Showing posts with label trees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label trees. Show all posts

Saturday, May 15, 2021

Book Review - Willa of Dark Hollow by Robert Beatty + Giveaway

 

Willa and her clan are the last of the Faeran species. They are an ancient race of forest people that have lived in the Great Smoky Mountain since the trees have grown there.  However, a crew of human loggers have arrived and are cutting down and destroying the forest she loves at an alarming rate. Willa feels powerless as she is unable to stop them. She doesn't know how she will be able to stop them as they have powerful machines and she is just one girl.

Willa tries to get a closer look at the loggers and tries to devise a plan to stop the deforestation. She comes across these mysterious creatures that are beautiful and elusive until, she realizes they are hunting humans. Willa struggles to decide if unleashing these dangerous spirits is the only course of action she has to stopping the loggers. She will have to find a way to save the people and animals she loves while taking a stand against the loggers and the darkness that is threatening to destroy her world.

This is the second novel in the series but, I felt that this novel can be read as a standalone. The book is heartbreaking and an exciting read. The book has many great lessons including, respecting nature and focusing on the group mindset instead of thinking of only yourself. I liked all the characters and thought they were beautifully written including, Charka. I hope this isn't the end of the series and that they make a series from the book!

**Disclosure - I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.**

  

About the Book:

Title: WILLA OF DARK HOLLOW

Author: Robert Beatty

Pub. Date: May 4, 2021

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 384

Find it: GoodreadsAmazon, KindleAudibleB&NiBooks, KoboTBD, Bookshop.org

Young nightspirit Willa discovers an ancient, powerful magic deep in the forest in the enchanting companion to Robert Beatty's instant #1 New York Times best-seller, Willa of the Wood.

This enchanting companion to Robert Beatty's instant #1 New York Times bestseller Willa of the Wood is perfect for any reader who cares deeply about the natural world. 

Willa and her clan are the last of the Faeran, an ancient race of forest people who have lived in the Great Smoky Mountains for as long as the trees have grown there. But as crews of newly arrived humans start cutting down great swaths of the forest she loves, she is helpless to stop them. How can she fight the destroyers of the forest and their powerful machines?

When Willa discovers a mysterious dark hollow filled with strange and beautiful creatures, she comes to realize that it contains a terrifying force that seems to be hunting humans. Is unleashing these dangerous spirits the key to stopping the loggers? Willa must find a way to save the people and animals she loves and take a stand against a consuming darkness that threatens to destroy her world.

Praise for Willa of the Wood:

"Willa of the Wood will grip readers from its first page... Willa is... an admirable protagonist."—Culturess

"A moving, atmospheric journey of hope."—Kirkus Reviews

"Beatty conjures up a resourceful, compassionate heroine. Full of atmospheric details and richly described magic... this well-paced tale asks insightful questions about the relationship between nature and humans."—Publishers Weekly

"The heroine is an appealing character... and her anguish is clear as she wavers between frightened self-preservation and her desire to help her friends."—School Library Journal

"Willa is a strong and likable creature of the natural world, and seamlessly represents themes of loyalty, tradition, family, and stewardship of the Earth in this engaging story."—School Library Connection

Accolades:

2018 Goodreads Choice Awards: Middle Grade, finalist

2018 Cybils Award, Elementary Middle Grade Speculative Fiction Nominee

Amazon: Best Children's Books of 2018, ages 9-12

Imagination Soup: Best Middle Grade Chapter Books of 2018

BNKids: July's Best Books for Young Readers, selection (2018)

Brightly: 9 Middle Grade Books for Environmentally Conscious Kids, selection (2018)

PopSugar: The Best books for Kids in 2018, as Voted by Actual Kids and Parents Who Read Them, selection

A Mighty Girl: 2018 Books of the Year, ages 9-12

 


GRAB WILLA OF THE WOOD NOW!

 


Willa of the Wood and Willa of Dark Hollow are being adapted into a multi-season, live-action television series!

