Book Review: The Stone Heart

The Stone Heart by Faith Erin Hicks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An excellent middle story to a quick paced and engaging trilogy. Because it had been so long since reading the first book, it took me a while to remember all the secondary characters and their role in the story. I appreciated the careful patience in bringing the reader back up to speed without making the first chapters feel like a review.

Hicks does a fabulous job of allowing the illustrations to move the story along. She provides a good balance between visual and written story telling. It's fun to read through the author's notes at the end and see the character development with in her sketches. I think it is also inspiring to hear about an author's passion for the story and their dedication to their craft carrying them through the moments when it seems the story will never be told.

The Stone Heart has some darker moments (as does every trilogy's middle book) but nothing too shocking for middle school readers. I appreciate the clean dialogue and innocent friendship between friends caught in a socio-political war. Overall an excellent continuation of a compelling story, and I'm looking forward to the release of the final book.

View all my reviews