Story's End Review

416 pages

Long ago, a King ruled the land of Story. . . . During his reign, Heroes, Villains, and characters of all kinds lived out new Tales filled with daring quests and epic struggles. Then the King disappeared, and over the years, nearly everyone forgot that he had ever existed. Now an evil Enemy has emerged, determined to write a new future for Story that he will control. And an ordinary girl named Una Fairchild is inextricably tangled up in his deadly plan. Una and her friends Peter and Indy are desperate to find a way to defeat the Enemy. But Una soon discovers that the real key may lie in her own mysterious ties to Story's past--and to the long-forgotten King, who could be Story's only hope for survival.

Review:
This sequel does not disappoint as the tale of the land of Story continues. Things have become pretty chaotic since the Enemy's release. Once again we are able to view things through the eyes of several different characters with Una remaining the main character. Although Una is young, she is impressive in her determination to help save Story and defeat her parents. Una is brave yet impulsive, and both qualities help her on her journey with her friends. I'm not always the biggest fan of Peter, but he is also brave although at times constantly self-involved. I loved that we were able to see some of the other areas in Story and discover that not all of the Villains may be as bad as they seem. This novel is extremely fast-paced and takes you on a wild adventure that culminates into an amazing ending. This novel is more for middle grade ages although I believe it is written well enough to be enjoyed by anyone with a love for fantasy novels. I definitely recommend this if you like magic and fantasy tales but make sure to read Storybound first.

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Storybound Review

416 pages

In the land of Story, children go to school to learn to be characters: a perfect Hero, a trusty Sidekick, even the most dastardly Villain. They take classes on Outdoor Experiential Questing and Backstory, while adults search for full-time character work in stories written just for them. In our world, twelve-year-old Una Fairchild has always felt invisible. But all that changes when she stumbles upon a mysterious book buried deep in the basement of her school library, opens the cover, and suddenly finds herself transported to the magical land of Story. But Story is not a perfect fairy tale. Una’s new friend Peter warns her about the grave danger she could face if anyone discovers her true identity. The devious Tale Keeper watches her every move. And there are whispers of a deadly secret that seems to revolve around Una herself....

Review:
I liked the concept of this book but I feel like the writing style could have been a bit better. I loved the world building and the idea of a school where you go to learn to play a type of character. There seemed to be a lot of plot twists and action that made the story interesting. However, I failed to really get to know most of the characters. Even connecting with Una was a little difficult. Una is a very brave and young main character who has a few mysteries about her that reveal themselves in exciting ways. I think that it was hard to see many of Una's inner emotions which didn't make her seem real. Other than that I think there could have been a better description of the school and the people to make it more interesting. The story itself was good and the action itself picks up by the end of the book. There is a slight cliffhanger at the end so it will be interesting to read the next novel when it comes out. I recommend this novel to those who like fantasy and magical adventure novels.

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