Fun Fiction Friday - November 9, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
November 9, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

There is where I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading, also if applicable.

I have several series waiting to be read, but they have been put on hold so I can reread the Keeper of the Lost Cities series again. The last time I posted I shared that my husband bought me the boxed set of the first five books!!! So, I have finally gotten a chance to move along in the series again. This week I finished both Everblaze and Neverseen (that book we've been waiting for months to get out of the library).

Anyway, I have written reviews for the first two books (Keeper of the Lost Cities review and Keeper of the Lost Cities: Exile review), and now I finally get to share my long-promised review of Everblaze, plus the review of Neverseen. First,just a reminder of what the girls are reading. It actually hasn't changed.

Obviously, Tabitha and I have been focusing on The Keeper of the Lost Cities. She is up to the second book, Exile, and I just started Lodestar.

Amelia is still reading Warriors: Into the Wild by Erin Hunter. She hasn't been able to read as much as she has wanted to as she has been getting headaches while she reads. Don't worry though, we have an eye doctor appointment scheduled.

As for family read-alouds, we are still trying to make our way through the Percy Jackson book: The Titan's Curse. We are also reading The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare during our school reading time, along with our main reader, Augustus Caesar's World.

Moving on to those reviews:

Review of The Keeper of the Lost Cities: Everblaze.

In this third book of the Keeper of the Lost Cities series, Sophie continues to try to find her place in the elven world. She feels at home now with her guardians, Edaline and Grady, though she still struggles to know whether she can or should call them mom and dad. She has her friends as well, friends who she had struggles with in the first two books, but who are now starting to become strong supports for her. Which is very important in this book, because she is now facing harsh criticism and hurtful whispers from fellow classmates and other citizens of the elven world. Now that the problems she was having with her abilities which she started to notice while in Exile have been fixed, she has been asked to perform a very controversial healing, a healing that ends up having tragic consequences. These are consequences she isn't really responsible for, yet she feels she is, especially when everyone except her friends seems to be against her. 

In this book we begin to learn more about the Black Swan, the rebels who created Sophie, who were once considered evil, but we have since discovered they are fighting against the real villains, the Neverseen. Slowly secrets are being brought to light, while at the same time we realize the situation is a lot more complex and dangerous than it has seemed before.

One other thing I wanted to mention is that this is the first book in the series that ends in a cliffhanger. 

The author does a wonderful job of growing the characters and their relationships. She slowly lets the reader learn just enough to entice us to want to continue reading. Plus she does a great job making the reader become emotionally attached to the characters, especially Sophie.

Review of The Keeper of the Lost Cities: Neverseen

(If you are only just reading Everblaze, you probably don't want to read this review, as I do mention some things that happen in Everblaze.)

In this fourth book of the series, Sophie and her friends have run off to join the Black Swan. In one way or another they figured they were in trouble anyway, and seeing as Sophie had to leave because of events in Everblaze, her friends joined her. 

Joining the Black Swan wasn't all they were hoping it would be. They did welcome them and want them to be there, but they also required the children to be training and getting ready for different missions. Of course, the kids would prefer to be seeing more action and less sitting around. They want to be more impulsive, where the leaders, known as the Collective, expect them to be careful and well prepared. 

Some secrets are revealed, though some remain a mystery, while new mysteries are added. They have to figure out how to stop a plague that is threatening the gnomes. They end up going to another school and learning new skills while working on unraveling these mysteries. Secrets that have been hidden for thousands of years are revealed. And we learn of betrayals and surprise allies. 

Neverseen is action packed and continues to develop the characters and the world of the "Lost Cities." This book again ends with a cliffhanger. One that is even more devastating for Sophie than learning she had to leave her family and go into hiding with the Black Swan. 

I had a hard time putting down both of these books. The author sure does a great job of getting me to turn those pages!

Fun Fiction Friday - October 26th, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
October 26th, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday. I am so sorry I have neglected to post for over a month. Yes, we've still been reading, I just haven't been able to find the time to post. 

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

We've read quite a few books since the last time I posted.

