Please enable JavaScript
All Books | Page 62 | LitPick Book Reviews
All Books
Dragons and Dwarves
S. Andrew Swann
Synopsis: Two novels in one volume.

An omnibus edition of Dragons of the Cuyahoga and The Dwarves of Whiskey Island

Kline Maxwell was a serious political reporter. He wasn't interested in working on "fuzzy gnome" stories, or any of the other unbelievable tales that should end up only in sensationalist rags. But twelve years ago a magical Portal had opened into Cleveland, a Portal that had ruined much of Cleveland's modern-day technology even as it released magical energy all over town. And suddenly there was a shift in the population as humans fled the burg while dwarves, elves, dragons, ogres, gnomes, mages, and every other denizen of the fantasy realm on the other side of the Portal began moving into town.

And whether he wanted to or not, Maxwell had found himself covering stories that sometimes took him far from his political beat and into way too much danger both magical and mundane. Still, he took his job seriously, and when he was assigned to cover a dragon's death by crash-landing into the Cuyahoga, he headed over to the accident site with only a few curses. But what should have been a simple accident report soon led Maxwell in search of a much bigger story—one that would see him kidnapped by elves, framed for murder, holding secret meetings with dragons, and fleeing not only from the cops but from pretty much everybody!

Publication Date: 08/04/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Timelock
David Klass
Synopsis:

In Timelock, the thrilling finale to the Caretaker Trilogy, the end of life as we know it has arrived, and history will be made -- or lost -- at the hands of one young hero.

Jack Danielson has spent the last year saving the oceans and the Amazon, attempting to fulfill a prophecy that was written before his birth. Now he's more than ready to get back to life as a typical teenager and spend some quality time with his girlfriend, P.J. Too bad the world has other plans.

Wrenched away once more from those he knows and loves, Jack is thrust through time to the fiery deserts of the future and the frozen tundra of the Arctic, battling cyborgs, zombie warlocks, and scorpions the size of tanks. At least he has Gisco -- everyone's favorite surly telepathic canine -- to keep him company, not to mention the Ninja Babe, Eko. And he will finally be reunited with the parents who abandoned him so long ago, in order that he might save their dying planet.

But it isn't only a race to save Earth. As the clock ticks down before the final confrontation with the dreaded Dark Lord, Jack must decide once and for all who he really is -- prince of the future or humble human of the present -- and choose between the two women who love him.

Publication Date: 08/04/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Three Witches
Paula Jolin
Synopsis:

Three seemingly ordinary girls, studying together in the same ordinary high school. All have their own reasons to summon Trevor Saunders after his car goes over a cliff. Aliya brings the mystical seances of Syria. Gillian contributes the voodoo arts from her native Trinidad. Miya shares the secret magic of ancient Japan. Will they be able use their powers to bring him back one more time? Should they?

Publication Date: 07/21/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Sideshow
Deborah Noyes, Various
Synopsis: Freaks, magicians, psychics, and the passing strange take center stage in ten original tales by top YA authors and graphic novelists.

Molly is a bearded girl who joins the circus, only to fi nd that her former tormentor faces a far hairier plight. Tia claims that her lamented mom is a three-thousand-year-old mummy, but is it really an act? Cody sets out to foil a pop psychic, but the shocking result is not what he planned for. And Tiffany’s grandma sees something wild in her future, but is the girl prepared for the powerful shape it will take? Whether the sideshow touts a two-headed rat or a turn-of-the-century American jargo, whether the subject discovers an odd kind of miracle or learns that the real freaks are outside the tent, these stories and graphic tales are by turns humorous and insightful, edgy and eerie, but always compulsively entertaining.
Publication Date: 07/14/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Promise Of The Wolves
Dorothy Hearst
Synopsis: The first in The Wolf Chronicles trilogy, brilliantly weaving together original research, lovable characters and a dynamic, thoroughly engaging plot, Promise of the Wolves is a historical adventure story in the tradition of Clan of the Cave Bear and Watership Down.

Set 14,000 years ago in what is now Southern Europe, Promise of the Wolves is told from the point of view of Kaala, a young wolf born of a forbidden, mixed-blood litter. An outcast after her mother is exiled, Kaala struggles to earn her place in her pack. But her world is turned upside down when she rescues a human girl from drowning. Kaala and her young packmates begin hunting and playing with humans—risking expulsion from their pack and banishment from their home in the Wide Valley.

When war between humans and wolves threatens, Kaala learns that she is the last in a long line of wolves charged with keeping watch over humans in order to prevent them from losing touch with nature and thus destroying the world. But to do so she must solve the great paradox of wolfkind: though wolves must always be with humans, humans cannot abide the presence of wolves, and every time the two come together, war ensues. Kaala must choose between safety for herself, her friends, and their human companions and the survival of her pack—and perhaps all of wolf and humankind.
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Blue Moon: The Immortals
Synopsis:

Alyson's Noël's bestselling Immortals series has been hailed as "addictive" "beautiful" "haunting" and "mesmerizing." In the second installment, Blue Moon, Ever can bring her family back from the dead―but only if she's willing to sacrifice the guy she loves more than life itself.

