Given to the Earth by Mindy McGinnis Review

Title: Given to the Earth

Author: Mindy McGinnis

Age Group: Teen/Young Adult

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Given to the Sea, book two

Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

The author gave me an advance reader copy of this book at a library visit in August—she even signed it for me—thank you so much, Mindy, it means so much to me!

When I heard that Mindy McGinnis, one of my favorite Ohio-based authors, was coming to my local library to discuss the book club book, Not a Drop to Drink, I was so excited. I’d never been to an author meeting before, much less a local one! Plus, she was an author, just like me, and I was looking forward to picking her brain about our shared profession. I’d just finished her new book, Given to the Sea, right before she came to the library and I was excited to discuss it with her. As soon as she came into the room, I spoke to her about Given to the Sea, and how sad I was that I couldn’t afford to buy a book for her to sign for me. She thanked me and told me that since I was the first person to ask about her brand new book, she’d give me the sequel and sign it for me! It’s been sitting on my shelf since the summer, and since it was almost time for the advance reviews to come out, I figured I’d push it to the top of my stack and read it! Given to the Earth was a meaty, exciting sequel, full of political intrigue, secret, shifting alliances, heart-melting romance, and twists and turns that had me gasping, cheering, and screaming! I feel so very lucky to have had the chance to read it early, and I can’t wait until the rest of the world gets their hands on it!

Given to the Earth picks up where Given to the Sea left off, a few months after the first book ended. I don’t want to give any spoilers, as the book comes out in April, so I’m going to say as little about the plot and its happenings as possible. I can’t give away all the crazy surprises that Mindy put in here! But I will say that as far as sequels go, this one was incredibly satisfying. All the loose ends were tied up neatly, and the book had me endlessly turning pages, desperate to know what was going to happen. The pacing was breakneck, though it took me a little bit to remember everything that had happened in the first book. I was immediately drawn into Mindy’s beautifully wrought, dangerous world, rife with political intrigue, betrayal, secrets and lies, heart-pounding action, and bittersweet romance. I adored every painful moment of it, even though there were several times that I had to walk away to spare my feelings and recuperate. All I can say is that this sequel satisfied me totally, and I loved it; I simply can’t wait to hear what others think about Given to the Earth! The bottom line: A treasured gift from one of my favorite Ohio authors, I loved Given to the Earth, and it’s left an indelible tattoo upon my heart that will never go away! Next on deck: Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman!