Carolyn

I was already a huge fan of the Twisted Tales series before I read this book and what this book has done has made me an even bigger fan!

In this retelling of Disney's “Mulan”, the story picks up right after Shan Yu has started to attack Mulan and her troop on the mountain side. With no more ammo and time running out, Mulan bravely takes their last cannon and shoots it at the mountain, creating an avalanche, covering the Huns in it's path. Shan Yu, leader of the Huns, manages to get one blow in before he's covered, aiming for Mulan but getting her leader and friend Li Shang instead.

Once the snow clears, Li Shang is on the verge of death and Mulan takes it upon herself to save him. Little did she know that praying to her ancestors would bring her Shang's guardian, a lion named Shi Shi, that arrives to take her to Diyu, the underworld. There, she negotiates with the king of the underworld in an attempt to bring her friend back home - he's not ready to die. He still has a lot to do for China.

Battling through 99 levels of the underworld proves to be difficult not only because of the trials the team faces but also because of the spirits that are there to misguide them along the way. It's a thriller in every sense of the word.

You know what I love about this book? It was unpredictable. I thought I knew what was going to happen and found myself with my jaw dropped on several occasions. The twists and turns remind me a lot of one of my favorite TV shows, “Once Upon a Time”, which is also in the Disney franchise and intertwines stories and characters in such a way that is so impressive you could die.

I also loved that I learned more about the Chinese culture, especially their thoughts on honoring your ancestors and what happens in the afterlife. Learning that some spirits wait forever in a place, waiting for their turn to go to heaven, and some never making it there was sad but informative. I also learned that some people are reincarnated while others have debts to pay before they can move on.

If you are a fan of fairy tales, Disney princesses, or thrilling adventures, then this book is for you. I would recommend you check out the other Twisted Tales and be on the lookout for the newest one “Part of Your World” coming out in September.

11-year-old Alex Petroski loves space and rockets, his mom, his brother, and his dog Carl Sagan—named for his hero, the real-life astronomer. His current project involves documenting his life on Earth so he can launch his voice recordings into space with the hopes that an alien life form will find it. With his story starting in Colorado and moving to New Mexico, trekking to Los Angeles and finally ending up back home, he meets new friends and learns new things about the world and himself.

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS AHEAD!

What I love about this book is that it is so much more than an adventure story. Sure, Alex travels by himself and builds a super cool rocket with hopes of it making it to space - that's quite an adventure by itself. But it also showed that an adventure can lead you to so much more. While he doesn't know it at first, his trip leads him to uncover the truth about his dad that he thought was dead and meeting his half-sister. It started out as an attempt to share his story with people outside of this world and ended with him learning even more about his own story.

All along, I was worried about Alex. With how his mother is described, I knew that she was battling some type of depression and whether or not Alex actually knew that was heartbreaking. With a kids with as much spunk as Alex and such big dreams, it makes it impossible not to root for him and hope that everything turns out. I was so emotionally involved in this story that I couldn't even think about what would have happened if things didn't work out like I wanted them to (you know, when you know what needs to happen better than the author does).

Something that drew me to this book was the title, though. As a amateur astronomer myself, there was no way that I could pass this book up. Seeing a kid that is only 11 and with such a deep interest in something so vast and unknown as the universe made me believe that there is hope for the future. If Alex can be so focused on his life on Earth and learning about people outside of it, the world has nowhere to go but up.

I rated this book 5/5

If you are a fan of “The Hunger Games” and “Ready Player One,” this book is a dream come true for you. It has espionage, gaming, technology, love, relationships, teamwork, and a little bit of backstabbing.

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS AHEAD!

Warcross isn't just a game—it's a way of life. Struggling to make ends meet after her father died, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down players who bet on the game illegally. Needing to make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the International Warcross Championships—only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation - something she didn't even realize she could do.

The next day, Emika is shocked when she gets a call from the game's creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year's tournament in order to uncover a security problem and he wants Emika for the job. After getting drafted to play in the game for the Phoenix Riders as an architect and finds out she's actually pretty good at it. Her relationships with her teammates are torn when they find out about her relationship with Hideo (they know the romantic side, not the business side) and her mission is almost a disaster.

What she comes to find out about the creator and her love interest breaks her apart. Does she have the strength to follow through?

Payton and Dylan Brave are identical twins but they couldn't be more different. They have separate styles, friends, and dreams. When Dylan suddenly goes missing, Payton has a hard time remembering who she is and in the middle of the drama, decides to take on a new personality - Poe. Poe is a sweet mixture of both girls and a way for Payton to cope with the loss. With the help of her friends, can they find out what happened to her sister?

THERE MAY BE SPOILERS AHEAD!

First things first - IS THIS GOING TO BE A MOVIE BECAUSE I WANT TO SEE IT?!

Second - I connected with this book on a personal level mostly because I have a twin sister and I'm not sure how I would manage if I were no longer part of “The Deas Twins” as we are affectionately known. Losing your best friend that you can tell anything to and they have similar experiences must be awful.

Third - HOLY PLOT TWISTS! I spent the first 3/4 of this book thinking that Payton was the one who was involved with the disappearance of her sister but the subtle clues in every chapter made me question my theory. It wasn't until Poe was attacked in her beloved Winnebago and she mentioned something about her memory of an event being different did I realize what was going on. That's quite a feat because I'm usually really good at figuring out the plot early in the book.

I read this book because I'm a fan of Bailee Madison. I'm not going to lie and say that I wasn't skeptical of the quality of the book, but this may be one of my favorite mystery novels I've ever read. I hope she continues to write in the future (and if she needs any beta readers, I'm always available).

I Love You, Michael Collins is not a true story, but I'm sure it hits home with a lot of people when it comes to the “celebrities” that they look up to.

In this story, Mamie, is directed to write a letter to one of the three Apollo 11 astronauts. With most students picking Neil Armstrong or Buzz Aldrin, Mamie takes a different route and writes to the main pilot, Michael Collins. Mr. Collins is almost never mentioned by anyone (most people don't know who he even is) but Mamie takes it upon herself to let him know just how great he is.

A one time assignment to write a letter becomes a passion for Mamie. She writes him a letter almost everyday until the day he lands safely back on earth. She writes about her family problems, her best friend, Buster, her cat, Campbell, and asks him all sorts of questions about his life and family.

What I love most about this book is that she is rooting for the underdog. I'm sure there is a better way to say that, but I can't think of one currently. Mamie learns everything she can about this man and comes to find out that it was a struggle for him to get to where he is. She also realizes that he may be the most important one on the Apollo 11 mission; without him, no one will get home.

The emotions that Mamie goes through during the story are vivid in her messages to Mr. Collins. Haven't you ever just wanted to tell someone everything that's on your mind? Although she had never met this man and he didn't get most of her letters before his trip to space, she feels confident that he's reading them and that he cares. Back when a time when there was no social media to connect with people that we admire, letter writing was the only way to go and there are no “read receipts” for snail mail.

I thought that some of the issues that Mamie had to deal with, like both of her parents more or less abandoning her and her sisters being unaware of how to take care of a ten year old were a little too much for this story. I understand she needed something to write to Mr. Collins about but it just seemed weird and out of place and something that wouldn't actually happen, even in 1969 (but I could be wrong).

If you love space, diaries, the moon, and kids becoming friends with adults, then this is a book for you. It will make you smile, laugh, and even cry a little but it's a story with heart.