The Crimson Brand is the second book in The Phoenix Girls series by Brian Knight, and I found it to be an even better read than the first installment. I would say that it’s possible to read this book without having read the first one, but there are so many questions that are asked and answered, some of which picking up on threads from the previous book, that it would certainly be worth picking up book one, The Conjuring Glass, and getting a full look at the story. (I really enjoy that about this book, by the way! Each book introduces its own new plot elements, and then with the second book you have some questions being resolved from the first book, only to add new ones, but the novel still works as a story on its own.)

In Book Two, Penny and her friends are back in Aurora Hollow, the sacred grove where the girls have found magic — magic that helped them defeat the evil Birdman who terrorized their town almost half a year ago. But the girls’ trouble has only just begun, because now they’ve drawn attention to themselves, and enemies are coming. Their vulpine guide, Ronan, is agitated and won’t give them the whole story, their family lives are fracturing, and someone is trying to buy Penny’s land, which holds Aurora Hollow. And they’re seducing her godmother to get it. A whole mess of trouble rests on the shoulders of these girls, and their various problems may not be unrelated.

One of the things I wanted from the last book was to see them using their magic more and playing around with it to find out what it can do, and this book really delivers on that front. I love stories about girls learning and using magic. It’s my truest weakness. And the magic system in this series is so interesting. The way it works, the way they’re taught, and the way they use it…it’s the kind of thing that makes me go, “I wish *I* was a Phoenix Girl.” and that, for me, is the best feeling I can get from a book. Wanting to be a part of it, wanting it to be real. I enjoy that part of reading a book more than almost anything else.

The Phoenix Girls are an especially enjoyable group, because they’re smart, they’re creative, and they’re made of tough stuff. The girls keep fighting for each other, and in this book they have a lot to fight for — and against. Friendship and family are important themes in this novel, and while there are mentions of romantic attractions, I actually like that the author doesn’t focus on those things. And I’m not the kind of person who usually says that — most of the time I don’t enjoy anything without a romantic plotline.

Like the first book, I found The Crimson Brand to be an intense read that didn’t allow me to put the book down until I’d finished. I cared about the characters and I was worried about what would happen to them in the story, and the author gave me good reason for concern. Though this is a young adult book, the story doesn’t pull punches and the girls were often placed in real danger. It still felt like a YA novel though — in the best way. Books like this are the reason I love YA so much, even though I’m about a decade out of its target audience.

I’m looking forward to the next book in the series and seeing what the future holds for the girls and their families, and figuring out exactly who is who and what happened with the last generation of Phoenix Girls.

Note: I received a free copy of this book through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program. This has no bearing on the content of my review.

The Phoenix Girls have survived their first set of adventures and, as they slowly grow into a team, they are also growing toward adulthood. Their relationships with their families and the community are changing, becoming more complex yet at the same time more defined. In this series, teen crises are muted.

Here the girls, now expanded to include a new member, begins to explore the limits of their magical powers and the book is focused on them and their strengths rather than on their relationship with Ronan their spirit guide. The story progresses nicely and is just scary enough. I think it is well suited to younger teens on up. It is a bit thin for an adult reader, but would probably make a good book to read together.

Unlike most other reviewers, I do not think that this second book of the Phoenix Girls series can be read as a stand-alone. There was quite a bit of time between my reading the first and second books and I had trouble remembering what had happened in the first book, and the second book was hard to understand. For someone who had not read the first book at all, I would think the story would lose a lot.

I received a review copy of "The Crimson Brand: Phoenix Girls II" by Brian Knight (JournalStone) through LibraryThing.com. ( )

I hadn't read the first book in the series and as such found this book difficult to get into - I wasn't really sure who Ronan was or what he was looking for - but once past the first chapter or so I did get into it.

The story revolves around a group of girls who have magical powers and the mystery and trouble they get into and beings they encounter as a result. It's well-written and fun and only suffered a little because I didn't have the backstory from the first book. I feel there is much to be explained going forward.

It's a good story for a younger teen or preteen, enjoyable and engaging.

