Harsu & the Werestoat by Barbara Else.

Harsu & the Werestoat by Barbara Else. Pub. Gecko press, 2019.

This is one of the weirdest novels I have ever read, yet I was compelled to finish it, in order to understand it. I am not sure that I did but here is what I think.

Daama is the mother of 12 year old Harsu. Daama is the daughter of the Wind God, changes into a werestoat, wields power through charms, signs and magic and feels she should be praised for being a good mother and goddess. She is not. She is narcissistic and shallow in her beliefs and deserves to be curbed.

Harsu is part human, devoted to his mother but can’t forgive her for eliminating his father. Fortunately Harsu’s father left him enough clues to curb the power of his mother through charms and signs written on a clay tablet that he carries around with him.

Daama wants perfection in her children and sees the pock marked Harsu as not good enough to praise her. She is wrong. Daama kidnaps two seemingly perfect boys and a girl and locks them in jars letting them go periodically so they can praise her.

Together they all pass through the gate of Time and Place and travel through the mystical world arriving finally in New Zealand, while Daama pursues admiration and power.

Harsu is the key to her downfall and must learn that through reading and writing he can quell his mothers powers. But he has to box clever. The ending is tense with many lives at stake.

See if you can do better than me in explaining this novel. It has been written for middle readers, somewhat like a legend or myth or fairy tale but it baffled me.

The Half Life of Ryan Davis by Melinda Szymanik

The Half Life of Ryan Davis by Melinda Szymanik. Pub. Pear Jam Books, 2011.

Mallory Davis goes missing when she is 15 years old and leaves her family in turmoil. Is she still alive?

Three years later Ryan, who narrates this book, is now 15 years old and his sister Gemma is 13 years. They live with their mother who worships her missing daughters memory and holds her up as a paragon to poor Ryan and Gemma. They don’t stand a chance.

The police are still on the case and report that Mallory’s cell phone has been used. Ryan notices a strange car is following him. Is it all over?

When Ryan is found  en flagrante with his girlfriend Kim and Gemma becomes interested in Ryan’s mate Alex all hell breaks loose.

A disturbing story but compelling reading. Tightly told in short chapters which capture the teenage voice very well. Almost a detective/mystery novel but has more depth than that.

Will have great appeal to teenage readers.