Reviewed by Melinda Hills for Readers' Favorite

The empty feeling of not belonging to a group is timeless, as Orfeo demonstrates clearly in The Sword of Telemon: The Orfeo Saga Book 1 by Murray Lee Eiland, Jr. Born as the second son of King Kiros, Orfeo was sent to the foreign city of Pylos as a hostage when he was roughly 5 or 6 years old to guarantee peace for his nomadic tribe. While in Pylos, Orfeo studied alongside the prince with a renowned scholar and that knowledge would prove quite useful many years later. After escaping Pylos and returning to the hillsides and sheep of his Achian heritage, Orfeo is not accepted by the people who now view him suspiciously. When his older brother and heir to the king, Herron, is captured and feared enslaved by the Therans, Orfeo is among the group that will attempt a rescue. Instead of simply minding sheep, Orfeo is now responsible for learning to fight with a sword and use his cunning to face and survive many adventures. From an isolated teenage boy, Orfeo turns into a wise young man who uses his many talents to help his people defeat a tireless enemy. Will he learn enough to succeed?

The Sword of Telemon: The Orfeo Saga Book 1 by Murray Lee Eiland, Jr. provides an amazing look at ancient Greek life from roughly 1,600 years ago. Against this historic backdrop, the story of Orfeo is compelling. The characters come alive and the thoughtful emotion Eiland fills them with truly lets you feel as though you are toiling along with them. The action is intense and really gives you an idea about ancient beliefs, many of which are still with us today, such as loyalty, personal choice, responsibility, and duty to others. This book is amazing and I am grateful that I had the opportunity to read it. The strong characters and realistic emotions truly provide lessons about assuming responsibility and looking at the different aspects of every issue. The Sword of Telemon offers a great look at ancient history as well as the modern quest for a sense of purpose and belonging.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

Orville Mouse and the Puzzle of the Clockwork Glowbirds: An Orville Wellington Mouse Adventure is a young adult adventure fantasy novel written by Tom Hoffman. Orville was enjoying one of his strangely realistic dreams when he suddenly woke up in his own bedroom. He had been wandering through the most wonderful grove of orange trees which gave off an intoxicatingly sweet scent and enjoying the summer heat, but, best of all, he had Sophia, his best friend, by his side. She drew his attention to a massive tree with perfectly circular, sky-blue leaves, and as they stood beneath it, Sophia suddenly conjured up a ripe and juicy orange. After the warmth of that dream world, the frigid air in his bedroom was even harder to adjust to, but he did have only one more day of school left. As he looked around, however, he was stunned to see that the orange had also somehow materialized in his room. And this wasn't the first time something from his dream had entered his waking world; there had been the glowbird feathers and the round, sky-blue leaves. Needing to convince himself of its reality, Orville peeled the orange and savored the sweet juice as he ate the segments. Yes, it could not be denied or thought a fiction if he was actually eating it. This was something he would definitely have to discuss with Sophia on their way to school.

Tom Hoffman's young adult coming of age fantasy, Orville Mouse and the Puzzle of the Clockwork Glowbirds: An Orville Wellington Mouse Adventure is magical, exciting, witty and wise. It has marvelous characters and a smashing plot, and the story ties in quite nicely with the author's Bartholomew the Adventurer trilogy. As I began reading this rather remarkable steampunk fantasy, I soon felt a magical glow overwhelming me and a most pleasant alteration of my mood. This book made me smile. Of course, there was danger to be realized and not a little suspense as I read of Orville and Sophia's encounters with some rather terrifying off-world creatures, but the sterling company I was privileged to be a part of made even the most gigantic centipede with gnashing teeth seem manageable somehow. I am a huge fan of Bartholomew the Adventurer and the other unforgettable personalities inhabiting Hoffman's first trilogy and was thrilled to discover that the Orville Wellington Mouse Adventures were set in much the same universe. Orville Wellington Mouse is a Metaphysical Adventurer Extraordinaire, and I'm anxiously awaiting news of his and Sophia's next adventure. Orville Mouse and the Puzzle of the Clockwork Glowbirds: An Orville Wellington Mouse Adventure is most highly recommended.

Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite

From the Shadows: The Complete Series is a young adult science fiction series written by KB Shaw. It contains two volumes: Separate Paths and Convergence. Cameron Rush and Rosa Costas are best friends and fellow geeks, but they've never really seen each other. He lives in Wisconsin and she's a cowgirl on a ranch in New Mexico. They've gotten to know each other through GundTech's multiCom technology, which comes equipped with AI personalities. Cameron's AI is named Sam, and he's got the program ready as Cameron rushes into his bedroom after school. He and Rosa have been waiting all day to hear GundTech's news conference, and they've arranged to listen to the announcement together. GundTech's spokesperson presents the results of some revolutionary strides the company's made in the field of quantum computing, and, even better, they're announcing the formation of the IHT International Academy, which will offer free tuition and is accepting applications effective immediately.

KB Shaw's young adult science fiction series, From the Shadows: The Complete Series, is filled with action, adventure and technology -- the perfect recipe for an enthralling and exciting read. Shaw's characters are well-defined and intriguing, especially the AI personalities who turned out to be quite a bit more individualized than I ever thought they could be. The Academy is a virtual one, and it makes for an interesting mix of home and regular school with the challenging and futuristic demands on the young tech wizard-trainees. Shaw has Easter eggs pop up in the plot and plants a few of his own in the storyline; including those found during a marvelous time travel adventure that Rosa designs to celebrate Cameron's birthday. Sometimes I could see a glimpse of Philip Pullman's classic fantasy series, His Dark Materials, in the AI companions each student has, as well as the more obvious ties to Rowling's magical rather than techie, Hogwarts, but From the Shadows is much more than a reflection of these influences. While the author may, purposely or inadvertently, cause readers to think of these authors when reading the book, the world presented in this story is in a class by itself, and its marvels would promise a fascinating future indeed. From the Shadows: The Complete Series is most highly recommended.

