Hello all!

I didn’t mean to take a two month hiatus but it seems that’s what happened.

I’m so sorry! So many book reviews you all have missed out on during my absence. Not to worry, I will get them posted soon 🙂

In June I went to the SCBWI Arkansas conference which was a lot of fun and I met great people and wonderful agents and editors. And Little Rock, Arkansas is the most adorable town!

And now I present a new review! (This review appeared last month in my newspaper column.)

The Bone Queen (2017, Candlewick Press, Young Adult High Fantasy)

From the publisher:

After being seduced into sorcery by an agent of the Dark, the promising Bard Cadvan of Lirigon recklessly unleashed the terrible Bone Queen, bringing destruction down upon Annar. Cast out of the Schools of Barding for his crime, Cadvan now lives in exile, burdened by memories of his dealings with the Dark. At his former home, Cadvan’s mentor, Nelac, and his rival, Dernhil, begin to suspect that the Bone Queen may yet lurk in Annar, and a young Bard named Selmana is plagued by an ominous presence and an unsettling new ability to step between worlds. With darkness gathering and Bards giving in to fear and paranoia, a guilt-ridden Cadvan must once again earn the Bards’ trust and Selmana must gain control of her newfound powers if they are to bring peace to the living and the dead. Fans of the Books of Pellinor will savor this glimpse into Cadvan’s past, and readers new to Alison Croggon’s intricately built world will relish The Bone Queen as a stand-alone epic of light, dark, magic, and redemption.
Review:

The Bone Queen, written by Alison Croggon, is the prequel to her highly successful Books of Pellinor series. Supposedly, the reader doesn’t need to be familiar with or have read the series in order to understand this book, but I do think it would help to have read them. While this book can stand alone, a reader familiar with the world will likely be more drawn in than a reader being introduced for the first time. The writing is beautiful and descriptive and very much traditional high fantasy which will not appeal to every reader. I had a hard time getting into this book as I was unfamiliar with the series, but once Selmana’s storyline took off, I became more engaged. The characters are interesting and well-developed and the storyline is complex, but again, this is high fantasy so the naming of people and places as well as the story-telling style will not connect with all readers.

Fans of the Books of Pellinor or fans of high fantasy will enjoy this book, while others might have a hard time getting through. A beautifully written, epic tale arriving just in time for summer.

3 stars

Thank you to Candlewick Press for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.