Book review: Daughters of the Sea: May by Kathryn Lasky

Daughters of the Sea: May by Kathryn Lasky (Published by Scholastic, March 1, 2011)

Growing up as a lighthouse keeper's daughter on a small island off the coast of Maine in the late 1800s, May has always felt a bit different, and as she gets older those feelings grow stronger, as does her discontent with her life trapped on the island. Often she can't even leave the little island to go to school because her hypochondriac mother insists May needs to stay home to help her. The year she turns sixteen, May learns she was adopted - which leads to her searching for the truth about her origins as she does not believe her father's story about where he found her, and she has always been suspicious about why he forbids her from swimming in the sea, when they live on an island.

But the truth May discovers the first time she disobeys her father and goes swimming is shocking - she is a mermaid, and that is why she has never felt at home on land. May loves the freedom of sneaking off to swim in the sea at night, and hopes to someday search for the two sisters she believes she was separated from as a baby. Meanwhile, her life on land has become more complicated. May is attracted to Hugh, a young astronomy student from Harvard who has come to Maine to do research. But could someone like him, a college student from the big city, ever love an island girl like her - especially if he ever were to learn what she really is? At the same time she must fend off the advances of Rudd, an unwanted suitor whom May fears will learn her secret.

May is the second book in the Daughters of the Sea series, following Hannah, the story of one of May's sisters. However the books take place at the same time so you can read them in any order. This book was a bit slow to start but ultimately I did enjoy it, the romance was sweet and I liked the historical setting. I think this book would appeal more to readers who enjoy historical fiction, because despite May being a mermaid this novel is really more historical fiction with a fantasy suplot, instead of fantasy that happens to have a historical setting. There was one thing that did bother me a bit, which I hope is explained in future books - the villain seemed to go from being just a rude, annoying person to really evil at the end, without any real explanation why, just some vague hints. It didn't ruin the book for me, but it is something I really hope is explained in the next book in the series.

Waiting on Wednesday: Shadows on the Moon by Zoë Marriott

Shadows on the Moon by Zoë Marriott (Published by Walker Books, July 4, 2011)

Suzume is a shadow-weaver. She can create mantles of darkness and light, walk unseen in the middle of the day, change her face. She can be anyone she wants to be. Except herself.
Suzume died officially the day the Prince's men accused her father of treason. Now even she is no longer sure of her true identity.
Is she the girl of noble birth living under the tyranny of her mother’s new husband, Lord Terayama? A lowly drudge scraping a living in the ashes of Terayama’s kitchens? Or Yue, the most beautiful courtesan in the Moonlit Lands?
Everyone knows Yue is destined to capture the heart of a prince. Only she knows that she is determined to use his power to destroy Terayama.
And nothing will stop her. Not even love.


I love fantasies inspired by fairy tales (this one is based on Cinderella), and it looks particularly interesting becuase of the unique setting in feudal Japan.

Book review: Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper

Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper (Published by Bloomsbury, February 1, 2011)

The year is 1861 in London. Fifteen-year-old Grace Parkes and her older sister, Lily, live a life of hardship, struggling every day just to earn enough money to buy food. Their father disappeared long ago and their mother died while they were still very young. Though she is the older sister, Lily has the mind of a child and so Grace must look after her. The two girls were safe in an orphanage for a few years but once they had to leave one misfortune had followed another. As the novel begins, Grace has just given birth to a stillborn baby boy. Though the pregnancy was forced upon her she still grieves the baby that never got a chance to live, and so she takes him to Brookwood, a lovely and peaceful cemetary outside London, so that he can have a proper burial.

At Brookwood, Grace meets two people who will change her life in the coming months. One is James Solent, a handsome young lawyer's clerk. He offers to help Grace if she ever needs assistance. The other is Mrs. Unwin, who along with her husband owns one of the largest funeral businesses in London. Mrs. Unwin offers Grace a job as a "mute" - a girl who is paid to stand at funerals wearing black and looking sad. Grace is horrified by the idea, but when she and Lily lose their home she has no other choice. Unknown to Grace, however, is that she and Lily are heirs to a large fortune left behind by their father, who died in America. The Unwins know, however, and have an evil plan to steal the fortune from the two girls. Will Grace discover the truth in time and find a way to save herself and her sister?

