In the sequel to The False Prince, Jaron has taken the throne of Carthya but his rule is precarious. War threatens his kingdom and his own regents question his ability to lead the country. After surviving an assassination attempt, Jaron becomes desperate to prove his strength and his dedication to Carthya. He ultimately flees his kingdom in a foolhardy attempt to overcome the threats on his own.
As Jaron infiltrates the Avenian pirates, he learns his own limits and the importance of true friendship. Nielsen creates strong, loyal, and complex characters as well as an entertaining story. Although some of her plot lines are typical of the fantasy genre, she manages to provide twists and interest. Where the story is slightly weak, she adds strength through her characters and deft description.
Recommended for ages 12 and up.
For lovers of quirky British comic fantasy and fans of Douglas Adams, Jasper Fforde’s new young adult series is a perfect fit. Jennifer Strange lives in the alternate present of the Ununited Kingdom. In her world, magic and sorcerers used to rule, but magic is fading. Now those same sorcerers are pressed to find jobs magically rewiring houses or, worse yet, performing at children’s birthday parties. However, with flares in magic and strange predictions of the death of the final dragon, it feels like the world is on the edge of change.
It wasn’t unusual for people to compare Tom Harriman to a superhero, but they never knew how right they were. Zach Harriman knew his dad was special, but he didn’t realize how special until after Tom’s death in a mysterious plane accident. With his father dead, Zach starts to exhibit powers he never had before. He knows when danger is coming. His senses are heightened and he can move with amazing speed. On top of that, Zach keeps finding himself and those he loves in dangerous circumstances.
My main complaint about this book is the title and the cover. They make it look like one of the latest and trendiest teen romance novels. However, if you can get past what the book looks like, the actual story is an intriguing, steampunk, alternate history with great allusions to Doctor Jekyl and Mister Hyde. There is a slight romance, but it stays within the appropriate boundaries of Victorian England gentility (one, maybe two kisses). The story and world building are the focus of the novel. In spite of the look of the book, it is a good (and very clean) teen fantasy read.
Living in a world where use of magic leads to death or enthrallment, Neryn is in constant fear that her gifts will be discovered. She and her father have wandered for several years trying to escape the notice of the King or his Enforcers. When an Enforcer raid kills her father, Neryn begins a lonely journey to Shadowfell—a rumored gathering of rebels where magic is valued and even encouraged.
In the country of Carthya, the royal family lies dead and civil war is imminent. The nobles of the country are grasping for power in their own ways, but one chooses deception. Conner is far from a place on the throne, but he plans to produce the missing and presumed dead Prince Jaron. In an attempt to create a false prince, Conner chooses three orphan boys near the prince’s age and attempts to train them to become royalty. Through his chosen prince, he will rule the country.
Blue Sargent is used to strange happenings after growing up in a houseful of clairvoyant women. They’ve been warning her forever that kissing her true love will kill him, so Blue makes it a policy to avoid all boys. However, when she meets Gansey and his group of Raven Boys, Blue is drawn to them and their strange and mysterious obsessions. For years they have been trying to find a hidden ley line rumored to run through the town of Henrietta. Each of the Raven Boys has a different motivation to find the line and the tomb of the ancient Welsh warrior Glendower. When Blue and the boys work together, unexpected things start to happen.
Liyana has spent most of her life preparing to be a vessel for her goddess, but on the day of Summoning, her goddess fails to appear. Instead, her Clan abandons her in the desert, sure that the goddess Bayla has rejected Liyana. Soon after her Clan leaves, Korbyn, the trickster god, comes out of the desert searching for Liyana. He is the only god who successfully inhabited his vessel and is searching out the other vessels to find the lost deities and save the desert clans.
Although the writing isn’t stellar and some of the characters are a little weak, Cinder has to win for the most original representation of the Cinderella fairy tale. Cinder is a talented mechanic and cyborg living in the city of New Beijing following the conclusion of the fourth World War. Forced to work to support her begrudging stepmother, Cinder is exposed to the plague currently threatening lives in the city. Although Cinder remains well, she is blamed for her stepsister’s illness.
Josh and Emma have been neighbors and best friends for as long as they can remember, until a few months ago. Misunderstandings (and Emma’s boyfriend) have strained their relationship. However, when Emma gets a new computer and Josh’s mom sends him over with their free CD-rom of AOL minutes, Josh and Emma are pulled into the mystery of Facebook. The first time Emma logs into the internet, she finds a strange site called Facebook. The problem is the year is 1996 and Facebook hasn’t been invented. 
