Vermonia #3: Release of the Red Phoenix
The action picks up in this third volume of the fantasy manga series. Without a character guide or clear summary of the previous books, new readers will be hard pressed to follow the story line, but established fans will quickly breeze through this outing, eating up the excitement as Naomi finally finds her connection to the power of the Red Phoenix. The tween-aged angst is still present, if a tiny bit preachy, and the touches of early adolescent romance are sweet. Vermonia remains a solid choice for middle-grade manga fans. Grades 3-6. --Snow Wildsmith