Author: Lisa Godfrees

Lisa Godfrees is fascinated with creatures that don't exist, especially jackalopes. Cactus cats are a close second. When not searching for elusive mythological beasts, she types middle-grade and YA fantasy. Read her short stories for free at www.LisaGodfrees.com.
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Mark of the Raven by Morgan Busse

Mark of the Raven is the first book in a new YA fantasy. 

Synopsis

Lady Selene is the heir to the Great House of Ravenwood and the secret family gift of dreamwalking. As a dreamwalker, she can enter a person’s dreams and manipulate their greatest fears or desires. For the last hundred years, the Ravenwood women have used their gift of dreaming for hire to gather information or to assassinate.

As she discovers her family’s dark secret, Selene is torn between upholding her family’s legacy–a legacy that supports her people–or seeking the true reason behind her family’s gift.

Her dilemma comes to a head when she is tasked with assassinating the one man who can bring peace to the nations, but who will also bring about the downfall of her own house.

One path holds glory and power, and will solidify her position as Lady of Ravenwood. The other path holds shame and execution. Which will she choose? And is she willing to pay the price for the path chosen?

Pros

  • I love the idea that there are seven kingdoms, each with its own secret power. The world’s history interacts with the kingdoms’ special abilities to create political maneuverings that added richness to the story.
  • Selene is a great character. She has so much internal conflict around becoming who she is meant to be. At times dark, the overall book is uplifting.
  • There’s a scene in chapter 14 that really spoke to me. Damien is practicing his special abilities (gift) to commune with the Light (the world’s deity). Reading this scene reminded me to use my own gifts for my Creator. How easy it is to forget that the abilities we have are God-given and to be used for his glory. The great thing about Christian fiction is that it can inspire you to be better, and that’s one thing this book has done for me.
  • That doesn’t mean that Mark of the Raven is a preachy book. Quite the opposite. Morgan Busse has created a world of dark and light, where gifts can be used as they were meant to be or twisted for selfish reasons, just like our world today. It shows us that good people can do bad things for what seems to be the right reason, and sometimes it’s hard to find the right path.
  • And the ending! I can’t wait for book 2. Bring it on. Now! .

Cons

  • The story gets a little dark in places. It’s necessary for the story, though, and compelling.

Final Word

Highly Recommended.

Discussion Questions

 
  1. Each kingdom had its own special gift. If you could choose one, which would you have, and why?
  2. Selene had to choose between living up to her mother’s expectations and following her heart. Have you ever experienced a time when what you wanted was different than what your parents wanted for you? What did you do?
  3. Selene did things she didn’t want to in order to protect her sisters from having to do them. Was she right in sacrificing herself in order to protect her sisters, or should she have refused to compromise herself in order to protect them?
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Fawkes by Nadine Brandes

Fawkes is a stand-alone YA historical fantasy. 

Synopsis

Thomas Fawkes is turning to stone, and the only cure to the Stone Plague is to join his father’s plot to assassinate the king of England.

Silent wars leave the most carnage. The wars that are never declared, but are carried out in dark alleys with masks and hidden knives. Wars where color power alters the natural rhythm of 17th century London. And when the king calls for peace, no one listens until he finally calls for death.

But what if death finds him first?

Keepers think the Igniters caused the plague. Igniters think the Keepers did it. But all Thomas knows is that the Stone Plague infecting his eye is spreading. And if he doesn’t do something soon, he’ll be a lifeless statue. So when his Keeper father, Guy Fawkes, invites him to join the Gunpowder Plot—claiming it will put an end to the plague—Thomas is in.

The plan: use 36 barrels of gunpowder to blow up the Igniter King.

The problem: Doing so will destroy the family of the girl Thomas loves. But backing out of the plot will send his father and the other plotters to the gallows. To save one, Thomas will lose the other.

No matter Thomas’s choice, one thing is clear: once the decision is made and the color masks have been put on, there’s no turning back.

Pros

  • A fresh spin on history. As a homeschool parent, I could see assigning this story when studying this period of history and then challenging students to write a report comparing the story’s events against the historical record.
  • The author uses magic (color power) as an allegory to represent the different ways historical English religions (Catholic and Reformed Protestant) interacted with God. I love the way her character, Thomas, searches for truth and ultimately learns that God desires a relationship with us first and foremost.
  • I enjoyed the mystery behind the Stone Plague. It added more complexity to the plot and was a clever concept.

