Reviews by Tag: magic

Teen Review
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

By Laini Taylor
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Lisa J.
Aug 14, 2021

Meet Karou. She is a 17-year-old art student living in Prague, loves going out for goulash with her friend Zuzana, and spends an excessive amount of time avoiding her nightmare of an ex-boyfriend. But there’s more — Karou was raised by demon-like chimaera, uses tiny beads to make wishes that really do come true, and runs errands with magic portals that take her over the entire world. However, when mysterious black handprints start appearing on doorways around the world and winged strangers make themselves known, Karou is swept up into a conflict much larger than anything she’s ever known.

Teen Review
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy

By Richelle Mead
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Taylor E.
Aug 13, 2021

Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy, the first book in a series of the same name, was excellent. After running away from school, Lissa, a Moroi princess, and her unofficial guardian/best friend, Rose, are caught and forced to return to St. Vladimir's Academy. There, the two girls must figure out who's after Lissa, all while trying to navigate a high school filled with vampires.

Teen Review
Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim

Spin the Dawn

By Elizabeth Lim
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Lisa J.
Jul 30, 2021

It’s a shame Maia wasn’t born as a boy. She has the makings of one of the best tailors in all of A’landi — she spins silk into the finest thread, weaves gossamer cloth that almost floats in its delicacy, and embroiders scenes that seem to dance with life — but as a girl, she is destined not for greatness as a tailor, but for marriage. However, when her elderly father is summoned to the palace to compete against eleven other tailors for the position of imperial tailor, Maia assumes the identity of her brother Keton and travels to the palace in her father’s stead.

Teen Review
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

By J.K. Rowling
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Shreya A.
Jul 28, 2021

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, written by J.K. Rowling, is the second book in the Harry Potter series. It’s a compelling book with diverse characters and I couldn’t put it down. Harry and his friends try to figure out who is trying to killing the kids at Hogwarts. When word gets out that Harry is Slytherin's heir, everything gets more complicated for him.

Teen Review
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Red Queen

By Victoria Aveyard
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Emma D.
Jul 4, 2021

Red Queen is a Fiction, Fantasy novel by Victoria Aveyard. This book tells the story of a 17-year-old girl, Mare Barrow, in an Alternate reality. In this world, the color of your blood determines whether or not you have superpowers. People with red blood are powerless, and people with silver blood have superpowers. Mare has red blood and lives in a poor town called the Stilts, but when she finds herself working in a silver palace, she discovers that she has a power of her own.

Teen Review
Poisoned by Jennifer Donnelly

Poisoned

By Jennifer Donnelly
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Sarah J.
Jul 3, 2021

Poisoned brings an interesting alternative plot line to the classic fairytale Snow White. Sophie is both compassionate and the heir to her father’s throne. Her stepmother shares different ideas when it comes to ruling. She orders for the hunter to bring back Sophie’s heart. Unlike the traditional tale, the hunter accomplishes his task. Sophie is thankfully saved by many mysterious strangers that she meets along the way. She of course has also saved many creatures of sorts, and many of them return the favor.

Teen Review
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

By J.K. Rowling
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Shreya A.
Jul 1, 2021

This fantasy book by J.K Rowling is one of my favorites. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is about an 11-year-old boy named Harry, who is taken in by his cruel aunt and uncle. One day he gets a letter that changes his life forever. He meets new friends and enemies, and adventures towards his old enemy.  I think the most compelling aspect of this book is when Harry learns about the wizarding world from a big man named Hagrid. I recommend this book to anyone who is willing to explore the land of fantasy.

Teen Review
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

By J.K. Rowling
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by
Sriha P.
Jun 28, 2021

Nineteen years after the Battle of Hogwarts, and a new generation of witches and wizards are born. Albus Severus Potter, the son of Harry Potter, gets put in the house that no one wanted, Slytherin. After this, Albus changed drastically. He has a new attitude and a new friend, Scorpius. But not any Scorpius, Scorpius Malfoy! With this Albus has uncovered secrets and uses time travel to change the past. But, with that comes a lot of problems. Do you think they can fix these problems before Harry, and the golden trio find out?

Teen Review
The Princess and the Hound by Mette Ivie Harrison

The Princess and the Hound

By Mette Ivie Harrison
Star Rating
★★★

Rated by
Micaela R.
Jun 16, 2021

Prince George has tried his entire life to be like his father, but in his magic, he will always be like his mother. Animal magic, the ability to understand and talk to animals, has never been officially outlawed by his father, but those with animal magic are rarely left to live in peace, and before her death, George’s mother made it clear that his magic was best left a secret—even from his father. When the king of a rival kingdom offers his daughter, Princess Beatrice, in marriage, George can’t refuse. Princess Beatrice is unlike any woman George has ever met.

Teen Review
Alanna The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce

Alanna: The First Adventure

By Tamora Pierce
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by
Micaela R.
Jun 4, 2021

10-year-old Alanna of Trebond wants to be a knight. Unfortunately, in the land of Tortall, girls of noble birth are sent to the convent to learn the skills they will need as the wives of knights and lords. Her twin brother, Thom, wants to learn to use the powerful magic that they were both born with, but as the only son of the fief of Trebond, Thom must become a knight of the realm. Alanna and Thom trade places, so that Alanna, disguised as a boy, can travel to Corus to become a great knight and Thom can travel to the City of the Gods to study magic.

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