Tabitha and I have both finished the entire The Land of Stories series. It was quite good, though I did think there was a bit too much "language" for a juvenile series. These aren't words that would be a concern in a young adult book (though I still don't like them there), but they are words we don't allow in our house (words that are synonyms which are used in place of other off-limit words by some). They weren't prevalent, but I was sad to see them included. And, I have to admit, there are quite a few times I was left scratching my head at certain parts when the timeline didn't seem to be adding up. Some of the later books in the series took on a different feel than the first few, but it was quite the intriguing series. Alex and Conner are twins who find out their father came from the fairy tale world. Sadly he had passed away before the series started. The twins find their way to the "Land of Stories" through a magic storybook their grandmother (their dad's mother) gives them. They have all sorts of dangerous, yet wonderful adventures.

In the first book, The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell, they must travel through the lands to collect ingredients to complete a spell that can take them home. They discover all the different characters from fairy tales and nursery rhymes on their travels, making friends and enemies. They also find out that their grandmother is quite an important person in this world. If you would like to find out more, I invite you to read my full review from last year.

Then their are several more books in the series:

• The Enchantress Returns
• A Grimm Warning
• Beyond the Kingdoms
• An Author's Odyssey
• World's Collide

One of these days, I may reread them so I can actually write reviews of each of them. I really need to stop for a breather between books so I can write a review before my mind has the next story jumbled in. 

I also finished the I am Number Four and Lorien Legacies Reborn series again, including reading the newest book for the first time.

You can read some sneaky peeks for most of the books above over on my book blog: Me, Myself, I Read (and write), as I posted my Book Beginnings on Fridays and The Friday 56 focusing on most of those books recently.

I have several series waiting to be read, but they have been put on hold so I can reread the Keeper of the Lost Cities series again. The last time I posted we were still waiting on the fourth book, Neverseen, to become available at the library. Unfortunately, it still isn't available. We thought we were going to have it in hand this week, only to find out I am third in the queue to receive it, not first like I thought. So, I sort of became desperate, and begged my husband to buy me just that book, so we could read the series all the way through before the seventh book is released in a week and a half. He never really confirmed whether we could get it or not, but then a surprise package arrived from Amazon yesterday afternoon. My husband bought me the boxed set of the first five books!!! I am so very excited.

So now all of them besides the sixth book, Nightfall, can go back to the library. Or I can keep them so Tabitha and I can read at the same time and not fight over them. LOL.

Anyway, I have written reviews for the first two books (Keeper of the Lost Cities review and Keeper of the Lost Cities: Exile review), and now I can get to reading the remainder of the books so I can finally write reviews of those.

Obviously, for the next few weeks, Tabitha and I are going to be focusing on The Keeper of the Lost Cities. 

Amelia is still reading Warriors: Into the Wild by Erin Hunter.

As for family read-alouds, we are still trying to make our way through the Percy Jackson book: The Titan's Curse. We finished all the books we had for review. Here is a list of the books we reviewed recently through the Homeschool Review Crew, with the link for the review.

• Kingdom Files books by Matt Koceich (Who was Jonah?, and Who was Mary, Mother of Jesus?)
• Rescue Me! What Superheroes Can Teach Us About the Power of Faith by Bryce Morgan
• Forensic Faith for Kids by J. Warner Wallace and Susie Wallace

We are also reading The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare during our school reading time, along with our main reader, Augustus Caesar's World.

Don't forget to stop back next week for my review of The Keeper of the Lost Cities: Everblaze. 

Fun Fiction Friday - September 14th, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
September 14th, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

We've read quite a few books since the last time I posted a couple of weeks ago.

These are the books Tabitha has been reading.

She has finished:

The Keeper of the Lost Cities: Everblaze by Shannon Messenger, the third book in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. We both finished it actually. She finished it for the first time, and I finished it for the second time. We are now impatiently waiting for the fourth book to become available. Ironically, we already have books 5 and 6 in our library book box. 

While we have been waiting, Tabitha zinged through the third and fourth book of the Land of Stories series and she is now waiting for book five. 

She has read The Land of Stories: A Grimm Warning and The Land of Stories: Beyond the Kingdoms. I am still reading The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns. I sort of set it aside to read another book, oops. 

She is currently reading the Warriors Power of Three book: The Sight by Erin Hunter. 

Amelia finally decided to focus on one book, so she has a better chance of at least finishing one. She is reading Warriors: Into the Wild by Erin Hunter. She also grabbed the remainder of the first series from the library.

