Indigo's Star by Hilary McKay

Title: Indigo's Star
Author: Hilary McKay
Series: Casson Family #2
Genre: YA
Reason for Reading: I enjoyed the first book and hoped the second would also put a smile on my face.
Pages: 266
Copyright Date: 2003
Cover: The top of a kid's head, with scruffy dark hair and startling blue eyes. The background is white on top, with a blue foreground and a shark fin in between them.
First line: "For the first time in his life Indigo Casson had been properly ill."
Best part: I loved the description of what it's like to be bullied and how school cliques work.
Worst part: Not as funny as the previous installment.
Imaginary Theme Song: "Beat It" by Michael Jackson
Grade: C+
Recommended for: Kids who are having trouble with bullies, adults who want a lighter read.
Related Reads: Saffy's Angel by the same author (#1 in the series), The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall, The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright.

The Fox by Sherwood Smith

Title: The Fox
Author: Sherwood Smith
Series: Inda #2 (Court Duel prequel series)
Genre: Epic fantasy, pirates!
Reason for Reading: The first one had a cliffhanger ending. I couldn't wait long.
Pages: 772
Copyright Date: 2007
Cover: A swashbuckling young man holds a long curved sword perilously close to the rigging he leans on for balance. Black sails and a blue sky are behind him.
First line: "In Sartorias-deles' long history, only once have we seen pirates enjoy the protection of the strongest naval power in the world."
Best part: Girl pirates! Gay pirates! That's pretty much always going to be an easy sell for me.
Worst part: It was hard to have two plotlines separated by lots and lots of miles, with no direct contact between the characters of one and the characters of the other.
Imaginary Theme Song: "Eye of the Tiger"
Grade: B+
Recommended for: Epic fantasy fans. Anyone who loved Pirates of the Caribbean. Warning: you should read Inda first or this book is going to be very confusing.
Related Reads: Inda, first book in the series. Land of Mist and Snow by Debra Doyle and James MacDonald, another pirate book with magic, set in the civil war. The Element of Fire by Martha Wells, another complex and funny epic fantasy.

This book is too complicated for a plot summary, and I don't want to give away the events of the first volume - but you will never lose track of what's going on. Rather a testament to the author's skill, wouldn't you agree?

Let me make it clear that I liked the first book in this series. Really, I did. But this blew it out of the water, pun intended. It would have been worth it to read the first book if it was a piece of trash, which it wasn't at all, just so you could get to this one. The complexity - the wit - the emotional moments. Characters at their best and worst moments. In this book, everyone gets a chance to shine. If you like fantasy and ESPECIALLY if you like pirates, this book is well worth a look. A strong B+, and I'm looking forward to the sequels.

Fall of Light by Nina Kiriki Hoffman

Title: Fall of Light
Author: Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Series: Lazelle family #2
Genre: Urban fantasy
Reason for Reading: I love this author.
Pages: 320
Copyright Date: 2009
Cover: A woman in a white nightdress leans against a tree, looking worried. Sparkles suggest that magic is in the air.
First line: "When Opal LaZelle arrived at the Makeup trailer on the set of Forest of the Night, she found her personal employer, Corvus Weather, asleep at her station."
Best part: The inner workings of Opal's mind as she does her magic.
Worst part: The ending, which left me going, "Huh?"
Imaginary Theme Song: "Masquerade" from Phantom of the Opera
Grade: C
Recommended for: Fans of the author, fans of fantasy combined with moviemaking.
Related Reads: A Fistful of Sky by the same author (first in the series), Smoke and Mirrors by Tanya Huff, Born to Run by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon.

Makeup artist Opal LaZelle is a little different. But hey, everybody working in show biz has at least a few quirks, right? Opal's quirks include a dysfunctional family, a tendency to fall in love with the people she does makeup for... and just a bit of magic. On a secluded location spot, Opal's magic will be tested - along with her wits, her family ties, and her not-so-secret crush on her hunky new boss. Who will come out the victor?

I found the book compelling but mainly alternated between feeling sorry for the main character and wishing she would stop acting so stupid. I don't think this is one of Hoffman's best.