Adventure Pick: The Orphan King

The Orphan King
Merlin’s Immortals, Book 1
By Sigmund Brouwer
Waterbrook Press
2012
220 pages

Thomas grows up serving the monks in the monastery, but he knows he’s destined for still greater things. When his “parent” Sarah dies, she has him promise that he will seek his destiny and save the kingdom. She has taught him to read and write and he knows several languages—far more than one would suspect of a lowly peasant. Who is this boy with great knowledge and unparalleled bravery?

Thomas saves a knight from the gallows, and the knight owes him his loyalty. He also saves a pickpocket and his companion. The three of them join Thomas on his quest to reach Magnus, a mighty castle held by witches more powerful than even the king. Thomas dares to enter its walls and take command. There are those in power who live in the shadows and have secrets that even Thomas cannot expose.

As he ventures forward, Thomas never knows who his friends are and who will betray him. Many want his power, and others seek to destroy anything that will threaten their lives. Who are the Druids and what is it that they seek? What is the evil that has fallen over the land?

A shadowy figure seems to control Thomas’s fate. A mysterious man who appears in disguises seems to hold the key that Thomas is seeking. When will Thomas know his fate? How will he know how to expose the conspiracy if he doesn’t know what he’s looking for?

Recommended for any history buff and any lover of English history and King Arthur legends and knights of the round table stories.

Grades 7-up. No language. Some bawdiness—It’s medieval England, my goodness!

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Paranormal Pick: Carrier of the Mark

Carrier of the Mark
by Leigh Fallon
HarperTeen
2011
342 pages


Romantic, captivating, powerful, and all-consuming, Carrier of the Mark is a different kind of paranormal romance.

When Megan moves to Ireland with her father, she has a mini-culture shock. School is Ireland is a little different than back home in the U.S. For one thing, all the schools wear school uniforms, and math classes are referred to as "maths." Irish names are confusing and the people speak so quickly, Meg has a hard time keeping up with their almost musical accents. Her first day is going smoothly until she sees Adam, that is. Adam DeRis is movie star handsome and darkly mysterious; other students steer clear of him--he's a little "odd." There are stories about witchcraft and strange goings-on at the DeRis mansion. Megan is intrigued and wants to know more.


Megan gets closer to Adam and his family and soon finds out that they are all bound by fate. In the days of the druids, carriers of the mark were selected to be the four elements: earth, wind, water, and fire and control the balance and equilibrium of nature. Meg doesn't know it but she controls wind, and she needs to learn to harness her power before she causes damage and death. The three DeRis siblings Adam, Aine, and Rian instruct Meg in her history and Rian helps train her. There is a battle coming, and traitors called the Knox will stop at nothing short of destroying their order.

Adam and Meg are drawn to each other but can never be together as a couple. The druid texts say the marked ones can never love another because elements feed off of each other and the balance would be imperfect. Floods, earthquakes, fires, droughts, and destruction would ruin the Earth. The Order forbids them from being together. Megan isn't fully "marked;" she has to go through a ceremony on the Summer Solstice in order to gain all her power, but knowing that she will give up Adam, she decides not to go through with it. She would give up ultimate power to be with Adam, but her fate was sealed before her birth. She can sacrifice her love to save mankind.

Readers of paranormal romance will be fans of this novel. What sets it appart from other novels of this genre is the setting of Ireland--the weather, the school, the names, Trinity College, the catacombs, the druids, Irish history.

Recommended grades 9-up. The cover art is striking and sure to draw readers to it. Lots of kissing, petting, and intimate situations. Meg and Adam sleep together--use your imagination.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.