Archon (The PSI Chronicles #2) by Lana Krumwiede –OPTIONAL

Krumwiede, Lana Archon (The PSI Chronicles #2) 320 pgs. Candlewick, 2013. $16.99 Content: Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: G Violence: PG.

In this second book, 13 year old Taemon has just taken the magical powers of PSI away from his whole society. He had high hopes that living and working without magic would help everyone to be happy. But things aren't working out quite the way he hoped and when his PSI powers come back, he knows that people will be angry and jealous. Worst of all, now that everyone is powerless, a neighboring town of Republik, whose warriors are magical, might be coming to attack them. Taemon must sneak across the mountains to try rescue his dad and somehow try to stop the invasion.

I really liked the first book in this series, it was dark and intriguing. But this second book was a bit of a chore to read. I found myself laughing at the very grown up things that Taemon was thinking and saying, not at all like a typical 13year old. The interesting magical element was a bit bizarre and discordant, as the “Heart of the Earth” communicates its wishes and powers to Taeman. I really cared about what happened to Taemon in the first book, but lost all of it by reading this one. There is one laughable scene that is over the top, with flying kites, that really was the end of my liking of this trilogy.

MS -OPTIONAL Reviewer: Stephanie Elementary School Librarian & Author.