R.
March 14th, 2017. Tadiana Jones´s rating: 4.5 | Isaac Marion | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 4 comments |
Once upon a time fairytale retellings were a rare thing, but nowadays, everyone seems to be doing it. S. Jae-Jones‘ debut, Wintersong (2017), promises a tale of the Goblin King fused with Germanic folklore. So how does Jae-Jones‘ contribution to this over-saturated genre fare?
Wintersong centres around Elisabeth — or Liesl, as she’s known — the unremarkable and “unlovely” eldest daughter of a musician. Like her father, music is the true love of her life,
March 10th, 2017. Ray McKenzie´s rating: 3 | S. Jae-Jones | Stand-Alone, Young Adult | SFF Reviews | 1 comment |
Previous SFF Author: John Wyndham
There were two interesting articles about publishing that I ran across, the first via a link in the second: No…
My pleasure, Robin! And yes, it surely is some kind of an experience, to be sure....
Thanks for the solution to a mystery many decades old. One of my favourite novels, this. Hilariously funny, completely unpredictable,…
Thank you. I’m all caught up. Back to reading Crimson Embers.
Enjoyed your review. I’m reading A War in Crimson Embers and am having the hardest time reminding myself where everybody…