Today is the blog tour stop for The Trickster's Totem by H.B. Bolton Blog Tour stop. You might recall (or maybe not) my review of H.B. Bolton's first book The Serpent's Ring. This is a Middle Grade novel but would be suited for a younger reader of YA fantasy. I received an E-ARC of this novel from the author, H.B. Bolton for review purposes. My review is based solely on my opinions of the novel. Thanks to Candace at CBB Book Promotions for including me in the tour which you can follow HERE.
Also,I wanted to let you know that The Serpent's Ring is FREE for Kindle May 28th through June 1st!!
The Trickster's Totem (Relics of Mysticus Book Two)
By H.B. Bolton
Available Now
Received from author for review
To Buy Links-
Amazon/ Kindle/ Barnes and Noble/ Book Depository/
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From Goodreads-Life has returned to normal for fourteen-year-old Evan and his older sister, Claire. That is until Dunkle, a clever but stinky little imp, pays an unexpected visit to their school. He has come to take the siblings back to Sagaas, the mythical realm of the gods. Once again, a Relic from the ancient Mysticus Orb has fallen into the wrong hands. Only Evan and Claire, with their unique mystical abilities, can help find it.
Through the power of the Trickster’s Totem, a coyote trickster has escaped. His laughter echoes throughout the realm, as he spreads mischief and mayhem. He burns an entire crop of popcorn, carves his grinning image into sacred artifacts, and things really get interesting when he shape-shifts into Evan’s friends.
Claire and Evan must capture the Trickster, retrieve the Totem, and be careful not to become sidetracked by robotic Steampunk animals, “sweet” pixie-like Pains, and a problematic mermaid … all while dodging Mothman-like aces. Most surprising, Evan discovers the true reason dragons exist in the Native American Spirit World.
For Middle Grade readers and higher
Fans of: Percy Jackson Series
Though this novel could probably be read without having read THE SERPENT'S RING, it would still be better if you read it first to find out how Evan and Claire meet Dunkle the imp, learn about The Serpent's Ring, come into their powers and learn about the fantasy world of Sagaas. Sagaas is like the gateway to all the mythical realms, think of every mythology you can and the pathway to it is there. Which makes this series really interesting because each book tackles a different mythology. This book, THE TRICKSTER'S TOTEM, invovles Native American mythology. I think it's a fabulous way to incorporate so many different worlds and I wonder if they will ever all collide or overlap. I'd love to see that and was actually expecting that in this one when the mermaid that "almost drowns" Evan says mermaids can travel through different worlds. (Evan's in love with a mermaid from the first novel).
Evan- is this novel is a bit whiny, impetuous, but I think all in all, he gets a bad rap. Every time he goes off on his own or does something against what his big sister told him to do, it's been for the greater good. I have to say, when you're in a fantasy world and you're animal totem is a ******(no spoilers) and you can fly and have telekenisis and some new abilities, all bets are off as to who's orders you have to follow. I think Big Sister does not trump Little Brother in this situation. And then, to humiliate him, and she uses those exact words, by making a daisy chain anklet for him to wear so he doesn't go off on his own it's just a real injustice. Then there are his prophetic dreams. If he didn't wander off, he wouldn't know what they need to know to complete their quest.
Claire- Claire is so boy crazy in this one, I didn't like her. She was deferring to Chayton always which wasn't really like her character from last time. And then she really hated the mermaid , Amadahy without any reason that I could see. I thought she treated Evan like crap and didn't add a lot of insight or intelligence to the story. And she was hard on her brother instead of trying to understand him. Her animal totem was very easy to deal with whereas her brother's was something very dangerous, utterly unique and terrifying and very powerful.
The World- I love this world as much as I loved the one in the Serpent's Ring. Most of it is woodsy. They enter the world through a tepee. Totems play a large part in this world. Most everything takes place in the woods except for the odd exception of a Victorian Steampunk underground village created by a colony of Big Foot like animals/people called C'iatqo. Pixie like fairies called "Pains" treat them to a tea party where they drink tea and flower petals that taste like sugar. It's incredibly creative, even the creature they are trying to catch Mica can be found on a map that Chayton draws in the air and it shows his location with colored lights and smoke.
The Story- It's a quest. Just as Evan is bored out of his mind with every day life back home, Dunkle appears in his English class with a request for his help. An urgent request. And so the adventure begins.
There are ups and downs, Evan experiencing most of the lows or being blamed for them. But what is a quest if all goes smoothly. Evan learns a lot about himself, listening to others and the importance of teamwork. I'm not sure that Claire learns much. She just didn't grow as a character in this story. It was definitely Evan's story this time. But wow, it was very imaginative with lots of creative imagery and plot twists and turns. An adult reader might find it easy to pick out some of the plot twists, but I think a tweener or middle grade reader would be pleasantly surprised.
I really enjoyed this second installment from H.B. Bolton and can't wait for the next book in the series. She has a unique way of interpreting mythology and combining them and I enjoy that. How many books do you read with Native Amercan mythology, dragons, mermaids and imps in the same story? Not many I bet. Very clean read, great for middle grade and younger young adult readers.
About H.B. Bolton
Author Bio:
A magical part of H.B. Bolton’s childhood was being swept into worlds of enchanting characters, fantastical creatures and extraordinary powers—simply by picking up a book. As a mother and a teacher, she was compelled to create imaginary worlds of her own in order to share them, not just with her children, but with all children. H.B. Bolton lives in Florida with her supportive husband and two highly spirited children. Shh, can you keep a secret? Not only does she write books for the young-at-heart, adventurous sort who yearn to dive into a good young-adult fantasy story, she also writes spellbinding, heart pounding women's fiction. These particular books are written under the name Barbara Brooke, but that's another story, altogether.
Books by H.B. Bolton:
The Serpent's Ring (Relics of Mysticus, Book One)
Breaking Down (a short story)
Hungry (a short story)
Coming May 1, 2013
The Trickster's Totem (Relics of Mysticus, Book Two)
Author links:
Tour wide GIVEAWAY:One person wins $25 Amazon Gift Card (INT)
2 people win paperback sets of both books (US)
10 people win ebooks of both books. (INT)
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