Tag archives for Trilogy
Posted by BOOK NAME: Arch Enemy
AUTHOR: Frank Beddor
We have probably all heard of the story Alice in Wonderland. Wonderland is not the fairy tale land the
book describes, but a nation gripped in the turmoil of a terrible war. Alyss herself is the warrior queen
of Wonderland. Her imagination, like the imaginations of many citizens of Wonderland, is not merely
thoughts and dreams, but a carefully honed superpower.
For years, Queen Alyss has held her enemies, especially her evil aunt Redd, at bay by virtue of her
mighty imagination; but now, it has been taken from her. Many others in Wonderland have also found
themselves stripped of their powers. In her weakened state, she cannot defend her queendom. The
ruthless, tyrannical monarch of a neighboring nation, King Arch, quickly takes Wonderland for himself.
Alyss’ last hope for her conquered homeland lies within a prophecy, a prophecy issued by the Caterpillar
Oracles of Wonderland. The all-knowing larvae say that imagination shall not be lost forever, and shall
be protected for Everqueen. Who is Everqueen? How can imagination be protected when King Arch is
already on the verge of destroying it? How will Alyss retake her queendom? Will old enemies, like Redd,
rise again?
This book is the third in the Looking Glass Wars Trilogy. I have read all three books, and they were all
excellent. However, anyone interested should probably read the first book, The Looking Glass Wars, and
the second book, Seeing Redd, before reading Arch Enemy. This book will be hard to understand without
reading its predecessors. That aside, this book was very well written, and there were many shocking
twists to the story. My favorite character is King Arch. He is smart, crafty, powerful, and unspeakably
evil. I like how this book and the others before it take a very well known story, Alice in Wonderland, and
bend it into a sci-fi war. I highly recommend reading this book, and this series.
Posted by BOOK NAME: Atherton: House of Power
AUTHOR: Patrick Carman
Atherton: House of Power is the first book in a trilogy by Patrick Carmen and takes place in the mysterious three tiered world of Atherton. There is the top layer, or the Highlands, where the water for the whole world originates and the high society and leaders of the world reside. Directly below that, there is Tabletop, where eleven year old Edgar lives with the rest of the working class. This is also where the groves are, which is where Edgar works under the evil Mr. Ratikan. If he puts one toe out of line, Mr. Ratikan will end up taking away meals and increasing work as punishment. At the bottom of the world is the Flatlands, where all the horrors of the entire world reside, waiting to eat any leftovers that fall from Tabletop. While tending to the fig trees in the Groves, Edgar daydreams about what could possibly be in the Highlands. He finally decides to climb there during the night, even though it is completely forbidden. While climbing up, he discovers a mysterious book that he believes contains secrets to his past and might contain information on the origin of his world. There’s only one problem though; he can’t read. So when he finally climbs up and manages to locate somebody who can read, he has to repeat his forbidden climbing night after night. In doing this, he discovers that certain handholds are lower than the previous night; meaning that the Highlands are sinking into Tabletop. And in all this chaos, he has to worry about Mr. Ratikan’s punishments. He must travel all over this world to find a way to save all three layers, including the dreaded Flatlands.
This book is an amazing introduction to the trilogy and will keep you reading to find out how this world was created and for what purpose. It is full of action and shows how each of the inhabitants of the layers must work together to save their world. I absolutely loved the character of Edgar because he could climb like a maniac. I like climbing, am not very good at it, and definitely envy his superior skills. I would like to commend the author on creating an intriguing, complex world. Overall, I recommend this book to anyone interested in a good series who likes science fiction and fantasy.
BOOK NAME: The Maze Runner
AUTHOR: James Dashner
Thomas wakes up one day in a pitch black box, only knowing his name. The box is moving; and keeps moving for what seems like forever. But when it finally stops, he is shown a horrible world- a world within a maze. As he learns of the dangers surrounding the center, and learns that the maze may not be solvable; a girl shows up in the box- and she’s too early to be the new recruit. She carries a simple message- that she’s the last person to show up. Not only that, but both her and this maze seem oddly familiar to Thomas. Why does everything look so familiar? Is the maze really unsolvable? Find out this and a lot more in The Maze Runner.
