A Colorful Rendition of Sherlock Holmes’s Sleuthing Debut

A Study in Scarlet: A Sherlock Holmes Graphic Novel by Ian Edginton, with art by I.N.J. Culbard

A man is found dead in an empty house, with a single word, “Rache”—the German word for revenge—written in blood on the wall. Edginton and Culbard produce a colorful rendition of Sherlock Holmes’s sleuthing debut that young readers will be able to both understand and enjoy. Recommended for Ages 13-Up.

Review: A Charmed Life: A Christian Fiction Trilogy (for All Readers), by Jenny B. Jones

A Charmed Life (The Charmed Life #1-3) by Jenny B. Jones (Thomas Nelson, 2012, 976pp.)

A Charmed Life is an omnibus edition of Jenny B. Jones’s Christian fiction trilogy of the same name. This lovely series documents the hilarious, heartfelt misadventures of privileged New Yorker Bella Kirkwood, a child of divorce who finds herself living on a farm after her mother remarries and moves them to Truman, Oklahoma. To Bella, moving away from New York is a fate worse than death. Where are the fashion boutiques? What about a Starbucks? Not to mention she now has to hitch a ride to school with her obnoxious stepbrother, Budge, who drives an out-dated hearse. But when she ends up on the Truman High School newspaper, she surprises the heck out of everyone with her tenacity, her drive, and above all, her awesome investigative journalism skills. Over the course of the series, she becomes quite the sleuth. Not only does she investigate a malevolent brotherhood of football players and save a prom queen from an exploding tiara, she also joins the circus as a part-time clown so she can solve the murder of a sweet-tempered bearded lady.

I really can’t say enough about this series, for both teens and parents. First off, it’s a clean read, meaning there’s no swearing or other mature content (though Bella does have a boyfriend, so there is a lot of kissing). Second, it boasts a well-developed supporting cast. And third, but importantly, it has a heroine who experiences tremendous personal growth throughout the series. Not only must she face issues left over from her parents’ divorce (in addition to adjusting to a new stepfamily), she must also come to terms with God’s plan for her—a plan that she did not agree to, thank you very much! For those of you who aren’t usually fans of Christian fiction? You should still add this to your reading list. While religion is an important part of the characters’ lives, it’s certainly not the main point of the story. What the story is about, though? It’s about an awesome, spunky teenager fighting her way through life’s sticky situations, and being the best person she can possibly be. This series is recommended for older teens, ages 16-18, though if you’ve got younger teens who don’t mind kissing and romance, it’s a good choice for them as well. Also, check out the excellent audiobook version, read by Brooke Helman.

A Gripping, Suspenseful Crime Novel

Source: Author Website

With Malice by Eileen Cook (HMH Books for Young Readers, 2016, 320pp.)

When Jill, an American teenager, wakes up in a hospital with no memory of the past two months, she learns several disturbing things. One: while she was on a school trip to Italy, she crashed a rental car and was rushed to a hospital back home. Two: Her best friend, Simone, was killed in the crash. Three: the Italian police say that the crash was a deliberate act of murder/suicide. Now they want her back in Italy to stand trial. Fortunately, she’s given permission to stay in America until she completes rehab, but she has to wonder: why was she driving a car on a school trip? What exactly happened?

Twist and turns abound in this suspenseful novel, which proves gripping to the very end. What makes the novel better than average is the author’s inclusion of police interviews and media transcripts, which allow us to see the story in the broader scheme of things, and thus provides for a more compelling reading experience. Recommended for older teens for language, and discussions of intimate situations.

An Awesome Thriller

Source: Publisher Website

Erebos by Ursula Poznanski (2010; Annick Press, 2012, 440pp.)

When Nick is approached by a classmate offering a copy of Erebos, a hot new video game, he doesn’t expect much. It looks like a simple game that allows you to design your own character, join in group quests, and fight battles in a lush fantasy setting. Just your average RPG, right? Except there’s something different about Erebos. Something unnaturally addictive. Soon, Nick is obsessively gaming late into the night, plotting ways to gain new experience levels. When his character, Sarius, is mortally wounded in battle, all his hard work seems lost—until a sinister authority figure, the Messenger, offers to help. In exchange for renewed health and energy, the Messenger asks Nick to perform a series of menial tasks—not within the game, but outside in the real world. One day he’s instructed to leave an unmarked package under a bridge, the next day he’s told to take pictures of two strangers in their car. Harmless stuff, right? Except it isn’t. When one of Nick’s delivered packages turns out to contain something highly illegal, he gets scared. What is Erebos, exactly? Is it really just a video game, or something more? More importantly—can it be stopped?

As a reader, all I can say is that this international import is truly awesome. The sinisterness of the game is truly creepy, and the mystery of Erebos is intriguing enough to drive the story towards its thrilling conclusion. However, while this novel has the potential to be enjoyed by teens of any age and gender, there are some dark moments in the story that might limit its age bracket to 15 and up, including a scene where one character is accused of assault, and another scene where characters discuss a suicide that happened several years previous. There’s also some swearing and fantasy violence, but nothing graphic enough to mention.

Promising Fantasy/Mystery Hybrid

Source: Author Website

City of a Thousand Dolls (Bhinian Empire #1) by Miriam Forster (HarperTeen, 2013, 368pp.)

Nisha, a young woman abandoned at the age of six, grew up in the City of a Thousand Dolls, a state-sanctioned facility that takes in unwanted girls, provides them with training in one of several professions (scholar, healer, society wife, assassin, courtesan, etc.) and then later sells them to interested clients at the annual Redeeming. Nisha has never questioned the system—but when several girls turn up dead, she can’t let the matter lie. She sets out to find answers—and in the process, finds out bewildering information about her own past. With her debut novel, Forster adds to, if not out-right invents, a new genre: the fantasy/mystery hybrid. Her world, which borrows predominantly from Southeast Asian cultures, is well thought-out and interesting, and the heroine, Nisha, is an admirable protagonist. I wish the supporting cast had been a little more developed, and the ending wrapped up just a bit too neatly—but other than that, it’s a promising first installment in this new series.