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brendalovesbooks's review
4.0
Cover thoughts:
I really like the cover for this one. The picture is pretty cool, the font is good--it's all good. Plus it's a hardcover, without an annoying dust jacket; the picture is right on the cover. I really like that.
About the author:
Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper are joint authors of this one. I've never read anything by either of them, but they've both got other books out that I will be looking for.
The plot:
Curse of the Spider King introduces us to seven young elven lords. The thing is, none of them know they are elves from another world, Allyra. They're all just living normal 13 (or nearly 13) year old lives when we are introduced to them. But, because they have reached the age of reckoning, they are all starting to display certain powers (they all have different powers), and will soon be hunted by the enemies of the elves. Luckily, there are sentinels that were sent there to look for, and protect them. But now they all must return to Allyra. There is a great website for the Berinfell Prophecies here.
Characters:
This would be a great book for a pre-teen/younger teen to read, because there is someone here for everyone to like. We get to know lots of different characters, and young people will connect with them. Some of the characters were much more present than others. But they're all interesting and varied.
Setting:
The flashbacks throughout the book to the world of Allyra were probably my favorite part. Otherwise, the world was pretty much just like ours today, except for the addition of these elves hiding out. I'm excited to read more of Allyra in the second book.
Read this if you're in the mood for: a young adult fantasy that isn't your typical paranormal love story. I'm really sick of those, so if you are too, this one is different. It does have the formula of a young person (in this case, people) finding out that they're not human, they're something more, but the rest of the book is pretty different from the standard formula. Also, as this is written by Christian authors, it's very clean.
Continue or part ways? I'll definitely continue on with the series, especially since I have the second one on my bookshelf waiting for me to read and review it.
I really like the cover for this one. The picture is pretty cool, the font is good--it's all good. Plus it's a hardcover, without an annoying dust jacket; the picture is right on the cover. I really like that.
About the author:
Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper are joint authors of this one. I've never read anything by either of them, but they've both got other books out that I will be looking for.
The plot:
Curse of the Spider King introduces us to seven young elven lords. The thing is, none of them know they are elves from another world, Allyra. They're all just living normal 13 (or nearly 13) year old lives when we are introduced to them. But, because they have reached the age of reckoning, they are all starting to display certain powers (they all have different powers), and will soon be hunted by the enemies of the elves. Luckily, there are sentinels that were sent there to look for, and protect them. But now they all must return to Allyra. There is a great website for the Berinfell Prophecies here.
Characters:
This would be a great book for a pre-teen/younger teen to read, because there is someone here for everyone to like. We get to know lots of different characters, and young people will connect with them. Some of the characters were much more present than others. But they're all interesting and varied.
Setting:
The flashbacks throughout the book to the world of Allyra were probably my favorite part. Otherwise, the world was pretty much just like ours today, except for the addition of these elves hiding out. I'm excited to read more of Allyra in the second book.
Read this if you're in the mood for: a young adult fantasy that isn't your typical paranormal love story. I'm really sick of those, so if you are too, this one is different. It does have the formula of a young person (in this case, people) finding out that they're not human, they're something more, but the rest of the book is pretty different from the standard formula. Also, as this is written by Christian authors, it's very clean.
Continue or part ways? I'll definitely continue on with the series, especially since I have the second one on my bookshelf waiting for me to read and review it.
jesslynh's review
4.0
Great YA fantasy with NO STUPID LOVE TRIANGLE. Or the equally stupid I'm-dying-of-love thing. It is also refreshing to read a fantasy that has some diversity in it.
Best of all, the christian element is NOT hitting you over the head at every turn. It's nuanced, thus more realistic and a good example of how to do it right.
Best of all, the christian element is NOT hitting you over the head at every turn. It's nuanced, thus more realistic and a good example of how to do it right.
rgyger's review
4.0
I loved this book, though I will not give you a summary because pretty much everyone does.
First: I loved how the authors kept me turning the pages, trying to find out what happened next in the lives of the Seven and what their power would be when they figured it out. I liked how they added in a couple other seventh graders to keep the readeer guessing as to who the seven Lords were. It made the story unpredictabl. Where with most books I guess the ending half way through,in this one I didn't.
