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As a sixth grader, Cole Randolph knows he's too old for dressing up and trick-or-treating.  But checking out a creepy haunted house created by a special effects guy with Hollywood experience?  He's all in.  Especially when Jenna Hunt agrees to tag along with him and his best friend, Dalton.  Even if the spook house is totally lame, it will be worth it to hang out with the prettiest girl in school.

What Cole is expecting to be a mildly exciting Halloween night soon turns into the greatest, most terrifying adventure of his life.  Alien slave traders lurk in the recesses of the house's basement, kidnapping kids and forcing them through a sinister-looking manhole.  Although Cole manages to elude capture, Jenna and Dalton do not.  Cole knows he has to go after his friends.  He may, in fact, be their only hope.  

Through the manhole, Cole discovers a strange, mysterious land called the Outskirts.  It's a weird, in-between place full of odd, impossible things.  In this hostile place, it's only a matter of time before Cole is caught.  Sold away to a band of sky raiders, Cole is separated from the other kidnapped children.  While he performs his dangerous new duties as a scout for the aerial pirates, who pillage floating castles for anything worth salvaging, Cole searches for a way to escape.  The death toll among scouts being extremely high, he knows he doesn't have much time to rescue himself and his friends.  But how will he get to them?  And how will they all get back to their own world?  Is it even possible?  Or will they be forever trapped, forever slaves, forever imprisoned in a place which no one else knows exists?  

When it comes to creating exciting, imaginative middle grade fiction, Brandon Mull knows what he's doing.  Sky Raiders, the first book in his Five Kingdoms series, is an excellent case in point.  The book starts with a bang and sprints onward from there.  With death-defying challenges around every corner (cloud?), its hero is constantly put to the test.  Surviving them requires courage, cunning, and lots of quick maneuvering.  Cole's exploits make for just the kind of page-turning action/adventure middle graders crave.  The fact that they take place in a unique and vivid setting make them all the more compelling.  Young (and not so young) readers who dare to follow Cole down the manhole will be swept away by the epic and fantastical adventure that awaits them in the Outskirts.  I certainly was.   

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

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Each time February 29th rolls around, something amazing happens in the Bailey household.  At exactly 4:23 p.m., members of the family who have reached 12 years old since last Leap Year, get their super powers.  Rafter Bailey, now 13, has been waiting anxiously to find out what amazing super skill will be bestowed upon him.  Will he get super speed, super strength, super flying ability?  The suspense is killing him!  He needs a truly awesome power to best his rival, super-supervillain Juanita Johnson.  What will it be?

When Rafter finally gets his power, excitement is not his first reaction.  Try shock, disappointment, disbelief and abject humiliation.  What's he supposed to do with his "amazing" new ability to light matches on polyester?  How will that help him in a battle against Juanita, who can shoot flames from her hands?  At least Rafter's not alone—his younger brother, Benny, is now the (not so) proud owner of a "super" power that allows him to turn his innie belly button into an outie.  What exactly are the Bailey brothers supposed to do with the lamest powers in the history of ever?

As tension grows between the Baileys and their arch nemeses, the Johnsons, Rafter's useless super power becomes even more embarrassing.  He can't help his family using his dumb polyester pyrotechnics.  When push comes to shove, he'll have to decide what it really means to be a hero—and a villain.  With the help of the one person he didn't think he'd ever be able to count on, Rafter might finally be able to prove that he, too, is super.  Well, almost.

Almost Super, a debut middle grade novel by Marion Jensen, is just as cute as it sounds.  It's fun, it's upbeat, it's quirky, it's humorous.  The book's a quick, easy read that will leave a smile on your face, no matter how old (or young) you are.  Even reluctant readers should find it engaging and non-threatening.  That being said, the story doesn't offer a lot of substance.  It teaches some good lessons, sure, but there's just not tons going on beneath the surface with this one.  Overall, it's an enjoyable read, if not a really memorable one.  