We never did finish A Bear Called Paddington. We just have too many we are reading right now. I might have the older girls finish the book by themselves.

We are also on the third book of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series titled, The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan.

The girls and I took turns reading the following books for review. In fact, I just posted my review on Wednesday.

We are also reading this new review book. The girls have all actually read it on their own. I am just reading a chapter a night so Harold can hear it, plus the girls never read the devotional type pages. This review will be posting next week.

Rescue Me! What Superheroes Can Teach Us About the Power of Faith by Bryce Morgan.

We are also reviewing Forensic Faith for Kids by J. Warner Wallace and Susie Wallace. Both of these books have been our bedtime stories.

I'm sorry I never got my review of Everblaze posted. I started reading other books and my mind wasn't clear enough to write this review. I plan on reading it again soon so I can write that review, but it will probably be when we can get Neverseen from the library.

I actually got hooked on one of the newest books from the I am Number Four series (or the series that came after it Lorien Legacies Reborn). I was at the library one day and noticed Fugitive Six on the shelf. Then I realized there was another one, The Legacy Chronicles: Trial By Fire by Pittacus Lore. This second book is a collection of three short stories focusing on what was sort of going on behind the scenes around the time of Generation One. I picked it up and couldn't put it down, especially because I was thrilled to get the chance to read about two beloved characters. With the new series there haven't been many appearances of the original characters, and I was missing them. So, I have all three of these books out right now.

Of course, I am still trying to read The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns. Tabitha really zinged ahead of me with those books.

And today, because I needed another book to read, I spied the following book and decided to take it out. The library has had several books from this series on display for the last couple of weeks (at least) and I was intrigued.

Fun Fiction Friday - August 31st, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
August 24th, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

Tabitha is currently reading the following books.

The Land of Stories: A Grimm Warning by Chris Colfer. This is the third book in The Land of Stories series.

The Bungalow Mystery by Carolyn Keene is another Nancy Drew mystery.

The Keeper of the Lost Cities: Everblaze by Shannon Messenger is the third book in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. I did just finish this book, but I want to read it again before writing my review, as I was having trouble keeping details straight in my mind seeing as I read some other books since then.

Amelia is still reading the following three books.

She decided all those books sounded interested, so is attempting them all. We'll see how this goes. She is a little ways into all three books, but she is really focusing on Warriors: Into the Wild by Erin Hunter.

Warriors: Into the Wild by Erin Hunter

The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer

The Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger

As a family, we are still reading A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond  as it goes along with our review of the literature study of Paddington from Branch Out World. I actually posted that review last week.

We are also on the third book of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series titled, The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan.

The girls and I will also be taking turns reading the following books for review. I don't think I will do these are read-alouds, mainly because we already have two going on as it is.

We are also reading this new review book.

Rescue Me! What Superheroes Can Teach Us About the Power of Faith by Bryce Morgan.

I set aside House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo, but I plan on getting back to it soon. I finished the third book of the Keeper of the Lost Cities series titled Everblaze. I will share my review next week, as I mentioned above.

I actually decided to focus on the following books these past two weeks.

I finished Demigods & Magicians: Percy and Annabeth Meet the Kanes by Rick Riordan last week. I will be sharing my review below. And I actually finished The Land of Stories: the Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer today and started the second book: The Enchantress Returns, finally. I had it out from the library last summer, but got interested obsessed with the I am Number Four series, so I didn't get back to them til recently.

The following book was a quick read for me. Demigods & Magicians: Percy and Annabeth Meet the Kanes by Rick Riordan, is a compilation of three novellas featuring the main characters from the Percy Jackson books and the Kane Chronicles books. 

Fun Fiction Friday

Book Review

The first story, "The Son of Sobek," features Carter Kane and Percy Jackson who meet as Carter is in the process of being eaten by a giant crocodile. At first they aren't sure what to think of each other, and even end up in a fight, until they call a "truce" to take care of the monster. The second story, "The Staff of Serapis," takes place a few weeks later, and Annabeth meets up with Sadie Kane. They join up to stop a combination Egyptian/Greek god from gaining power. And in the third story, "The Crown of Ptolemy," all four of the teens join forces to battle the one who was behind it all, in an attempt to gain godhood. 