*i received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review ( )

This second installment was just not as engaging as the first as there seemed to be a tad too many storylines and they never quite came together fully, especially the parts involving the title. ( )

The Crimson Brand is book two in The Phoenix Girls series and I really enjoyed it. Adventure, friendship, monsters and magic contained within. While I had read the first book, I feel you could read this book without reading the first one. If you've read the first one, you would get a better feel of the characters and more understanding of the story. However, I feel that you can still enjoy this book without reading the first. I also like that it had an ending without being a cliff hanger, so I'm not frustrated while waiting for a year while the third book get released!

I really enjoyed the continuation of the story line, the growth of the characters, the involvement and mystery surrounding new and old characters, and the creatures and magical world Mr. Knight has created. Would recommend for grade school age and older readers who like reading about strong girls, magic, spooky creatures and adventure. ( )

A satisfying continuation of the story of the Phoenix Girls and their adventures. Absolutely recommended for young adults looking for strong female characters to inspire them. ( )

Book 2 picks up where we last saw Zoey, Penny and Kate. I liked that not only do they now have another member in their group but the girls seemed to have more fun when learning how to use their magic.
Overall, this is a fun read that young girls will love. ( )

A great second book in the phoenix girls series. The girls get in to some scary situations and grow closer as friends. It is easy to connect with the characters and I found myself worried and afraid for them. I am eager to read the next book in the series and I hope I won't have to wait very long. ( )

THE PHOENIX GIRLS is the second in a series by Brian Knight for children. It takes place in a place called Aurora Hollow and involves witchcraft, magic and a talking fox to say the least.

The story revolves around Kate, Zoe and Penny. They are teenagers who've just recently learned of their abilities and are having to fight evil to stay alive. Although the story is the second in a series, it can be read as a stand alone and the reader is able to follow along without any problems.

As an adult, I can say I didn't find the story too interesting. Don't get me wrong, the writing mechanics are there, it was just the story didn't draw me into it the way the HARRY POTTER stories did. As I was finishing up the story, I found it to have two main action sequences and it was as if the author came up with those first and then wrote the entire story loosely around those two main scenes. Things I would have liked to see more of ie who was the woman in the picture, who took their memories, just who was Penny's parents, who is Susan and what of her life before Penny, were never fully developed and he missed the chance to make the story truly interesting. ( )

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Just as fun as the first book, we join our small group as they learn more about themselves and gather more magical friends to fight off an evil...snake...lizard...man? I don't know, but it looks like this

They refer to it as a snake with arms, or a man snake, and until this picture I kept picturing it as something more...centaur-ish, but with a snake instead of a horse. I don't know. Definitely not that.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this book, even though I'm sure I'm way out of its demographic. It's just so whimsical and lighthearted, even though these girls are facing evil forces that want to kill them. It has that nice balance of "this is made for a younger audience" and "we want everyone to enjoy it".

We learn a bit more about Penny's mother and aunt and the previous Phoenix Girls, the girls make new friends and their little group grows, Ronan is still my favorite and if he leaves again I will be very sad. He's such a great character. I have my own theories about him, and though we are given hints at who he is, we've yet to learn his full story. Whether that happens in an upcoming sequel or just a book on its own, I don't care. I just need more Ronan in my life.

Really, my only issue with this book was the snake man and how he was described. I just had so much trouble picturing him, and then the picture they gave just didn't fit with the descriptors, and honestly that's a pretty small annoyance given everything else going on in the book.

I love how this book focuses on friendship. Too often with books I've been reading lately, it's all about sparkly relationships with the new mysterious boy in school, or girls fighting over who gets to go out with whom, but here we focus on the girls and their friendship and how they rely on each other to save the day. It reminds me of early Harry Potter (and I really don't enjoy comparing books to HP). I just love their friendship so much, and that's really one of my favorite things about this series. ( )

This was a worthy sequel to The Conjuring Glass. While the main story is definitely about magic and the fight against evil, I think that the best part is about friendship and empowerment. I'm definitely handing this off to my daughter. She'll love it. ( )

This book is for ten year olds. It has the right balance between characters dealing with ordinary life issues, and the very real crisis in the magical world the girls have discovered. I loved how magic was woven into everyday life. ( )

Just like the first book in the Phoenix Girls series, The Crimson Brand, book two, is filled with magic, action, adventure, and friendship. This book picks up where book 1 ended. After the girls destroyed The Birdman, dangerous relics remain, and Ronan, the girls' fox teacher, realizes that evil has not yet been vanquished. Penny, Katie and Zoe learn deeper forms of magic, and are joined by another girl, Ellen. Together the Phoenix Girls save Dogwood from the new evil. ( )

I received this ebook from LibraryThing Early Reviewers and was thrilled since I had read and enjoyed the first book in the Phoenix Girls series. This book continues and expands on the first with new adventures and widening mysteries about the past. I enjoyed it very much and look forward to the next book, especially with some of the things happening when this book ended - I want to know what happens next!

