Active Voice

By Francis Hardinge [LibraryThing - Amazon]

Ryan, Josh, and Chelle don’t think much of it when they steal a few coins from a wishing well for bus fare back home. But to steal the coins from a well spirit is to take on her obligation of granting wishes, and soon the kids find themselves developing the powers to do just that – from the eyes on Ryan’s knuckles that see things they shouldn’t, to Chelle’s newfound ability to speak the thoughts of strangers, to Josh’s sudden affinity with electromagnetism. It’s then that they find that the wishes people make in their hearts are infinitely darker and more dangerous than the ones they speak aloud, and that the changes the well witch has wrought in them go deeper than they think.

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By Derek Landy [LibraryThing – Amazon]

Ever since helping to save the world, Valkryie Cain (once plain old Stephanie Edgeley) has been receiving training in magic, combat, and detective work from the undead gumshoe Skulduggery Pleasant and his extremely colorful associates. Now one of Skulduggery’s old enemies is back, intent on awakening his evil gods – and Valkryie is a major part of his plan. In order to foil the plot, Valkryie must fight her way through centuries-old enmities, corruption at the highest level, and more than one sociopathic killer with a mad-on for Valkryie herself.

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We’re introducing a new feature at Active Voice! Usually we review books that have come out in the past couple of years, but with our Old-School Reviews we’ll be talking about the books from our childhood and before. Our first Old-School Review features the fantastic Mr. Bruce Coville.

By Bruce Coville [Coville at LibraryThing - Book One at Amazon; Book Two at Amazon; Book Three at Amazon]

Nina “Nine” Tanleven is thrilled to be performing in a local play, but the excitement gets to be a little too much when she and her new friend Chris both start seeing the Woman in White, a ghost who may be trying to sabotage the show. And the adventures don’t stop there, because exposure to the Woman in White has made the girls more sensitive to ghosts, and they soon find themselves solving mysteries about Confederate soldiers and mad painters, hidden treasures and lost masterpieces…and more than a little bit of danger.

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By Stephanie Meyer [LibraryThing - Amazon]

When Bella moves to the dreary small town of Forks, she doesn’t expect to meet the love of her life – and she certainly doesn’t expect him to be a vampire. But Edward is exactly that, and his love for Bella may not be stronger than his thirst for her blood. And even if it is, can Edward protect Bella from the bloodthirsty newcomer who’s set his sights on her?

Warning: Minor spoilers behind the cut. Read the rest of this entry »

By Ahmet Zappa [Librarything - Amazon]

Minerva McFearless and her younger brother Max come from a long line of monster hunters (or “monsterminators”), but their widowed father has forbidden them to study something so dangerous. The two young McFearlesses practice in secret, though, which comes in handy when their father is kidnapped and brought before the king of all evil, the Zarmaglorg. Now, with the help of the talking encyclopedia Ms. Monstranomicon, and Mr. Devilstone, a mysterious one-eyed coyote with plans of his own, Max and Minerva must rescue their father before the Zarmaglorg uses his knowledge to flood the world with monsters.

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By Suzanne Harper [Librarything - Amazon]

All Sparrow wants is to live a normal life. That’s why her mother, grandmother, and six older sisters, all of whom are psychics, don’t know that Sparrow has been talking to ghosts since she was five years old. That’s why her classmates at her new school, including her friend Fiona and her cute-but-surly history partner Jack, don’t know that she lives in Lily Dale, a town so full of mediums it’s been nicknamed “Spookyville.” And that’s why she’s determined not to help Luke, the dreamy teenaged ghost who’s been haunting her, put his unfinished business to rest.

Unfortunately for Sparrow, Luke doesn’t give up very easily. Even more unfortunately, Jack insists on doing their joint history project on Spookyville. But it’s not until she discovers a connection between Luke and Jack that Sparrow realizes she may just have to give up her dreams of a normal life – and give in to her destiny.

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By Derek Landy [Librarything - Amazon]

When Stephanie’s Uncle Gordon dies and leaves his house and fortune to her, she finds that she’s also inherited her fair share of dangerous secrets – not to mention the friendship of the walking, talking, magic-wielding skeleton Skulduggery Pleasant. A detective by trade, Skulduggery is investigating the mysterious circumstances surrounding Gordon’s death, which he believes are tied in with a plot to bring back a race of evil, destructive gods and destroy civilization as we know it. Together with Ghastly the magical boxing tailor and Tanith the goofy-but-ruthless swordswoman, and armed with a little bit of magic and a whole lot of snappy patter, Stephanie and Skulduggery must navigate a network of conspiracies and double-crosses in order to unlock Uncle Gordon’s secrets and save the world.

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