Annie Metcalf

YA FictionYAFantasy

The Guinevere Deception

Review by Annie Metcalf

In the first book of a new series from Kiersten White (And I Darken), Guinevere arrives at Camelot to wed King Arthur, just as she does in the Arthurian stories of old. But this Guinevere is not a princess. She is an imposter, sent by a banished Merlin to protect Arthur from magical threats. Although she can recall Merlin training her in simple magic, Guinevere cannot remember any further back, and her true name is lost to her. Nevertheless, she busies herself warding the castle from attacks, which could come from those who resent Arthur’s ban on magic or from those who still follow the Dark Queen, who was defeated by Arthur’s sword, Excalibur, years ago.

As she learns more about Camelot and forges true friendships with some of its residents, Guinevere begins to feel a sense of community, despite her troubling memory lapses and her uncovering of disturbing new information about Merlin. A hunch about a mysterious masked warrior, a strange connection with Arthur’s nephew Mordred and a gradual exploration of the extent of her powers all lead Guinevere down the path to forming an identity of her own choosing, untethered from whatever her past life may have held.

The Guinevere Deception weaves together all the familiar characters of legend and lore—Arthur and his Knights, Merlin, Guinevere, Mordred and more—but adds a dash of unexpected revision that keeps the tale fresh. Its magic and intrigue are perfect for readers who revel in this realm of myth and fantasy. White seamlessly introduces nuanced and compelling female characters into the world of Camelot, while also maintaining the wondrous spirit of the original Arthurian legends, making The Guinevere Deception a truly enchanting read.

In the first book of a new series from Kiersten White (And I Darken), Guinevere arrives at Camelot to wed King Arthur, just as she does in the Arthurian stories of old. But this Guinevere is not a princess. She is an imposter, sent by…

Science Fiction & FantasyYA FictionYAFantasy

Angel Mage

Review by Annie Metcalf

Generations ago, a plague of Ash Blood and strange beasts destroyed the land of Ystara, which its guardian archangel, Pallenial, appeared to have abandoned. The neighboring land of Sarance, protected by its own angelic hosts, was unaffected by the plague. A powerful young woman, Liliath, who may have caused the tragedy, was believed to have perished while fleeing Ystara. 

More than a hundred years later, Liliath reawakens in Sarance, eager to complete her devious and destructive plan to summon Pallenial. Her efforts bring her into contact with four young people: Agnez, a valiant, newly recruited Musketeer; Henri, the fortune-seeking youngest son of a poor family; Simeon, a dedicated doctoral student; and Dorotea, a gifted icon-maker with rare skills of angelic magic. Liliath’s plan brings these four strangers together, but although she watches them closely, she underestimates their resourcefulness and determination to uncover the truth about their bond, which could foil Liliath’s plan for the second time. 

Garth Nix found inspiration for this swashbuckling standalone fantasy novel in Alexandre Dumas’ The Three Musketeers. Nix maintains the epic scope and derring-do of a 19th-century adventure novel, and like Dumas, his world is governed by powerful monarchs and church officials. However, Nix updates Dumas’ setting for 21st-century readers with clear (and deliberate) descriptions of an egalitarian world populated by men and women who command equal status and respect in every aspect of society, from politics to academia. He also adds a complex and fascinating system of angelic magic. 

With four dashing heroes, an unrepentantly evil villain, a sprawling cast of characters whose diversity is foregrounded and, refreshingly, no hints of romance between the protagonists, Angel Mage is a highly entertaining tale of valor and intrigue. 

Generations ago, a plague of Ash Blood and strange beasts destroyed the land of Ystara, which its guardian archangel, Pallenial, appeared to have abandoned. The neighboring land of Sarance, protected by its own angelic hosts, was unaffected by the plague. A powerful young woman, Liliath,…

Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Survivor Girl

Review by Annie Metcalf

Twelve-year-old Ali Kensington has a slight problem telling the truth. She tells her classmates about her experience in the wild, eating bugs and surviving animal attacks. This is plausible because her dad, George Kensington, is Survivor Guy, star of a hit nature show. But unlike her older brother, Jake, Ali’s never actually been on set, let alone participated in the adventure. Instead, she reads as many nature and survival guides as she can, preparing for the day she’ll really need those skills.

