"Alyce" by Rachel Vallerie

Genre: Horror, Suspense, Fantasy

Target Audience: Young Adult

Date Published: 2013

Alyce by Rachel Vallerie is the story of a sixteen year old girl who is kidnapped one night by a mysterious man called the Mad Hatter. He brings her to the strange world of Wonderland where she is held captive for some unknown reason. As the story progresses, her chances of ever leaving this crazy mixed-up world become more and more slim.

The author of this book is one of my very good friends and she wrote this for her Senior Project. I was also involved in editing it so I saw its evolution. Rachel’s writing has developed quite a bit over the year. She cleverly put a twist on what could have been a very cliched ending and surprised me with moments where you truly felt for the characters. As you can probably tell, this story draws quite a bit from Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland which makes it quite an interesting read for those familiar with that story.

3/5 stars

(There is a copy of this in the SVS Library. Go check it out!)

"Sabriel" by Garth Nix

Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Mystery

Target Audience: Young Adult

Date Published: 1995

Sabriel is a fantastic coming of age story set in a wonderfully detailed world. It revolves around a girl named Sabriel and her search for her missing father. Sabriel is not your average girl, though. From a very young age she has been trained by her father to be the next Abhorsen. The Abhorsen functions as a countermeasure against the necromancers, the Dead and Free Magic that exist in the Old Kingdom. With her father missing  and the culture shock that comes from traveling between the Old Kingdom and the modern Ancelstierre, Sabriel’s adventure is quite difficult. As she travels, she collects an odd assortment of companions, from the talking cat Mogget to Touchstone, a fool with a mysterious and violent past.

I’m just going to come straight out and tell you to read this book. Sabriel has been one of my favorites since I was younger, and it is sheer pleasure every time I read it. The tone is eerie and intense while the world it is set in is fantastically complex and interesting. The main character, Sabriel, is relatable despite the fantasy setting and her past while still managing to be quite heroic and awe inspiring when called upon. Also this is the first in the Old Kingdom Series which has a new book coming out sometime this year.

5/5 stars