I will not say who the ultimate "baddy" ends up being, but it is someone who you will be familiar with if you have read one of the series. I'm not even going to give away if this person is from the Greek or Egyptian series. Just know, this person found a way to attempt to become powerful by combining Greek and Egyptian power. I love the way it actually brought some closure to one aspect of the one series that was left a bit up in the air. And I love the way the Kane siblings got to meet Percy and Annabeth. I mean, with all this godly power taking place in Brooklyn and Manhattan, you'd think they would have noticed each other sooner. But they do realize it is imperative that those powers don't mix. 

This was definitely a quick read, both for myself and Tabitha. We both enjoyed it very much. I will say, you really should read both series to understand what is going on. And I would recommend the second Percy Jackson series, only if you have every intention of ever reading it. It isn't necessary for understanding the book, but it does give some detail away about what happens in the second series. 

Definitely an enjoyable read. 

Fun Fiction Friday - August 17th, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
August 17th, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

The girls are actually still reading the same books as last week.

Tabitha is currently reading the following books.

The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns by Chris Colfer takes place a year after the first book ended. I won't let Tabitha tell me much about it right now, as I plan on reading it when she is finished.

The Keeper of the Lost Cities: Exile by Shannon Messenger is the second book in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. Which I have mentioned previously. I will be sharing my review of this book at the bottom of this post. 

Amelia is still reading the following three books.

She decided all those books sounded interested, so is attempting them all. We'll see how this goes. She is a little ways into all three books.

As a family, we are still reading A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond  as it goes along with our review of the literature study of Paddington from Branch Out World. I actually posted that review last week.

We are also on the third book of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series titled, The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan.

The girls and I will also be taking turns reading the following books for review. I don't think I will do these are read-alouds, mainly because we already have two going on as it is.

I am still reading House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo, but I have sort of set it aside to reread the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. I am almost finished with the third book, Keeper of the Lost Cities: Everblaze.

After I finish that book, I will return to the other books I have out from the library, as there is still quite a wait for the next three books in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. These books are quite popular, but unfortunately our entire library system only has a couple of copies of each.

Fun Fiction Friday

Book Review

In this series Sophie, who was brought up by a family of humans until she was 12 year old, suddenly finds out she is an elf, and part of a magical world that keeps itself separated from the human world. She also finds out she has a very important role to play and has more powers than most elves, though all have different skills, and the majority have at least one special ability.

Exile starts off a few weeks after the first book ends. Sophie has now finally found her place and feels accepted in her new world and most importantly with her family. She is becoming more comfortable with her Telepathy, yet is still trying to get used to the new ability she discovered she had at the end of the first book. Though she isn't pleased to realize she is an Inflictor, she can at least remain at Foxfire thanks to this new ability.

Sophie also makes a new friend in this book, an alicorn who only she can comfort and control at the start. This alicorn is terribly important to their world, and a lot of the story revolves around her and Sophie's relationship with her.

Unfortunately, she is also struggling with severe headaches, and it is soon discovered that something isn't quite right with her. She feels she is "malfunctioning" and is desperate to find out what is wrong with her, especially after something terrible happens to a dear friend who she was supposed to be helping with a classified task. Everyone has given up on him, yet she keeps hope alive, desperate to save not only him, but the one she feels she was "created" to save in the first place. 

Between dealing with the alicorn, struggling with the heartbreak of what happened to her friend and mentor, starting a second year at Foxfire with all its new challenges, and trying to figure out the mystery of the Black Swan and how they are related to her and her adopted family's daughter, Sophie has quite the stressful time in this second book. The mystery of the Black Swan is quite intriguing. Are they friend or foe? Why did they help her at the end of the first book, yet are feared to be dangerous rebels? If the Black Swan aren't the "bad guys" then who really are the ones they should fear? In a world where there was supposed to be such peace, there are a lot of secrets to uncover and truths to find out.

Shannon Messenger continues to build this world wonderfully, adding to what we already know and introducing the reader to just enough to keep us wanting more. Poor Sophie continues to go through quite the heartbreaking struggles, yet we see her strength and determination, though she does tend to keep too many secrets from her parents and at times her friends. However, there are consequences, so she knows she can't just get away with doing wrong.

