The Crowfield Curse

The Crowfield Curse, by Pat Walsh, reads like a movie. I am having my guest blogger return with her review of the book...William is a fifteen year old orphan in early 14th century England. After his family died in a fire, the monks at Crowfield took him in when the people of his village shunned him as the only survivor of the fire that killed his family and destroyed their mill. Will's life is filled with hard labor, and his only friend is Brother Snail, the healer of the abbey who suffers from severe curviture of the spine. One cold winter day, William hears a voice pleading for help or death and he comes upon a creature that will change the way he sees the world. The hob, a fay creature, is caught in an iron trap. The sensitive Wiliam frees him and takes him to Brother Snail for healing. He discovers that he and Brother Snail have "the sight" which allows them to see fay creatures. Soon William's world becomes a much more frightening place as he is pursued by dark fay and forced to help an ancient and powerful fay and his leperous master to uncover an ancient secret that has cursed the brothers of the abbey for a century.

Click on the book trailer below to learn more about the book.

The Grimm Legacy

The Grimm Legacy, by Polly Shulman, reads like a movie. This adventure was highly recommended by a student who has read hundreds of books in my library. When Elizabeth’s mother passes away, her father remarries. She instantly has a new stepmother and stepsisters. Her father cannot pay for her ballet lessons or private school tuition, because he is paying for her stepsisters’ college tuition. Do you know a fairy tale like that? Elizabeth chooses to research the Grimm Brothers for a history project at her new public school. Her teacher recommends her for a new job as a page at the New-York Circulating Materials Repository – which houses the Grimm Collection. Patrons check out items rather than books at the Repository. The Grimm Collection contains magical items from each of the fairy tales. Things become strange! Items from the Collection are missing and others have been replaced by fakes. A large bird follows the pages once they leave work. Who is taking the items and why? How can Elizabeth prove she is not involved? What will happen when magic gets in the wrong hands? This book has the right combination of fantasy, romance, and fractured fairy tales to keep you reading! Readers may want to check out Shulman’s other book, Enthusiasm. Click on the book trailer below for more information.