Book #187 of 2021: The Andalite’s Gift by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs Megamorphs #1) The first Animorphs release outside of the main series is this ‘Megamorphs’ title, which is supersized both in literal page count and in including all six potential narrators, rather than just one. (Even Ax the resident alien gets a voice, right …
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Book #181 of 2021: The Stranger by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #7) My favorite book of this adult reread yet. The action is exciting and the dilemmas are clearly defined, and that’s even before the surprise pivot into a genuinely unexpected development around a third of the way through the text (much earlier than the …
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Book #176 of 2021: The Charnel Prince by Greg Keyes (The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone #2) Another strong entry in this unfairly-obscure fantasy quartet. I don’t like it quite as much as the previous volume, in part since a couple of the new storylines — Anne’s to some extent, but especially Aspar’s — seem …
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Book #175 of 2021: The Capture by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #6) The big hook to this sixth Animorphs volume — the premise alluded to on the front cover and plainly stated on the back — doesn’t actually occur until about two-thirds of the way through the text. Spoiler alert: it’s that Jake himself is …
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Book #169 of 2021: The Predator by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #5) The fifth Animorphs novel gets a lot of its impact and forward momentum from a twist reveal near the end, of the sort I’m reluctant to spoil in a review despite the passage of decades. Suffice to say, we learn further details about …
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Book #164 of 2021: The Briar King by Greg Keyes (The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone #1) This early 2000s fantasy series is a real hidden gem, one that I’ve always been surprised isn’t more popular. I wouldn’t call it a ripoff of George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, but that …
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Book #163 of 2021: The Message by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #4) Cassie’s first Animorphs novel is an absolute delight. Plotwise, it pushes the narrative further than any volume since the premiere, adding in one final teammate to join the group of morphing teens. (I’ll avoid spoilers beyond that here, but this new ally will …
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Book #157 of 2021: The Encounter by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #3) There isn’t much additional worldbuilding in this third novel, and I’m not a huge fan of the action being driven by a one-off ‘Animorphs notice something weird and investigate’ event rather than anything with larger plot implications. Nevertheless, this is an interesting and …
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Book #153 of 2021: White Gold Wielder by Stephen R. Donaldson (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant #3) A satisfying conclusion to this second trilogy in the Land, that mystic realm that can be understood as either a real place to which denizens of our world are magically summoned or an internal dreamscape in which …
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Book #151 of 2021: The Visitor by K. A. Applegate (Animorphs #2) This first Animorphs sequel continues the thrilling fun of the debut, while simultaneously deepening the darker themes of the series. Turning into an animal and back is now described in a way that emphasizes the unnatural body horror of the experience, and the …
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