The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

For a thousand years, the Final Empire has been ruled over by their god-king, the Lord Ruler. He supposedly took a great magical power and destroyed a blight to the land known as the Deepness. But the Final Empire is far from perfect. Skaa, or people of common blood, are believed to be little better than animals. The Lord Ruler is a tyrant - one who oppresses his people with the powers of allomancy, a magical system that derives power from metals and their alloys. It is believed that millennia ago, he gave the nobility the power of allomancy to reward them for their loyalty to him. Now, Mistings, people who can use an allomantic power, is relatively rare, and Mistborn, people who can wield all of the different types of allomancy, are even more rare and prized. Vin is a street urchin, one who has a power to persuade people that she believes is "luck." Kelsier is a half-breed Mistborn, of both skaa and noble blood, who wields enormous allomantic power. When Kelsier finds Vin and finds her to be a Mistborn with power that might even be stronger than his own, his plan to overthrow the Lord Ruler and give a better life to the skaa is almost complete. Vin must take part of this impossible rebellion - one to kill a god.

 I thought this book was marvelous. The magical system of allomancy was very interesting and original. The characters were all well written and realistic, and the story was really good. I enjoyed almost everything about the novel. I think people who like magic/fantasy novels would like this. I was reminded of the Grisha series by Leigh Bardugo, and I think people who enjoyed those books would enjoy this as well. Even if you don't normally read fantasy, you should try this book. I really liked this book and I would definitely recommend it to others.

Reviewed by NK, Grade 10

Montrose Library 

The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson

On the cusp of solving Ellingham's oldest, greatest mystery, Stevie Bell is pulled out of her school due to the death of one student and the disappearance of another one. Both were her friends. However, she finally convinces them to let her go back with the help of a corrupt senator who makes a deal with her, one that could possibly ruin her hard-earned friendships at school. When more things start to go wrong, Stevie realizes that figuring out the cold case is more important than ever - as it may be connected with whatever is happening now.

I enjoyed reading this book, especially as it was a continuation of Truly Devious, a book I also thought was fun to read. The mystery was just right between vague and clear - it was vague enough that you couldn't immediately guess the perpetrator but clear enough that you could follow Stevie's thinking. The characters were all very interesting and realistic. There was a good balance between the mystery and murders and the more normal parts of Stevie's life at Ellingham. I really liked this book, and I thought it was a very well written thriller/mystery novel. I'm excited to read the next one. I would definitely recommend reading this if you've read Truly Devious.

Reviewed by NK, Grade 10

Montrose Library