Alexis Deacon

Oh, joy! A series I thought gone and forgotten finally returns for its conclusion. But first, the publisher is going to rebrand the series under a new title and collect the original first two volumes as one volume. So now the final volume that was supposed to be Geis III: The Will That Shapes the World becomes Curse of the Chosen, Vol. 2: The Will That Shapes the World. Regardless of all this shuffling about, I'm just glad my library is going to get it! And I have an excuse to revisit and show more refresh my memory of this intriguing world with the new volume one my library already has. Yay!

My original review of Geis: A Matter of Life and Death, January 5, 2017:

Whoa! Where did this come from? GEIS is a delightful but ghoulish little fantasy with a strong female protagonist and a quirky cast of side characters. The heroine, Io, is reluctantly thrust into a deadly tontine that will determine the next leader of her land and empower an evil witch. I cannot stop wondering how she will ever get out of this predicament. I'm 100% immediately addicted to this series and am seriously jonesing for the next volume.

My original review of Geis II: A Game Without Rules, February 10, 2018:

I continue to find myself fascinated by the little fantasy world Deacon has created in this series. The game to claim leadership continues with the remaining contenders divided into two teams and pitted against each other. While some contestants continue to treat it like a lark, others begin to spill blood, lots of blood. Our heroine is sidelined with health issues for large chunks, but the side characters and villains keep the story revving until Io can get back in the game. show less

When a little alien named Beegu - who looks rather like a three-eyed yellow rabbit, with long floppy ears - crash lands on Earth, she has trouble making herself understood by the locals, who seem either indifferent or unfriendly. Lost and alone, she searches for a place of shelter in this unwelcoming place, eventually finding a warm bed with a group of puppies, left in a box outside an animal shelter. But even this refuge is denied her, in the morning, when the shelter worker reacts poorly show more to finding this strange creature on his doorstep. Wandering once again, Beegu encounters a group of schoolchildren on the playground, who warmly welcome her into their midst - until the grownup in charge puts a stop to it. Will Beegu ever find a place to belong? Will her mother ever come for her...?

The second picture-book I have read from Alexis Deacon (the first being Slow Loris) - an English author/artist whose work has been strongly recommended to me by a friend and fellow children's literature enthusiast - Beegu is a deceptively simple story, one that flawlessly blends word and image to create a poignant tale of being adrift in a strange new world. Beegu is just so cute that I want to reach into the book, and give her a big warm hug! I liked the fact that Deacon, despite making his little alien so appealing, also keeps her alien: she doesn't really understand the "rules" of this new place, trying to talk to flying leaves, and thinking that the ringing of a telephone is her mother calling. On the other hand, she does understand the important things, and when her parents eventually do rescue her, she informs them that "Earth creatures were mostly big and unfriendly, but there were some small ones who seemed hopeful." show less

Whoa! Where did this come from? GEIS is a delightful but ghoulish little fantasy with a strong female protagonist and a quirky cast of side characters. The heroine, Io, is reluctantly thrust into a deadly tontine that will determine the next leader of her land and empower an evil witch. I cannot stop wondering how she will ever get out of this predicament. I'm 100% immediately addicted to this series and am seriously jonesing for the next volume.

I thought this was a remarkable way to teach children that there is no need to be afraid of the dark...or whatever is lingering underneath your bed! I really love how the author decided to write the story from the monster's point of view. Seeing a blonde hair, blue eyed, human boy as a scary thing is a great way to reverse the roles! It puts a humorous spin on a sensative subject that a lot of kids can relate to! The art work is beautiful and also gives the monsters human characteristics. show more They are seen as just as sensative as humans and the little monster is just as frightened as the little human boy. In the end, I was so glad to see that the boy and the monster ended up being friends! show less