Reviewed by Maria Stoica for Readers' Favorite

Zephyr the West Wind by R.J. Tolson is the first book in the young adult fantasy series, Chaos Chronicles. Zephyr has the gift of understanding other people’s emotions, but he never managed to understand its use while growing up alone, isolated and hated by the other villagers on the small island of Dentro. Years ago, his mother had broken the village law by having a child with an outsider. Zephyr’s father had disappeared before his birth and his mother had died when he was young so the entire village's rage and disgust for his parents was aimed at Zephyr. Only the old village chief had the kindness to look after him. Now at seventeen years of age, Zephyr is ready to take his Trial of Adulthood which will get him off the island towards new lands in the world of Tye and, hopefully, towards some friendship. That is, if he survives it. The first and foremost task is to be selected by one of the five crystals: Sea, Ouranos, Void, Balance, or Dream which unlocks unknown powers within each individual.

The book is written in first person, following Zephyr’s perspective although there are a couple of chapters later on, written from another character’s perspective, also in first person. In the world of Tye, the king or chief is the strongest warrior of the people he is leading. Despite this apparently violent culture, there are those who do not think that brute force is the key to solving every conflict and they offer a moral balance over the entertaining and clean fighting scenes. R.J. has done an awesome job in creating a vivid world with amazing artifacts, giant lizard carriages, and flavored energy crystals which awaken one’s aura in different ways, thus enabling anime-like effects during fights. The plot twists are the best parts alongside the discovery of Zephyr’s powers, identity, and the use of his gift. There are bits of wisdom and introspection here and there which give depth to all the struggle and pain. I recommend Zephyr the West Wind to both young adults and adults since it is a great journey of self discovery in an exciting world.

Reviewed by Lisa Jones for Readers' Favorite

Deviation by Christine Manzari is about a group of teenagers who are genetically programmed from the foetus stage to become the experiments of a program. The story is told through the eyes of a teenage girl named Clementine Dracone, or Cleo as she likes to be called. She struggles to cope with the fact that she has never known her birth parents and, when her anger becomes too much, she begins to display a rather scary characteristic. It is because of this that she is moved to St Ignatius where she makes new friends and a lot of enemies. As the story unfolds, her hidden anger makes her able to do things that she can't explain and the world in which she lives is far from what she thought it was.

Christine Manzari shows much promise with her novel Deviation. It hosts a wonderful plot which changes from page to page and I especially liked the connection between Cleo and Ozzy. I would describe it as on par with The Hunger Games and although it may greatly appeal to the younger generation, I, for one, can confirm that the older generation will also enjoy the story. Each individual character was well developed and the structure of the plot was cleverly done. The concept of the characters being modified from birth is fascinating and each special ability has been well thought out and researched. There are some fantastic twists that I was not expecting and which were a welcome surprise. I am excited for book two in this series. I therefore recommend this book to all as Deviation is such an exhilarating read.

Reviewed by Kathryn Bennett for Readers' Favorite

Elixir by Ted Galdi introduces us to 14-year-old Sean Malone. Sean is special; he is incredibly smart with an IQ of over 200, and he has already earned a full ride to a top university. Not only that, but he has been on Jeopardy and has won over a million dollars from that streak. With these great things at his finger tips, Sean's only wish is that he was just normal. There is a down side to being as smart as he is - the biggest part being the US government using him to break codes. This leads to a great deal of change in his life, including personal security and a move to Rome.

This is a true coming of age story with a twist. Most of the coming of age books I read do not involve super smart teenage boys. I cannot imagine Sean's crazy life and I certainly found myself feeling for him. He just wants a normal life, but everything that he keeps getting pushed into is about as far from normal as you can possibly get. Ted Galdi keeps the pace going throughout this book and the pages truly seem to fly by. I felt there was a lot of content and it was a great read. I personally read this one twice just to make sure that I got everything. If you truly want a different and enjoyable coming of age story, this is one I would recommend. It is perfect for adults and young teens alike.

Reviewed by Melinda Hills for Readers' Favorite

There is nothing like learning you can perform magic to make learning math more fun! That’s exactly what Alexandria Grate discovers after falling out of a storage closet in school into a strange, new world and becoming a student of Archimedes in Libellus de Numeros: Magicae Mathematica Book 1 by Jim West. As a self-reliant young girl just getting ready to start middle school, Alex is used to thinking and doing for herself. Unfortunately, her head-strong nature does not fit in with this new world where a Council rules harshly to maintain their power. Together with her teacher, Archimedes, and several other students, Alex must learn all she can as quickly as possible to hold off an attack by two evil wizards who are intent on overthrowing the Council. Through her bond with her new mentor, she accepts being ‘lost’ in this seemingly ancient world and does everything possible to solve the problems that may lead to her returning home. Along the way, Alex learns much more about herself and getting along with other people, but will she be able to come up with enough magic to save the day?

Libellus de Numeros: Magicae Mathematica Book 1 by Jim West relates the adventures of Alex, Archimedes and the other inhabitants of a mystical land in an exciting and engaging tale. This story is excellent on many levels: terrific writing, great story line, smooth infusion of the love of learning math and Latin, and a heartwarming look at relationships between friends and family members. There is plenty of action, humor and soul searching as many of the characters realize there is more than one way to look at any issue, but that they don’t have to accept everything exactly as it is – thinking for yourself is just as important as following rules.