(Readalikes:  I can't think of any books, but Almost Super reminds me of movies like The Incredibles, The Adventures of Food Boy, and Sky High)

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Magnolia is a proper princess—prim and perfect.  At least that's what everyone thinks.  But behind her frilly pink dresses and sparkly tiara lies a super-secret identity.  No one can know about her alter-ego, especially not the ultra-nosy Duchess Wigtower.  So, when the monster alarm on Princess Magnolia's glitter stone ring goes off while she and the Duchess are sipping hot chocolate and nibbling scones, Magnolia panics.  Does she dare leave her meddling guest in the castle alone?  What if Duchess Wigtower discovers the secrets hidden in Magnolia's broom closet?  Will it mean the end of the Princess in Black's heroic, goat-saving adventures?  Will Princess Magnolia have to be prim and proper all the time?  Gasp!  To save herself from a fate worse than death, she'll have to fight a monster, protect a life, and return home in time to fool the nosy Duchess.  It's a tall order, even for the fastest, most courageous of superheroes.  Is the Princess in Black up to the task? 

As you can probably tell, The Princess in Black—a new middle grade adventure from Shannon and Dean Hale (illustrated by LeUyen Pham)—oozes charm.  It's light, it's fun, it's empowering, it's delightful.  Seriously, what's not to love?  I dare you not to smile through the whole book.  It's impossible, I tell you.  My 6-year-old daughter and I highly recommend this adorable tale from a husband-and-wife team who know how to spin a story just right.  

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

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To the FTC, with love:  I received a finished copy of The Princess in Black from the generous folks at Candlewick Press.  Thank you!

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Paranoia comes with the territory in Aislynn Brosna's family.  Moving constantly, scanning the driveway for any sign of "the enemy," reporting suspicious characters—all par for the course.  As much as Aislynn loves her dad and older brother (despite their irritating, obsessive, overprotective quirks), the high school junior just wants a normal life.  Not the perpetual watch-guarding that's become even more stringent since her mother died eight months ago in a car accident (that Aislynn's father, naturally, believes was caused by the always invisible "enemy").  The Brosna's recent arrival in Chandler, Arizona, marks the perfect time for Aislynn to re-invent herself as a totally normal girl with a completely average family.  Now that the ultra-hot Dane Breckenridge is paying Aislynn a little attention, it's especially important that no one know what kind of crazy lives behind the Brosna's front door.

Aislynn's laughed off her dad's warnings about "the enemy" for so long, she's shocked when she discovers the truth: her family really is being hunted.  Before she can even begin to comprehend the fact that she's part of an ancient tribe of Set-worshiping Egyptians engaged in a perpetual battle against the evil Horusians, she's, once again, on the run.  So much for normal.  As Aislynn learns astonishing facts about herself and her family, she begins to realize just how much danger she's really in.  Fighting for her own survival only becomes more complicated as she engages in a struggle between two halves of herself.  Will she make it out of this confusing war alive?  And what about her dream of a normal life?  Does it have any chance of coming true now that Aislynn knows what she really is?

You may have noticed that I have a love/hate relationship with Janette Rallison.  Not the woman herself because she is as warm and generous as she could possibly be.  I mean with her books.  As much as I adore Rallison's Godmother series, I just can't get on board with her YA sci fi/fantasy novels.  I appreciate the fact that she's trying to branch out, try other genres, but in my opinion, these newer books are just ... meh.  Son of War, Daughter of Chaos, Rallison's newest, is no exception.  It has some bright spots, for sure, but overall, it feels too flat, too long, and way, way too Twilight.  Rallison's novels are all infused with her trademark wit and this one definitely has some of that familiar sparkle.  I also like that the whole Setite/Horusian world/war has depth to it, making it feel more real (true, the explanatory passages often get long and boring, but still).  My biggest problem with the novel, I think, is that not only did I not really care about the ancient war, but I also didn't understand its sudden urgency.  And while the characters are likable, they just didn't really speak to me.  Overall, then, Son of War, Daughter of Chaos was just an okay read for me.  If there are sequels coming, I won't bother reading them.

In happier news, My Fairly Dangerous Godmother, the third installment in Rallison's series about an adorkable fairy godmother-in-training, came out a couple months ago.  Squee!  I haven't read it yet, but I will.  Soon.

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan and the Twilight series [Twilight; New Moon; Eclipse; Breaking Dawn; by Stephenie Meyer)

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