Book Title: The Wish Rider (Book 2 of The F.I.G. Mysteries) by Barbara Casey
Category: YA Fiction, 160 pages
Genre: Literary / Mystery
I received a copy of this book from the author or publisher.
All opinions are my own.
About the Book
Seventeen-year-old Dara Roux and her two best friends, Mackenzie Yarborough and Jennifer Torres, the three collectively referred to as the F.I.G.'s (Females of Intellectual Genius) because each has an intelligence quotient in the genius range, have just returned from Frascati, Italy. It was there that their much-loved teacher and mentor, Carolina Lovel, discovered that her birth parents were gypsies and that she had a connection to the Voynich Manuscript, the most mysterious document in the world.
Now, with graduation from Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women behind them, Dara asks her friends to help her locate her birth mother when she learns that she might be living in New York City. Relying on Dara’s gift for speaking and understanding foreign languages, the black and white images that stir musical cadences in Jennifer’s mind, and Mackenzie’s mathematical calculations that normally provide numerical solutions and answers to life’s most difficult questions, the determined young women tirelessly go from one address to another in search of Dara’s mother.
Their determination turns to desperation, however, as they encounter a dark hidden society more dangerous and terrifying than they could have imagined. It is there that Dara hopes to find out why she was abandoned in a candy store all those years ago.
My Review
The Wish Rider is certainly a stand alone novel. The author devotes a great deal of time introducing each character--and sharing lengthy recaps of the group members adventures and experiences from the first novel. New readers to the series will jump right in and will understand the characters' pasts and relationships. Having said that, if you read the first book of the series, the recap does consume a lengthy portion of this fairly short novel.
The author continues to strengthen the characters' bonds and abilities. My favorite aspect of this series is the bonding of the characters and the collaborative efforts of the team. I love the realistic interactions--coupled with some magical/mystical elements creating a wonderful cast of characters that readers will want to continue to follow through more adventures.
The Wish Rider is a better read for younger, young adults than the first book. This novel is shorter and is less drawn out than the first novel. If you enjoyed the depth and longer storyline of the first novel, you may find this one a little more quick to conclude than you may like. I do think the length and format of this novel makes it more reader-friendly for those younger, young adult readers.
Would I recommend The Wish Rider? I love the characters in this series--and the author's depictions of their personalities, gifts and relationships. Again, the author has created the perfect mystery solving team in the F.I.Gs. I did find this story a little short and a bit too quickly resolved--but, I still enjoyed the storyline and will keep adding the F.I.G. mysteries (and this author) to my reading list! I recommend this book, and the series, to readers who enjoy slightly different mysteries requiring unique problem solving skills.
To read other reviews, please visit Barbara Casey's page on iRead Book Tours.
About the Author:
Barbara Casey is the author of several award-winning novels for both adults and young adults, as well as book-length works of nonfiction true crime and numerous articles, poems, and short stories. Her nonfiction true crime book, Kathryn Kelly: The Moll Behind Machine Gun Kelly, has been optioned for a major film and television series. In addition to her own writing, she is an editorial consultant and president of the Barbara Casey Agency. Established in 1995, she represents authors throughout the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. Barbara is also a partner in Strategic Media Books Publishing, an independent publishing house that specializes in cutting-edge adult nonfiction. Barbara lives on a mountain in Georgia with her husband, and three dogs who adopted her: Benton, a hound-mix; Fitz, a miniature dachshund; and Gert, a Jack Russel terrier of sorts.
Connect with the author: Website
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1 Comments
Angela, I am so happy you enjoyed THE WISH RIDER, Book 2 in The F.I.G. Mystery Series. I appreciate your taking the time to review it and for the nice things you said. I will look forward to your review of THE CLOCK FLOWER, which is Book 3 in this series.
ReplyDeleteMy best to you,
Barbara