On Wednesday, April 17 and Thursday, April 18, Jennifer A. Nielsen will be in the Greater Toronto Area in support of the second book in the Ascendence Trilogy, The Runaway King. The question is…will you be there to welcome her yourself or on behalf of the 8-12 year-old readers in your house?

For those who haven’t had the privilege of reading The False Prince, the first book in the Ascendence Trilogy, or who just need a reminder about it’s plot, I’m happy to indulge about a middle grade novel that completely blew me over in 2012. Before I picked it up, I hadn’t read and reviewed many books for the 8-12 age group on YABookShelf.com, but the affection that I had for Sage and the plot twists that Nielsen wrote into the story is a big part of the reason that I want to delve into the MG world a bit further (expect to see a review of Anne Ursu’s Breadcrumbs in the coming weeks here as well as one of both The False Prince and The Runaway King). The False Prince was called “an impressive, promising story with some expertly executed twists” by Publisher’s Weekly, but that isn’t the only reason why you should read it and its sequel. From the very first sentence, the defiant character of Sage will make readers of all ages laugh, gasp, and delight from the things he says, thinks, and the way he behaves. He’s a character with an adventurous spirit and a clever mind, and who treats everyone with the respect that their character deserves, not that which their station demands. In short, he’s a heroic figure who may seem unable to meet the requirements of the challenge put forth by a nobleman named Conner, but maybe that’s why readers are so intent on getting behind him.

Check out my post on Examiner.com for all of the details about the only two Canadian book tour stops for The Runaway King that will be in the Toronto area, and if you happen to be there, please do come up and say hi to me! I’m looking forward to meeting more Toronto-area bloggers, authors and readers at this event.

Buy Power Play
Regular Price: $14.99
Publisher: Harper Collins Canada
Format: Paperback
Reviewer: Melissa on April 16, 2013
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

No one’s tougher than Cody: his teammates, his rivals on the ice, and even his alcoholic father all pale in comparison. Cody knows he needs to be tough because he has his eyes set on the prize – to make it to the NHL – and he won’t let anything get in his way. When a Junior A League scout picks Cody to make the draft and becomes his new coach, he can’t believe his luck! Finally someone sees the potential he has to go pro! In bestselling, Canadian YA author, Eric Walters’ Power Play, however, Cody will soon learn that the person who he thought was his champion is planning to take as much (if not more) than he gives, transforming his big break into a nightmarish world of secrets, lies, and the unthinkable abuse of power.

In hockey, a power play occurs when one player has been issued a penalty, and thus, his or her team is forced to play with only five players (including the goalie) against six on the opposing side. With one additional player, it’s easy to see which team has the upper hand, or the power, in this situation. In Power Play, a book that tackles the disturbing relationship that occurs between Cody, a talented young hockey star, and his coach, it’s easy to see why this was the perfect title. With a subject like this one, Power Play has the potential to be a harrowing, uncomfortable novel, and I have to say that it certainly lives up to that description. That said, I highly recommend it for teens 14+ and adult readers of YA because it’s a really important subject, especially in Canada where hockey has become so ingrained in our cultural identity and playing in the NHL is the dream of so many teen boys. Might I even suggest that you read it along with your teen to answer any questions that come up with this topic, too? Sometimes the reason a book makes you uncomfortable is that it’s true, and Walters’ 2013 release certainly qualifies.

This is only the second novel I’ve read by Walters – the first was The Taming, which he co-wrote with Teresa Toten – but just from this brief introduction, I can already say that he knows voice.  Cody’s story is told in a psychologically complex and interesting way that I believed completely. As the book blurb suggest, he isn’t a weak guy by any stretch of the imagination, but readers soon learn that part of the reason he’s so angry from the beginning has a lot to do with the poor relationship he has with his father, an alcoholic who has taken to yelling at Cody’s rivals, the refs, and even his own son during a game after he’s had one too many drinks. And of course, Cody is driven to succeed in the game. For a predatory character like Coach Conners, these qualities and Cody’s past issues at school make him a prime candidate for the extreme type of manipulation that Walters depicts on the pages of Power Play.

Saying anything more would give away too much of the story, but suffice it to say that Power Play is compelling look at what happens when the player-coach relationship is abused. Pick it up today, share it with a teen, and spread the word about a book might help teens see through the disturbing power politics represented in the novel if it ever happens to them or their friends because the more we talk about important books like this one, the more likely we’ll see lives saved.

Buy Power Play today!

Buy Once
Special: $7.66 (Regular price: $9.99)
Publisher: Harper Teen
Format: Paperback
Reviewer: Melissa on April 11, 2013
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

For the first time since she left school, Eve is able to sleep soundly. She’s living in Califia, a community for women, and is protected from the harrowing fate that awaits most orphaned girls in New America. Of course, in Anna Carey’s Once, Eve’s safety had to come at the price of abandoning the boy she loves, Caleb, at the city gates. However, when Eve learns that he’s in trouble, she sets off into the wilds once again, only to be caught and forcefully brought to the City of Sand. While trapped inside the city walls, Eve learns some shocking details about her past and some harsh realities about the future she’s expected to lead. But when Caleb turns up alive, Eve must make an impossible choice to either save the ones she loves…or risk losing Caleb forever.

When I first read Eve, I was swept up in the characters, the story, and the dark vision of the world that Carey creates. In fact, I rushed through it in one, swoon-filled sitting on a dark and gloomy afternoon. But then I took a little more time to think about the book, and I was a little torn because as much as I loved it, I was conflicted by the representation of the main character, Eve. Everything that Eve planned for was for the future the teachers painted for her, but when she realizes that these were all lies, she’s not at all equipped to deal with the circumstances she faces. Without Arden and the group of boys, including Caleb, that she meets, she would have been totally helpless. However, my initial love for this book made me want to pick up the second book in the trilogy, Once, and I’m so glad that I did.

If you’d been sucked into the storyline of Eve as much as I had, but had some qualms about her character, then you really have to pick up Once because not only have Eve’s circumstances changed considerably over the few months that pass between book 1 and 2, but also her survival skills have improved. She can protect herself in a fight to some degree, which is a good thing because she still finds herself walking into traps at times. Moreover, readers will find themselves, and Eve, delving deeper into the world of the resistance, learning more about what they’ve been doing as Eve lived her day-to-day existence in Califia, what they need, and how they operate. Yes, some things change, but in this case, each and every one of the changes is an improvement and offers some great opportunities for the series to expand and finally, conclude with the final book, Rise.

Beyond the world building and characters, I also noticed that with Once, Carey demonstrates a solid ability to use of juxtaposition to imbue the novel with a literary feel and highly interconnected and fine-tuned writing choices. For example, there are a few instances where the lyrics of a classic song that most (if not all) readers would recognize are juxtaposed with an important event in the plot for either dramatic or comedic effect. Similarly, there are several elements, such as well-known companies from our contemporary culture that figure into the novel’s setting. These palimpsests of our world act as eerie reminders of how similar the future that Carey has created is to ours, suggesting that we could be on a course toward the nightmarish reality that young girls and men in New America live through every day. While elements like these appear in a lot of dystopian YA fiction, it never was so disturbing to me as reader before it’s representation in Once.

From Anna Carey’s use of literary tropes to Eve’s growth into a stronger and more independent person, there’s a lot to love about Once, so make sure you pick it up today to get ready for the final book in the series, Rise, which is now available as well.

Buy Once today and save 23% off the regular price!