Reviews written by Samantha Randolph

After the events of A RIDDLE IN RUBY, Ruby Teach is now in the custody of the man she was running from. He’s placed her in a strange group with young men and women training to become soldiers. While Ruby struggles alone, her father, Athena, and friends are doing their...

Everyone is ready for the big Jumping Contest, especially Fox. Fox wants to win, but he’s actually not a good jumper. However, he is talented at scheming, and he’s already picked out a spot for the trophy. Join Fox and several animal friends for a fun contest. ...

Lola is ready for school and believes she knows so many things…until her sister mentions she might not. What follows is a fantastic exploration of being confident in what you know and being eager and willing to learn more. LOLA KNOWS A LOT by Jenna McCarthy...

In a new take on Little Red Riding Hood, LITTLE RED AND THE VERY HUNGRY LION by Alex T. Smith follows Little Red on her way to her Auntie Rose, who is sick and needs medicine. During her journey, she finds the Very Hungry Lion, determined to make a meal...

This coloring book features a mixture of pages from actual scenes from the Harry Potter movies to pages dedicated to one creature’s design repeated. The iconic scenes will make readers eager for a Harry Potter marathon, movies or books. However, some of the other designs are somewhat simple and plain....

Anglet Sutonga, 17, is one, if not the, best steeplejack in Bar-Selehm. Her job involves climbing factories and tall buildings to repair chimneys and the like. She is part of the Lani community, who are mostly in poverty. When Ang finds her new apprentice dead and hears a historical icon...

Power couple Maria and Lily have their sights set on a clear future: attending Stanford together, away from their boarding school, Acheron Academy. The only person who could ruin their chances is Delilah Dufrey, the school queen and nearly guaranteed receiver of a major scholarship. Maria and Lily are willing...

Sammy never asked to be a pilot, but when his human, Hank’s, brother puts him in a plane, off he goes. Unfortunately, the plane’s remote gets broken, and Sammy’s plane goes far, far away, all the way into the woods. In unfamiliar territory, Sammy will have to find a way...

Nickel and Flora think they are lost to a blizzard when Teddy saves them. Teddy is a dog who was raised by a poet, Sylvan. Sylvan told him poets and children can hear dogs speak, and when Teddy meets Nickel and Flora, he knows Sylvan was right. While the three...

Phee’s world is turned upside down now that she’s at the rebellion base. Cash is still missing, possibly presumed dead, her uncle is dead, and Charles Benroyal is out for her throat. Phee is ready to get answers and win the war, but she struggles with grief and PTSD. As...

In historical England, people give off Smoke. It is generally accepted that this Smoke is a product of sin, and the cleaner aristocracy enforce that idea through their rule. Charlie and Thomas attend an elite boarding school where they are given tests to discourage any and all Smoke, but when...

Basanta lives in a village in India, surrounded by friends and family. She works for a young mistress who has a beautiful ring that Basanta wouldn’t mind having herself. When the ring disappears, she is hurt when her mistress accuses her of being a thief, and when, by chance, the...

Frannie and Louis have been online friends for years as part of a support group. Time has brought them closer, and they find they have weird things in common like losing random items constantly, but they’ve never meet face to face. When a string of events have them both setting...

RETURN TO THE ISLE OF THE LOST picks up right where The Descendants movie left off, though there is a handy recap before the first chapter for readers who haven’t seen the movie. Those who want the full effect of the character growth should start with the first Descendants book,...

Nic is a slave living around the mines outside of Rome. When he is ordered into a dangerous cavern that holds the treasures of Julius Caesar, he discovers a bulla, a god-powered amulet. Between the bulla and the mark the griffin hidden in the treasures gives him, Nic now has...