Cons

  • It took me a long time to warm up to the main character (Thomas Fawkes). I almost stopped reading the book because I didn’t like him or identify with him. That would have been a mistake, because I loved him by the end of the book. But be warned – it might take you a bit to like him too.

Final Word

Worth Reading.

Discussion Questions

 
  1. The Gunpowder Plot is a real historic event. Do a little research and see how the author changed the events to fit the story.
  2. Emma Areben and Guy Fawkes both refused to be seen without their masks, but both for different reasons. Have you ever wished you could hide behind a mask? Who do you allow to see the real you?
  3. The Igniters and Keepers had different views of the White Light. Which viewpoint was correct? Or was the answer somewhere in between?
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Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Shiver is the first in a YA urban fantasy trilogy. 

Synopsis

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can’t seem to live without.

Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It’s her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

Pros

  • A fresh take on a werewolf story: the idea that temperature causes them to shift and that newly made wolves are less stable in either form creates.
  • Sam and Grace are both likeable characters.
  • The author is an incredible writer.

Cons

  • Shiver, the first in the trilogy, does not have as complicated, and therefore as interesting, a plot as the rest of the series. It focuses mostly on Sam and Grace’s romance. So romance readers will really enjoy it, but those of us who prefer romance on the side will feel it reads slowly.
  • Grace has absentee parents who don’t pay much attention to what she does. Because of this, she’s able to have Sam spend the night in her room for the entirety of the novel. While their relationship is chaste at the beginning, it does eventually in sex eventually (not explicit). Sex does not become the focus of their romance, although Sam and Grace have trouble being separated from one another. If you didn’t like Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, you probably will not like Shiver.

Final Word

I enjoyed the series, but not enough to rant and rave about it.
 

Discussion Questions

 
  1. On a scale of 1 (not) to 10 (very), how strict are your parents?
  2. Grace almost died when she was young. Do her parents act the way you would expect in light of this event?
  3. Would you want Isabel as a friend? Why or why not?
  4. Is it okay to have your boyfriend/girlfriend sleep in your room at night if “nothing happens”? Explain your opinion.
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Court of Fives by Kate Elliot

The Court of Fives is the first in a YA fantasy trilogy. The worldbuilding is reminiscent of Ancient Egypt and the Roman Empire.
 

Synopsis

On the Fives court, everyone is equal.

And everyone is dangerous.

Jessamy’s life is a balance between acting like an upper-class Patron and dreaming of the freedom of the Commoners. But away from her family, she can be whomever she wants when she sneaks out to train for the Fives, an intricate, multilevel athletic competition that offers a chance for glory to the kingdom’s best competitors.

Then Jes meets Kalliarkos, and an improbable friendship between the two Fives competitors—one of mixed race and the other a Patron boy—causes heads to turn. When Kal’s powerful, scheming uncle tears Jes’s family apart, she’ll have to test her new friend’s loyalty and risk the vengeance of a royal clan to save her mother and sisters from certain death.

In this imaginative escape into an enthralling new world, World Fantasy Award finalist Kate Elliott’s first young adult novel weaves an epic story of a girl struggling to do what she loves in a society suffocated by rules of class and privilege.

Pros:

 
  • The premise is unusual. I didn’t know about the Egyptian and Roman influence when I read the first book, but I saw the influence in the cultures.
  • The multiculturalism of the world allows the author to explore identity, both personal and racial. This is at the heart of the novel, both for the main character and the country in which she lives.
  • Unexpected and twisty plot.

Cons:

  • The story didn’t go where I thought it was going to go. I expected most of the conflict to be about Jessamy and her competing in the trials. It’s not that the story was bad, just that on some level, I didn’t get the story I was hoping for. In that way, it was both more and less than I expected. Not really a con, per se, but worth noting.
  • The bad guy is really bad. He epitomizes the evil to which man will stoop for his own ambitions. Again, not necessarily a con, but worth noting. For younger YA readers, some of the events may be disturbing.

     

Final Word

 
I enjoyed the series. In fact, two of the three books I bought in hardback which is unusual for me. ($$$) The political intrigue and the fact I couldn’t necessarily predict what would happen next made me devour the stories.
 