I love this second book in the series. If you couldn't tell, seeing as my daughter and I were "fighting" over who would get to read it. She is also enjoying it very much.

Next week I will share my review of Everblaze.

Fun Fiction Friday - August 10th, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
August 10th, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

Tabitha is currently reading the following books.

She finished the first Keeper of the Lost Cities book and really enjoyed it, as do I. Between last week and this week she also read the first book of The Land of Stories series, titled The Wishing Spell, which I read and wrote a review of last summer. (You can check out my review here.) I wasn't aware she was reading it last Friday, so it didn't get included in last week's Fun Fiction Friday. 

Keeper of the Lost Cities:Exile by Shannon Messenger is the second book in this series. We are both reading it and having a hard time putting the books down. In fact, we are fighting each other to have our turn to read it. Though there was a time in the dentist's office last week when we shared. 

As I have mentioned in previous Fun Fiction Friday posts, this is a wonderful series full of adventure and unexpected twists and turns. This second book starts shortly after the first one ends, a year after Sophie ended up in the elven world. She is learning more about her world, helping her adoptive family, and discovering new powers and secrets. I hope to share my review of this book next week.

The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns by Chris Colfer takes place a year after the first book ended. I have not yet read this book, even though I had it out of the library last summer. I ended up returning it as I became obsessed with the I Am Number Four series by Pittacus Lore. Tabitha can't tell me too much right now, except that they do return to the Land of Stories. I have every intention of reading it so I can share about the book. 

Amelia is now reading three books.

She decided all those books sounded interested, so is attempting them all. We'll see how this goes. She is a little ways into all three books.

As a family, we are still reading A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond  as it goes along with our review of the literature study of Paddington from Branch Out World.

A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond was a book I loved when I was a child. I have been wanting Tabitha to read it for a while, but she has so many books in her TBR pile she hasn't gotten to it yet. So, we are now making it a family read-aloud.

We are also on the third book of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series titled, The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan.

I am still reading House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo, though if I write a review it will be posted over on my book blog (Me, Myself, I Read (and Write)) as I am trying to keep Fun Fiction Friday for juvenile books.

I have sort of set it aside to reread the Keeper of the Lost Cities series.

Fun Fiction Friday

Book Review

Yes, I actually finished the Keeper of the Lost Cities series, and decided to read it again. Yes, I enjoy it that much! I am very much emotionally attached to these characters.

In this series Sophie, who was brought up by a family of humans until she was 12 year old, suddenly finds out she is an elf, and part of a magical world that keeps itself separated from the human world. She also finds out she has a very important role to play and has more powers than most elves, though all have different skills, and the majority have at least one special ability.

In this first book Sophie is found by an elf who tells her they've been looking for her for 12 years. Of course, she doesn't believe him at first, not until he takes her to the elven world. She finally understands why she has been able to hear people's thoughts since she was five years old, though that is even abnormal in the elven world. She ends up having to leave her family and completely integrate into this world she knows nothing of.

She makes friends, and foes as she begins school at Foxfire, while having to keep the secret that she is a Telepath. She struggles with having to unlearn things she learned as fact in the human world, which makes some of her classes quite the challenge. Which is really weird for her seeing as she was a child prodigy in the human world, a 12 year old high school senior.

In addition to struggling in school, she is also struggling trying to find her place in her "foster" family, a couple who lost their daughter years earlier and were convinced to take Sophie in. She's not sure if she really belongs, and when dangerous events take place, she finds herself unsure of her future with them. Which then leads to a perilous predicament involving a friend and black hooded figures.

The book does a wonderful job introducing the reader to this mythical world, a world where all the creatures you thought were fairy tales actually live, along with all the animals we think are extinct. Though most are nothing like humans think they are. The author is so imaginative, and wonderful at describing this world. And as I have already mentioned, she does a wonderful job with character building. I am very much emotionally attached to Sophie and her friends. There is at least one scene in each book were I have found myself in tears, this first book included.

I definitely recommend this series for lovers of the fantasy genre.

Fun Fiction Friday - August 3rd, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
August 3rd, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

Tabitha took the following books to camp with her this past week. Originally she was told she could only take one, but she couldn't choose, so I allowed her to take all three.

Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger is the first book in the series I am also reading. We are both having a hard time putting the books down. They are full of adventure and fantasy, a great combination. 

The Hidden Staircase is the second Nancy Drew book by Carolyn Keene. I'm so glad Tabitha is old enough to read these books now. I loved them when I was a kid.

Warriors The New Prophecy: Sunset by Erin Hunter is the last book in this second Warriors series. Tabitha is really enjoying this story and is quite obsessed with it.

She actually ended up finishing The Hidden Staircase, and she didn't have a chance to read the Keeper of the Lost Cities because one of her new friends borrowed it (and is now planning on taking it out of the library).

Amelia ended up setting the Survivors book aside, as we discovered it is actually the second series that features those characters. Instead she settled in and finished The Wizard of Oz.

And she decided to read Warriors by Erin Hunter after all.

As a family, we started reading A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond  as it goes along with our review of the literature study of Paddington from Branch Out World.

A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond was a book I loved when I was a child. I have been wanting Tabitha to read it for a while, but she has so many books in her TBR pile she hasn't gotten to it yet. So, we are now making it a family read-aloud. 

And I am finishing up the last book (so far) in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series by Shannon Messenger, Keeper of the Lost Cities Nightfall.

I am absolutely loving this series. It's got a great mix of fantasy and adventure, plus a bit of mystery and suspense that really keeps the pages turning. Quite a few unexpected twists and turns in this book. Nightfall is the fifth book in the series and I just love the story and the characters. It is very rare that an author can get me so emotionally involved that I find myself in tears for the characters, this is one of them. 

In this series Sophie, who was brought up by a family of humans until she was 11 year old, suddenly finds out she is an elf, and part of a magical world that keeps itself separated from the human world. She also finds out she has a very important role to play and has more powers than most elves, though all have different skills, and the majority have at least one special ability. She finds herself in many dangerous circumstances, some of her own making, while trying to first find her place in this new world, and later while trying to help fix problems that have evolved in their world. 

I definitely recommend this series for lovers of the fantasy genre.

The following series came to my attention when I was looking for books by Christian authors in the horror genre for the adult summer reading program at the library.

Not a huge fan of horror stories anymore, but this one caught my attention. I'll have to see how they are once I start reading them. I am starting House of Dark Shadows this weekend.

What Tabitha has to say about The Hidden Staircase by Carolyn Keene

A girl named Nancy Drew is staying at Riverview Manor with her friend to help solve the mystery about the ghost. She has to search for a secret passageway that the "ghost" has been using to get into the house to steal stuff.

Fun Fiction Friday - July 27th, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
July 27th, 2018

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

Tabitha still has a wide variety of books she is working through. Here are the three she is currently in the middle of.

Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger is the first book in the series I am also reading. We are both having a hard time putting the books down. They are full of adventure and fantasy, a great combination. 

The Hidden Staircase is the second Nancy Drew book by Carolyn Keene. I'm so glad Tabitha is old enough to read these books now. I loved them when I was a kid.

Warriors The New Prophecy: Sunset by Erin Hunter is the last book in this second Warriors series. Tabitha is really enjoying this story and is quite obsessed with it.

Amelia is still trying to work her way through the following two books.

Survivors The Gathering Darkness: A Pack Divided is another series by Erin Hunter (the author of Warriors). Amelia couldn't quite get into the Warriors books, but she was really enjoying this book. That is until she realized she was confused about some of the things that were happening in the story and she realized there is a whole other Survivors series prior to this one. So, I am going to have to find those for her to read first.

She is also enjoying the Great Illustrated Classics version of The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum.

She didn't read that much last week, but we are going to make sure she does better this week.

I sort of forced Hannah to start reading something different as she had been rereading the Tales of Sasha books over and over. Not that I don't understand the draw of rereading something you really enjoy (been there done that), but I want her to try other books too. I know I need that little nudge now and then. So, she is reading the following two books.

The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls Book Two: Race to the Ark by M.J. Thomas is a book we read as a family last year. This is a part of a time-travel series where the characters go back to events in the Bible and have to solve a mystery to get back home. The author wrote these books so children could have a fun way to learn about the Bible. You can read my review here.

