Moonstone by Marilee Brothers
Release Date: August 1, 2008
Publisher: Bell Bridge Books
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 236
“A sickly mom. A tiny house trailer. High school bullies and snarky drama queens. Bad-guy dudes with charming smiles. Allie has problems. And then there’s that whole thing about fulfilling a magical prophecy and saving the world from evil. Geez.Welcome to the sad, funny, sometimes-scary world of fifteen-year-old Allie Emerson, who’s struggling to keep her and her mom’s act together in the small-town world of Peacock Flats, Washington.
An electrical zap from a TV antenna sets off Allie’s weird psychic powers. The next thing she knows she’s being visited by a hippy-dippy guardian angel, and then her mysterious neighbor, the town “witch,” gives her an incredible moonstone pendant that has powers only a good-hearted “Star Seeker” is meant to command.
“Who, me?” is Allie’s first reaction. But as sinister events begin to unfold, Allie realizes she’s got a destiny to live up to. If she can just survive everyday life, in the meantime.”
I have mixed feelings about this novel. There were quite a few things that bothered me, but somehow I still felt like I enjoyed reading it. Which truthfully doesn’t happen often. I think my biggest problem was that I didn’t particularly like any of the characters. Allie started growing on me towards the end, but her mother… don’t even get me started. And the whole Junior thing, I guess I don’t get it.
I also don’t get why Trilby was even in this novel? Perhaps she has a bigger role in the rest of the series, although I can’t see how that will work. Basically Trilby is supposed to be her guardian angel or something like that. But all she does is reconfirm what we already know is going on. “Allie you’re in danger, Watch your back” Yeah, no shit Trilby, thanks for the heads up but Allie got that all figured out about two pages ago. It was a little bit overkill and a bit annoying. I think the only reason Trilby was in the novel is so we would know who she was from the prophecy, but we don’t really need to “know” her. Complete overkill.
The plot was interesting enough, it kept me turning the pages, I will say that much. I felt as though there were a few points that needed to be fully developed, and I expect that Brothers plans to do just that in the next novel. Despite the few difficulties I had, I may be tempted to pick up the next novel in the Unbidden Magic series.
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I felt much of the same when I read my copy of this over the summer. I didn’t get the Junior thing either and I was sure at the start of the book that I wasn’t going to like any of it. But it grew on me and I do want to read the second one when it comes out. If only because I think the mystery of Allie and the moonstone is slightly interesting.
i’m glad i’m not the only one that feels that way!
Trilby did seem pretty unnecessary didn’t she? Nevertheless, I thought this was campy fun