Discussion Questions

 
  1. From what you know of Ancient Egypt, how is Efea culture similar different? 
  2. How do the Saroese resemble the Romans? What is different?
  3. If you had to choose a society to be part of, which would you choose? The Efean society ruled by women, or the Saroese society ruled by men? Why?
  4. Which culture should rule a country? The original one, or the stronger one? (Keep in mind the American Indians when you answer the question.)
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Hunter by Mercedes Lackey

Hunter is the first in a YA fantasy trilogy set in post-apocalyptic America.
 

Synopsis

They came after the Diseray. Some were terrors ripped from our collective imaginations, remnants of every mythology across the world. And some were like nothing anyone had ever dreamed up, even in their worst nightmares.

Monsters.

Long ago, the barriers between our world and the Otherworld were ripped open, and it’s taken centuries to bring back civilization in the wake of the catastrophe. Now, the luckiest Cits live in enclosed communities, behind walls that keep them safe from the hideous creatures fighting to break through. Others are not so lucky.

To Joyeaux Charmand, who has been a Hunter in her tight-knit mountain community since she was a child, every Cit without magic deserves her protection from dangerous Othersiders. Then she is called to Apex City, where the best Hunters are kept to protect the most important people.

Joy soon realizes that the city’s powerful leaders care more about luring Cits into a false sense of security than protecting them. More and more monsters are getting through the barriers, and the close calls are becoming too frequent to ignore. Yet the Cits have no sense of how much danger they’re in—to them, Joy and her corps of fellow Hunters are just action stars they watch on TV.

When an act of sabotage against Joy takes an unbearable toll, she uncovers a terrifying conspiracy in the city. There is something much worse than the usual monsters infiltrating Apex. And it may be too late to stop them…

Pros:

 
  • The premise is unusual. Unlike most post-apocalyptic fiction, this one has fairies, dragons, red caps, goblins–all your basic fantasy creatures, and they’re all evil. Coupled with cool technology, all the aspects meld together to make a fresh sort of dystopian fiction.
  • The story is rich in conflict – personal, familial, political. All of these work together to create a rich mystery that a reader will keep turning the pages to uncover. 
  • The characters are likable, especially Joy. You root for her and her menagerie of magical dogs (which are really cool).

Cons:

 
  • The writing is clunky in places. But story is king, and this is a great story. Despite my inner editor wanting to reword things, I pushed through to the end, but this and the following are the reason I’m rating the series as 4-star instead of 5-star.
  • My chief complaint is the anti-Christian overtones. “Christers” are responsible for the nuclear war that toasted humanity. Apparently some went rogue and thought the advent of the Rapture needed some help. (OK, that could be plausible with some deranged fanatics, BUT…) Christians are depicted as ignorant, misogynistic, and misguided. Worst of all is the implication and their end-times beliefs were both wrong and misguided. While the main character makes friends with a Christer, she is seen as the tolerant one. He’s portrayed as a good, moral guy with misguided belief. You really like his character despite these “flaws,” but all three books in the series take potshots at Christianity.

Final Word

 
I enjoyed the series, despite its anti-Christian barbs. The third book, advertised as the thrilling conclusion, left a few unanswered questions so I could see another book being added at some point. If it were, I would read it.
 

Discussion Questions

 
  1. Do you think books that are anti-Christian should be avoided? 
  2. Have you ever been confronted by friends or strangers who have made jokes or insulted your faith? What did you do?
  3. Do you prefer fantasies where creatures such as dragons, vampire, and fairies are good or bad? Why?
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The Forgetting by Sharon Cameron

The Forgetting is the first in a dystopian series. Fans and readers of Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy or Sabaa Tahir’s An Ember in the Ashes will enjoy this book. Recommended.
 

Synopsis

 

What isn’t written, isn’t remembered. Even your crimes.

Nadia lives in the city of Canaan, where life is safe and structured, hemmed in by white stone walls and no memory of what came before. But every twelve years the city descends into the bloody chaos of the Forgetting, a day of no remorse, when each person’s memories – of parents, children, love, life, and self – are lost. Unless they have been written.

In Canaan, your book is your truth and your identity, and Nadia knows exactly who hasn’t written the truth. Because Nadia is the only person in Canaan who has never forgotten.

