Minding the Middle Monday Review/Nightshade City by Hillary Wagner

Welcome to In the Middle Monday where I review middle level books geared towards grades fifth through eighth.

This week I am using a mini review format that I borrowed from Staci at Life in the Thumb, called Six Sentence Saturday where I will try to express my thoughts in only six sentences.

Deep beneath a modern metropolis lies the Catacombs, a kingdom of remarkable rats of superior intellect. Juniper and his maverick bad of rebel rats have been plotting every since the Bloody coup turned the Catacombs, a once-peaceful democracy, into a brutal dictatorship ruled by decadent High Minister Killdeer and his vicious henchman, Billycan, a former lab rat with a fondness for butchery. When three young orphan rats brothers Vincent and Victor and clever female named Clover flee the Catacombs in mortal peril and join forces with the rebels, it proves to be the spark that ignites the long-awaited battle to overthrow their oppressors and create a new city: Nightshade City. (Publisher’s summary from book jacket)

While I had a difficult time getting into the story and overcoming the fact that I was reading about a bunch of intelligent rats, once Wagner’s back story was in place, the action accelerated and I became truly engaged in the plight of rebels. Billycan, the vicious henchmen, was a fascinating villain, and for me the character that stood out the most. Hillalry Wagner’s writing was beautifully descriptive and at times quite graphic.  The book was also filled with lots of dialogue, which not only moved the plot forward, but gave much insight into the characters’ personalities. A variety of themes run throughout the story with family, loyalty, and fighting against oppression being central to the story. If you like books from animal POV, then I  Nightshade City is certainly a wonderful addition to this genre.

Source: Received book for review from Blueslip Media