Book Review: THE SCORPIO RACES

Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Number of Pages: 409
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Release Date: October 18, 2011

Every November on the island of Thisby the Scorpio Races are held. Tourists rush in from the mainland to witness the thrilling, fast-paced race that leaves more people wounded than unharmed. When Kate (Puck) Connolly discovers that her older brother Gabe is leaving for the mainland, she decides to join the races in order to prolong her brother's departure. Little does she know that things are about to get complicated, what with her new and strange relationship with the mysterious Sean Kendrick and Gabe running off. Will Puck be able to keep her brother from leaving Thisby? Or, better yet, will she survive the Scorpio Races?

Having read Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver Trilogy and loved it, I was eager to dive into this novel. However, after reading it I found that I was a little disappointed. I enjoyed it, but it just didn't stand out to me in the way that Shiver did. By far my favorite parts were the sections with Puck and Sean. Their relationship seemed fairly realistic to me, which I greatly appreciated. The ending was pretty good as well- everything was wrapped up nicely and over all I was satisfied with how it came to a close. I love this author's writing style because she is so descriptive and insightful when telling her stories.

I have so many good things to say about this book, yet something holds me back from giving it a perfect rating. It just didn't have that WOW factor to it, you know? When reading Shiver I didn't want to put it down, but with this book there were some parts that seemed to drag on a bit. Maybe I just had too high expectations going into it, but it wasn't as good as her other books.

My Rating: :0) :0) :0) :0) 4 out of 5 smileys.

Would I recommend it to a friend?: Yes. Even though it was not as good as Shiver, I would still recommend it. It's got a little of everything- romance, adventure, fantasy- so it appeals to a wide audience.

Yours,
NutFreeNerd