Friday Memes: The King of Crows by Libba Bray

Book Beginnings is hosted by Rose City Reader and Friday 56 is hosted by Freda's Voice.

Image: LBYR

The King of Crows by Libba Bray. Diviners #4. 552 p. Little, Brown and Company, February 4, 2020. 9780316126090.

Publisher synopsis: After the horrifying explosion that claimed one of their own, the Diviners find themselves wanted by the US government, and on the brink of war with the King of Crows.

While Memphis and Isaiah run for their lives from the mysterious Shadow Men, Isaiah receives a startling vision of a girl, Sarah Beth Olson, who could shift the balance in their struggle for peace. Sarah Beth says she knows how to stop the King of Crows-but, she will need the Diviners' help to do it.

Elsewhere, Jericho has returned after his escape from Jake Marlowe's estate, where he has learned the shocking truth behind the King of Crow's plans. Now, the Diviners must travel to Bountiful, Nebraska, in hopes of joining forces with Sarah Beth and to stop the King of Crows and his army of the dead forever.

But as rumors of towns becoming ghost towns and the dead developing unprecedented powers begin to surface, all hope seems to be lost.

In this sweeping finale, The Diviners will be forced to confront their greatest fears and learn to rely on one another if they hope to save the nation, and world from catastrophe...

First Line: On the last day that the town of Beckettsville would ever know, the weather was so fine you could see all the way to the soft blue skin of the horizon.

Page 56: "A spot came open with a band, the Harlem Haymakers, and I had to jump on it. They have their own bus and everything. I'll be gone about three months. Maybe longer. It's a good way to make money and a name for myself and...Oh, horsefeathers, Ling. I need to leave New York. All these ghosts. And...us."

Waiting on Wednesday: Knock Three Times by Cressida Cowell

Image: Hachette Book Group

Knock Three Times by Cressida Cowell. The Wizards of Once #3. 400 p. Little, Brown BYR/ Hachette Book Group, October 15, 2019. 9780316508421.

Publisher synopsis: Xar and Wish are heroes with a huge task ahead–confronting the Nuckalavee is not for the faint hearted. But with Magic and Iron together, they might just have a chance of saving their beloved homes from those who seek to destroy everything they hold dear. The third electrifying book in The Wizards of Once series fizzes with magic and introduces us to a host of glorious new characters: bears and piskies and magical pins and needles to name but a few.

Beloved, bestselling author Cressida Cowell once again brings her trademark wit and stunning combination of action, adventure, humor, and incredible artwork to this epic new adventure, sure to transport and enchant readers. Stunningly written, magnificent in scope, hilarious and thrilling, Knock Three Times immerses you in a world you won’t ever wish to leave.

Woohoo! We don't have too long to wait for this!

#tbt - Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz. Alex Rider series #1. 192 p. Philomel Books/ Penguin Young Readers Group, 2000. 0399236201.

#tbt features Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz. This first book in the Alex Rider series was published in Great Britain in 200 and in the United States in 2001. Alex Rider was a fourteen-year-old school boy living a quiet life with his banker uncle and American nanny when the two receive word that Ian Rider was killed in a car crash. Details don't add up. Alex investigates and discovers that his uncle was a spy for MI6 and the director wants Alex to complete the mission.

Fast-paced and suspenseful, the whole series is quite popular at TMS. Horowitz thought he wrote his last Alex Rider book in 2011 but found he had more adventures for our favorite teenage spy. Ms. Kahn got to meet Mr. Horowitz a a local bookstore yesterday and had him autograph a book for TMS students. It will be available for checkout as soon as she reads it!

Spirit Animals Series

Scholastic rules the roost with multi-author, multi-platform series. The newest one to come down the pipes is Spirit Animals. Seven books are planned, each written by a different author. Click here to read the line-up of authors. I read the first three pretty much in a row and am reviewing them together.

Wild Born (Spirit Animals #1) by Brandon Mull. 224 p. Scholastic Inc., September, 2013. 9780545522434. (Purchased).

Wild Born (Spirit Animals #1) by Brandon Mull. Unabridged audiobook on 5 compact discs. Read by Nicola Barber. Scholastic Inc., September, 2013. 9780545600385.

Hunted (Spirit Animals #2) by Maggie Stiefvater. 185 p. Scholastic Inc., January, 2104. 9780545522441. (Finished copy courtesy of publisher for review.)

Blood Ties (Spirit Animals #3) by Garth Nix & Sean Williams. 186 p. Scholastic Inc., March, 2014. 9780545522458. (Finished copy courtesy of publisher for review.)


In the world of Erdas, there is a rite of passage for every child, regardless of class, around their eleventh birthday. They must drink the Nectar provided by a Greencloak in a public ceremony to determine whether the child will summon and bond with a spirit animal. Four different children, two girls and two boys, in four different parts of Erdas summon the Four Fallen, the four animals who sacrificed their lives defending Erdas against the Devourer and his followers many years before. It seems that the followers of the Devourer are rising in power again and the Four Fallen have returned to assist the Greencloaks in a new battle. 

Conor, servant to Devon, the son of the earl, summons Briggan, a wolf. Devon is furious and embarrassed because he did not summon a spirit animal as he expected. Rollin is a jailed orphan and totally uninterested in the Nectar ceremony or becoming a Greencloak, yet he summons Essix, a hawk when the Greencloak insists. Meilin, disciplined warrior-daughter of a general, is disappointed to have Jhi, a peaceful panda as her spirit animal. Abeke, thought she would become her tribe's rainmaker. Instead, she summons Uraza, the leopard and unknowingly spends time training with some minions of the Devourer before being rescued by the Greencloaks.

I listened to books one and two. The narration by Nicola Barber was measured. The pace was almost leisurely despite the increasing conflict and number of battle scenes. 

In book 2, each of the four have inner conflict added to their quest to obtain some talismans before the Devourers. They also have to improve the bond between themselves and their spirit animal as well as learn to trust each other. Unfortunately, they need to do this without the guidance of their adult mentors for the most part. Conor and Meilin make crucial decisions that put the needs of their family before the needs of Erdas

In book 3, there is some dissension in the group as Meilin has left to aide her father and Abeke and Rollin's trust in Conor is gone. The four are at their most vulnerable just as The Devourers seem to be strengthening.

While some of the action seems a bit predictable and slightly repetitive, there has been enough character development and interesting twists to ensure that readers (at least this old fogey) stay invested in continuing the story. Readers who visit the series website can create their own spirit animal, play games and join forums. Book 4, Fire and Ice by Shannon Hale is due out June 24.