 

About Robert:

Robert Beatty is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Serafina series and the Willa of the Wood series published by Disney Hyperion. Loved by young readers and adults alike, the Serafina and Willa books are being taught in over a thousand classrooms nationwide and have been translated into over 22 languages. Robert lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina with his wife and three daughters. He writes full-time now, but in his past lives, Robert was one of the early pioneers of cloud computing, the founder/CEO of Plex Systems, the co-founder of Beatty Robotics, and the chairman/CTO of Narrative magazine. In 2007, he was named an Entrepreneur of the Year. When asked about the inspiration for his books, Robert said, “The Serafina and Willa books grew out of my desire to write stories about unusual and heroic young girls for my three daughters."

 

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon

 

Giveaway Details:

3 winners will win a finished copy of WILLA OF DARK HOLLOW, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

5/1/2021

BookHounds YA

Excerpt

Week Two:

5/2/2021

Log Cabin Library

Excerpt

5/3/2021

jillpiscitello

Excerpt

5/4/2021

YA Books Central

Excerpt

5/5/2021

Nerdophiles

Review

5/6/2021

Jenguerdy

Review

5/7/2021

booksaremagictoo

Review

5/8/2021

Amani’s Reviews

Review

Week Three:

5/9/2021

Little Red Reads

Review

5/10/2021

The Bookwyrm's Den

Review

5/11/2021

A Court of Coffee and Books

Review

5/12/2021

Emelie's Books

Review

5/13/2021

Books and Zebras

Review

5/14/2021

Kait Plus Books

Excerpt

5/15/2021

michellemengsbookblog

Review

Week Four:

5/16/2021

two points of interest

Review

5/17/2021

History from a Woman’s Perspective

Review

5/18/2021

Rajiv's Reviews

Review

5/19/2021

Lifestyle of Me

Review

5/20/2021

Haunted By Books

Review

5/21/2021

The Momma Spot

Review

5/22/2021

Fyrekatz Blog

Review

Week Five:

5/23/2021

The Try Everything

Excerpt

5/24/2021

Musing of Souls

Review

5/25/2021

Popthebutterfly

Review

5/26/2021

more.books.yes.please

Review

5/27/2021

DearRivarie

Review

5/28/2021

Momfluenster

Review

5/29/2021

A Dream Within A Dream

Excerpt

Week Six:

5/30/2021

Lady Hawkeye

Excerpt

5/31/2021

Do You Dog-ear?

Review


Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Book Review - The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson

 

 

Immanuelle Moore is living in Bethel where the Prophet's word is the law. Her very existence is blasphemy. Her mother had an affair with an outsider of a different race. For her mother's sins, her entire family was cast out in disgrace. Immanuelle tries to atone for her mother's disgrace by trying to worship the Father and follow all the rules as the other women in the settlement.

Growing up, Immanuelle has heard stories about the Darkwood forest. Settlers are forbidden from entering the forest. The forest is where the first prophet chased and killed four powerful witches. When returning home from the market, an accident occurs which causes Immanuelle to enter the Darkwood forest. She comes across two of the witches and they give her a gift. When Immanuelle opens the gift, she realizes it's her dead mother's journal. She finds out that her mother once sought sanctuary in the woods.

Immanuelle knows that having the journal is forbidden but, she is fascinated with the secrets that are buried in the pages. She is struggling to understand how her mother could go against her faith and conspire with the witches. As she tries to dig deeper into the journal, she learns the truth behind the Church and its history along with the secrets it keeps.

The novel is an interesting read. I thought it was interesting reading the description of the witches. However, I was expecting a bit more from the novel. The secrets that the church has is more about human greed than a secret scandal. I felt like the story followed most storylines about cults where men are fearless leaders and women are stripped of most of their rights. Then one woman will try to stand up to the leaders but, the "faithful followers" will go against her but, she will do the right thing anyway. I was confused by the role of witchcraft. It seems like some of the other "darker-skinned" people worshiped the witches but, the witches seem to be evil people hurt whoever gets in their way. I thought when Immanuelle saw the marks on the witches' faces are similar to the Prophet's wives, the story was going to take a different turn but, it didn't.  The story had potential but, failed to live up to it. Also, can we stop making people who look different especially people of dark skin color villains by the story characters?

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