Heartless, by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Disclaimer: All reviews are the result of my personal opinion from a Christian stand-point. These reviews are provided for those who share my beliefs and morals, to help guide what fiction a reader may wish to pick up. For those who do not share these beliefs, please refrain from hateful comments. It is due to rude commenting that I must now include this note prior to all reviews. For more information, visit my purpose behind this blog. Thank you for your understanding.

Heartless (Tales of Goldstone Wood), by Anne Elisabeth Stengl, is a random read pulled off the Christian book shelf. I'll admit, I was quite shocked to find a new, well-written Christian fantasy. Isn't this what I always looked for as a child?

Yes.
The reader follows Princess Una and her daydreams of suitors now that she has come of age. But just like a young romantic girl, her ideas of the "perfect" suitor are young, far-fetched, and unrealistic. So much so that she is practically blind to the man she needs...who just happens to be the "real deal" perfect. Too entranced with her young ideas of love, she is taken by surprise when the feared Dragon King attacks her father's kingdom. Una, held captive, must cling to hope to resist the dragon, but can she do it? Is her hope founded in truth and real love...enough to keep her safe?

Heartless is geared toward grades 8 and up, appropriately so. There are battles and terrors that are only appropriate for teens and older. Still, the novel never reaches inappropriate or gruesome details. I was very pleased in this quality of book on the Christian shelf. Stengl, a new writer, has made a smashing entrance. Her novel weaves in Christian allegory, which is quite clear and evident to a Christian, but anyone (Christian or not) can pick it up and find a clean, inspiring, and adventurous read. There are a few moments near the climax of the book that I felt a little lost in the descriptions and I wasn't sure what was happening, but I skimmed through and still survived with a good grasp on the plot. :)
The writing is slightly advanced and requires a bit more concentration, but there are still the fun adventure elements such as jesters, dragons, castles, magic, sword fighting, and such. Admit it, we all love those "childlike" elements. ;)
I highly recommend this book and wish Anne Stengl the best of luck in her writing career (purely out of selfish reasons in hopes that she'll pop out another novel for my greedy grubby little fingers).

Violence Level: ***

Romance Level: **

Christian Focus: ***

Readability Level: ***

Story Depth Level: ****

Recommendation: ****

For a more detailed explanation of the above ratings, visit the 6-Point Nutshell post.

Nadine Brandes is an adventurer, fusing authentic faith with bold imagination. She writes stories about brave living, finding purpose, and other worlds soaked in imagination. Her debut dystopian novel, A Time to Die, releases 2014 from Marcher Lord Press. When Nadine's not taste-testing a new chai or editing fantasy novels, she is out pursuing adventures. She currently lives in Idaho with her husband. You can find out more about Nadine and her books at http://nadinebrandes.com.

How To Train Your Dragon, by Cressida Cowell

Disclaimer: All reviews are the result of my personal opinion from a Christian stand-point. These reviews are provided for those who share my beliefs and morals, to help guide what fiction a reader may wish to pick up. For those who do not share these beliefs, please refrain from hateful comments. It is due to rude commenting that I must now include this note prior to all reviews. For more information, visit my purpose behind this blog. Thank you for your understanding.

First impression: funny (the type of funny that makes you laugh out loud and then feel awkward when your family looks at you with that "Why are you laughing, weirdo?" look.) My suggestion? Read when alone to avoid said awkwardness.
Second impression: The book reads considerably better when snacking on pretzels and orange juice.

Third impression: perfect for boys. Now don't get me wrong. Girls can read it, too (I did, obviously, and loved it). But it has boy things in it--muscles, belching, snot, and the likes. Not to mention names like Snotlout, Dogbreath, Baggy-bum, etc.


How To Train Your Dragon, by Cressida Cowell is a wonderfully witty and sarcastic book. I love humor. I love books that impress me with jokes that I couldn't have though of myself. As the reader follows Hiccup (main character) through the trials of Dragon Training, he/she joins Hiccup in overcoming frustrations of being awkward, puny, and the son of the Viking leader. His relationship with his father is strained and pressured, but through strength and will of character, he overcomes it and proves his worth, both to himself and the town.




The book is 96% different than the movie (except for the title and some character names). But I enjoyed both on a completely different wonderful level. I highly recommend reading the book after the movie, only because the movie is nothing like the book. I, however, love the movie and so does the author, Cressida Cowell.

From a Christian point of view, there is an issue in the movie that concerns many Christians--the frequent mention of Germanic/Viking gods (Thor, Odin, etc). These gods are also mentioned in the book as well as references to soothsaying, the will of the gods, and "Fate"...but in a cultural sense, these beliefs are accurate for the Viking culture. The book is not written in an attempt to convince the reader that the Viking gods are real or that the world revolves around fate; Cowell instead tries to convey what she believes life for Vikings (or at least crazy Hooligan dragon-fighting Vikings) is like.