Magical adventures, friendship, loyalty, family, betrayal, terror...this book has it all! I like how the reader discovers new things along with the characters...revelations about past relationships and mysteries that still need unraveling, as well as new magical abilities. The relationships are complex and the author handles difficult family situations in honest ways as well as the difficult emotions that sometimes can come about because of them.

Despite being young teens, the girls deal with many difficult issues and dangerous situations and have hard choices to make about a variety of situations forcing them to use their resourcefulness, intuition and courage and rely on each other. I like how much more the characters were fleshed out in this book and how much they learned about themselves along with the reader. I found myself enjoying this book even more than the first and would highly recommend this series to anyone, young adult or adult, looking for a good magical-fantasy adventure. ( )

This book was a great sequel to a good book. The characters of Penny, Zoe, and Katie really get fleshed out. Their lives become filled with more and more of the wordly things that most of us get caught up with, BUT it contains a great infusion of magic. Some of the magic with the trees is quite wondrous and some of it quite amusing when the "magicians" are first learning. The nemsis of the story has a reasonably large following making the girls work more difficult. Ronan continues to make appearances and a new girl appears to be added to the group and the rumblings of possibly a man to be added later. Overall I was much more pleased with this book than the first, even though I thoroughly enjoyed the first one. Mr Knight seems to be on a roll with this series. I can't wait to read the next one. Somewhere along the line I get the feeling we may not be spending all our time on this plane of existence. Make sure you have read book one, don't miss this one and hold your breath for number 3. ( )

While I didn't read the first book before I received this one, I was pleasantly surprised at the ease into the story without knowing much about the first book. I enjoyed the adventure and caught myself sometimes reading well past when I should have stopped for the night. I agree that at times it was difficult to read with the thoughts and dialogue being a little excessive and not clear but enjoyed it nonetheless. ( )

This is the second book. I didn’t receive the first one.

The tale started off with the fox searching for remaining relics and—quite unexpectedly—have come to learn of some disturbing news that he wasn't sure his human friends, Katie and Perry, would've been prepared to hear. The hint of adventure starts there.

I like it because it is nicely written. But I find the long statements, carrying the thoughts of the fox, to be a bit tiring. The actual dialogue started at a later page, but was quickly followed by the long string of thoughts again.

Note: I've received this book from a giveaway for early reviewers and have written my honest opinion about it.

(Review taken from my blog post, "Book #Reviews: Finished Reading 8 Books—Again?" at http://sittiecateslovestories.blogspot.com/2014/02/book-reviews-finished-reading... ( )

Evaluation of The Crimson Brand (Phoenix Girls book II) by Bryan Knight.

The book starts of crisp and clear introducing one of the main characters. Slowly he introduces the other involved in a convincing way. The plot unveils slowly while the main characters have a life. He paints the young teens life as complicated as it can be. Some of the background parts could maybe have been shorter, but this is a matter of taste. The story intensifies as you go along and ends in beautifully cool down … for now. The book is well written and readable for an old grumpy man and more so for a 10 to 15 years girl – and daring boys. The story? Well there are a bunch of 14 year old girls that discover that they have witch powers – only they they have to learn to use them and keep the secret from family and friends. The mythical talking cat helps them on as danger is brewing . ( )

Excellent! Wonderful read. ( )

As this was book 2 in the series i had to go and purchase book 1, and i am actually really glad i did. Penny and Zoe are characters that you just love, and Ronan is just amazing. The fact that this book revolves around young teenage girls means there is no love story/triangle to get tangled up in, its purely about the magic and friendships between the coven of girls. would recommended for anyone looking for a g rated read. ( )

Fun book for a young audience. