by First Mate Keira

Title: The Dream Maker in the Desert (Society Series, Book 1)
Author: Marie Krushing
Format: Trade Paperback
Page Count: 527
Grade Reading Level: 7+ Grade

Summary: Emmet Watts was an outcast in school. Students labeled him a freak and as a result nobody was brave enough to be his friend. One night while taking out the garbage, Emmet is confronted by a creepy man and rescued from him by a team of others. In the world he’s whisked away to, Emmet learns one thing was true. He was a freak – a superhero with powers as yet undiscovered. He’s given a choice. He can return home, no questions asked or he can stay and discover who he was really meant to be. In the end there was only one choice Emmet could live with…

Why I started this book:

It was offered to LYAF as an ARC which we accepted.

Likes:

  • This is a very boy friendly novel and book series with lots of action, fighting, sparring, and a general cool factor due to superhero powers. It’s even got elements that will make it girl friendly too.
  • Chris is Emmet’s mentor and team captain within the Society and is a pretty awesome guy. He trains Emmet, defends him, sticks up for him, and talks sense into him whenever the occasion demands it. That makes him a very good friend. His superpower is night vision but that also makes darkness his greatest fear.
  • The Kelly/Emmet relationship is cute and I definitely want to see it developed more.
  • It was very cool to see what superheroes feared. I already mentioned Chris' fear, I won't mention the others. You will have to read and find out for yourself.
  • Braeden is a well drawn bad guy. I liked very much how Krushing used his power to manipulate fears and dreams against him at the end. I wasn’t expecting it at all.

Dislikes:

  • While wrapping up the first Society series novel in a very clean and tidy way, I have to wonder who will be running the Dark Ones next? I can think of two from those mentioned already in the series, but they were followers first, it might be hard to reconcile them as leaders in the next book.
  • Kenny is the standard YA school bully. I feel he needs a little more to his character. He’s not really a threat and is drawn in a rather pathetic light as his arrogance and entitlement make him delusional. There’s no way right now he’d stand a chance against Emmet ever yet he keeps picking (verbal) fights. I want him to get superpowers. That would up the rivalry.

Last Minute Thoughts: The Society series is slated to be a trilogy. I’m interested in seeing what happens to our hero, Emmet Watts.

Buy: The Dream Maker in the Desert

Rating: 4 Treasure Chests

No items matching your keywords were found.

Online Stores

{ 0 comments }

by Second Mate Embry, guest reviewer

Title: Moving Day (Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls: Book 1)
Author: Meg Cabot
Format: Hard Cover
Page Count: 240
Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Summary: Allie Finkle is pretty happy with her life … even though her brothers are annoying and her best friend cries over everything. Things start going wrong when her parents announce that they are moving! What is she going to do now? To help herself survive though the move, she creates a book of rules that every girl should follow. Will her rules for girls help her? Or will her past happy life be gone forever?

Why I Read This Book:

I read this book because I found out that this book was part of a series (Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls) and decided to try it because I've been looking for more series to follow.

Likes:

  • It was easy for me to relate to Meg Cabot's Allie Finkle because I had to move from a place that I had to live in for a L-O-N-G time and could relate with the main character on that point.
  • I liked Allie’s comparison between the two elementary schools.

Dislikes:

  • It seemed a little babyish and young for a 4th grader to be scared of a disembodied zombie hand in her attic to me. If it were me I would totally think it was a Halloween prop.

Last Minute Thoughts: I liked this book! And I’m defiantly getting the next book in the series to see what happens next and if it gets better.

Buy: Moving Day (Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls)

Rating: 3.5 Treasure Chests!

Moving Day by Meg Cabot NEW Moving Day by Meg Cabot NEW Paypal US $10.06 7d 23m
Online Stores

{ 0 comments }

Review: George’s Secret Key to the Universe by Lucy and Stephen Hawking

by cookcutlery May 22, 2013

by Cook Cutlery, guest reviewer Title: George’s Secret Key to the Universe Author: Lucy and Stephen Hawking Format: Paperback # of pages: 295 Grade Reading Level: Ages 9-12 Summary: It all starts one day when George was going to feed his pet pig, Freddy, that he got on Christmas one year and found that Freddy [...]

1 comment Read the full article →

Should Parents Be Concerned About Kids Reading Fanfiction?

by First Mate Keira May 21, 2013

by First Mate Keira The diplomatic response to this question is yes and no. I have no way of knowing what fandom your child is reading in or what stories they’re finding. And the scary thing might be that neither do you. The question then is what to do and to examine how you feel [...]

0 comments Read the full article →

Review: Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George

by First Mate Keira May 20, 2013

by First Mate Keira Title: Dragon Slippers Author: Jessica Day George Format: Hardback Page Count: 321 Grade Reading Level: 6-8 Grades Summary: Creel Carlbrun is going to be sacrificed to a dragon. Her foolish aunt hopes this will put her in the path of a wealthy knight and result in marriage and the rising of [...]

8 comments Read the full article →

Review: 13 Treasures by Michelle Harrison

by First Mate Keira May 19, 2013

by First Mate Keira Title: 13 Treasures Author: Michelle Harrison Format: Hardback Page Count: 355 Grade Reading Level: Grade 5–8 Summary: Tanya knows that at age 13 she can no longer get away with talking to faeries or about them in front of others as both adults and kids couldn’t see them. Only her. She’d [...]

0 comments Read the full article →