Fallen Grace is an excellent young adult historical novel with a unique story that has very Gothic feel to it. I had not known anything about the Victorian funeral trade before reading this book so I learned a lot. I was surprised by how extravagant the funerals of the rich were! Grace was a very likeable main character. She suffered through one terrible hardship after another, far more than many people could endure, yet she managed to stay strong through it all. I would highly recommend this novel to readers who enjoy historical fiction or who have read and enjoyed other books by Mary Hooper.

Disclosure: Review copy provided by publisher.

In My Mailbox - 1/29/11

Credit goes to The Story Siren for creating and hosting the In My Mailbox feature.

Here are the new books I got this week.

For review:

Fallen Grace by Mary Hooper

Life has been nothing but unfair to Grace Parkes and her sister. Penniless, the two orphans manage to stay alive-but only barely, like so many on the streets of Victorian London. And Grace must bear a greater heartbreak, having become pregnant from terrible circumstances and then given birth to a stillborn baby. But the infant's death sets Grace on a new path, bringing her into contact with people who hold both riches and power. A great fraud has been perpetrated on young Grace and her sister, and they are the secret recipients of a most unusual legacy-if only they can find the means to claim it. Mary Hooper's latest offers Dickensian social commentary, as well as malicious fraud, mysterious secrets, and a riveting read.


Daughters of the Sea: May by Kathryn Lasky

Book 2 in Kathryn Lasky's shimmering quartet about mermaid sisters and supernatural love.
May feels her life drying up. The sea calls to her, but her parents forbid her from swimming. She longs for books, but her mother finds her passion for learning strange. She yearns for independence, but a persistent suitor, Rudd, wants to tame her spirited ways. Yet after her fifteenth birthday, the urge to break free becomes overpowering and May makes a life-changing discovery. She does not belong on land where girls are meant to be obedient. She is a mermaid-a creature of the sea.
For the first time, May learns what freedom feels like-the thrill of exploring both the vast ocean and the previously forbidden books. She even catches the eye of Hugh, an astronomy student who, unlike the townspeople, finds May anything but strange. But not everyone is pleased with May's transformation. Rudd decides that if can't have May, no one will. He knows how to destroy her happiness and goes to drastic measures to ensure that May loses everything: her freedom and the only boy she's ever loved. (From Star Book Tours)


Bought:

Dear Canada: Hoping for Home

In these eleven original stories, characters bravely face the challenges of settling into a new life. In this wonderful new short story anthology, eleven of Canada's top children's authors contribute stories of immigration, displacement and change, exploring the frustration and uncertainty those changes can bring. Told in first-person narratives, this collection features a diverse cast of boys and girls, each one living at a different point in Canada's vast landscape and history. With unforgettable protagonists -- such as Miriam, a Warsaw-ghetto survivor, now reunited with her family in Montreal; Wong Joe-on, a young Chinese immigrant who faces racism in a small Saskatchewan town; and Insy, an Ojibwe girl who makes her first trip to a "white" town in Northern Ontario -- young readers will be moved by the opportunities and difficulties that these characters face, as each one ponders what it means to be Canadian, and struggles to fit in.


I Am Canada: Shot at Dawn by John Wilson

Sentenced to death for abandoning his unit, a soldier recounts the events leading up to his arrest. The reality of trench warfare is a shock to Allan McBride. Like many other young soldiers, he enthusiastically signed up for the chance to join the war effort and be a part of the fighting. But after months in the ravaged battlefields, watching men, including his friend Ken, get blown up by German shelling, something in Allan snaps and he leaves his unit, believing he is "walking home to Canada" to get help for his friend. After nearly a week of wandering aimlessly, Allan is taken in by a band of real deserters - men who have abandoned their units and live on the edge of survival in the woods of northern France. Once Allan realizes what he's done, he is paralyzed by the reality of his circumstance: if he stays with these men, it's possible they will be found and have to face the consequences; and if he returns to his unit, he will be charged with desertion - a charge punishable by death. In this outstanding new title in the I Am Canada series, acclaimed author John Wilson explores life in the horrific trenches of WWI and the effect of battle on a shell-shocked soldier.