Just as Ever is learning everything she can about her new abilities as an immortal, initiated into the dark, seductive world by her beloved Damen, something terrible is happening to him. As Ever's powers are increasing, Damen's are fading―stricken by a mysterious illness that threatens his memory, his identity, his life.

Desperate to save him, Ever travels to the mystical dimension of Summerland, uncovering not only the secrets of Damen's past―the brutal, tortured history he hoped to keep hidden―but also an ancient text revealing the workings of time. With the approaching blue moon heralding her only window for travel, Ever is forced to decide between turning back the clock and saving her family from the accident that claimed them―or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows weaker each day...

Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Libyrinth
Pearl North
Synopsis: In her debut novel, Pearl North takes readers centuries into the future, to a forgotten colony of Earth where technology masquerades as magic and wars are fought over books.

Haly is a Libyrarian, one of a group of people dedicated to preserving and protecting the knowledge passed down from the Ancients and stored in the endless maze of books known as the Libyrinth. But Haly has a secret: The books speak to her.

When the threat of the rival Eradicants drives her from her home, Haly learns that things are not all she thinks they are. Taken prisoner by the Eradicants, who believe the written word to be evil, she sees the world through their eyes and comes to understand that they are not the book-burning monsters that she has known her entire life.

The words of a young girl hiding in an attic—written hundreds of years before Haly’s birth—will spark the interest of her captors and begin the change necessary to end the conflict between the Eradicants and Libyrarians. With the help of her loyal companion Nod, a creature of the Libyrinth, Haly must mend the rift between the two groups before their war for knowledge destroys them all. Haly’s life—and the lives of everyone she knows—will never be the same.

A powerful adventure that unites the present and future, Libyrinth is a fresh, magical novel that will draw in young readers of all genres.
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Gamer Fantastic
Kerrie L. Hughes, Martin H. Greenberg
Synopsis: Let the games begin!

These thirteen original stories by veterans of the fantasy realms take role-playing games and universes to a whole new level.

From a teenager who finds a better future in virtual reality; to a private investigator hired to find a dying man's grandson in the midst of a virtual reality theme park; from a person gifted with the power to pull things out of books into the real world; to a psychologist using fantasy role-playing to heal his patients; from a gaming convention where the real winners may not be who they seem to be; to a multi-layered role-playing game that leads participants from reality to reality and games within games-these imaginative and fascinating new tales will captivate both lovers of original fantasy and anyone who has ever fallen under the spell of role-playing games.
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Skinwalker
Faith Hunter
Synopsis:

Meet shapeshifting skinwalker Jane Yellowrock in the first novel in the New York Times bestselling series that captures “the essence of urban fantasy” (SF Site).

Jane Yellowrock is the last of her kind—a skinwalker of Cherokee descent who can turn into any creature she desires and hunts vampires for a living. But now she’s been hired by Katherine Fontaneau, one of the oldest vampires in New Orleans and the madam of Katies’s Ladies, to hunt a powerful rogue vampire who’s killing other vamps.

Amidst a bordello full of real “ladies of the night,” and a hot Cajun biker with a panther tattoo who stirs her carnal desire, Jane must stay focused and complete her mission—or else the next skin she’ll need to save just may be her own...



Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Strange Brew
P. N. Elrod
Synopsis:

Today's hottest urban fantasy authors come together in this delicious brew that crackles and boils over with tales of powerful witches and dark magic!

In Charlaine Harris' "Bacon," a beautiful vampire joins forces with a witch from an ancient line to find out who killed her beloved husband. In "Seeing Eye" by Patricia Briggs, a blind witch helps sexy werewolf Tom Franklin find his missing brother―and helps him in more ways than either of them ever suspected. And in Jim Butcher's "Last Call," wizard Harry Dresden takes on the darkest of dark powers―the ones who dare to mess with this favorite beer.

For anyone who's ever wondered what lies beyond the limits of reality, who's imagined the secret spaces where witches wield fearsome magic, come and drink deep. Let yourself fall under the spell of this bewitching collection of short stories!

Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
The Dark Hunters
Claudia Campos, Sherrilyn Kenyon
Synopsis: In the war against vampires, mankind has only one hope: The Dark-Hunters. Ancient warriors who died of brutal betrayal, the Dark-Hunters have sworn themselves into the service of the goddess Artemis to protect us.

It's a pact with pretty good perks. Immortality, power, psychic abilities, wealth and a cool wardrobe. But it comes with a few drawbacks: fatal sun poisoning and a new, irreparable dental problem. But aside from the fangs and nocturnal lifestyle, it's not so bad.  Until Kyrian meets the most frightening thing imaginable. An accountant who's being hunted by one of the most lethal vampires out there. If Amanda Devereaux goes down, so does he and no offense, he doesn't want to die (hence the whole immortality thing). And he doesn't want humanity dead either which is a good thing for us since he and Amanda are all that stands between us and oblivion. Let's hope they win.  From the wild imagination of Sherrilyn Kenyon comes the humorous and suspenseful manga debut of the #1 internationally bestselling Dark-Hunter series. The world of manga will never be the same again.

