Reviews written by Mark Buxton, Staff Reviewer

What worked: The opening chapter introduces Marlow and leaves readers with a couple of significant questions. She is living with a guardian, so readers will wonder what’s happened to her parents. While delivering messages, she is saved by slayers, and readers are introduced to Oleander. However, later, Marlow’s...

What worked: The book is set in Paris, right before the start of World War II. Alice works her way onto the movie set by baking cakes and pastries for different scenes. Readers will know from the previous books that Alice is an expert chef, so she can...

What worked: The first thing readers will appreciate is the author’s masterful ability to tell a story. They can feel the desperate emotions of Earl Grey and Cleo as they try to find their places in the world. Earl loves living with Oswald, but she longs to know...

What worked: Readers are treated to two stories instead of one, and the two parts are combined to form the overall plot. The opening pages describe Imogen and a friend named Bex when they approach a garden behind Stillness Hall. Everyone in town knows to stay away from...

What worked: This book is easy to read due to its short chapters and total number of pages. The entire story takes place over the course of one day. The eerie black-and-white illustrations help create a mysterious, supernatural tone. The new ghoulish neighbors dressed in “black and old-timey”...

What worked: The main characters travel into Grimm’s fairy tales to correct gaps in the book’s text. Basil and Terry are the stars, and they’re tasked with finding missing sheep in different stories. Terry has a crush on Gretel, and she told the boys that plot holes are...

What worked: The setting is quite unusual, as Nova City sits vertically atop long stilts in the middle of the ocean. Blue, the main character, works in a weather station at the top, alongside a retired zephyr named Lucado. The wealthy live on the upper levels with a...

What worked: How many books have you read that feature moths? Catclaw is the main character, and he belongs to the Nameless clan. Dreamkins used to have the ability to see premonitions of the future until the queen of all moths took that power away. Their clan is...

What worked: The story is told from Aviva’s first-person point of view, and she reflects on happy and troubled times with her best friend, Maddy. Aviva desperately laments about not speaking to Maddy anymore and hints at the reason. Readers will imagine what might have happened to keep...

What worked: The same main characters from the first book regroup to save an aerimander from danger. Aerimanders will remind readers of dragons, and the main one in this story is Rubi. Dusty and Eva guarded her egg until she hatched, and they still have a connection with...

What worked: The main characters represent the kinds of students readers encounter every day in school. Gabe is always angry and in trouble, but he’s promised himself that he’s going to change. He fears he’ll be accused of arson, and public opinion will find him guilty. Gabe, Liam,...

What worked: The series includes a good deal of humor and strange events, which should appeal to young readers. Detective Klaus drives a car that used to be a dog. It wags its tailpipe when it’s happy or excited and makes soft, satisfied sounds when you scratch its...

What worked: These kinds of books allow young readers to control their reading experiences. The narrative asks them to make decisions as the story unfolds, and their choices direct them to different pages. This book indicates there are three possible endings, but there are many alternate pathways to...

What worked: Ayda doesn’t have many friends, and her teacher has frequent problems with her. Villagers accuse her mother of being a witch, so Ayda dreams of fleeing to Witch Marsh. She’s chosen to sacrifice her life to protect all of Zandia, but she doesn’t want to give...

What worked: Alex and Ida May form an unusual, contrasting pair of characters. Alex likes everything neat and orderly, and he always follows the rules. His obsession with sterilizing surfaces he might touch makes him an easy target for middle-school classmates. Readers’ introduction to Ida May arises when...