Invictus: a YA sci-fi powerful read for all!

Invictus
by Ryan Graudin
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Strong writing, extraordinary plotting, and masterful resolution of the story line describe Graudin's latest young adult thriller that is too good to restrict to just teen readers.

What's different about this book 
Science fiction may not be the genre for every reader - but intelligent and compelling characters are.  A mystery and suspense setting for life and death events is. And the need to keep turning the page, to find out what happens next is just what most readers want.

One of the trickiest issues with YA books is keeping the material suitable for such a wide range of reading preferences. Language, sensitive topics, graphic or not graphic discussions:  All these are tip-toe matters for librarians who share reads with teens.  Graudin amazingly avoids the "inappropriate" content without losing a smidge of relevance, interest, or power.  Perfectly appropriate does NOT equate to boring or  weak with this work.  

Graudin's latest novel blew me away.  I don't do sci-fi, and I seldom do time travel. But this story of family, growing to wisdom, and valuing friends and courage was an exceptional read. This book will engage you, tantalize you, and refuse to let you forget it.  Grab this one. It's a keeper.

What I'll do now that I've read it
While I may not do sci-fi, my library patrons DO! And this will be an compelling title to talk about, share, and promote.  Awards and praise will be forthcoming for this book, due out in September 2017.

Soli Deo Gloria 

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A Conspiracy in Belgravia - Second Charlotte Holmes book

A Conspiracy in Belgravia

by Sherry Thomas

Reading can be compared to a treasure hunt: Always on the look-out for a gem that will reward you for your patience.  You’ll want to know that this second book in the Charlotte Holmes series is just that: a jewel sparkling and irresistible – and worth the search.

What’s different about this book

There seems to be an abundance of books on the Sherlock Holmes theme recently, many well-done and enjoyable reads. But this concept of a female who creates and lives out the Sherlock Holmes mystique is unique:  It bests the original and many times over.  The first book in the series was excellent; this second book is strongly better and more appealing.

The reader who usually suspends judgment on a book and its quality until some chapters in can rest easy: They are in the hands of a master weaver who powerfully crafts characters, their interactions, and plots that bring a genuine sense of suspense and mystery.  I have been delighted to find that I can read a passage in this series, miss the undercurrents of meaning, and yet trust the author to strategically fill in the invisible story line that I missed the first time through. I love being surprised that the story between the lines resolves to be so beautifully just what I would have wanted if I had known the options.

What I’ll do now that I’ve read it

There is no reader I can think of to whom I don’t wish to recommend this book, indeed, this series.  All my library patrons (above elementary level) should hope to read this series, and I’m not only adding it to library collections – I’m buying family birthday and Christmas gifts.  Amazingly rewarding reading for fiction, historical, and mystery suspense fans. And who doesn’t like at least ONE of those genres?

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