Reviews written by CJ Redwine, Site and Staff Manager

This is a fun, fresh twist on the Snow White fairy tale, and I appreciated the way the author brought each element into a modern setting. Simone's allergy to apples and her stepmother's insistence on slipping her apple-related snacks. Seven college guys as her roommates for the summer. Prince Charming...

THE ROAR is a fascinating, addictive journey that instantly captivated me. The writing is lovely, the characters are vivid, and the plot is non-stop. I could imagine the dark, damp, hopeless world the characters lived in, and I was desperate to understand what secret Mal Gorman and the rest of...

This book is magical and sweet. I can't wait for my daughter to be old enough to enjoy it with me. Cassie is a lovely little girl with a very kind, perceptive heart. The adventures she has with her magical bracelet are sure to delight a young reader, and there...

This book blew me away. I was expecting your basic contemporary love story, complete with misunderstandings and a love triangle. I wasn't expecting to have my heart ripped out of my chest, in the best way possible, but that's what I got. Yes, this is a...

This is a fast-paced, quick read, and I really enjoyed the way the story is built around the scavenger hunt. Finding the items and working through the clues provided an interesting backdrop to the constant tension and drama between the main characters. I also appreciated that there's a definite arc...

I think this is one of those series that readers will either fall madly in love with or will walk away from shaking their heads. The highlights: genuinely dark, atmospheric world with scary things that go bump in both the day and the night. High stakes. A lot of things...

I've never considered myself a huge fan of contemporary fiction. If I saw the cover of this book on a bookshelf, I'd walk right past it. I've decided that bias has probably robbed me of reading some incredible fiction. (And I'm going to rememdy the lack of contemporary fic on...

Nevermind the picture on the cover that shows an intrepid girl swinging through a jungle on a vine. The real message lying inside the book is that girls are shy, fashion-conscious, non-adventurous types. I guess when Scholastic said in the book’s description that this is "unlike those other books for...

First, let me tell you what I loved about GRIM: the writing. It's beautiful. The way the author draws the reader's attention to tiny details or shows emotion through a character's choice or action is lovely. I especially enjoyed reading from the POV of Shawn. Ms. Waggener knows how to...

As a mother of a precious daughter we brought home from China, I was very invested in the contents of this book. Some books dealing with the theme of adoption and belonging just don't hit the mark for me. This one was absolutely lovely. The only part of the book...

TOKYO HEIST promises a mystery that spans two continents, with plenty of danger and intrigue, and it delivers. I really enjoyed the way art, Manga, and Japanese culture are woven into the fabric of the story. I learned so many interesting things about all three. Having a narrator who turns...

I was very interested to see what JumpStart (a name I've grown to trust for early educational games and software) would do with a comic book. The results are a mixed bag. On the one hand, the illustrations are beautiful and very engaging and the text flows smoothly, though because...

There's so much to love about SHADOW AND BONE. My favorite, though, has to be the world building. It's exceptional. The reader is instantly immersed in the alternate-Russia world of Ravka, with its wars, its customs, and its magic-wielding Grisha. There isn't one false note in the entire book. It's...

From the title, I expected LOSERS IN SPACE to be a bit of a comedic space romp, but I was wrong. The story is a well-plotted space adventure that explores themes of disenfranchisement, growing up fast, and the dangers of a society shifting its moral compass from valuing human life/rights...

I loved Disney's The Little Mermaid, but I'll admit that I've avoided reading YA mermaid books until now. Mostly because the idea of the sweet, sing-a-long tale was so entrenched in my head, I wasn't sure the idea of a mermaid story could translate well outside the realm of a...