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Between the Lions #2
Truth
Survival comes at a steep cost...when you're being chased down a magical staircase by shape shifting mythological creatures that want to kill you.
With Styx gone, Anna's only ally against the ancient powers is Cax, a charming thief she can't seem to fully trust...or trust herself with. Each spiraling step towards her ultimate destiny as The Heir leads to shocking revelations about Cax, the darkly fantastical Libraries, and the mysterious voice within herself. Author Jodi Baker's breathtakingly unique brand of storytelling weaves magical mysticism, forbidden romance, and shocking plot twists into this electrifying second installment of the Between Lions Series.
Will the answers Anna is searching for get her killed, or set her free?
Only TRUTH will tell.
Praise for the Between Lions
"Jodi Baker's first YA series had me hooked at page one with her debut 'Trust'...her second, Truth had me on a magical journey up the spiral staircase (you'll have to read to find out). Between Lions is definitely the YA series to follow!" -The New York Times
"Trust, Book One and Truth, Book Two are the perfect companions ...We need more books like this that take a strong young female who is faced with many obstacles and comes out shining on the other side. Truth took me on an real journey as if I was there, ingenious! This series should be on every young woman's bookshelf!" -The Los Angeles Times
"America's answer to Harry Potter. That's the wonder about Jodi what makes her brilliant is taking various cultures, histories, and myths then weaving them (to) form a new basket in the fantasy/sci-fi genre. Rowling may had built that fantasy path using British/Roman bricks, but Baker is constructing a new fantasy road using a mortar of Meso-American history, dusted with Norse mythology, and good ole Egyptian and Greek/Roman classics. " -The Arriviste
"Loved the mysticism and magic. World building made me want to jump in the fight alongside Anna. Must-Read YA & Recommended Romance List!" -USA Today
"Baker created a fantastic world in the middle of urban New York City. Full of literary nods and historical and mythological details... a treat for geeks, librarians, history and literature lovers. Great job creating strong female characters & portraying beautiful diverse characters!" -Bookworms and Owl
"Exotic blend of cultures, mythology and fantasy. I couldn't stop reading."-Melanie Thompson, Librarian Media Specialist
"Watch your back for Were-animals, liars, and voices in your head. A series I can't wait to get to finish." - Tina Brison, Librarian & Educator
"Wow! Bibliophiles will love this book about books and the coming of age of a strong female protagonist." -Dr. K Berry, Librarian
"Good writing, interesting story, action, Werejackals, gift giving voices, a girl who loves books - a fun read!" -Book Devourer Blog
"Had me captivated." -Goodreads Reviewer
"Mythological fantasy masterpiece. I couldn't put it down once I started reading it."-Amazon Reviewer
With Styx gone, Anna's only ally against the ancient powers is Cax, a charming thief she can't seem to fully trust...or trust herself with. Each spiraling step towards her ultimate destiny as The Heir leads to shocking revelations about Cax, the darkly fantastical Libraries, and the mysterious voice within herself. Author Jodi Baker's breathtakingly unique brand of storytelling weaves magical mysticism, forbidden romance, and shocking plot twists into this electrifying second installment of the Between Lions Series.
Will the answers Anna is searching for get her killed, or set her free?
Only TRUTH will tell.
Praise for the Between Lions
"Jodi Baker's first YA series had me hooked at page one with her debut 'Trust'...her second, Truth had me on a magical journey up the spiral staircase (you'll have to read to find out). Between Lions is definitely the YA series to follow!" -The New York Times
"Trust, Book One and Truth, Book Two are the perfect companions ...We need more books like this that take a strong young female who is faced with many obstacles and comes out shining on the other side. Truth took me on an real journey as if I was there, ingenious! This series should be on every young woman's bookshelf!" -The Los Angeles Times
"America's answer to Harry Potter. That's the wonder about Jodi what makes her brilliant is taking various cultures, histories, and myths then weaving them (to) form a new basket in the fantasy/sci-fi genre. Rowling may had built that fantasy path using British/Roman bricks, but Baker is constructing a new fantasy road using a mortar of Meso-American history, dusted with Norse mythology, and good ole Egyptian and Greek/Roman classics. " -The Arriviste
"Loved the mysticism and magic. World building made me want to jump in the fight alongside Anna. Must-Read YA & Recommended Romance List!" -USA Today
"Baker created a fantastic world in the middle of urban New York City. Full of literary nods and historical and mythological details... a treat for geeks, librarians, history and literature lovers. Great job creating strong female characters & portraying beautiful diverse characters!" -Bookworms and Owl
"Exotic blend of cultures, mythology and fantasy. I couldn't stop reading."-Melanie Thompson, Librarian Media Specialist
"Watch your back for Were-animals, liars, and voices in your head. A series I can't wait to get to finish." - Tina Brison, Librarian & Educator
"Wow! Bibliophiles will love this book about books and the coming of age of a strong female protagonist." -Dr. K Berry, Librarian
"Good writing, interesting story, action, Werejackals, gift giving voices, a girl who loves books - a fun read!" -Book Devourer Blog
"Had me captivated." -Goodreads Reviewer
"Mythological fantasy masterpiece. I couldn't put it down once I started reading it."-Amazon Reviewer
272 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 13, 2017
10 people want to read
About the author
Jodi Baker
2 books9 followersAs a child the only punishment Jodi ever feared was not being allowed her weekly visit to the library.
