Black Butler directed by Toshiya Shinohara

If you’re looking for a moody, supernatural anime with memorable characters and suspenseful plot, then this is the show for you!

Black Butler revolves around Ciel Phantomhive. Ciel is the most powerful and influential boy in England. He is rich beyond measure and has the bratty attitude to prove it. But Ciel also has a dark secret; after being forced to watch his parents’ murder and being abducted and tortured, Ciel sold his soul to a demon in exchange for revenge on the people who hurt him and his family. This demon—Sebastian--now serves as Ciel’s personal butler. Sebastian works with Ciel to solve the mystery of his parents’ death and find his vengeance while simultaneously protecting his own investment until it is time for the debt to be repaid.

Each episode in this series is a new adventure for the pair and for the other members of Ciel’s staff (all of which are hiding their own dark secrets) as they encounter other demons, grim reapers, and people who aren’t all that they seem. But as the group comes closer to Ciel’s objective, the price of his revenge weighs heavily. Despite the affection Sebastian shows for Ciel, his ultimate goal is unchanged: to eat Ciel's soul.

This show is suspenseful and dark but somehow manages to maintain a lighthearted playfulness at the same time. I sat in shock as the end drew near and kept thinking to myself, “Sebastian can’t eat Ciel’s soul; He wouldn’t! Would he?”

If you love the anime check out the manga of the same name: Black Butler by Yana Toboso. Or if you’re looking for a similar story without the art, try The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud (the first book ofThe Bartimaeus Trilogy). These and more great titles are available at the Virginia Beach Public Library.

If you like this review, find more at VBPLrecommends.blogspot.com/.

Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast by Robin McKinley

Being thin and awkward, Beauty hardly lives up to her nickname, especially when compared to her two exceptional sisters. But she is happy in her life--living with her sisters and father in their small cottage--until the day her father returns and tells them of his unfortunate journey and the promise that will take Beauty away from her family to live in an enchanted caste with a terrifying monster.

This retelling of the classic, French fairy tale is like no other. The story is filled with details and plot that have never been explored and work together to make the tale more realistic and engaging. Add to that a heroine who isn’t classically beautiful, but lets her inner beauty shine through her courage and compassion, and you have an amazing fantasy novel that stands apart from the original telling.

When I read this book I became so swept up in the story that I forgot it was a retelling of Beauty and the Beast until I reached the end! The characters are incredibly engaging and the events of the book are detailed and rich without becoming dull and plodding. Robin McKinley is one of my favorite authors; she has mastered the art of retold classics and has created her own stunning fairy tales. Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and theBeast was her first novel and it does not disappoint! McKinley shows a quality and talent for writing like few else have.

If you love Beauty, try Robin McKinley’s Spindle’s End (a retelling of Sleeping Beauty). Or if you want something new, try Shadows, an original novel also by Robin McKinley, about an alternate world where magic is outlawed. These great titles and more are available at the Virginia Beach Public Library.

More great reviews like these can be found at VBPLrecommends.blogspot.com/.

Enola Holmes: the Case of the Missing Marquess by Nancy Springer

Fourteen-year-old Enola Holmes is used to being alone. The much younger sister of the famous Sherlock and (less famous) Mycroft Holmes, she doesn't really know her brothers at all, or they her. Her mother named her Enola—a semi-palindrome for ‘alone’—and always told her, “You will do very well on your own.” So when her mother mysteriously vanishes, Enola is not totally unprepared. She falls into the custody of her two brothers, who know very little about teenage girls and who want to send her away to boarding school. Desperate to escape, she runs away and disguises herself—not as a boy (which, let’s face it… is very over-done in literature) but as a lady; the very last thing her brothers would ever expect her to be.

Secure in her disguise, Enola sets out to find her missing mother. Along the way she stumbles upon a number of mysteries that need solving and—just like her famous brother—it seems that she has quite a knack for investigating! Solving cases, hiding from her brothers, and searching for clues about her mother’s disappearance, Enola’s life is one close call after another!

The Case of the Missing Marquess is the first book in the Enola Holmes Series and a thoroughly exciting read! Each book introduces new ciphers and codes that the reader will be trying to solve right along with our heroine! Plus, the drama and suspense between Enola and her brothers—especially Sherlock—make for quite a rollercoaster of emotions!

Will Enola find her mother? Will her brothers catch up with her? What trouble will she run into next? You’ll have to read the books to find out!

If you like the Enola Holmes series, you may also enjoy Theodosia and the Staff of Osiris, The Gideon Trilogy: the Time Travelers, or No Place Like Holmes.

For more unique book reviews, visit VBPLrecommends.blogspot.com/.