Thunderstone

I always enjoy stretching beyond my usual favorite genres by picking books that I normally wouldn’t read, and a book about Native American legends and spirit worlds is definitely just that. Barbara Pietron’s book is just the right length for a middle-grade novel, yet reads like a high-school level book. This is the first book of which I hope to be many, since they are easy and interesting reads. The characters are likeable and relatable, but it is the myths and legends that ultimately drew me in.||Along with the light romance between Ice, a medicine man’s apprentice, and Jeni, the simplistic yet creepy feel of the novel sets a great tone for reading on a night around Halloween. Normal girl, Jeni, is visiting Lake Itasca, Minnesota with her family and doesn’t expect to find anything out of the ordinary lurking there. The mythical water monster – the “Underwater Lynx” – that Jeni supposedly released starts to complicate her stay and suddenly she realizes that all of Ice’s stories are true. Only until she can come to grips with her connection to the spirit world will she be able to save anyone, let alone herself.