At boarding school, though an enthusiastic student, her late night reading fests frequently made her late for first period. Luckily, it was a high school for Performing Arts, where the classes she was good at (writing, theatre, dance & visual art) happened in the afternoon. After attending Carnegie Mellon University, she spent several months performing plays on the island of Cyprus, which was where she fell in love with mythology. When she returned to the U.S.A. Jodi lived in New York City. After a summer of working as a tour guide for the Natural History Museum, Jodi developed an addiction for wandering through all of NYC's incredible Museums - especially the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She also spent many hours sitting between the infamous library lions dreaming up the kinds of books she wanted to create. Now she happily lives in Los Angeles with two Anubis-y looking dogs in a house lined with books instead of wallpaper. Jodi Baker loves writing & reading Young Adult Urban Fantasy Mythological stories tinged with romance. In addition to her young adult BETWEEN LIONS series, Jodi is also working on a middle grade fiction fantasy series.
TRUST is her first book.
At boarding school, though an enthusiastic student, her late night reading fests frequently made her late for first period. Luckily, it was a high school for Performing Arts, where the classes she was good at (writing, theatre, dance & visual art) happened in the afternoon. After attending Carnegie Mellon University, she spent several months performing plays on the island of Cyprus, which was where she fell in love with mythology. When she returned to the U.S.A. Jodi lived in New York City. After a summer of working as a tour guide for the Natural History Museum, Jodi developed an addiction for wandering through all of NYC's incredible Museums - especially the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She also spent many hours sitting between the infamous library lions dreaming up the kinds of books she wanted to create. Now she happily lives in Los Angeles with two Anubis-y looking dogs in a house lined with books instead of wallpaper. Jodi Baker loves writing & reading Young Adult Urban Fantasy Mythological stories tinged with romance. In addition to her young adult BETWEEN LIONS series, Jodi is also working on a middle grade fiction fantasy series.
TRUST is her first book.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 29, 2018
Truth by Jodi Baker takes the Between Lions Series to the next level. While in Trust (Book one) we were thrust into an unknown world of mythology and allowed to experience this world through reluctant heroine and protagonist Anna’s eyes, in Truth, things become clearer and as the reader, we are firmly grounded in our ever-growing heroine’s world. Major strengths of this novel are world-building (and it’s extensive so pay attention), character-building on the fly through dialogue and action, and description.
Overall the story is well-written and easily digested. This installment takes us even deeper into the mind of Anna as well as the other complex characters through authentic dialogue and engaging scenes. One in particular that kept me on edge was the all-important heist at the museum. Baker has a gift of putting you right in the middle of the action and tethering you to her character’s emotions. Through storytelling, Baker also manages to infuse themes and ideas that linger long after the novel is experienced.
Baker uses her character Cax to deliver the message, “The written word is a record, but art and music are evidence of our imagination. Proof of the soul of humanity.” And then this sentiment continues through the words of Anna. “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but seeing with different eyes.” And through Inanna Baker writes, “BE LIKE WATER. IT KILLS FIRE, DISSOLVES ICE, AND CAN WEAR DOWN IMMOVABLE ROCKS. WATER FLOWS PAST OBSTACLES. YES. GROWTH IS ALWAYS PAINFUL. I AM SORRY I CANNOT HELP YOU WITH THAT. THE ONLY WAY OUT IS THROUGH. THE GODDESS WAY IS TO STAY IN THE PRESENT. NOT THE PAST OR THE FUTURE. BE IN THE NOW.”
Baker manages to infuse metaphor and personification in slick passages like “Even the air stank of deceit. How had I not noticed that before? The wall behind the couch was sagging with the weight of books and falsehoods. The carpet under my feet was stained with the residue of her lies.”
And when she can reference one of my childhood favorites, The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, I’m all in.
Check out this masterful description of one of the main characters. “Styx was sleek and sophisticated, always leather clad and always balanced. Even when surrounded by enemies, I’d seen her choose condescending calm over unbridled anger and fear. It was what made her spectacularly lethal. She stomped out deceptions with her knee-high boots, dropped truth bombs like an emotionally disconnected drone, and was willing to give her life for mine.”
