Title: A MINOR MAGIC
Author: Justin Macumber
Genre: Young Adult
Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours
Over the course of a single night, mystical fires tore through the sky and reduced most of Earth to ash. Ten years later magical fire burns again, but this time it’s in the hands of a young girl named Skylar. Exiled from her adoptive home, Skylar must now struggle through ruined lands and religious zealots who believe she’s an agent of the Devil. An even greater threat exists in the form of shadowy sorcerers from another world who covet her blood. Along her journey, she meets a motley band of outcasts who not only know the secret of what happened to Earth, but also of Skylar’s true origin. Will Skylar be able to accept this fantastical truth? But more importantly, can her powers and raging heart be tamed in time to stop those who once burned the world and now seek total domination?
This is such a unique twist on Magic! It begins with Skylar suddenly killing her much loved dog, purely by accident, he burst into flames when she put her hands up to defend herself from him. From this simple beginning we have an entire story of magic and mayhem and adventure.
I loved that this YA book has a female as the main character. She gets to learn about how strong she really is, and this is such an important thing for young girls to learn. I also loved how there was a little romantic interest in the form of Nathan, but that it wasn't the main goal of Skylar's life. Something I think that many young girls need to realize.
The characters themselves are interesting. Skylar is a young girl who lives in a world that has been torn apart. As she travels from the home she has known since her mother's death, she meets some very interesting characters. Nathan, Bill, Lyara and Jack. And the one who caused all of this destruction... well I won't go into their name but suffice it to say this is one heck of a world.
The world that Justin R. Macumber created is one I personally do not ever want to see. A world full of dust and destruction where fire burned the Earth. A world where violence is an every day occurrence, and life is moving from place to place trying to stay alive. A world where there are Wylds growing where you dare not enter and blossoming Magic.
I can say I recommend this book to anyone interested in a YA book with good values and good morals for young girls and boys alike. I give this book 4.5 stars.
Details/Disclaimer: Review copy was provided to me in exchange for a fair and honest review. The free book held no determination on my personal review.
Justin R. Macumber is the author of HAYWIRE and A MINOR MAGIC. When not hard at work on his next story he hosts the popular Dead Robots' Society podcast, which is a podcast made by writers for writers. He and his lovely wife live in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex along with a rampaging pack of dogs and cats that they think of as their children. He is also a co-host on The Hollywood Outsider, a weekly podcast about movies and television. Currently he is working on two novels - the horror story STILL WATER, and the sequel to A MINOR MAGIC entitled A BROKEN MAGIC.
Skylar's eyes filled with a flickering blue light as
ghostly flames jetted from her palms, and her screams were lost over the
roaring of the blaze. Instinctively, she shook her hands, slapped them against
her legs, and then clapped them together to try and extinguish the fire. As her
hands touched, the flames vanished. To her astonishment her skin wasn't burned.
It wasn't even warm. Sadly, the same couldn't be said for Buster. The dog was a
smoking ruin at her feet, one more pile of burnt remains in a world already
covered in ash. Her heart broke as she stared down at him. Oh god, she thought.
What's happened? What have I done?
"Oh my Lord, girl," a man said behind her.
"What did you do?"
Skylar whirled around, her eyes widening in guilt even
though she didn't understand what had happened, or how. "Henry, he jumped
at me! I don't know why he did it, and I tried to stop him, but..." She fell
silent, her thoughts too scrambled to know what more to say. Buster was a dog
she'd loved and cared for ever since coming to live on the farm years ago, and
without warning, he had attacked her. When she'd held her hands up to ward him
off, blue fire had erupted from them and consumed him as though it was a
living, ravenous thing. Nothing like that had ever happened to her before, and
she couldn't rightly explain what she didn't understand.
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