 

Pros:

 
  • I loved the premise. What if everyone around you forgot everything about their history every 12 years but you? How would that affect people? Society?
  • The story is rich in conflict – personal, familial, political. All of these work together to create a rich mystery that a reader will keep turning the pages to uncover. And, to me, the reveal was worth the read.
  • The romance, conflict, and topics were suitable for a YA audience. Nothing too extreme, violent, or over sexualized.
  • While there is at least one other novel in the series, the book is complete as its own story. No cliffhanger ending, just a general interest to perhaps read more about what happens one day.

Cons:

 
  • Perhaps a little slow to start.

Final Word

 
I like this author. I’ve read another one of her books (Rook) and enjoyed it. I will continue reading this series and consider picking up some of her other books.
 

Discussion Questions

 
  1. What would you do if you knew you were going to forget everything and everyone in six months? 
  2. If you had to keep a journal like the people in the story, would reading what you wrote about yourself help you know who you are? What would you leave out? What might you embellish? [Consider trying to write a journal entry about your day or week for this purpose.]
  3. Do you think Jonathan made the right decision in not remembering his past? 
  4. If you could go forget a time period from your past, would you? If you could remember something from your past, what would it be?
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Secondborn by Amy A. Bartol

Secondborn is the first in a YA dystopian series that was offered as a Kindle First Read for July 2017. Fans and readers of Victoria Aveyard’s Red Queen series will enjoy this book. May not be appropriate for younger YA due to sexual content (see Cons).
 

Synopsis

 

Firstborns rule society. Secondborns are the property of the government. Thirdborns are not tolerated. Long live the Fates Republic.

On Transition Day, the second child in every family is taken by the government and forced into servitude. Roselle St. Sismode’s eighteenth birthday arrives with harsh realizations: she’s to become a soldier for the Fate of Swords military arm of the Republic during the bloodiest rebellion in history, and her elite firstborn mother is happy to see her go.

Televised since her early childhood, Roselle’s privileged upbringing has earned her the resentment of her secondborn peers. Now her decision to spare an enemy on the battlefield marks her as a traitor to the state.

But Roselle finds an ally—and more—in fellow secondborn conscript Hawthorne Trugrave. As the consequences of her actions ripple throughout the Fates Republic, can Roselle create a destiny of her own? Or will her Fate override everything she fights for—even love?

 

Pros:

 
  • I enjoyed the storyworld. The Fates have a similar feel to Divergent’s different classes. That all the buildings are cement trees is fascinating. 
  • The story is rich in conflict – personal, familial, political. I’m interested to see where the series will go.
  • The main character is likeable despite her upbringing. You root for her and respect her at the same time.

Cons:

 
  • Oversexualized for my taste. The first time Roselle kisses a boy she happens to get naked with him in a shower. The scenes are a bit steamy (pun intended). They don’t have sex in the story, but I wouldn’t want my younger YA daughters to read this.
  • There’s a gap of several months in the middle of the book. The effect is jarring. I would have preferred a transition chapter or something.
  • Our heroine is on the unbelievable side. She’s basically indestructible, gorgeous, and amazingly intelligent all at the same time.

Final Word

 
I enjoyed the book. It was a solid read and I might pick up the next one(s) when it comes out, but it won’t be my first choice among the myriad of cleaner dystopian YA in the marketplace.
 

Discussion Questions

 
  1. What is your birth order? Would you be a firstborn, secondborn, or something else? Which do you think is the best position? 
  2. What do you think of Roselle’s relationship with her mother and brother? How might things have turned out differently if her mother showed her more compassion?
  3. Which of the Fates would you most like to be in and why?
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King’s Cage by Victoria Aveyard

 
King’s Cage is the third installment of the bestselling Red Queen series. Fans and readers of Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy or Sabaa Tahir’s An Ember in the Ashes will enjoy this book. Recommended with reservations. May not be appropriate for younger YA due to sexual content (see Cons).
 

Synopsis

 
In our distant future, nuclear war has changed our world. A mutation gave rise to Silvers – people with silver blood and amazing abilities. Now in power, Silvers subjugate Reds (normal people with red blood and no abilities). Then Mare Barrow arrives: a Red with the ability to control electricity.
In King’s Cage, she is the prisoner of mentally unstable King Maven.
 

Pros:

 
  • Victoria Aveyard has created a rich world full of conflict.
  • Mare’s character learns that pushing people away is a mistake. This makes her more likeable in King’s Cage.
 