Look Inside The Dark-Hunters, Vol. 1
Meet Dark-Hunters Kyrian of Thrace and Tabitha Devereaux and get caught up in the vampire slaying action.
Click on each panel to see the full page.



"[His] destiny is to save the very mortals who despise and fear him"
"Neither man nor beast, he is something else entirely"
"The worst thing about this whole Cliff situation is that I don't miss him"
"I can't marry a woman with a family like that"  

Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
First Rider's Call
Kristen Britain
Synopsis: Magic, danger, and adventure abound for messenger Karigan G'ladheon in the second book in Kristen Britain's New York Times-bestselling Green Rider fantasy series • "First-rate fantasy." —Library Journal 

Karigan G'ladheon was once a Green Rider, one of the king of Sacoridia's elite magical messengers. In the messenger service, she was caught up in a world of deadly danger, and though she defeated the rogue Eletian who cracked the magical D'Yer Wall—which had protected Sacoridia for a thousand years from the dark influence of Blackveil Forest, and Mornhavon the Black's evil spirit imprisoned within it—she had nonetheless been tainted by his wild magic.

Exhausted in body and spirit, and determined to take control of her own destiny, Karigan returned to her home in Corsa. But even Karigan's stubborn determination is no match for the Rider's call. Ghostly hoofbeats echo in the deep regions of her mind. When she awakes to find herself on horseback, halfway to Sacor City in her nightgown, she finally gives in.  

Karigan returns to the court, only to find the Green Riders weakened and diminished. Rider magic has become unreliable, and she herself has ghostly visions of Lil Ambriodhe, First Rider, and founder of the Green Rider corps.

But why is the First Rider appearing to Karigan? And will Karigan be able to seek the help of a woman who has been dead for a thousand years?
Publication Date: 07/07/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
The Amberstone: Saving The Flame
Synopsis: With fascinating graphite illustrations, The Amberstone: Saving the Flame by new author P.K. Lecoq is a dramatic fantasy adventure that boasts dark whimsy and a message of perseverance. When thirteen-year-old Carrie is wrenched by a paralyzing magnetic force from her backyard into deep space and set down in a rock quarry on a distant planet, she is shaken and confused, but unhurt. In a dreamscape of mythic proportions, she stumbles upon the Amberstone and its imprisoned flame and vows to take it to the Great Wolf Spirit. It is a rigorous journey into the hinterlands of a strange world, but on the way she makes many friends, including Cristie and Ben. She meets Tilt, a pill-bug, and Cent, a camel cricket, and many other interesting characters. However, with only guidance from the flame, Carrie must make this astonishing and unforgettable adventure on her own.
Publication Date: 07/02/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
People of the Sword
Neil O'Donnell
Synopsis: PEOPLE OF THE SWORD combines myth, history, and conquest with music, sorcery and a touch of romance to impart the struggles of two vastly different cultures suddenly dependent on one another for survival. Confronted by a common enemy, the wizard Crarnock, the druids and knights of Tropal realize that only through cooperation can they defeat Crarnock's goblin army. The journey will test the resolve of both peoples as they realize that their collective bias and misunderstandings are as much a threat as Crarnock himself. For readers interested in history, mythology, culture change, and classic struggles between Good and Evil, PEOPLE OF THE SWORD is for you.
Publication Date: 07/02/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Hybrid
Angie L Reed
Synopsis: Just when you think you have read and seen it all, something new dawns on the horizon. Julian, Max and Emily open a new door into the unreal, a door that will mesmerize the reader wtih shocking unexpected twists and turns as a new generation of vampires is revealed. Action, adventure, romance and suspense enough to keep the most jaded reader enthralled until the final breath-taking climax.
Publication Date: 06/30/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy
Vicious Circle
Linda Robertson
Synopsis: A girl's got to do what a girl's got to do....

Being a witch doesn't pay the bills, but Persephone Alcmedi gets by between reading Tarot cards, writing her syndicated newspaper column, and kenneling werewolves in the basement when the moon is full -- even if witches aren't supposed to mingle with wolves. She really reaches the end of her leash, though, when her grandmother gets kicked out of the nursing home and Seph finds herself in the doghouse about some things she's written. Then her werewolf friend Lorrie is murdered...and the high priestess of an important coven offers Seph big money to destroy the killer, a powerful vampire named Goliath Kline. Seph is a tough girl, but this time she bites off more than she can chew. She needs a little help from her friends -- werewolf friends. One of those friends, Johnny, the motorcycle-riding lead singer for the techno-metal-Goth band Lycanthropia, has a crush on her. And while Seph has always been on edge around this 6'2" leather-clad hunk, she's starting to realize that although their attraction may be dangerous, nothing could be as lethal as the showdown that awaits them.
Publication Date: 06/30/09
Age Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fantasy

Pages



RECENT BOOK REVIEWS