Tera
Lynn Childs
IBSN: 978-0062001818
Katherine
Tegan, 2011
Plot
Summary: Grace,
Gretchen, and Greer are identical triplets who were separated at birth to
protect their futures. Turns out all three are descendants of the mortal
gorgon, Medusa, and her two immortal sisters who protected humankind from a
host of monsters by protecting the veil between the two worlds. Don’t believe
the stories of Medusa being an evil being—she just got a bad reputation for her
snake hair and piercing glare. Gretchen ran away from an abusive adoptive
family and was raised by Ursula from the age of 12 to present day 16. Ursula
knew of her destiny (but hid the fact that she has two sisters) and helped
train her on monster lore and how to kill them and return them to their world.
Grace is a shy A+ student who moves to Los
Angeles for a scholarship at a prestigious school. She
knows she is adopted along with her brother Thane. She begins to know something
isn’t right when she begins seeing monsters among the people of LA. She’s
surprised when, at an all ages club, she sees herself fighting one! Gretchen
takes Grace under her wing and tells her about the monsters she’s been fighting
for years. Grace wants to help when she finds out Ursula’s been kidnapped and
the monsters appear to be appearing more often. When the girls investigate
their past and learn of the myth and the fact that there is a third sister,
they hunt down Greer. Greer, on the other hand, couldn’t be less interested in
some supposed destiny. Greer is a bit stuck up and is the socialite who runs
her school. She’s got too many commitments to hang out with these two other
girls who are clearly off their rockers. She wants them out of her life until
the evening when, on a date with her boyfriend, Greer sees a monster emerge
from the beach and fights it resulting in the damage of a very expensive shoe.
As the three sisters come together they begin to understand their history as
descendants of Medusa and their role in protecting humankind from monsters.
However, with Ursula kidnapped and the monsters no longer playing by the rules,
their lives may be getting a little more complicated.
Critical
Evaluation: This is a great addition to the paranormal
world of YA books. Romance is hardly a factor in the plot except for some minor
crushes. The awesome part is that the plot is really character driven and based
on the three girls’ own individual personalities. Each chapter is told from the
point-of-view of one of the sisters (obviously with Greer not appearing until
much later in the book) and each voice of the girls is very unique and
well-written. Gretchen is an awesome heroine that is reminiscent of Buffy the
Vampire Slayer in that she is independent, smart, resourceful, and can kick
some major butt. Even shy Grace can fight and Greer eventually has some skills
too. Each of the girls also gets some mythical help—Gretchen is super strong
and fast healing, Grace can teleport, and Greer can see the future. This story
has strong female characters and gives an interesting take on Medusa’s myth. It
ends with a cliffhanger that will make readers desperately want the next
volume.
Reader's
Annotation:
Gretchen, Grace, and Greer all discover that they are triplets separated at
birth who are the descendants of Medusa and her sisters, sworn to protect the
world of humans from the world of monsters.
Author
Information:
Tera Lynn Childs is the award-winning author of the mythology-based Oh. My. Gods. and Goddess Boot Camp, the mermaid tales Forgive My Fins, Fins Are Forever and Just For Fins, and a new trilogy about monster-hunting descendants
of Medusa, starting with Sweet Venom
and Sweet Shadows (and, continuing in
2013, Sweet Legacy). She has also
e-published two fun chick lit romances, Eye
Candy and Straight Stalk. Tera
lives nowhere in particular and spends her time writing wherever she can find a
comfy chair and a steady stream of caffeinated beverages (Childs, 2011).
Genre: Fantasy
Curriculum
Ties: Mythology
Booktalking
Ideas: Mythology,
read a fight scene with Gretchen
Reading
Level/Interest Age:
14+
Challenge
Issues: Violence
Challenge
Defense: If
this book were challenged, I would make sure the library has a Challenge
Defense File ready for such a situation. Inside the Challenge Defense File,
librarians and the public could find:
·
A
copy of the American Library Association’s Library
Bill of Rights. (Can be found and printed from ALA’s website at http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill)
·
A
copy of the American Library Association’s Freedom to Read Statement (Can be
found and printed from ALA’s
website at http://www.ala.org/offices/oif/statementspols/ftrstatement/freedomreadstatement)
·
A
copy of the library’s own selection policy (my library, the La Vista Public
Library, has a policy but it is not online so I can’t link to it as an
example).
·
A
copy of the library’s citizen’s complaint/reconsideration form (my library, the
La Vista Public Library’s, form is called the City of La Vista Service Request form).
·
Copies
of reviews—both good and bad—from reputable library and publishing services to
justify why a book was selected for inclusion in the collection. These include
not only reviews from such journals as School
Library Journal, VOYA, Horn Book, Publishers Weekly, and Booklist, but also any mention of books
on YALSA lists and other copies of articles about any awards or nominations
such books may have received.
·
Include
a short rationale file for other coworkers so if the librarian in charge of
selecting materials is not available when a challenge occurs the other staff
members have some information to go by (the rational would include such
information as a short summary, what could be challenged, reviews, awards and
nominations, etc.)
·
Include
for staff members a copy of “Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to
Library Materials,” a document written by the American Library Association.
Make sure that staff reviews this document periodically so they are prepared
and know how to face such situations. (Can be found and printed from ALA’s website at http://www.ala.org/advocacy/banned/challengeslibrarymaterials/copingwithchallenges/strategiestips)
Reason
for Inclusion:
Great paranormal series with strong female characters and limited romance.
Purchase entire series.
References:
Childs,
T.L. (2011). Who is Tera? Retrieved
from http://teralynnchilds.com/about/
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