Bowman, Erin. Frozen: A Taken Novel. New York: HarperTeen, 2014. 978-0-06-211729-8. 359 p. $17.99. Gr. 9 & up.

This novel picks up where Taken left off, with Gray Weathersby on a mission with his father Owen and eight other Rebels, to attempt to find Allies to help fight the Franconian Order. Gray emerges as a leader from the beginning, and circumstances have the others looking to him for direction. On the mission is Emma, the girl Gray was in love with back in Claysoot, and Bree, his most recent love interest, a tough as nails rebel. They run into Gray’s brother Blaine, who has apparently intercepted an Order member trying to infiltrate their team, and they take both Blaine and his prisoner with them on their journey. They travel for weeks and finally reach their destination, one of the other communities that were part of The Laicos Project. Can they get the other resistors to ally with them and fight against the Franconian Order? Can they escape with the group intact? Is any ally or enemy truly what they seem?

This book was good, but it obviously is going to lead into a third book in the series, so many things are left open. I really can’t think of anything I could use this for in the classroom, but it could be very high interest to reluctant boys. There is a lot of fighting that takes place in this book.

Fantasy    Kathryn Gilbride, North Pocono High and Middle Schools