Second: The seven did not all find out about their powers and heritage in the same way. I have read countless books where everyone learns the same information in the same exact way, or they do things the same exact way. But that does not happen in this book. Batson and Hopper do a great job at keeping the characters seperate and giving them their own lives and personalities.
Third: The decriptions are perfect, I could see everything, even the Gwar's and the Cagon.
The only problems that I had with the book is that a couple of the minor charaters would state the obvious and that all of the seven were such good kids. It would have been better to me if at least the star of the football team had a little bit of an arrogance problem to over come.
First: I loved how the authors kept me turning the pages, trying to find out what happened next in the lives of the Seven and what their power would be when they figured it out. I liked how they added in a couple other seventh graders to keep the readeer guessing as to who the seven Lords were. It made the story unpredictabl. Where with most books I guess the ending half way through,in this one I didn't.
Second: The seven did not all find out about their powers and heritage in the same way. I have read countless books where everyone learns the same information in the same exact way, or they do things the same exact way. But that does not happen in this book. Batson and Hopper do a great job at keeping the characters seperate and giving them their own lives and personalities.
Third: The decriptions are perfect, I could see everything, even the Gwar's and the Cagon.
The only problems that I had with the book is that a couple of the minor charaters would state the obvious and that all of the seven were such good kids. It would have been better to me if at least the star of the football team had a little bit of an arrogance problem to over come.
angelwolf45's review
5.0
I loved this book.
It is about these Elven kids who were supposedly lost in a war years ago. But the Elves of Allyra get a glimmer of hope when tremors start to happen on a world known as Earth. They send sentinels out to bring them back. These kids are now 13 and may be realizing that the adoptive parents are not their only family. The Spider King also finds out that the task that they were suppose to do is yet unfinished and is also sending out his men to finish what was supposed to have been done. Now it is up to the Elven kids along with the Sentinels have to learn the powers that are manifesting in them and defeat the Spider King.
I had a lot of fun reading this book. I was intrigued about this book because it had elves in it and it was by one of my favorite authors, this was my first book with Christopher Hopper as an author and I am glad to read a book with these authors.
This book was a lot of fun learning about the elvish world and learning what had happened that had them be adopted by humans on Earth. I really enjoyed the story and the world and I cant wait to continue on with the next books.
It is about these Elven kids who were supposedly lost in a war years ago. But the Elves of Allyra get a glimmer of hope when tremors start to happen on a world known as Earth. They send sentinels out to bring them back. These kids are now 13 and may be realizing that the adoptive parents are not their only family. The Spider King also finds out that the task that they were suppose to do is yet unfinished and is also sending out his men to finish what was supposed to have been done. Now it is up to the Elven kids along with the Sentinels have to learn the powers that are manifesting in them and defeat the Spider King.
I had a lot of fun reading this book. I was intrigued about this book because it had elves in it and it was by one of my favorite authors, this was my first book with Christopher Hopper as an author and I am glad to read a book with these authors.
This book was a lot of fun learning about the elvish world and learning what had happened that had them be adopted by humans on Earth. I really enjoyed the story and the world and I cant wait to continue on with the next books.
faithfulgirl4's review against another edition
5.0
http://molcotw.blogspot.com for review! Don't miss this one!
bemaline's review against another edition
3.0
A pretty good middle reader story, nothing amazing or too problematic.
paper_queen's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Initial Response
Wow, was that INSANELY AWESOME or what?!
High Lights
- THERE ARE SO MANY CHARACTERS.
- AND I LOVE IT.
- I loooove huge casts of characters, and this book delivered in such a way that wasn't confusing or hard to keep track of. Just the right amount of people. :)
- JUST. THE CHARACTERS. IN GENERAL.
- Tommy is great, Kat is great, Jett...
- We'll see.
- But Jimmy and Kiri Lee are great too.
- And Johnny and Autumn have much sibling rivalry and banter and it's so true and I love it.
- I SO loved reading the parts about Berinfell! I felt so immersed and it was EPIC. Each time they were over, I found myself reverted back to the regular, mundane world. Well, only for a few minutes, and then chaos usually erupted, but anyway.
- I think my favorite of the Sentinels has got to Charlie.
