A review by thebumblegirl
Deadwood by Kell Andrews
4.0
A fast-paced, enjoyable, contemporary fantasy that upper middle graders will truly enjoy!
Martin is a strong, determined teen who was sent to live with his mother's cousin while she's deployed. Martin does his best to stay out of his "Aunt" Michele's way, and tries to get by on her strict regimes of eating healthy and living life to their full "brain-power" potential. He's a runner and trains as often as he can, determined to complete any marathon as long as his mother can do it with him.
On his first run through Lower Brynwood aka Deadwood, he runs into a group of people performing a school ritual on a tree. He is angered that they've been damaging this poor tree for many years and tries to stop it - but what can one little teen do against a whole high school football team?
After they're done, Martin is left alone with the tree and meets Hannah. Hannah is a tomboyish girl who has lived in Lower Brynwood her whole life and knows all about the Spirit Tree and most of what happens in the town. While they're standing under the tree, an unexpected storm drops in and lightening hits the tree. While they stare at the tree and watch it light up from the inside, the carvings start to light up, letter by letter, delivering a message to them. An unbelievable scary message - the town is cursed.
Against their will, Martin and Hannah team up to figure out the Spirit Tree's message, why its dying? Why are there other trees in the town are dying too? Why is the town and its occupants are cursed?
The story is told from three different perspectives, Martin's, Hannah's and the Spirit Tree. Reading from the tree's perspective was extremely interesting, it gives insight to how a tree would view its surroundings and history. I really enjoyed that aspect a lot.
The perfect blend of relatable contemporary, supernatural elements, mystery and environmental awareness - an amazing middle grade book for all ages to read!
(I received this paperback from the publisher for an honest review.
My thoughts are my own.)
Martin is a strong, determined teen who was sent to live with his mother's cousin while she's deployed. Martin does his best to stay out of his "Aunt" Michele's way, and tries to get by on her strict regimes of eating healthy and living life to their full "brain-power" potential. He's a runner and trains as often as he can, determined to complete any marathon as long as his mother can do it with him.
On his first run through Lower Brynwood aka Deadwood, he runs into a group of people performing a school ritual on a tree. He is angered that they've been damaging this poor tree for many years and tries to stop it - but what can one little teen do against a whole high school football team?
After they're done, Martin is left alone with the tree and meets Hannah. Hannah is a tomboyish girl who has lived in Lower Brynwood her whole life and knows all about the Spirit Tree and most of what happens in the town. While they're standing under the tree, an unexpected storm drops in and lightening hits the tree. While they stare at the tree and watch it light up from the inside, the carvings start to light up, letter by letter, delivering a message to them. An unbelievable scary message - the town is cursed.
Against their will, Martin and Hannah team up to figure out the Spirit Tree's message, why its dying? Why are there other trees in the town are dying too? Why is the town and its occupants are cursed?
The story is told from three different perspectives, Martin's, Hannah's and the Spirit Tree. Reading from the tree's perspective was extremely interesting, it gives insight to how a tree would view its surroundings and history. I really enjoyed that aspect a lot.
The perfect blend of relatable contemporary, supernatural elements, mystery and environmental awareness - an amazing middle grade book for all ages to read!
(I received this paperback from the publisher for an honest review.
My thoughts are my own.)