Review: Crisanta Knight Protagonist Bound by Geanna Culbertson

Crisanta Knight is not your typical princess. In Geanna Culbertson's novel Crisanta Knight Protagonist Bound, Crisanta is in fact the daughter of Cinderella and Prince Charming, not that anyone could tell. Unlike her best friend SJ "Snow Jr" Kaplan, as in Snow White's daughter. SJ was everything a fairytale princess was expected to be, fair and graceful with a lovely singing voice that charmed all the animals. Crisanta, or as she prefers Crisa, is more inclined to weapons training than singing and absolutely refuses to believe that her life is to be dictated by a book and she has no say in the matter. Because of course that is how all the fairytales are created, the mysterious Author is the one who is in charge of creating the stories and once they start writing your life is no longer your own.
Follow Crisa on a quest to take back her life and find out what it means to truly be yourself. It won't be easy though when there are Fairy Godmothers trying to stop you and the occasional stalker prince, but a true princess doesn't quit.

Ophelia Adrift by Helen Goltz

Ophelia Adrift was not what I was expecting. It was far more. The love story was there, the mystery and history all present, but the way Helen Goltz spun her tale was a pleasant surprise. Instead of the typical paranormal romance I expected, it turned into a supernatural thriller. Although not as much of a historical fiction as anticipated, the elements were well integrated into the story.
I would recommend this to anyone who likes paranormal romance, but is tired of the same old story.

The History Major by Phillip Cash

I don't often find a book that is well written and yet so difficult to read. Phillip Cash did a wonderful job describing the various historical scenes that his characters learned about in the strange class the heroine found herself in, but I could never quite understand why they were there. It seemed as if there were two stories going on, but the one in which the history class took place was never really explained.
The History Major did not live up to it's description and only left the reader with questions only vaguely answered. It is a very intriguing read, but the ending was not as satisfying as hoped. Perhaps I am in the minority in this and someone can explain to me how the stories chosen affected the characters and outcome of the book.

Review of Polaris Awakening by Various

Polaris Awakening is a great compilation of short stories about a variety of people from different social classes living in the same space station and it's surrounding universe. On the one hand this novel is a great work of science fiction with each story and author contributing to the larger theme in their own unique way. On the other side the space station creates an environment for these authors to explore social ideals and issues that exist in our contemporary society in a way that asks the hard questions without it hitting too close to home. Science fiction authors have been doing this for decades and Polaris Awakening continues that grand tradition for this generation of young adult readers. It is wonderful to see a group of authors writing together on a project like this that creates a new universe of characters to grow with. Each author adds to the station a new level of depth that asks whether it is individuals or groups that create change in a culture that is designed to resist change. They give readers perspectives from many different sides and challenge the reader each time to ask what would you do if you were in their shoes? Perhaps seeing the other side in a story such as this will cause a young person to stop and think about those around them and how they might view things in a different way. Polaris Awakening is both entertaining and thought provoking. A great read for fans of science fiction.

Hunter by Mercedes Lackey

Not another dystopian novel. At least that's what I thought until I read Hunter. Mercedes Lackey has a knack for mixing magic with the every day and this new world has all the signs of being one of her best yet.
Joyeaux Charmand introduces the reader to a world that is at once completely alien and yet startlingly similar to ours. Joyeaux begins her tale by capturing your attention and then keeps it as her adventures lead you on a wild ride. What starts as a coming of age story quickly takes on additional nuances. Political intrigue, magical conspiracy, fighting for sport and stardom, things that a teenage girl find to be way more than she signed up for.
Tired of dystopian novels? Try this one. It's worth the read.