Widow's Revenge by K.L. Fogg

Widow’s Revenge by K.L. Fogg

Wesley Mackey should be the luckiest boy ever. His father is the Snake Stalker on a famous television show, but that doesn’t make his life easier. Instead it makes him the target for bullies, and when he decides to fight back he gets suspended from school. So, Wesley is paired up with a geeky tutor, who used to be a Navy SEAL. Then his baby sister goes missing and it looks like his former “mom” is behind it. Imogene wants to make a swap--Wesley for his baby sister Emily. Being kidnapped is no picnic, but with the help of his parents and friends they may be able to bring the evil Imogene down for good. I’m very happy to report that this is an awesome sequel to the first book in the series. I didn’t like it as much as the first one, but still really enjoyed it. I liked how she developed new characters in the series, and developed stock characters from the first book into more fleshed out characters. The plot is adventure filled, and yet takes time to focus on character development, a combination I adore! I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series; the ending left me wondering exactly what will happen.

Serpent Tide by K.L. Fogg

Serpent Tide by K.L. Fogg

[Summary from back cover of the book]

Wesley Vandergrift wonders why he isn't like the other boys in his coastal South Carolina town. It's not easy being the son of an eccentric billionaire mother. His life consists of big secrets in a big mansion and only one friend. Overprotected and insulated from the rest of the world, Wesley yearns for the kind of exciting outdoor adventures he sees on "The Snake Stalker"-his favorite TV program, starring the charming Jack Mackey.

Now through a twist of fate, Wesley meets someone who knows his hero Jack Mackey-a real-live relative. And soon Wesley finds himself in more of an adventure than he bargained for. Dare to take the plunge with Wesley on an exciting journey of shipwrecks, venomous snakes, and kidnappers. The legendary curse of the Serpent Tide will forever change Wesley's life-and, perhaps, yours.

The cover of this book mislead me, because I thought it was a middle-grade fantasy novel. The book is more of Y.A. realistic fiction novel. That doesn’t stop the book from having fantastic elements, but it is not speculative fiction, at least not what I would define it as. Despite discovering part way through the book did not meet my expectations I loved this book. The writing was superb, the characters awesome, hilarious, and engaging, and the plot fun and engaging. I love how the author added depth and dimension to her characters that is not often seen in LDS fiction without a whole lot of cheesiness. Though, I did feel that when Wesley found out that his mother Imogene possibly wasn’t his real mom that he believed it a bit too quickly, especially with so little evidence, but it isn’t a major detraction, just something that bugged me personally. I got the sequel as soon as I could and can’t wait to start it after I finish reading Dante’s Daughter for the Summer Book Trek. This book is truly a gem, and I would highly recommend it to all. It has romance, action, comedy, and a little bit of something for everyone. I made my hubby read it and he liked it too.

K.L. Frogg's series website:http://serpenttide.com/index.html