Cons:

 
  • King’s Blood is not the end of the series. To some extent, it reads like a bridge novel.
  • The story contains other POV characters, such as Cameron and Evangeline. I enjoyed getting inside Evangeline’s head, but Cameron seemed an odd choice.
  • The author has an LGBTQ+ agenda that becomes evident in this book. One of the characters is a lesbian and there is a brief bedroom scene with her girlfriend. While not descriptive, it made my 12-year-old uncomfortable.
  • [spoiler alert] Mare and Cal begin a sexual relationship. When Farley is having her baby, she convinces the nurse to give Mare the equivalent of a morning-after pill.
 

Final Word

 
Conservative parents should be aware of the sexuality aspects in King’s Cage.
 
I read it after my daughter, so she was interested in my reaction to the lesbian characters and the fact Mare and Cal had sex. Both scenes made her uncomfortable. We were able to discuss authors’ agendas and whether these aspects were integral to the story.
 

Discussion Questions

 
  1. What kind of character is Maven? How did Maven’s mother contribute to making him into the King he becomes? Do you like him or not? Why?
  2. What new things did we learn about Evangeline in King’s Cage? Do they make you like her more or less? Why?
  3. How does Mare and Cal’s relationship evolve over the course of the series? How do you feel about it?
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The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex

 

The True Meaning of Smekday and its sequel Smek for President are comedic science fiction romps for middle school students. These are the books that inspired the animated movie Home, which is a family favorite. If you haven’t seen it, you should.

Synopsis

The Smek books follow the adventures of Gratuity Tucci, her cat Pig, and an alien name J.Lo, whose species has taken over planet Earth and kidnapped Tip’s mom. The first book is set on Earth, the second on another planet.

Pros:

  • While the Smek books are the basis for the movie, that’s all they are. The stories quickly diverge from the movie so the readers can be surprised by what’s coming. The characters are similar enough that you feel like you’re reading companion novels.
  • The book is fun and funny. The antics of J.Lo are sure to make you smile.
  • The book is written in the format of a school assignment, so children will identify with the personal essay form.
  • Boys and girls should both enjoy the book.

Cons:

  • While I enjoyed both books, I didn’t like the mom-character in the book at first. (She gets better).
  • I must admit that I liked the movie version of the story better, but the books are still worth reading.

Final Word

 

Recommended for a fun read. Definitely a series of the home (or school) library.

Discussion Questions

  1. While the movie Home and the book The True Meaning of Smekday started similarly, the stories themselves ended up going in different directions. What did you like better about the movie? What did you like better about the book?
  2. If a catastrophe separated you from your family, what would you do? Who would you go to for help?
  3. What did you think was the funniest part of the book?
  4. Who was your favorite character, and why?
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All of the Above by Shelley Pearsall

 

All of the Above is a contemporary, based on a true story, middle-grade novel dealing with inner city kids and their hardships.

Synopsis

Based on a true story, All of the Above is the delightful and suspenseful story of four inner city students and their quest to build the world’s largest tetrahedron.

Literary Awards:

  • Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award Nominee (2008)
  • James Cook Book Award Nominee (2007)
  • Missouri Truman Readers Award Nominee (2009)

Pros:

  • Readers will learn a little about tetrahedrons and a lot about hardships some children experience in middle school (neglect, single parents, foster care, employment, vandalism, bullying).
  • The book is interspersed with recipes and multiple points of view (POV) from adults to the kids themselves.
  • Ultimately, the book is about perseverance, community, and learning empathy.

Cons:

  • My seventh grader didn’t much care for the story. She felt it was predictable and she couldn’t really relate to the characters. In her words, it was “boring but ok.”
  • Deeper character development would have made the story more compelling and less flat.

Final Word

My daughter’s school library bought 100 copies of this book and wrapped them and hid them around the school. Once a student finds a copy, they are to read it and pass it to another student. Once they’ve read the book, they get various prizes. What an amazing strategy to get kids to read! I just wished they had chosen a more compelling book.

“Boring but OK.”

Discussion Questions

  1. Since discussion questions are included in the back of the book, encourage the students to put themselves in the place of the different characters of the book. What would they do if they were in James Harris III, Rondell, Sharice, or Marcel’s position? Do they know kids like this?