Genre:
YA/Coming of Age/Paranormal Romance
Description:
“The
Captive Art Series is a
trilogy set in an art academy in England, where many of the students
have some very interesting and unique talents. The first book, Canvas
Bound, follows
sixteen-year-old Libby Tanner, whose art comes to life. Her painted
skies turn from day to night, leaves rustle on trees, and every so
often a mystery boy appears.
While
attending Aldridge, Libby meets charming Brent Henderson, a
performing arts student who showers her with attention. But his
rival, gorgeous Dean James, is the one who occupies her mind…
Libby soon
learns there’s more to both Brent and Dean than she ever imagined.
In order to save her future, and the boy who’s captured her heart,
she must unlock the secrets behind her art by entering the most
dangerous place of all…the world within her paintings.
But once
she steps into the canvas, she risks being trapped forever.”
Author:
Laura M.
Kolar is a self-declared hopeless romantic who lives with her husband
and daughter in Michigan. To learn more visit her website.
Appraisal:
Olivia
Tanner has an unusual artistic talent, as do all the students
enrolled in England’s Aldridge Art Academy. Libby, as she likes to
be called, is a conservative but smart, independent, and
strong-willed girl. She is a well-developed protagonist and this
story is told through her eyes. Although she would rather stay in her
room and paint, Travis, her student liaison, has also taken it upon
himself to be her social director and insists she participate in the
schools activities. I LOVED his character, he is the big brother she
never had growing up and their personalities played off each other
well. I found the tension and drama drove the plot at a nice steady
pace throughout the story, but towards the end I found it hard to put
the book down.
Ms. Kolar
handled her flawed characters well expressing their insecurities as
well as their strengths in a believable way. I loved the way she
compared nature verses nurture in the lives of Dean, Ryan, and Brent.
As Libby starts to listen to her intuition she is able to see her
classmates as they really are and read their true intent. It was
enlightening to her as she realized that she was the only one who
came from a safe and stable background. The balances of evil
intentions are redefined as misguided attempts to gain self-worth may
be a little naïve, but this is a young adult story and I would like
to see this aspect further explored as this trilogy continues.
This is a
captivating story that will tug at your heart-strings and awe your
senses as these young adults find their way around their lives and
learn to control their abilities in a productive/positive way. These
are not magical abilities as much as they are psychic connections
with their chosen art form. I found the topic fascinating and I am
sure you will also.
FYI:
Added for Reprise Review:
Canvas Bound was a nominee in the Young Adult category for B&P
2014 Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran September 8, 2013
Format/Typo
Issues:
I read an
advanced review copy and cannot comment on this section. Although, I
will say Red Adept Publishing produces extremely clean books.
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 70-75,000 words
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