Escaping from Houdini

Maniscalco, Kerri.  Escaping From Houdini.  2018.  Jimmy Patterson Books, a division of Little, Brown, and Company, New York, NY.


The adventures of Audrey Rose Wadsworth and Thomas Cresswell continue in Escaping From Houdini.  Audrey Rose and Thomas are headed to America with Audrey Rose's Uncle aboard the ship Eturia.   The entertainment on the ship is presented by members of the Midnight Carnival - a unique traveling carnival that preserves their secrets behind exotic masks.

The unique entertainment is unexpectedly imaginative and fun until passengers begin turning up dead.  Not only are the passengers murdered, they are discovered in the most horrific positions imaginable... positions which are reminiscent of the Tarot Cards that members of the Carnival use to identify themselves.

Audrey Rose finds herself drawn deeper and deeper into the world of the Carnival as she attempts to find the murderer.  But, can she solve the mystery before she loses everything she holds most dear?

Note:  Readers of Stalking Jack the Ripper will enjoy this latest installment of the adventures of Audrey Rose.  This is a stand alone novel.



Author Web Site:  https://kerrimaniscalco.com/

Image Source: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1041481870

Binti

Okorafor, Nnedi.  Binti.  2015.  A Tom Doherty Associates Book.  New York, NY. 


Binti is chasing her dreams.  She is the first of the Himba tribe to be offered a place at Ooma University.  When her parents forbid her to go, Binti sneaks away from her family and gets a ride to the university on a space ship headed across the galaxy to Uni with a ship full of strangers.

The customs of the Himbas are strange to the people around them, and they are considered to be disgusting outcasts.  Even in the spaceship full of strangers, Binti finds a way to fit in with the people who will soon be her classmates.

But, when the space ship comes under attack from the Meduse, Binti finds herself in the unique position of translator between the Meduse and everyone else.  But, will Binti be able to survive the trials that await her?


Author Web Site: http://www.nnedi.com/#books''

Image Source: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/976023394

We Say #NeverAgain

We Say #Never Again: Reporting by the Parkland Student Journalists. 2018. Crown Books, a division of Random House, New York, NY.

The student journalists of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School have documented their experiences as they traveled the horrific journey from ordinary high school students to journalists documenting the tragedy that would define their entire high school career.  I suspect that for many of these young adults, this event will define the rest of their lives.

The journalists follow the story from the opening of school on Feb. 14 and through the gruesome events of the day.  We follow the journalists as they struggle with losing friends, becoming the story, and then taking control of the story in the hopes that nobody else will ever suffer the same tragedy.

Included are interviews from the students who have become national activists for gun control, and the information that the students have gathered about how to become an activist and have your voice heard.

Image Search: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1089274269

Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist

Sylvia is a distinguished Rocket Scientist, one of the first Latina Women to graduate from Graduate School at Stanford University, an Entrepreneur, a Commissioner on the White House Initiative for Educational Excellence for Hispanics, and CEO of the Girl Scouts of the United States.  But before all of this, Sylvia was a shy young girl who lived in Las Cruces, New Mexico.  

Sylvia's mother was an immigrant from Mexico and spoke very little English.  Her father was a College Graduate who had served in the United States Army.  He worked as a Chemist, eventually finding employment at the White Sands Missile Range.  

Sylvia's early life was full of love, but when her parents moved to a new neighborhood with better schools on the other side of town, Sylvia (who looked different than her classmates) had trouble making new friends.  

Then one magical day, a girl from her class invited her to come with her to a Brownie meeting after school.  That association with the Girl Scouts was to change Sylvia's life.  She made friends in her school.  She discovered how to set goals, how to make a plan to meet those goals, and how to carry that plan to fruition.  She sold her first Girl Scout Cookies, and learned how she could earn money to help her make her dreams come true.  

Sylvia traces her journey through Elementary, Middle, and High School with emphasis on how Girl Scouts helped her plan her future, keep her family safe, and realize her dreams.  Her association with the Girl Scouts changed her life -and the life of her mother and sister - for the better.

Image Source: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/book-reviews/path-to-the-stars-my-journey-from-girl-scout-to-rocket-scientist

Mirage

Daud, Somaiya.  Mirage.  2018.  Flatiron Books, New York, NY.


Amani is a young girl who lives in a village on a mostly forgotten moon of Andala.  While the evil Vathek Empire rules with an iron fist, the villagers are left alone, for the most part as long as there are no rebellions and they pay their taxes to the Empire.

Amani loves to laugh, to dream, and to talk with her friends. She is vivacious, and so proud of her heritage.

The night of her majority is to be the night she remembers for the rest of her life.  She will receive her Daan - the markings that tell of her birthright, her family history, and her parent's hope for the future.  These marks will be tattooed proudly upon her face, worn for all to see.

Amani's life changes forever on the night of her ceremony.  Along with the other girls, Amani is celebrating her coming of age when the Droid of the Vathek invade the ceremony, separate the girls from the boys, and take Amani with no explanation given to her or her family.

After a terrifying journey to Andala, Amani discovers that she looks exactly like the Princess Maram.  She is to stand in for the Princess in all functions where the Princess' life would be in danger.  Amani is stripped of her Dann, her family, and everything else that marks her as a member of a beloved family on a small moon.  With the price of failure being death - either for her or her family, Amani quickly learns to adapt to life as the royal double.

But as Amani settles into her double life, she discovers many things.  That the Princess Maram may not be as evil as everyone believes.  That Maram is a scared young woman that nobody trusts but everyone fears.  She discovers there is an active and open rebellion, dedicated to destroying the Vathek once and for all and led by a powerful woman that is impossible to deny.  And she discovers Idris, the young Prince destined to marry Maram.

Will Amani manage to do her job as the body double for the hated princess and stay alive?  Will she be able to keep the princess safe?  Will she be able to keep the people safe without joining the rebellion, or will circumstances force her to join forces with them just to stay alive?

Author's Website:  http://www.somaiyabooks.com/


Cover Image: https://www.worldcat.org/title/mirage/oclc/1048944644&referer=brief_results