Author Origin: Greater Toronto Area, Ontario
Page Count: 392
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, YA
Difficulty: Medium
Grade Level: 10+
Key Talking Points: Grief/loss, war, identity.
Sensitive Subject Matter: Violence, death, war.
Summary: In a world dominated by a war between two powers, a teenage orphan named Zecaar gets the chance to escape her dismal fate in a breeding colony to develop her "Talent" - a mix of telepathy and telekinesis - in an elite school called Talcom. She faces challenges relating to who she is (one of only two females at the school, a lower-class orphan) as well as her abilities (she quickly outshines older students). However, her strength scares her, and she isn't sure whether she can control her new-found power, and if it is even worth it to try.
While it would be easy to assume that this is a Harry Potter-esque, school-based story, you'd be sorely mistaken. Zecaar's journey only begins at Talcom and goes so much further with a truly epic scope as Zecaar journeys to unlock the secrets of her past.
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, YA
Difficulty: Medium
Grade Level: 10+
Key Talking Points: Grief/loss, war, identity.
Sensitive Subject Matter: Violence, death, war.
Summary: In a world dominated by a war between two powers, a teenage orphan named Zecaar gets the chance to escape her dismal fate in a breeding colony to develop her "Talent" - a mix of telepathy and telekinesis - in an elite school called Talcom. She faces challenges relating to who she is (one of only two females at the school, a lower-class orphan) as well as her abilities (she quickly outshines older students). However, her strength scares her, and she isn't sure whether she can control her new-found power, and if it is even worth it to try.
While it would be easy to assume that this is a Harry Potter-esque, school-based story, you'd be sorely mistaken. Zecaar's journey only begins at Talcom and goes so much further with a truly epic scope as Zecaar journeys to unlock the secrets of her past.
D. Wolfsbane's skill at world-building shines strongly in all of the different settings of this novel. Specific details are given naturally and the strangeness of the different technologies and languages are approached gradually, so that the reader never feels overwhelmed. It is almost as if the reader is a traveler, seeing familiar and unfamiliar things uncovered to them as they explore the text. This is a common issue I see with Fantasy and Sci-Fi; it is almost as if the author is trying to shock you with how many different words and confusing exchanges they can throw you into. But D. Wolfsbane does the exact opposite as she lures you into feeling at home on her world of Cuest.
One of the biggest things that stood out to me while reading was the motif of overcoming regret. Through the character's experiences, D. Wolfsbane hits a chord that resonates with readers:
SORT OF SPOILER ALERT: Well, not a total spoiler, but I also wanted to comment on the way that D. Wolfsbane handles the lives of her characters. More specifically, their deaths. So many authors fall into the trap of not killing a character when it is logical to do so, simply because they love their characters so much. Other authors seem to kill off characters just for shock. I'm not going to tell you who dies, or how many characters, but I will say that when there is a death it is integral to the text. It furthers the plot or the development of Zecaar in a vital way.
Teacher Note: This text lends itself very well to a character development study and an application of the hero's quest, as it is both a coming of age narrative and a journey of danger and redemption. There are rich details throughout that would give a student a lot to work with.
Something really wonderful about this text is that it is part of a trilogy, but also ends well. This makes it well suited to engage young readers. It gives them the closure they often crave when reading, but also allows them opportunities to explore the world and characters they have fallen in love with further in future novels.
Final Thought: It is such a wonderful treat to find an independent author who presents such a well developed and thoughtful piece. I'm looking forward to following Zecaar in the rest of the trilogy.
Find the text on amazon in kindle and paperback formats through the link below:
https://www.amazon.ca/Ninth-Scripture-Hunt-D-Wolfsbane-ebook/dp/B07WZVYWJ8
📚 Ms. CAN Lit
One of the biggest things that stood out to me while reading was the motif of overcoming regret. Through the character's experiences, D. Wolfsbane hits a chord that resonates with readers:
"There was nothing you could’ve done. You did what you thought was right at the time and things couldn’t have played out any other way, because you did all you could do at that specific moment in time. You can’t go back and fix the ghosts of your past. If you try, then that’s all you’re ever going to end up doing—chasing ghosts. You have to move forward and try to prevent more. [...] I understand your guilt. The ifs that mess up reason and blind you, making you think you could’ve done more, could’ve changed what happened. But what happened, happened, and it couldn’t have happened any other way, because at the time, you did what you believed was right. If you erased your memories and went back to do it again, it would play out the exact same way. Whether or not what you did was right isn’t important, because it’s done, and you can’t change it. Whether you succeeded or not, that is important—and it hurts. It hurts a lot. Now all you can do is learn from it, and stop anything like it from happening again.” (84-85)These words have impacted me, and caused me to reflect on my own experiences, and I believe they'd have a similar effect on many readers. Finding such a deep and personal message in the text was a very pleasant surprise and again speaks to D. Wolfsbane's skill as an author.
SORT OF SPOILER ALERT: Well, not a total spoiler, but I also wanted to comment on the way that D. Wolfsbane handles the lives of her characters. More specifically, their deaths. So many authors fall into the trap of not killing a character when it is logical to do so, simply because they love their characters so much. Other authors seem to kill off characters just for shock. I'm not going to tell you who dies, or how many characters, but I will say that when there is a death it is integral to the text. It furthers the plot or the development of Zecaar in a vital way.
Teacher Note: This text lends itself very well to a character development study and an application of the hero's quest, as it is both a coming of age narrative and a journey of danger and redemption. There are rich details throughout that would give a student a lot to work with.
Something really wonderful about this text is that it is part of a trilogy, but also ends well. This makes it well suited to engage young readers. It gives them the closure they often crave when reading, but also allows them opportunities to explore the world and characters they have fallen in love with further in future novels.
Final Thought: It is such a wonderful treat to find an independent author who presents such a well developed and thoughtful piece. I'm looking forward to following Zecaar in the rest of the trilogy.
Find the text on amazon in kindle and paperback formats through the link below:
https://www.amazon.ca/Ninth-Scripture-Hunt-D-Wolfsbane-ebook/dp/B07WZVYWJ8
📚 Ms. CAN Lit
Comments
Post a Comment