- And can I just? ATTENTION BATSON AND HOPPER IF YOU KILL MY PRECIOUS LITTLE CHARLIE IS DEAD I WILL FIND YOU AND MAKE YOU REWRITE THE BOOKS. JUST FYI. O_O
Low Lights
- Hmm...None.
- Well, I guess sometimes it felt like the writing style changed a little bit, which is understandable, since it was co-written, but it still kinda threw me off.
Conclusion
This was a reread for me, and I'm SO HAPPY I REREAD IT because I'm going to writer's workshop to meet Mr. Batson, so. Yeah. Figured I should reread this and refresh my memory a little. Anywho, THIS IS AN EPIC BOOK. If you love high fantasy and elves and all that awesome stuff in a modern, technological atmosphere, than this is the book for you!
Wow, was that INSANELY AWESOME or what?!
High Lights
- THERE ARE SO MANY CHARACTERS.
- AND I LOVE IT.
- I loooove huge casts of characters, and this book delivered in such a way that wasn't confusing or hard to keep track of. Just the right amount of people. :)
- JUST. THE CHARACTERS. IN GENERAL.
- Tommy is great, Kat is great, Jett...
- We'll see.
- But Jimmy and Kiri Lee are great too.
- And Johnny and Autumn have much sibling rivalry and banter and it's so true and I love it.
- I SO loved reading the parts about Berinfell! I felt so immersed and it was EPIC. Each time they were over, I found myself reverted back to the regular, mundane world. Well, only for a few minutes, and then chaos usually erupted, but anyway.
- I think my favorite of the Sentinels has got to Charlie.
- And can I just?
Low Lights
- Hmm...None.
- Well, I guess sometimes it felt like the writing style changed a little bit, which is understandable, since it was co-written, but it still kinda threw me off.
Conclusion
This was a reread for me, and I'm SO HAPPY I REREAD IT because I'm going to writer's workshop to meet Mr. Batson, so. Yeah. Figured I should reread this and refresh my memory a little. Anywho, THIS IS AN EPIC BOOK. If you love high fantasy and elves and all that awesome stuff in a modern, technological atmosphere, than this is the book for you!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
sarafloerke's review against another edition
4.0
My rating is based on reading this with my 14 year old son. He really loved this book. It's all about the strength and cool factor of the gear/talents/skills of the characters. This one rocked.
It was enjoyable. I like how it allows space for a superior, spiritual being. I love alternate universes and believe that somewhere back in my genetic line I come from the elves...so this was a natural for me.
It was enjoyable. I like how it allows space for a superior, spiritual being. I love alternate universes and believe that somewhere back in my genetic line I come from the elves...so this was a natural for me.
havoc's review against another edition
1.0
Found this book sitting on my shelf, left over from a few Christmases ago, so figured I should give it a read.
I am not the target audience for this series - I'm a bit old - so my opinion is most likely skewed, but "meh" is the word I'd describe "Curse of the Spider King" with. Having seven main characters is quiet a bit to keep up with, and that's ignoring that the names Jimmy, Johnny, and Tommy kinda blur together. Thankfully one of them clearly has an Irish accent. Have seven mains also requires quite a lot of set up that takes away from getting to the actually story.
There is also some heavy handed Christian throw-ins that I assume come into play later that didn't quite blend in with the story.
Once I got over/used to the meh dialogue and unbelievable actions, I got through the book in two sittings so it couldn't have been that bad. I will read the second because I already have it, but will most likely not get the third.
A younger reader may enjoy "Curse of the Spider King" but I would suggest to find something better.
I am not the target audience for this series - I'm a bit old - so my opinion is most likely skewed, but "meh" is the word I'd describe "Curse of the Spider King" with. Having seven main characters is quiet a bit to keep up with, and that's ignoring that the names Jimmy, Johnny, and Tommy kinda blur together. Thankfully one of them clearly has an Irish accent. Have seven mains also requires quite a lot of set up that takes away from getting to the actually story.
There is also some heavy handed Christian throw-ins that I assume come into play later that didn't quite blend in with the story.
Once I got over/used to the meh dialogue and unbelievable actions, I got through the book in two sittings so it couldn't have been that bad. I will read the second because I already have it, but will most likely not get the third.
A younger reader may enjoy "Curse of the Spider King" but I would suggest to find something better.