I thought that this book was absolutely an amazing start to the trilogy! It was packed full of action and plenty of shockers. It was a very well-written book but does get a little violent at times; so I wouldn’t recommend this book for small children. However, this is a great middle-school level book. I really liked the part when Thomas gets stuck out in the maze at night. It was really interesting to see how he reacted to Minho’s actions–either copying them, or doing the absolute opposite. My favorite character is Chuck (a friend of Thomas) because I can really relate to him. In particular, I admire his attempt at humor (he often says “It’s better than living in a pile of klunk”) and I try to be funny almost all the time even though it usually doesn’t work out. Overall, this is an outstanding book by James Dashner and I would highly recommend The Maze Runner.
DogEared: Want another opinion? Read Emelie’s review!
BOOK NAME: The Seer
AUTHOR: David Stahler Jr.
Jacob has just been forced away from all he knows and loves. He used to live in Harmony, one of the colonies on the moon Nova Campi. Harmony’s inhabitants are all totally blind, whether from birth or by choice. They live by the code of Truesight, the belief that blindness erases all of the impurities in one’s soul. Jacob was evicted because he suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, acquired the ability to see. Such an “abomination” must not exist in Harmony, and Jacob needed to escape or face the wrath of Harmony’s High Councilor.
Now Jacob wanders the plains of Nova Campi. Only one thing keeps him from surrendering to the endless sea of grass, from stopping and accepting death alone in the desolate wilderness. It is the hope of finding Delaney, his closest friend, who ran literally “blindly” away from Harmony recently before his escape. If he can find her, then he will have a companion to explore the world of the beyond Harmony.
After trekking for days he meets his first Seer, a man by the name of Xander. At first, Xander does little more than offer Jacob food and water. Xander reappears to save Jacob from a gang of shady individuals, then decides to allow the boy to stay with him. Xander knows of Delaney, as well as where to find her. She is now under the custody a powerful corporation known as Mixel, a corrupt organization that largely funded the colonization of Nova Campi. After the first visit Jacob realizes that Mixel is using Delaney for her singing talents to generate revenue, and a considerable amount at that. They won’t give up Delaney, not without a fight…
Will Jacob be able to take Delaney back? Has he found a friend in Xander? Will he ever adapt to the world of the Seers? Most importantly, can he come to grips with his sight, which may be more than just looking with his eyes?
This book is the sequel to the book Truesight which I have read as well. Both are excellently written science-fiction novels, but I enjoyed this book more than its predecessor. This story had more action than Truesight, from man-to-man combat to undercover rescue attempts. I enjoyed reading about Xander, my favorite character in the story. Xander is gruff on the outside, but kind-hearted inside. He is also street-smart, determined, and an exceptional fighter. He assists Jacob significantly throughout the book. A story is often made by its villain, and The Seer is no exception. The Mixel Corporation and its high-class handlers are the embodiment of greedy, back-stabbing, and dangerous. I would recommend that you read Truesight before you read The Seer, which should not be overly difficult because both books are fairly short. All in all, they are a worth-while duo.
Posted by BOOK NAME: Everwild
AUTHOR:
Neal Shusterman
If you liked Everlost, then you’re sure to love Everwild, the sequel and second book in The Skinjacker Trilogy. Everwild came out a while ago, but the third book is coming out this spring so I decided to wait until it was closer to that time to review it. Everwild is the second book in the series, and follows Allie, Nick, Mary, and quite a few other characters in their journeys through Everlost. Nick is dubbed ‘The Chocolate Monster’ by Mary because of the chocolate stain that just won’t go away, and he is trying to get all of the kids in Everlost to reach the light at the end of the tunnel. Meanwhile, Mary Hightower is trying to keep them all in Everlost forever. Allie goes back home to try and find her parents, and runs into some skinjackers. Near the end of the novel, she discovers the real reason why she can skinjack–and that reason will definitely be a big factor in some huge decisions she will have to make in the third book.
I love Neal Shusterman’s writing, and he continues to amaze me with his creative and imaginative stories. I would recommend this book to pretty much all kids who aren’t freaked out by the concept of ‘ghosts.’ For more information about the series, read my review of Everlost, the first book, to see if this is for you. My favorite character was actually a new character named Zinnia (although everyone called her Zin). She had a great personality and I was constantly laughing out loud at her antics. Overall, this is yet another hit that I encourage everyone to read (but not before you read the first book).
