Review by Jacob Chon, grade 9
The House of Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Summary: For many years the Scholar nation has been controlled and abused by the Martial Empire. A young Scholar named Laia is forced to watch her grandparents killed and her brother jailed for drawing weapons. She flees to a resistance group who gives her a mission to spy on a military school in exchange for her brother’s freedom. Meanwhile, a final year named Elias in the same Martial Empire’s military school plans to desert. However, he is forced to take part in a competition to find the new emperor. Through fate, the two of them meet and work together to achieve their goals. However, things go wrong, and many problems arise. Laia gets closer and closer to being discovered, and Elias starts to lose the competition. Will Laia get her brother back? And will Elias win the competition?
This book was an interesting read. I enjoyed the universe and mythology the writer created. The characters and world felt real to me, and I could understand what was happening. However, the author could have elaborated more on the military academy. Despite most of the story happening at the military academy I didn’t know much about the academy itself. It deserves 4/5 stars.
Find this book in our catalog: The House of Scorpion
Call number: JRHI Farmer, N
380 pages