Ali also has trouble telling the truth about more mundane things, like what’s happening in her parents’ marriage, which frustrates her best friend, Harper. But a fight over Ali’s little white lies takes a back seat when Ali’s dad, who’s supposed to watch her for the week, instead takes Ali and her brother into the Great Dismal Swamp to tape a family episode of “Survivor Guy.” Ali is terrified—and feels unready to truly test her survival knowledge—until she finds out the truth about Survivor Guy: There are lots of cameras, scripted scenes, stunt doubles, animal handlers, cushy trailers and even a professional chef. But when a wildfire burns through the swamp and Ali is left behind by a rescue helicopter, she has a chance to prove to herself and her family that she has the skills and confidence to be a survivor.

This fun and relatable story remixes the classic wilderness survival plot with reality TV and features a resourceful, complex female protagonist. A great middle grade summer read with STEM themes and solid character development, Survivor Girl will entertain and inspire.

A great middle grade summer read with STEM themes and solid character development, Survivor Girl will entertain and inspire.
YA FictionYA

Sorcery of Thorns

Review by Annie Metcalf

Elisabeth Scrivener is an orphan. Raised in one of the kingdom’s six Great Libraries, she has been training as an apprentice, hoping one day to become a library warden who’s responsible for the categorization and containment of dangerous magic. The Great Libraries house not only regular books but also grimoires—books created with sorcery that contain ominous spells and rituals. These grimoires can also transform into deadly creatures known as Maleficts. Elisabeth knows not to trust sorcerers and the powerful magic that whispers to her from the shelves. In fact, she has been raised to defend humans from and contain the powerful magic.

But when disaster strikes her library and she is accused of treason, Elisabeth makes an unlikely alliance with young sorcerer Nathaniel Thorn and his Mephistophelian servant, Silas. Uncovering the true saboteur leads Elisabeth down a terrifying path of conspiracy and chaos, but also of self-discovery. As she learns more about her connection to grimoires and gets closer with Nathaniel and Silas, she begins to reassess her goals and question some of the Great Library’s teachings.

Bestselling author Margaret Rogerson (An Enchantment of Ravens) presents a unique twist on a magical fantasy plot, setting the novel in a 19th-century Western Europe-inspired world that’s dealing with the inheritance of medieval magic as well as the innovations of an industrializing society. Elisabeth is a charismatic heroine, and her chemistry with Nathaniel is inevitable and natural, but it is Silas’ character arc that is particularly compelling.

A race against time filled with demonic magic, vivid settings and classic romantic tension, Sorcery of Thorns is a chillingly good gothic read.

Bestselling author Margaret Rogerson (An Enchantment of Ravens) presents a unique twist on a magical fantasy plot, setting the novel in a 19th-century Western Europe-inspired world that’s dealing with the inheritance of medieval magic as well as the innovations of an industrializing society.

Science Fiction & FantasyYA FictionScience Fiction

The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe

Review by Annie Metcalf

In an isolated society known simply as the Outpost, 17-year-old Poe Blythe has spent the past two years perfecting her design of weaponized armor to coat “the dredge,” a ship that mines gold from the Serpentine River. She’s been dedicated to this violent purpose ever since their last river voyage, when the boy she loved was killed by Raiders, a band of people who live outside the Outpost. 

Occasionally Poe wonders why the Admiral, the Outpost’s authoritative leader, needs so much gold, prioritizing the dredge and its mining tools over all the other problems faced by the Outpost, including food shortages and poverty. But as long as he allows her to keep working on the armor that kills Raiders, she doesn’t care. Then the Admiral unexpectedly tasks Poe with leading a crew on the dredge’s next voyage. Why has she been given this responsibility? And is there a traitor among her new crew, or is her distrustful nature and inability to read people clouding her judgment? In order to save her crew and her beloved ship, Poe will have to question her long-held beliefs, re-evaluate the pain that has shaped her life and consider new ways to look at the world and herself. 

In The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe, Ally Condie (author of the Matched trilogy) presents a heroine as flawed as her dystopian society, though the Outpost and its environs remain roughly sketched while the focus on Poe’s personality and growth evolves and deepens. Condie’s supporting cast mostly functions to throw Poe’s misconceptions into sharp relief, but there are also plenty of twists that constantly realign the characters and their motivations. 

An immersive novel that owes as much to 20th-century sci-fi as it does to recent YA, The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe is a mature yet accessible standalone for dystopia-loving readers. 

An immersive novel that owes as much to 20th-century sci-fi as it does to recent YA, The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe is a mature yet accessible standalone for dystopia-loving readers. 

YA FictionYAHistorical Fiction

Lovely War

Review by Annie Metcalf

Julie Berry, a modern master of historical fiction for young readers, follows the epic love stories of four teens in Lovely War, set against the dramatic backdrop of World War I and narrated by the Greek gods of love, war, music and death. 