The book is not from a Christian point of view, but it's clean, enjoyable, creative, and amusing. I believe it's a decent read for any age-group and, if I had my own dragon, I would read this as a reference book to train it. You should, too (even if you don't have a dragon...it's always good to be prepared).

Violence Level: **

Romance Level: *

Christian Focus: *

Readability Level: ***

Story Depth Level: ***

Recommendation: ****

For a more detailed explanation of the above ratings, visit the 6-Point Nutshell post.


Nadine Brandes is an adventurer, fusing authentic faith with bold imagination. She writes stories about brave living, finding purpose, and other worlds soaked in imagination. Her debut dystopian novel, A Time to Die, releases 2014 from Marcher Lord Press, the premier publisher of Christian speculative fiction. When Nadine's not taste-testing a new chai or editing fantasy novels, she is out pursuing adventures. She currently lives in Idaho with her husband. You can find out more about Nadine and her books at http://nadinebrandes.com.

The Burning Bridge (Ranger's Apprentice, book 2), by John Flanagan

.Disclaimer: All reviews are the result of my personal opinion from a Christian stand-point. These reviews are provided for those who share my beliefs and morals, to help guide what fiction a reader may wish to pick up. For those who do not share these beliefs, please refrain from hateful comments. It is due to rude commenting that I must now include this note prior to all reviews. For more information, visit my purpose behind this blog. Thank you for your understanding.

We met Will in John Flanagan's first Ranger's Apprentice book, The Ruins of Gorlan. It's time to meet the new, improved, courageous, selfless, Will in book 2, The Burning Bridge. He is sent on a special mission with his friend, Horace, and the Ranger, Gilan. Their mission is prolonged when signs of Morgorath's domination crop up in deserted cities, armies of Wargals, and mysterious tunnels and bridges. When Gilan leaves to take these reports back to the king, Will is placed in charge. But that role forces him to make decisions more difficult and dangerous than he or Horace ever imagined.

After book 2, I'm starting to really like Will. In book 1, he's a nice boy that the reader cares about a little. But book 2 takes him to a whole new level and I applaud Flanagan's increased character development. I feared Will may stay a slightly fearful, half-wimp through the entire series. I was wrong (thank heavens) and I see much promise for him.
In The Burning Bridge, the reader encounters Morgarath (evil lord) on a more personal level--his looks of hatred, his black armor, and the evil armies that follow (and try to escape) him. Now the reader has someone to fear, which makes the reader root for Will. It's getting more personal and I already want book 3. Book 1, (The Ruins of Gorlan), left me content, not dying to read on. But The Burning Bridge ended with a cliff-hanger and I'm cursing the empty bookshelf (I'm on vacation, you see. My bookshelf at my house is never empty) already planning to track down The Icebound Land at first chance.

Flanagan steps up the violence in this book (arrows to the throat, spear through the body, dagger in the heart, etc), but it remains at an age-appropriate level (aka. non-descriptive). What fantasy/adventure book is complete without an end battle? One set-back, like the first book, is the language. The "D" word is used more often as well as phrases with God's name and "what the h**l". John Flanagan is from Australia and I do not know the Australian culture. These phrases may be commonly used and accepted in Australia, but if you are a parent or reader concerned about any level of language in a book, be aware that The Burning Bridge (and I'm assuming the entire series) uses it often in common dialogue. I will say, however, that I approve of Flanagan's choice of words like "brouhaha" and "nincompoop" (and you should, too. They're funny).

Different religions are mentioned in passing, such as worshiping the gods of fire and iron (pg. 67). Other than that and the "code of chivalry" for knights, God is nonexistant (*sad face*). Also, as in book 1, violence is encouraged by a Ranger and reaches a level past what I would allow it to reach (if I were a Ranger). Lastly, I got a bit lost in some of the names--there are several characters, but I found if I just made sure I knew Will, Halt, Horace, and Gilan, I fared pretty well.

I give this book a neutral recommendation. I personally enjoyed it, but probably won't re-read it. I am hesitant to recommend it to younger readers mainly due to the use of language (even if it on the mild side). But if you do choose to read it, I still suggest the Australian book cover. I can't get over how much better it is than the American one.

Violence Level: ***(a bit more in this book, but still remains appropriate).

Romance Level: **

Christian Focus: *

Readability Level: ** (Grows a bit, but still a little too easy.)

Story Depth Level: ***

Recommendation: ***(please see the 6-Point Nutshell)

For a more detailed explanation of the above ratings, visit the 6-Point Nutshell post.

Nadine Brandes is an adventurer, fusing authentic faith with bold imagination. She writes stories about brave living, finding purpose, and other worlds soaked in imagination. Her debut dystopian novel, A Time to Die, releases 2014 from Marcher Lord Press, the premier publisher of Christian speculative fiction. When Nadine's not taste-testing a new chai or editing fantasy novels, she is out pursuing adventures. She currently lives in Idaho with her husband. You can find out more about Nadine and her books at http://nadinebrandes.com.