Jasmine's New Rules is one is a series of Disney Princess Beginnings. I honestly don't know much about them, except for the fact that they are about the Disney Princesses when they were children. Hannah seems to be enjoying them though.

Hopefully next week I will have a chance to have the girls tell a little about the books they are reading. I planned on them doing so today, but I took a nap and then forgot to ask them before they fell asleep.

As a family, we finally finished reading Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan, and the Kane Chronicles: The Serpent's Shadow, by the same author. These really were a fun way to learn a little about the mythology of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. I now have the third book of Percy Jackson out from the library and we will be getting to that soon. We are going to be reading the following book right away though as it goes along with our review of the literature study of Paddington from Branch Out World.

A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond was a book I loved when I was a child. I have been wanting Tabitha to read it for a while, but she has so many books in her TBR pile she hasn't gotten to it yet. So, we are now making it a family read-aloud. 

And I am up to the final two books in the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. 

I am absolutely loving this series. It's got a great mix of fantasy and adventure, plus a bit of mystery and suspense that really keeps the pages turning. Lodestar is the fifth book in the series and I just love the story and the characters. It is very rare that an author can get me so emotionally involved that I find myself in tears for the characters, this is one of them. 

In this series Sophie, who was brought up by a family of humans until she was 11 year old, suddenly finds out she is an elf, and part of a magical world that keeps itself separated from the human world. She also finds out she has a very important role to play and has more powers than most elves, though all have different skills, and the majority have at least one special ability. She finds herself in many dangerous circumstances, some of her own making, while trying to first find her place in this new world, and later while trying to help fix problems that have evolved in their world. 

I definitely recommend this series for lovers of the fantasy genre.

The following series came to my attention when I was looking for books by Christian authors in the horror genre for the adult summer reading program at the library. They are next up in my TBR pile.

Not a huge fan of horror stories anymore, but this one caught my attention. I'll have to see how they are once I start reading them. 

Fun Fiction Friday - July 20th, 2018

Fun Fiction Friday
November 20th, 2017

Welcome back to Fun Fiction Friday.

In my Fun Fiction Friday I share the books the older girls and I are reading, and a short review of a Young Adult or Juvenile book I have finished, if applicable. I will also ask the girls to tell me something they would like to share about at least one of the books they are currently reading.

Tabitha is still reading a wide variety of books.

She is closer to finishing the Warriors: The New Prophecy series by Erin Hunter. She really enjoyed the original Warriors series. My oldest son read them years ago and also loved them. He was thrilled that she was reading them. She just finished Twilight and is working on Sunset.

Knowing how much she loves mysteries, I encouraged her to try out the original Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene that I read and loved as a kid. She finished book 1 and is ready to start book 2: The Hidden Staircase. I also took out A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle because I enjoyed it as a child and we just saw the movie at the library recently, so she was interested in it. However, it appears they have taken a back seat while she tries to finish the Warriors book, plus has gotten interested in The Keeper of the Lost Cities that I have been reading.

I had the following series recommended to me a while back and was thrilled to find it in our library system. Funnily enough, Tabitha's penpal had told her about them, and I hadn't realized it. I started the first one, Keeper of the Lost Cities, and couldn't put it down. I told her she HAD to read it. I zinged through the second book, Keeper of the Lost Cities: Exile and handed it to her last week. I then read the third book, Keeper of the Lost Cities: Everblaze after it became available through inter-library loan. I just started the fourth book, Keeper of the Lost Cities: Neverseen yesterday. The first three books were amazing, and I can't wait to see what happens next. If you like fantasy books, this series is one I highly recommend.

Amelia couldn't really get into the Warriors books, but for some reason has really been enjoying these Survivors books by Erin Hunter.

Though she sort of set them aside to read the Great Illustrated Classics version of The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum.

Plus she is taking her turn reading the Tales of Sasha books that Hannah took our from the library. Hannah has them all finished, and now Tabitha and Amelia are both reading them.

Hopefully next week I will have a chance to have the girls tell a little about the books they are reading.

As a family, we are still reading Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan, and the Kane Chronicles: The Serpent's Shadow, by the same author. These have been fun ways to learn a little about the mythology of the ancient Egyptians and Greeks. We are so close to being done with both of these books.