Brits Hazel and James meet at a parish dance, and thanks to gentle intervention from Aphrodite herself, sparks fly. But James is on his way to the fighting in France, so they continue their relationship via letters. Hazel, a talented pianist, puts her future on hold to volunteer as a YMCA relief aid in France. There, she befriends Colette, a Belgian teen who lost her whole family (and her beau) during the Battle of Dinant. Colette’s grief still consumes her four years later, but when she meets Aubrey, a black American soldier with a gift for ragtime, Colette has to admit that spending time with him—singing and making music like she’s never heard before—lessens the pain. The most brutal war the world has ever seen brought these four together, but will it also tear them apart forever? 

While the device of using the gods as narrators could take away from the main characters for some, Berry’s superb research and attention to detail are perfectly suited to the layers of this story of love in wartime. The scenes revealing the complex web of trenches inhabited by the British soldiers, the effects of post traumatic stress disorder, and the racial injustice and brutality in the American barracks and camps are particularly excellent. Fans of Marcus Sedgwick, Lois Lowry and Elizabeth Wein will love this romantic yet unflinching look at teenagers coming of age during World War I.

Julie Berry, a modern master of historical fiction for young readers, follows the epic love stories of four teens in Lovely War, set against the dramatic backdrop of World War I and narrated by the Greek gods of love, war, music and death. 

YA FictionYA

The Gilded Wolves

Review by Annie Metcalf

BookPage Top Pick in Teen, starred review, January 2019

In bestselling author Roshani Chokshi’s The Gilded Wolves, a crew of young people in an alternate version of belle epoque Paris use their wits and daring to restore their leader to his rightful place.

In this world, some have “Forging” power—creative and metamorphic power over matter or minds—which is made possible through fragments of the Tower of Babel. These broken pieces are scattered across the world and safeguarded by the mysterious Order of Babel, which is organized in national factions and then further divided into Houses.

Séverin Montagnet-Alarie is the heir to France’s House Vanth, but he was denied his Order inheritance years ago and now watches the two remaining French Houses—Nyx and Kore—with envy. But Séverin has a plan to claim his right, and a crew of various talents who live with him at his glamorous hotel will help him pull it off. They plot to steal an ancient artifact that will help Séverin buy his way back into the good graces of the Order, but the artifact and its owner turn out to be more than they bargained for.

With a diverse ensemble—characters are multiracial, from different cultural and religious backgrounds, have differing sexualities, and one character is non-neurotypical—Chokshi challenges the notion that historical fantasy novels (even those with a European setting) must be populated by mostly white characters. She balances four points of view, although the lack of any significant entry into the psyche of two major characters is awkward, especially in light of their significance to the plot.

The glittering and lavish 1890s setting is the perfect complement to the marvelous possibilities of Forging, and the chemistry between Chokshi’s romantic pairs is realistic yet slightly off-script from what readers may expect. In this delicious first entry in a new series from a veteran YA author, readers will find sumptuous visuals, deep characters and a maddening eleventh-hour twist.

 

This article was originally published in the January 2019 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

In bestselling author Roshani Chokshi’s The Gilded Wolves, a crew of young people in an alternate version of belle epoque Paris use their wits and daring to restore their leader to his rightful place.

YA FictionYA

Girls of Paper and Fire

Review by Annie Metcalf

A deft portrayal of female friendship and sexuality, Natasha Ngan’s new novel, Girls of Paper and Fire, is a satisfying tale told almost exclusively through the eyes of strong and courageous young women.

Seventeen-year-old Lei lives in Ikhara, an empire with a caste society that’s based on how much animal-demon blood a person possesses. Lei is part of the lowliest group: the fully human Paper caste. Above her are members of the Steel caste (those with a mix of both human and animal features) and Moon caste (those who are fully demon, and whose members appear to be animals but possess human intelligence and extraordinary strength and abilities).

While Lei and her father live in a remote province, the cruel regime has directly touched their lives; Lei’s mother was taken during a raid. Now, years later, Lei is shocked when a caravan of animal-demon soldiers comes to take her to the Demon King’s court as one of his annual batch of concubines known as Paper Girls. Terrified and furious, but knowing that compliance will keep her family safe, Lei enters into the pampered yet horrific life of a Paper Girl imprisoned inside the Hidden Palace. Among the girls, Lei allies with sweet Aoki and graceful Chenna while also making a couple of enemies. But it’s the beautiful and mysterious Wren who most sparks Lei’s interest, and as the two girls become closer, Lei falls into a web of love, intrigue and danger.