Truth brings us an intriguing new character in Muninn, a reunion of others, and a monster reveal that I didn’t see coming. A heroine is born in Truth. Looking forward to the next installment.
Overall the story is well-written and easily digested. This installment takes us even deeper into the mind of Anna as well as the other complex characters through authentic dialogue and engaging scenes. One in particular that kept me on edge was the all-important heist at the museum. Baker has a gift of putting you right in the middle of the action and tethering you to her character’s emotions. Through storytelling, Baker also manages to infuse themes and ideas that linger long after the novel is experienced.
Baker uses her character Cax to deliver the message, “The written word is a record, but art and music are evidence of our imagination. Proof of the soul of humanity.” And then this sentiment continues through the words of Anna. “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but seeing with different eyes.” And through Inanna Baker writes, “BE LIKE WATER. IT KILLS FIRE, DISSOLVES ICE, AND CAN WEAR DOWN IMMOVABLE ROCKS. WATER FLOWS PAST OBSTACLES. YES. GROWTH IS ALWAYS PAINFUL. I AM SORRY I CANNOT HELP YOU WITH THAT. THE ONLY WAY OUT IS THROUGH. THE GODDESS WAY IS TO STAY IN THE PRESENT. NOT THE PAST OR THE FUTURE. BE IN THE NOW.”
Baker manages to infuse metaphor and personification in slick passages like “Even the air stank of deceit. How had I not noticed that before? The wall behind the couch was sagging with the weight of books and falsehoods. The carpet under my feet was stained with the residue of her lies.”
And when she can reference one of my childhood favorites, The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, I’m all in.
Check out this masterful description of one of the main characters. “Styx was sleek and sophisticated, always leather clad and always balanced. Even when surrounded by enemies, I’d seen her choose condescending calm over unbridled anger and fear. It was what made her spectacularly lethal. She stomped out deceptions with her knee-high boots, dropped truth bombs like an emotionally disconnected drone, and was willing to give her life for mine.”
Truth brings us an intriguing new character in Muninn, a reunion of others, and a monster reveal that I didn’t see coming. A heroine is born in Truth. Looking forward to the next installment.
July 3, 2017
I was so excited for the second book in this series to come out, and I'm happy to report it didn't disappoint! I just love Anna and all her adventures- she's fiery, fun and brave- what every girl aspires to be. I was hoping for even more romance in this one and the author delivered...love me some Cax! Now, I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't read it yet, but the ending...oh, the ending. Holy wow!
July 6, 2017
Link to the review -----> http://www.bookwormsandowls.com/2017/...
February 12, 2018
I really enjoyed it. It provided a satisfactory ending so I can wait for the next book patiently.
January 5, 2018
“ Yesterday, things happened to me. Today, I want to be the girl who happens to things.”
I loved everything about Trust so when I started Truth, I had high hopes. I was not disappointed, in fact, I was blown away. I love Anna and the voice in her head that is both mysterious and annoying at the same time... giving her advice and who also seemed to be constantly yelling at her. Cax, it seems, is always around and I can feel the “warm fuzzies” between these two. But the story soon becomes much more than this budding young romance. This story is rich and filled with layers. Layers upon layers in the story line, plot and character development. I read each page and quickly (sometimes slowly) peeled each layer back to see what was really there. I was shocked, aghast, excited and and and .... Sorry, I just ran out of descriptive words. This series is fantastically written with obvious historical and mythical expertise as well as insight into a young girl coming into her own facing such tremendous pressures, insecurity, and doubts. I not only have these books for myself but I also had to give the series to my granddaughter to read and enjoy. I want my granddaughter to realize that she too can be the girl who happens to things.
I loved everything about Trust so when I started Truth, I had high hopes. I was not disappointed, in fact, I was blown away. I love Anna and the voice in her head that is both mysterious and annoying at the same time... giving her advice and who also seemed to be constantly yelling at her. Cax, it seems, is always around and I can feel the “warm fuzzies” between these two. But the story soon becomes much more than this budding young romance. This story is rich and filled with layers. Layers upon layers in the story line, plot and character development. I read each page and quickly (sometimes slowly) peeled each layer back to see what was really there. I was shocked, aghast, excited and and and .... Sorry, I just ran out of descriptive words. This series is fantastically written with obvious historical and mythical expertise as well as insight into a young girl coming into her own facing such tremendous pressures, insecurity, and doubts. I not only have these books for myself but I also had to give the series to my granddaughter to read and enjoy. I want my granddaughter to realize that she too can be the girl who happens to things.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews