The Water Kingdom (The Water Novels, Book 1)
by Deborah J. Gray
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
For Sebastian, the only choice he feels he can make is to take action himself and look for the missing queen, even if it means he can never go home again. This way at least someone is actually doing something, not just sitting around. Nell has lived a structured and rigid life, never breaking a rule, but never feeling she fit in either. Stowing away on a field trip that she never got permission to go on is the biggest rule break she has ever done, and she is sure something bad is going to happen to her for it. The Water Kingdom (The Water Novels Book 1) tells the story of Sebastian and his quest, and what happens when he accidentally runs into Nell. Author Deborah Gray takes a fantasy/fiction story of two different worlds, and mixes it with coming of age, romance and finding your voice to give young adult readers a meaningful and rich story.
The Water Kingdom is titled to be the first in a series, a let me warn you now, the end is a cliffhanger! Its a natural ending point, but at the same time, there are just too many unanswered questions, so a second book feels like a must! Author Deborah Gray writes in an easy, confident manner that engages the reader and has to identifying with the characters, remembering people from your own high school experience just like them. Although it is set in a fantasy/fiction setting, the plotline and issues of not fitting in, feeling alone, and not having a choice in life are issues that teens today all feel that they are faced with. This is a great book for all readys, it is clean, there is no sex or graphic violence, so I recommend it for any age.
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Blood: The Vampire Covenant Series (Book 1)
by Sydney Ledger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Aveline has grown up a loner and outcast. It has just been her mother and her, her father left when she was young, and she has a terrible disease that leaves her pale, allergic to the sun and in terrible pain at times, only to be cured by drinking animal blood. She hates it, but doctors orders are doctors orders. What Aveline is about to find out is that everything she thought she knew has been a lie, she is really a Dhampir, half Vampire, and that Vampire's really do exist. Blood: The Vampire Covenant Series (Book 1) tells the story as Angel informs Ava of her history and gets her to help him safe the Vampire world, at least that is what he tells her they are doing, and who is she to mistrust this heart-throb. +Sydney Ledger easily mixes that feelings of a lonely teenager, the need to be liked, and the desire to help save the world into this Vampire tale.
Blood is not your typical blood-drinking Vampire tale, in fact there is very little actual blood drinking going on in the story. There is a back history to the Vampires but no clear cut how they originated in the story, but they have been around, and they are here to protect the humans from demons. +Sydney Ledger has made them the good guys, and yet at the same time, she has made them vulnerable to temptation. She also brings the loner and outcast feelings that Ava is dealing with to life and you really feel them and can relate to them. Although there is some mild sexual references and one sexual scene, I would still say that most young adults would be ok reading this book and they would relate to it very well, being in that age range. It is also a great book for adults as well.
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