A touching (and refreshingly steamy) lesbian romance is at the core of this thrilling fantasy, and it adds emotional weight to an otherwise familiar plot. The sexual violence experienced by Ngan’s characters is portrayed as exactly that: traumatic violence, with a range of emotional and physical responses from the victims and no redeeming arc for the male perpetrator.

Lei is a compelling narrator because she is so refreshingly commonplace. She’s not a magical chosen one, nor a long-lost heir, nor a sleeper agent. She is simply a young woman whose bravery and passion will be relatable and recognizable to readers of Girls of Paper and Fire, despite the fantastical world that surrounds her.

 

This article was originally published in the December 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

A deft portrayal of female friendship and sexuality, Natasha Ngan’s new novel, Girls of Paper and Fire, is a satisfying tale told almost exclusively through the eyes of strong and courageous young women.

Children's & YAMiddle Grade

Louisiana’s Way Home

Review by Annie Metcalf

In Louisiana’s Way Home, award-winning author Kate DiCamillo expands on the story of Louisiana Elefante, a fan-favorite character from 2016’s Raymie Nightingale.

When Louisiana’s Granny wakes her in the middle of the night, she claims it’s the day of reckoning and says they have to leave town. After a long, eventful drive across the Florida-Georgia state line, Granny’s toothache forces them to stop in a quirky small town with a motel, a church and a friendly boy with a pet crow. Louisiana desperately wants to return to Florida and reunite with her best friends, but Granny has other plans. As Louisiana learns something new about her past and grows closer to the people of the town, will she be able to choose between making a new home and returning to her old one?

Louisiana tells her story in first person with unaffected charm, gentle warmth and keen observation, making it easy to see why the townspeople immediately embrace her. The magic of DiCamillo’s storytelling is in its simple, believable realism. Some people are kind, some are less so. The world can be harsh, even terrible, but it can also be beautiful. The way Louisiana notices, takes in and shares this wisdom is what makes DiCamillo one of our finest storytellers. This lovely story of independence and community will resonate with readers of all ages.

 

This article was originally published in the October 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

In Louisiana’s Way Home, award-winning author Kate DiCamillo expands on the story of Louisiana Elefante, a fan-favorite character from 2016’s Raymie Nightingale.

YA FictionYAFantasy

The princess and the imposter

Review by Annie Metcalf

With a mix of Moroccan-tinged fantasy and interstellar sci-fi, Somaiya Daud’s Mirage fits squarely in the new class of genre-melding, diverse young adult literature.

Amani’s family lives under the rule of the Vathek empire, which conquered their planet and its moons a generation ago. Amani is delighted to be among family and friends on her majority night, the ceremony in which she comes of age and receives her daan, the traditional family markings on her face. But the Vath interrupt the ceremony and take Amani to the old imperial palace they now occupy.

As soon as Amani sees the half-Vathek princess Maram inside, she understands why she was taken: The two girls are identical, and the unpopular princess needs a body double. Maram’s life is in danger whenever she appears in public, so Amani will take her place. As Amani perfects her impression of Maram, she gets closer to the princess, whose cruelty stems from being raised between two enemy cultures. Amani also finds companionship with Idris, Maram’s fiancé. Her feelings for Idris grow stronger as she learns more about their shared Kushaila culture and religion, but will she be able to fight for her people and protect Princess Maram at the same time?

Amani is an admirable heroine, always striving to do right, though the world building and background of the Kushaila and Vathek cultures could be stronger. But with Daud’s emotional plot and cliffhanger ending, readers of romantic, tense and slow-burning fantasy will be enthralled.

 

This article was originally published in the September 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

With a mix of Moroccan-tinged fantasy and interstellar sci-fi, Somaiya Daud’s Mirage fits squarely in the new class of genre-melding, diverse young adult literature.

YA FictionYAScience Fiction

A moving sci-fi tale of two teen cyborgs

Review by Annie Metcalf

Life in the Seventh District is difficult. At the back of a fleet of starships that is currently ferrying humanity through space, Aisha Un-Haad doggedly shields her younger siblings from the hardships of the lower class. But when her brother contracts a brutal illness, Aisha knows her janitor’s salary won’t pay for quality treatment. So she makes the harrowing choice to “take the metal”—to become Scela, a mechanically enhanced soldier whose sole purpose is to take orders from the General Body and protect the fleet during its search for a habitable world.

