Seaborne: The Lost Prince

The Lost Prince

by Matt Myklusch

    When thirteen-year-old Dean Seaborne runs afoul of the Pirate King, he is given one last chance to redeem himself before he gets thrown to the sharks. His mission? Find and steal the treasure of Zenhala, a mysterious island where gold grows on trees. 

    Dean infiltrates the island posing as its legendary lost prince, but the longer he stays in Zenhala, the more he questions his mission - and himself. Forced to undergo intense and fantastical trials to prove his royal lineage, Dean can't help but wonder if he really is the lost prince he's pretending to be. But with sea serpents, assassins, and danger on all sides, he might not live long enough to find out.*

    This was an amazing book. Very well thought out and well written. It was funny and exciting and scary all at the same time. I was often tempted to skip ahead to make sure Dean make it out of several scrapes.

    I would highly recommend this book. I found myself being able to connect to the characters and understand why they made the decisions they did. There was a twist at the end that was unexpected and that what I like to look for in a book.

* From the dust jacket

The Hypnotists

The Hypnotist

by: Gordon Korman

    "Is it a gift . . . or is it a curse? Jax Opus can use his color-changing eyes to make people do things they don't want to do. (Only his color-blind best friend, Tommy, seems immune.) At first, Jax doesn't know what he's doing - temporarily hypnotizing friends, foes, and strangers. But then his power pushes things way too far, and his secret isn't a secret any longer.

    Soon Jax finds himself meeting Dr. Elias Mako, who want him to join a special institution that will teach him how to use his powers. But what will his powers be used for? That's the big question for Jax as his hypnotic abilities draw him into a conspiracy that will have him racing against time and a mysterious mastermind to save his best friend, his parents, and the entire United States."

    This book is one of my favorites. It was very well written and I really enjoyed it. The Hypnotists was fast paced, but not so much that you couldn't tell what was going on. You could tell this book was well thought out and feel put together.