J.L. McCreedy

I received an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The premise behind this book was great: young girl grown in the jungle gets thrown into an elite high school and has to discover a terrible secret surrounding her home. As if just being a senior wasn't enough. Unfortunately, though, I couldn't help but feeling a little disappointed with how this was developed.

As far as the story goes, it was fairly entertaining, with some passages even being very funny. Sam is a quirky girl, not used to a very high standard of comfort, and so her reactions to the life she is presented with in her incredibly posh boarding school were really hilarious for me. Nonetheless, I found that it actually lacked a bit of depth, with some major twists being actually very predictable (I won't say much more than this, but I'm looking at you, Gabe!). The blurb referred to this book as presenting "espionage elements akin to The Bourne Identity". It may just be me, but I couldn't really see much of that going on: the only espionage Sam actually seems to do throughout the book is to repeatedly question Gabe (not very inconspicuously, I might add) until he decides to give her all the answers she is looking for. Not exactly a Bourne-like investigation to me. I'm all for independent female characters, and I love badass girls in books, but I just couldn't see Sam that way. I seemed to me she spent an inordinate amount of story time trying to show how tough she was, while really all she kept doing was getting into trouble and needing to be rescued.

Also, I found the characters to be really underdeveloped. Now, this may not be an issue for other readers, but I'm a real characters girl and if I cannot connect with them, I'll be very unlikely to enjoy the book. Apart from my issues with the main character, I had a really hard time liking the secondary characters as well. They were just too one-dimensional for me, and I couldn't really see how their relations with Sam developed. My biggest problem in this respect was with her room-mates: they seemed to spend all their time talking about shopping and boys and dragging Sam around, while she is thinking about her home/love life/how to escape from them and then, all of a sudden, they're best friends and they can't wait to have a reunion as soon as they graduate. Just when did a bond this deep develop???

Overall, this wasn't a bad book. I actually read through it quite quickly and it did keep me entertained, and even had me laughing at some points. But it had just too many things that didn't work for me. I'm not really sure if the ending was supposed to be a cliffhanger or whether this will remain a standalone novel, but if a sequel were to come out, I would be unlikely to read it.… (más)

Liberty Frye is a eleven year old girl from an amazing family. The latest addition in a maternal bloodline of witches, poor Liberty is finding dealing with her inherited powers to be not so easy. She feels lonely and isolated as she struggles to understand them. Meanwhile, she is dealing with a new sister, who used to be her best friend, now she just seems to be the perfect example of everything Liberty can’t seem to achieve. Her mother is also very sick and Liberty can’t help but think that it has something to do with her.

For her birthday her uncle Frank takes the girls on a cruise of Biloxi Bay, while Liberty’s parents prepare for her birthday. When out on the water Frank demonstrates his new invention, unexpected consequences ensue and the group find themselves somewhere in South Pacific or is it some time? What follows is a rollicking adventure with island natives, dread pirates and maybe even an old enemy.

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For a middle grade adventure this story is remarkably well developed. Kudos to author for not writing down to her audience. Not only does Libby have to deal with mastering, or not quite mastering, her new found powers, but she is also dealing with struggles that come with simply being an eleven year old girl; like bra shopping, body changes, and changing relationships with her friends and within her family. It is nice to see a fantasy story where young women will be able to see themselves in the characters.

As a character she is spunky and persistent. She could do with a dose of self esteem, but then what adolescent couldn’t. The characters around her are an eclectic bunch including a feisty AI robot named Esmerelda, invented by her slightly scatterbrained-genius Uncle Frank, Uncle Frank’s mostly skeptical sailing buddy Sal and Liberty’s foster sister Ginny.

This is a book for girls that isn’t too girly. I especially enjoyed the nod to Spiderman and the famous “with great powers come great responsibilities,” mantra. It is concept that applies so well across genders and generations.

All in all this a fun adventure. It is the second volume in the series and while it would have been nice to have read the first book, because it seems as if it also is a stellar adventure, not having done so didn’t hamper my enjoyment of this read at all. This book began with a warning to the reader to proceed with caution, that adventure, danger and dark mysteries of magic will be forthcoming and the story delivers. I am looking forward to more adventures with Libby and her crew.

5 stars

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.… (más)

If you enjoy fantasy books, be sure to include this series in your reading list!
Liberty loves her unique parents with all her heart, but do they have to be so overprotective and secretive? Her quirky great-uncle is quirky, too, yet he seems to be the oly one she can really talk to.
Although Liberty was very lonely, she had a wonderful pet goose for a friend... That is until a new girl came to town. Ginny proved to become the best friend ever!
This story is about a loving family, not truly accepted in the community, yet, a respect has been earned and so the people leaves the to their unusual ways. This story also touches on the topics of bullying, rude judgement, acceptance, loyalty, commitments and forgiveness.
Although there are some "scary" situations and a few controversial subjects, this is a very entertaining and well-written book for older elementary aged children. There are plenty of action in the varying adventures which steadily progresses throughout the book. There is also a touch of humor.
The Title and Cover are both well chosen and "eye-catching". The characters were either endearing or aggravating, yet both portrayed very realistically. The story, as a whole, was very interestingly captivating. It never dragged or felt repetitive.

*This book was gifted me with no pressure for a positive review. This is my honest review.… (más)