Posted by BOOK NAME: Catching Fire
AUTHOR: Suzanne Collins
Have you read The Hunger Games? If you haven’t, read the review before reading this one, because this is the sequel.
Okay… now that you’re caught up, let me remind of what happened in the first book. Katniss and Peeta won the Hunger Games and went back to District 12. Now they live in Victors Village next to Haymitch who was their mentor during the Games. Because they won the Hunger Games, they’re going to be mentors for the next tributes from District 12.
The Quarter Quell is coming up. Every 25 years, they do something special to the games. The last Quarter Quell they doubled the amount of tributes from each district. And that was the year that District 12′s very own Haymitch won the games.
Katniss and her family sit down in front of their TV to see President Snow announce the Quarter Quell and he says that one male and one female of all of the surviving tributes from each district will go back into the games. Katniss is shocked because she’s the only female winner from her district and she’s going to have to go back to the games.
“Anger.” That’s what all the districts are feeling right now. They’re very angry at the Capital. The Capital isn’t treating them fairly. The Hunger Games are getting out of control, and there are too many deaths. The first uprising – a group of people going against the Capital-happens in District 8.
Katniss doesn’t know what’s going to happen at the end of these hunger games, and she also knows that things are growing out of control in the Districts.
Be sure and read the third book in the series, Mockingjay. It’s even more shocking than the first two! Thanks for reading the review. Until next time-which will probably be for Mockingjay. Bye!
Posted by BOOK NAME: The Maze Runner
AUTHOR: James Dashner
Every 30 days a new boy arrives at The Glade with no memory at all. The new arrival, confused and frightened, join the other boys, known as “Gladers”. The boys learn to survive, but mainly want to escape from The Glade. There is no way in and no way out – or so they think.
Each night the stone doors to The Glade close and the next morning they open back up. Beyond the doors is a maze; nobody goes into the maze except for the maze runners. The Gladers live in fear of what lays beyond The Glade; even the maze runners. As soon as the doors to the maze opens, the maze runners run out, trying to find a way of escape within the maze.
This is one of my favorite books ever. It’s also one of the hardest reviews I’ve ever written. James Dashner built so much of a storyline within this book’s plot it was so hard to digest all of it. Even when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it constantly. My whole family loved this author and we already back-ordered the next book in this trilogy, The Scorch Trials.
I recommend this to anyone I can, but it is suggested for readers in grade 6-10. I read this aloud with my whole family and we all enjoyed it–even my parents. Definitely a favorite and I’m hoping you like it as much as we did.
BOOK NAME: Middleworld (Jaguar Stones Trilogy Book One)
AUTHOR: Jon and Pamela Voelkel
Hi guys, it’s me again. This time I got an action packed adventure book that will keep you on the edge of your seat. It’s called Middleworld. It’s about a boy named Max (which is short for Massimo) whose parents are archeologists and go to San Xavier because of a very important dig. They wouldn’t let Max come, but the housekeeper was told to buy Max a ticket to San Xavier. That’s when the adventure kicks in.
Max flew in to stay with his Mom and Dad but they couldn’t come to pick him up so they sent one of their workers, Oscar. Oscar brought Max to a bus that took him to the place where his Uncle Ted would pick him up. His Uncle works in the banana business. This is the start of Max’s adventure of a lifetime.
On his adventure to find his parents he meets a few friends, including Lola, who is Mayan and lives in the jungle. Lola’s eccentric friend was working with Max’s parents when they disappeared. Lola’s friend said that his parents got transported to the Mayan Underworld.
You may be wondering about the Jaguar Stones mentioned in the title. Well, there are five of them and they all have powers that are very strong. They can even heal themselves if they get chipped or broken. There are five pyramids that the stones belong in. Each stone has a matching pyramid. A long time ago there were five kings and each one had a stone. The stones were lost and some people have them and are trying to keep it a secret.
Max is trying to find the stone that will help him get to the Underworld and find his parents.
This book has action, adventure and a little bit of mystery. This is one of the best books I’ve ever done a review on. I recommend this book for everyone.
Bye ’til next time!
