Review: Insignia

Insignia 
by S. J. Kincaid

Book Description:
The earth is in the middle of WWIII. The planet’s natural resources are almost gone, and the war is being fought to control the assets of the solar system. The enemy is winning.

The salvation may be Tom Raines. Tom doesn’t seem like a hero. He’s a short fourteen-year-old with bad skin. But he has the virtual-reality gaming skills that make him a phenom behind the controls of the battle drones.

As a new member of the Intrasolar Forces, Tom’s life completely changes. Suddenly, he’s someone important. He has new opportunities, friends, and a shot at having a girlfriend. But there’s a price to pay...

Review: 

Have you enjoyed books like Ender's Game, Epic, Feed, or Ready Player One?  Did you love the movie "Starship Troopers?"  Are you excited to see "Ender's Game" on the big screen this November?  Then this is another GREAT book choice for you!

This book may be on the longer side, but you would never know it once you start reading.  It is fast-paced and will totally suck you in.  I couldn't stop reading once I started!  The characters are interesting, the world is startling familiar, yet believably futuristic, and as soon as I finished I requested the second book.  

Video games. Giant fighting robots.  Evil corporations.  

Mind control.  Devoted friends.  

A winning combination. 

Review: City of a Thousand Dolls

City of a Thousand Dolls
by Miriam Forster
The Bhinian Empire, book one

Book Description:
Nisha was abandoned at the gates of the City of a Thousand Dolls when she was just a little girl. Now sixteen, she lives on the grounds of the isolated estate, where orphan girls apprentice as musicians, healers, courtesans, and, if the rumors are true, assassins. She makes her way as Matron's errand girl, her closest companions the mysterious cats that trail her shadow. Only when she begins a forbidden flirtation with the city's handsome young courier does she let herself imagine a life outside the walls. Until one by one, girls around her start to die.

Before she becomes the next victim, Nisha decides to uncover the secrets that surround the girls' deaths. But by getting involved, Nisha jeopardizes not only her own future in the City of a Thousand Dolls—but also her life.

Review: 

I really enjoyed this book. Forster introduces a new world where the eastern influences of our Asian cultures are highly evident but the fact that the world is also completely cut off from anywhere else gives it its own unique presence. There also used to be magic in this world, though it has now disappeared...

Nisha is an interesting main character. While there were moments that I grew somewhat frustrated because she could not see what was happening when I had already figured things out, I have to give her credit for her reactions once she did. This is not a girl to take things lying down. She refuses to let others decide her life. She is gutsy, bold, independent, and her stubbornness and loyalty take her a long way. She also has a strict sense of right and wrong that I highly admire. I cannot wait to see where the second book in the series will take her.

Reminder - HUNGER GAMES training session!!

Would you survive a fight to the DEATH?

Join us for the HUNGER GAMES training session

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Grades 6 - 12

Review: First Kill

First Kill
by Heather Brewer
The Slayer Chronicles, book one

Book Description:
Joss McMillan’s perfect life crashes down the night he witnesses his sister’s murder — at the hands of a vampire. He then finds out his family’s secret heritage: They are part of the Slayer Society, a group whose mission is to rid the world of vampires. Joss is their new recruit. As Joss trains, bent on seeking revenge for his sister, he discovers powers that could make him the youngest, strongest Slayer in history. But there is a traitor in the Society, one whose identity would shake Joss to the core . . . if the traitor doesn’t kill him first.

Review:

I have to admit that I have not yet read The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod series. I have always wanted to check out Heather Brewer's writing style, though, since the Vlad Tod books are so popular now, and this gave me the perfect place to start.

I very much enjoyed the story about Joss becoming a vampire slayer. I found the Slayer Society and their rules to be fascinating, and I hope to find out more about the larger Slayer population in book two. Knowing that Joss' uncle, Abraham, was being so tough on him because he was hesitant to have Joss become a Slayer, made things a little easier to read when the training became brutal.

I felt was somewhat jarring was Joss' tone, at times. For a thirteen year old, he had some very sophisticated inner monologues. His contemplations felt overly mature at times, but then again, he was supposed to be an avid reader and kind of nerdy, so I suppose that fit... For me, he waivered between 13 and 20 in tone, but that may not at all bother other readers. I wonder if Vladimir Tod is the same?

I will be very curious to see if as this series continues it intersects with The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod.