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Series Review: The Kingston Cycle by C.L. Polk

Greetings and welcome to Reviews That Burn: Series Reviews, part of Books That Burn. Series Reviews discuss at least three books in a series and cover the overarching themes and development of the story across several books. I'd like to thank longtime Patron Case Aiken, who receives a monthly shoutout. This episode discusses The Kingston Cycle by C. L. Polk.  Full Audio Here    In an original world reminiscent of Edwardian England in the shadow of a World War, cabals of noble families use their unique magical gifts to control the fates of nations, while one young man seeks only to live a life of his own. Magic marked Miles Singer for suffering the day he was born, doomed either to be enslaved to his family's interest or to be committed to a witches' asylum. He went to war to escape his destiny and came home a different man, but he couldn’t leave his past behind. The war between Aeland and Laneer leaves men changed, strangers to their friends and family, but even after...

Animorphs Book 26: The Attack by K. A. Applegate

The Animorphs are champions for the Ellimist in his epoch-spanning war with Crayak. Tensions rise due to Erek's pacifism; Jake experiences the nature of the Howlers. We learn about the Iskoort on a world far away and some assumptions are changed.

I like this book a lot. The setting is strange, the Iskoort are quirky and well-described. There's a lot of really cool worldbuilding in this place that it's almost impossible for the story to ever visit again, but I appreciate how much we get in this small slice. The description of the buildings is very evocative and whimsical, and the descriptions in general manage to convey confusion and hubbub without losing the narrative thread.

The introduction of and explanation of the Howlers is really interesting, in a good way. I have a lot of thoughts that will probably form a longer post later, I intend to compare and contrast them with something from another book, but that might not happen immediately.

A boy (Jake) turns into a tiger

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