After surgery, Aisha joins a crew of young Scela who are adjusting to life as something more—or less—than human. Among them is Key Tanaka, a privileged girl from First District. While Scela are supposed to retain their human memories, Key has only vague recollections of her life before, and a disturbing blank space instead of the memory of why she elected to take the metal. Aisha and Key share strong wills and fierce emotion, but not much else, making it hard for them to mesh as a Scela unit. But their unit’s success becomes the least of their worries when they find themselves at the center of a simmering conflict between the General Body and a rebellious faction. Not everything is what it seems, and Aisha, Key and their unit may be the only Scela who can change the course of the fleet’s history.

Emily Skrutskie (The Abyss Surrounds Us) makes excellent use of dual narrators to highlight the nuances of Aisha and Key’s arguments and their gradual gain of respect for one another. Inventive, exciting and often moving, Skrutskie’s novel portrays realistic conflict between young women, centered on their values and personalities, rather than a superficial rivalry.

Inventive, exciting and often moving, Emily Skrutskie’s sci-fi novel portrays realistic conflict between young women, centered on their values and personalities, rather than a superficial rivalry.

RomanceYA FictionYA

A second sparkling romance from Sandhya Menon

Review by Annie Metcalf

High school junior Twinkle Mehra’s ultimate dream is to become a great filmmaker. She also wants to leave behind the social stratum she’s dubbed “the groundlings” and carve out a place among the “silk hats,” where her former best friend, Maddie, and Twinkle’s longtime crush, Neil, are counted as members. When Neil’s geeky twin brother, Sahil, offers to help Twinkle shoot a film for the annual arts festival, she jumps at the chance. Sahil’s kindness, love of film and respect for Twinkle’s art soon have her falling hard. But Twinkle’s goals thus far—making films, regaining Maddie’s friendship and winning Neil’s heart—have become so entwined that it’s hard for her to make room for a new goal and new possibilities with Sahil. Twinkle speaks out through her films, but is she seeing the world around her for what it truly is, or has her perspective become warped by long-held assumptions?

In her second novel, Sandhya Menon (When Dimple Met Rishi) gives readers a spunky, smart but sometimes misguided heroine, a delightful romantic hero, a strong cast of secondary characters and a window into the world of amateur filmmaking. Narrated through Twinkle’s letters to her favorite female directors, From Twinkle, with Love will both resonate with creative young people and remind them to balance their search for art and truth with respect and empathy.

 

This article was originally published in the June 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

In her second novel, Sandhya Menon (When Dimple Met Rishi) gives readers a spunky, smart but sometimes misguided heroine, a delightful romantic hero, a strong cast of secondary characters and a window into the world of amateur filmmaking. Narrated through Twinkle’s letters to her favorite female directors, From Twinkle, with Love will both resonate with creative young people and remind them to balance their search for art and truth with respect and empathy.

Science Fiction & FantasyYA FictionYAScience Fiction

Is saving the world worth some sacrifice?

Review by Annie Metcalf

Elena Mendoza was conceived via parthenogenesis—literally a virgin birth—and has long lived with the consequences of her strange origin story (and her classmates don’t even know about the fact that inanimate objects speak to her).

She’s content to hang out with her best friend, Fadil, and crush on Winifred “Freddie” Petrine from afar, but the universe has other plans. When a boy shoots Freddie in front of Elena, she has no choice but to listen to the voice coming from the Starbucks sign, telling Elena she has the power to heal Freddie. After successfully healing her gunshot wound, Elena learns that these voices have big plans for her and her newfound abilities—but every time she uses her powers, people are mysteriously raptured into the sky. How can Elena refuse to help those in front of her? But how can she use her gifts when they might be bringing about the end of the world?

During this apparent apocalypse, Elena and Fadil pursue their respective crushes and deal with the changing nature of their lifelong friendship. As Elena gets closer to Freddie, she discovers that the real Freddie is nothing like what she had imagined; instead, she's prickly, challenging and intriguing. Smart conversations between the teen characters, a matter-of-fact exploration of the spectrum of sexuality, and deep philosophical meditations make up the bulk of the action here in between Elena’s acts of healing. Though somewhat repetitive, Shaun David Hutchinson’s (We Are the Ants) eighth novel is a timely portrayal of uncertainty and anxiety on both a global and personal level.

Elena Mendoza was conceived via parthenogenesis—literally a virgin birth—and has long lived with the consequences of her strange origin story (and her classmates don’t even know about the fact that inanimate objects speak to her).

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