Droplets of Magic by Emily Bybee
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Droplets of Magic is the forth book in the Unstable Magic series, but I didn't have any trouble diving right in and following along. There were references to events that clearly happened in earlier books, but those only added to the feeling of the story being set in a wider, more intricate world.

This book is a love-at-first-sight story--a trope that I don't tend to like because it often forces the characters into an emotional intimacy that I have trouble believing--but the character interactions in this book were still believable and the romance played second-fiddle to the main plot, so I won't hold that against it.

Angel Fire East by Terry Brooks
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Angel Fire East is the third book in Terry Brooks' Word and Void series, and the conclusion of the trilogy. It is not a stand-alone book, so don't start here. Read Running with the Demon and A Knight of the Word first.

This story picks up ten years after the second book (fifteen since the first). We're back in Hopewell, Illinois with Nest Freemark, and demons have come knocking. This story describes the third and final time she and John Ross cross paths.

The Last Kids on Earth and the Skeleton Road by Max Brallier
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Skeleton Road is book 6 in the Last Kids on Earth series. These books really need to be read in order, so I'm going to assume that if you've gotten this far you've already read the first five books and I don't need to cover things like basic character introductions in this review. The one character note that I will mention is that I enjoyed getting to know Dirk a little better and hearing some of his backstory.

Searching for Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

I think Ms. Wrede really found her stride with this book. I liked it even better than its predecessor in the series, Dealing with Dragons.

The world building is convincing, though a little light on detail. With a setting as rich as the enchanted forest I would have liked to see a little bit more.

One detail that I did love was how much care Wrede put into the magic system. Specifically the way Mendanbar accesses magic, which seems to be unique. I loved the descriptions of how Mendanbar used the threads of magic that filled the enchanted forest to cast his spells, and the way those threads got twisted and tangled around the wizards' staffs. His locator spell was particularly fun. :)

The Adventurer's Guide to Dragons (and Why They Keep Biting Me) by Wade Albert White
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I grabbed this book for my daughter not realizing that it was the second in a series. That said, we were a little thrown off when it picked up by mentioning a bunch of stuff that happened in another (unread) book. Still, it wasn't too hard to follow along.

The main driving force behind this book was the humor. The best bits were the excerpts from Ann's adventurer's guide that showed up between chapters. Most of those were hilarious. That humor was carried through the whole story, though the execution didn't always carry over as well. The overall experience was sort of like watching a stand-up comedian on improve night. Some of the jokes hit gold while others fell flat.

The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Eye of the World is book 1 in Robert Jordans epic fantasy series, The Wheel of Time, and EPIC is definitely the right word for it. This book, while having a distinct beginning, middle, and end, is not what I would call self-contained. It was very clearly written as the beginning of a much larger story, and the end is just a stepping stone to the next book. So long as you are aware of that fact going in, I don't think fans of classic fantasy will be disappointed. This story hinges on the familiar premise of the eternal war between light and dark, good and evil, and the stakes are nothing less than the entire world and the souls of everyone who ever lived.

Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dealing with Dragons is the first book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede. I first read this series as a child and it stuck with me; not the details so much, but the feeling of the story. I'm now so excited to be reading it again with my daughter. :)

This book focuses on a character named Cimorene. She is a princess from a very traditional kingdom who is bored out of her mind with the role she's been born to. As a result, she decides to run away. This is a pretty standard trope of the rebel princess who seeks adventure and personal fulfillment over politics and power.