Daughter of Xanadu by Dori Jones Yang

Athletic and strong willed, Princess Emmajin's determined to do what no woman has done before: become a warrior in the army of her grandfather, the Great Khan Khubilai. In the Mongol world the only way to achieve respect is to show bravery and win glory on the battlefield. The last thing she wants is the distraction of the foreigner Marco Polo, who challenges her beliefs in the gardens of Xanadu. Marco has no skills in the "manly arts" of the Mongols: horse racing, archery, and wrestling. Still, he charms the Khan with his wit and story-telling. Emmajin sees a different Marco as they travel across 13th-century China, hunting 'dragons' and fighting elephant-back warriors. Now she faces a different battle as she struggles with her attraction towards Marco and her incredible goal of winning fame as a soldier. (reviewed ARC here)

Waiting on Wednesday: The Eternal Sea by Angie Frazier

The Eternal Sea by Angie Frazier (Published by Scholastic, June 1, 2011)

After the thrilling journey that led Camille through the dangerous discovery of love, secrets, and a magical stone that grants immortality, Camille has everything she wants. She's escaped the men who wanted her dead, and now she is ready to build a new life with Oscar, her one true love. But things are not to be so simple. Oscar is acting strangely, and before they can even board a ship from Australia back home, to San Francisco, Camille learns that the journey is not over. If she does not follow the magic of the curse of Umandu, her life and Ocar's could be in grave danger.


Everlasting was one of my favorite books of 2010 so I am very excited there is going to be a sequel and I can't wait to read it!

Book review: My Story: Factory Girl by Pamela Oldfield

My Story: Factory Girl by Pamela Oldfield (Published by Scholastic UK, January 3, 2011)

Sixteen-year-old Florence and her family live in poverty in Victorian London in 1888. Florence, who unlike many poor young girls can read and write, starts a diary after her grandfather dies and leaves his diary to her. To help her family, Florence must start working at the Bryant & May match factory, despite the fact the her older sister died from a terrible disease as a result of working at the match factory.

Shortly after Florence goes to work at the factory, she starts hearing rumors of a possible strike, especially from a young newspaper reporter who interviews her to learn about the conditions at the match factory. While men in many industries have gone on strike before, this would be the first time for women. Florence isn't sure what to think. She believes herself and the other workers deserve better pay and conditions, but she is afraid of going on strike and not being able to bring any money home to her family, when they are already struggling to survive even with her wages.

This book wasn't one of my favorites from the My Story series. The historical information was interesting and the book was a quick read, but Florence's character wasn't really that well developed and so I didn't care that much about what happened to her. Readers who love the series or who are particulary interested in the historical setting might enjoy this book, but for readers who are new to the series I'd recommend starting with one of the other books. It wasn't a terrible book, I just enjoyed most of the other books in the series much more.

In My Mailbox - 1/22/11

Credit goes to The Story Siren for creating and hosting the In My Mailbox feature.

Here are the new books I got this week. The first two books are from other bloggers, and the third is a review copy.

Dear America: Cannons at Dawn by Kristiana Gregory

Abigail Jane Stewart returns in this brand-new sequel to THE WINTER OF RED SNOW. The Revolutionary War toils on, but the Stewart family can no longer avoid getting involved. Abby's father joins the Continental Army, while Abby, her mother, and her siblings become camp followers. They face daily hardships alongside the troops and continue to spend time helping the Washingtons. Filled with romance and adventure, Abby's frontline view of the war captures the heartache and bravery of the soldiers, as well as the steep cost of freedom.


Timeless by Alexandra Monir

When tragedy strikes Michele Windsor’s world, she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country to New York City, to live with the wealthy, aristocratic grandparents she’s never met. In their old Fifth Avenue mansion filled with a century’s worth of family secrets, Michele discovers a diary that hurtles her back in time to the year 1910. There, in the midst of the glamorous Gilded Age, Michele meets the young man with striking blue eyes who has haunted her dreams all her life – a man she always wished was real, but never imagined could actually exist. And she finds herself falling for him, into an otherworldly, time-crossed romance.
Michele is soon leading a double life, struggling to balance her contemporary high school world with her escapes into the past. But when she stumbles upon a terrible discovery, she is propelled on a race through history to save the boy she loves – a quest that will determine the fate of both of their lives.


Kat, Incorrigible by Stephanie Burgis

Twelve-year-old Kat Stephenson may be the despair of her social-climbing Step-Mama, but she was born to be a magical Guardian and protector of Society--if she can ever find true acceptance in the secret Order that expelled her own mother. She’s ready to turn the hidebound Order of the Guardians inside-out, whether the older members like it or not. And in a society where magic is the greatest scandal of all, Kat is determined to use all her powers to help her three older siblings--saintly Elissa, practicing-witch Angeline, and hopelessly foolish Charles--find their own true loves, even if she has to turn highwayman, battle wild magic, and confront real ghosts along the way!