Humans In My House (series book 1) Chapter 4 illustration, art by Victoria Lyons, 2015
Vicki Baty, Co-Owner of Bookends, a wonderful new and used book store in North Myrtle Beach and book blogger at Beach Walk Book Talks, reviews Humans In My House (series book 1). Review republished with permission. Full article of her other Independence Day reads and recommendations at the link.
“Humans In My House by Amanda Marsico – There are terrific self-published books for children as well as adults and this one by Amanda Marsico is very enjoyable. A cat having been dumped by a human, is living his life in an abandoned house. He has a lovely time living a life of freedom until he meets some special children who teach him what friends, loyalty, love, and home are all about. The sequel – Humans In My House and the stars above it continues the adventure. These are perfect middle school reads.”
**Personal note: I make a point not to alter my reviewers’ words or thoughts about my books. However, I don’t want readers to be misinformed. Although the review calls these “middle school reads,” I want you to know that the Humans In My House series is marketed for 8-12 years as this is the industry-standard range used for “middle grade fiction.” 12 years is pushing the age where these books may no longer challenge even if they still amuse. My typical customers range from 7-10 years. Humans book 1 is the easiest of the series, followed by book 3, and book 2 in ascending levels of difficulty.
“I liked this book. There were things that I didn’t like too much, the pacing and the main character, mainly. Overall, I really liked the book though. This book is perfect for fans of Holly Black and once I was able to sit and read for a couple hours, I was hooked. I’m looking forward to the sequel and I’ll probably be re-reading this book in the near(ish) future.”
An adorable sequel, our cat friend from the first book gets a name from Emily. She names him Kepler and attempts to explain why. Kepler, Emily and one of her friends then go outside to watch a meteor shower.
The dream sequence Kepler has is fun while also being highly informative. It was a widely interesting way to teach the kids I read to about the universe around us.
I adore these books and hope to see more of Kepler, Emily and friends in the future.
(Read Triple A’s review of Humans In My House series book 1 here and their interview of Amanda Marsico here.)
A charming book for the youthful reader, or those young at heart. I not only enjoyed this book but so did the group of kids I read it to at school.
Quirky and fun, it’s one of the few books I’ve ever read that was from the point of view of a stray cat living in an abandoned home.
I love that it’s first person and really feels like how a cat might think. It also helps show a unique twist on the psychological makeup of children and what they deal with such as peer pressure, without being too heavy.
I can’t wait to read the second book and see what happens next with the cat and the humans…..
(See Triple A’s review of Humans In My House and the Stars Above Ithere and their interview with Amanda Marsico here.)
If you don’t feel like reading this long review, here is my review in a nutshell: While the pacing wasn’t great, and some of the characters were unlikable, Acephalous was still an interesting book with fascinating magic and lore.
The plot of Acephalous follows Breena, as she goes to London for the summer. There she meets Atlas, who introduces her to a world of illusions. But there is more to this world than she knows, and she must learn how to manipulate the illusions herself if she wants to avoid becoming a pawn in an impending apocalypse. While reading, I couldn’t help but compare this book to a mix of The Phantom of the Opera and Cassandra Clare’s City of Bones.
The pacing of this book varied. In the beginning, everything felt rushed. There was a lot going on, as well as a lot being introduced, making it hard to keep up with what was happening. However, after the first half of the book, the pacing smooths out as the lore has been established and the plot starts to truly unfold. The quick pace made it a fast read, with constant action and plotting. I think the sequel will really reap the benefits of this pace more than this first book did because there will be less exposition and worldbuilding thrown in. I did enjoy learning about the magic and the illusions in Acephalous. The supernatural aspect was fascinating to read about and I look forward to uncovering more in the next book. Also, there was a lot of funny and entertaining dialogue that I really enjoyed and can’t wait to read more of.
The main character, Breena, was probably my least favorite part of the book. I just found her somewhat annoying (but hey, I’m not a big fan of Christine Daae and Clary Fray either, so this is just proving my earlier comparison). A lot of Breena’s actions frustrated me, mostly concerning her relationship with Atlas and with Jordan. Love triangles are basically impossible to do perfectly, and I wasn’t a big fan of this one. When Atlas was introduced, I was really annoyed with how Breena would switch from forgiving him for being a weird stalker then being creeped out by it. I had mixed feelings about him during the book and didn’t really start to like him as a character until about halfway through the book. Their relationship was also something I wasn’t a big fan of until much later in the book. I do really look forward to seeing Atlas in the sequel because his development throughout this first book set up for a really interesting character for later. Jordan, Breena’s other love interest/long-time friend, was a little better for me at the beginning. It was established from the start that he loved her, and although I was annoyed that he didn’t really accept her rejection, I did end up liking them together. I also liked all of the other side characters, (especially Lily and Linda! Love the LGBT representation! It was done really well!).
Pros– Funny and #relatable dialogue, interesting magic system and supernatural aspects Cons– Awkward pacing, and a frustrating protagonist Overall- 3/5 stars.
Red Ink Enthusiast™ 