The Trouble with Rumors
(This story is from a prompt about getting an undeserved, unwanted, accolade)
It had been a tranquil summer day until my sister stepped on the snake. She hadn’t seen the long black creature in the grass until it reared up and struck at her. I couldn’t really blame it. After all, my sister had stomped her foot down on the thing’s back. I probably would have struck at her if she stepped on me like that.
The scream my sister let out could have woken the dead. Mom heard her from all the way up at the house and came running. Sophie was still screaming and dancing around when mom finally got there. She’d been smart enough to jump away from the snake, but instead of turning and fleeing like a normal person, she started running around in circles. The snake, who didn’t want anything except to not be stepped on, had subsided into the grass and slithered away under some spiny bushes. At least there it wasn’t likely to get stepped on again.
My sister, teary eyed and pale faced, was standing trembling in the yard when Mom rushed over. “Honey, what happened?” Mom asked.
Sophie pointed toward the bushes. “I—It—s—snake—b—bit me!” she stammered before collapsing into sobs again.
Mom put her arms around Sophie and looked over at me. “Sasha, what happened?”
“She stepped on a snake,” I said.
Mom’s eyes widened. “What kind of snake?”
We return this week to the second book in the historical fantasy series of novels with very long titles. Although I would never read a series out of order the first time around (I’m too much attached to chronological orders and backstories), this second book of the series is absolutely my favorite, due in no small part to its main character. I already spent a paragraph in my previous 
I decided to read this book for the Big Library Read which occurred this month. I’ve been in a couple “general” book clubs (i.e. not specific to one genre, like mystery), and had come to the conclusion that any book picked for a book club type event would always be some form of realistic fiction or nonfiction. Imagine my shock when I began reading Reverie and my instincts immediately began screaming “YA contemporary fantasy!” As soon as I got over my surprise I was immensely pleased. My favorite genre, finally getting some of its due!
Since this Saturday fell on Halloween, I decided it would be a perfect time to review the contemporary YA thriller I recently read. This was a new experience for me, as I don’t believe I’ve ever read a YA thriller before (or any other thriller for that matter). Mystery, yes, I’ve read plenty of those, but not a true thriller. Although I must say this thriller did come with its fair share of mystery.
It may be dawning on me that I read more contemporary YA than I originally thought, as here again we have a story devoid of fantasy–except the ones acted out by the characters working at 
This week we return to the realm of contemporary YA fantasy, and to a book world I’ve reviewed before! This book is the sequel to 
This was one of my favorite reads of 2019, and no wonder. A YA fantasy filled with magic, mayhem, murder, and high stress, high stakes mystery? What more could one ask for. (Okay, so maybe a little less murder would have been nice for my poor bruised heart.)
ISABEL NEE 