Book-ended as it is by great stuff, the middle is unfortunately not as strongly developed as I could have hoped given the potential. It has one of the best opening chapters I’ve read lately and a very surprising and gutsy ending. Monstrous is a hybrid of familiar fairytale and dark horror with a side of Frankenstein thrown in the mix. But with every subsequent trip into Bryre to save the girls, she starts to realise that her beloved father might not have been completely truthful. Kym has no memories of her life before but she knows she is monstrous and as her father tells her, normal humans will never accept her. Only Kym can save them: she herself was killed by the wizard and her scientist father brought her back to life as a hybrid creature with wings, bolts in her neck and a spiky tail. The next day she starts training for a dangerous mission: to save girls entrapped by an evil wizard in the city of Bryre. In Monstrous by MarcyKate Connolly (HarperCollins Children’s Books February 10 2015), Kymera opens her eyes for the first time, takes her first breath and her father tells her: you are alive. As they become friends, Kym learns that Ren knows about the missing girls, the wizard, and the evil magic that haunts Bryre.Īnd what he knows will change Kym’s life. They would not understand that she was created for a purpose: to rescue the girls of Bryre.ĭespite her caution, a boy named Ren sees Kym and begins to leave a perfect red rose for her every evening. Her father says they would not understand her wings, the bolts in her neck, or her spiky tail-they would kill her. Yet night is the only time that Kymera can enter this dangerous city, for she must not be seen by humans. Because of his curse, girls sicken and disappear without a trace, and Bryre’s inhabitants live in fear. The city of Bryre suffers under the magic of an evil wizard. It’s a new Regular Thing (and we’d love to hear your thoughts and recommendations for future entries). The Middle Grade Review Bonanza is a feature with 2-3 mini-reviews for short MG books we really wanted to read.

Monstrous by marcykate connolly