Are these books good? Face in the Mirror/Circle of Secrets

pumpkinsbubby

Wed, Aug 22 2012, 2:41 pm

The Face in the Mirror by Yael Mermelstein
and
Circle of Secrets by Esty Shlanger
Did you read these books, and if so, did you like them?
Just wanna know if I should put them on my "to buy" list...
A little description would also be appreciated, without revealing the endings, of course.
TIA for your comments.

MavenMall

Thu, Aug 23 2012, 3:39 pm

I'm a fan of Yael Mermelstein. There aren't many authors of her calibre in the Frum market.
I just read the beginning of Face in the Mirror and it seems really good and I can't wait to read the rest. (It's supposed to be targetted at younger readers but the writing's good so who cares?)
I'm not familiar with the other book.

zigi

Sun, Nov 11 2012, 5:38 pm

I read the circle of secrets. I liked it. the main character helps a boy with add. it was an interesting read.

there are a few books like this lately.

September June

Sun, Nov 11 2012, 5:54 pm

If I were choosing between the 2 books, I would choose Face in the Mirror. I love Yael Mermelstein's work.

*I haven't read either book yet.

ILOVELIFE

Sun, Nov 11 2012, 7:28 pm

I"m a Yael Mermelstein fan and though I haven't read either one yet, I'd go for Face in the Mirror.

joy613

Sun, Nov 11 2012, 8:39 pm

Another member of the Yael Mermelstein Fan Club here.

I'd choose her book and I would trust it to be great, as her other books and stories are. (I even love reading Shragie and Shia in Mishpacha Junior!)

seeker

Sun, Nov 11 2012, 10:06 pm

I haven't read them yet either but I'm also looking forward to getting my hands on Yael Mermelstein's book on the basis of name recognition alone. Doesn't mean the other is any less enjoyable, of course. But also, The Face in the Mirror is supposedly of a different sort of flavor than the average frum novel - more of a scifi/fantasy twist or something like that? So I'm intrigued. I do enjoy well-done regular novels but they're a dime a dozen (figuratively, of course; in actuality more like $18 apiece :p)

Cookies n Cream

Mon, Nov 12 2012, 7:15 am

Face in the Mirror is amazing.

September June

Wed, Nov 14 2012, 12:21 am

I read Face in the Mirror and loved it. It's been a while since I enjoyed a Jewish book.
If you don't enjoy science fiction/fantasy type books then you probably won't like this book either.

The book was written for tweens, but I enjoyed it even though I'm way past that age (and stage).
Great job, Yael!

bigsis144

Mon, Dec 09 2013, 3:46 pm

I just finished reading Face in the Mirror and wanted to see what other imamother members thought...

I really, really liked it. It was SO much more than I expected.

Spoilers:

Hidden:

I immediately thought what an interesting frum film or play this would make, but I think the first-person narratives would get lost in translation. The narrators' voices, and the evolution of those voices, are one of the best parts of the book.

I laugh, though, that this is considered a "fantasy/sci-fi" book. Besides for the initial switcheroo, the world is very much our own, and the problems are very human as opposed to epic and fantastic.