Monsters

I am really still processing the end of this book and shouldn't be writing a review, but I can always edit it later so here goes. Book two in a series is always hard. To read and probably to write (I couldn't say for sure but it seems obvious).
I started this book knowing that even though Cole has been through so much, that there would be a lot more to come. Surely, Choch and Mr. Robertson will put him through hell in a second book. How does one face the Monsters in one's life? It can be tough and Cole has more to face than most when it's decided that he must stay at Wounded Sky. That question is really at the core of this book that book that is so many things. An indigenous supernatural thriller. A view of life with mental illness that also has action and humor.
A supportive group of family and friends along with a fickle community of group texters surrounds Cole as he tries to find out what's really happening but this one was really about Cole. Choch and Mr. Robertson have created a second book that does exactly what second books are meant to do. Drive you batty, have you thinking for days while your finger metaphorically hovers between that fourth and fifth Goodreads star while cursing and celebrating the ending and make you race over to Twitter to stare at the cover of book three for clues. This is a terrific, #ownvoices, YA series I might sneak to some of my MG readers even if they don't listen to good enough music to understand all of the pop culture references.

Cole is trying to settle back into life in Wounded Sky First Nation. He left years ago after being involved in helping to catch a serial killer. Still so many problems just being in school which is never an easy thing. There is a threatening creature that lives in the Blackwood Forest and it is a danger and needs to captured., The clinic is mysteriously shut down and no one will say why and so many secrets that have been kept private are about to come out. Will Cole learn the truth about his father's death? Coch and Jayne are with Cole to help with any thing he needs in their own way. One is a ghost and the other is a spirit.
Will Cole find out what or who the creature is, will be be able to save the few friends he has left. I'm rooting for Cole all the way and will be reading the first book of the series and getting ready for number 3 when it comes out. I received this book from Net Galley for an honest review and no compensation

Talk about a book that you can’t put down! I flew through MONSTERS because I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen next to Cole. I guarantee this story will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Book 3 can’t come soon enough!!

Captivating, funny, suspenseful, heartbreaking, and amazing. In Monsters, book two of The Reckoner series, Cole remains in Wounded Sky First Nation, not having completed the task set before him by Choch, friendly neighbourhood spirit and smart a** guide. Cole continues to seek the truth about what happened ten years ago when he lost both his parents under mysterious circumstances. He also continues to seek the truth about the current problems affecting Wounded Sky First Nation. Although the killing has stopped and the flu cured, those afflicted have not returned from the clinic and now Mihko has taken over.

David A. Robertson is a masterful storyteller who so brilliantly creates a thrilling tale rooted in First Nations mysticism with an incredible wit and fearlessness. You will become so involved in this story, it’s unavoidable. The prose is completely engaging you will find yourself chuckling one minute and biting your fingernails, heart racing the next. From one chapter to the next we slowly and patiently discover more about Cole’s past, the circumstances which led to his fleeing Wounded Sky and the requirement of his return. We continue to learn more about the players involved in all of the strange and heartbreaking happenings on the reservation. A second book in a series is full of anticipation but can also be quite wearing. You know you are not going to have a complete resolution at the end, David A. Robertson avoids all of the pitfalls by keeping Monsters fast paced, filling in the blanks but yet still leaving so much to be resolved. You experience everything as Cole is experiencing it as though you were a part of the story. Once again Choch provides some much needed comic relief throughout easing some of the heft of the story. One of the most brilliant themes in this series and Monsters in particular is how the author addresses Cole’s experience with anxiety. I know many people, friends and family, who live with the panic and restlessness of anxiety. David A. Robertson writes from personal experience and through Cole you experience all the suffering and subsequently gain a better understanding of those who experience anxiety.

We truly need more books like David A. Robertson’s Reckoner series. Combining First Nation mysticism and addressing mental health into a thriller of a tale, this series has so much to offer adults as well as middle graders.

Wow, the ending of this book is something that I was not at all expecting. It will be very interesting to see where the story goes from here. While this one is a continuation of the story from the first book, it is really about Cole facing his monsters both real and the ones he faces everyday within himself. Cole suffers from anxiety and a lot of what happens to him is because of this. He often reacts to situations with out thinking and then suffers the consequences.

Cole continues his quest to find out what really happened in his town ten years ago and what happened to his parents. Most of the townspeople don’t trust him and want him to leave. But he has a strong base in his friendships with Eva and Brady and some newer friends such as Pam. His aunt and grandmother also come back to town and at time are supportive and understanding of him, but really struggle with how to help him.

The overall plot continues to have a supernatural element to it, although we are beginning to see that perhaps there was something the drug company did that was not beneficial. There is a new monster from first nation mythology that is pretty scary and Cole needs to find it and destroy it before it harms anyone. Coch is back as well, he is a sort of minor god that is suppose to be helping Cole, but he is often causing Cole problems than helping. There are some humorous moments and lots of pop culture references that sometimes added much needed moments of lightness in the darker parts of the story.

A good second book in the trilogy. It has moved the story along, although maybe a bit slowly. That ending certainly makes up for the slower parts though. Highly recommend that you pick this one up.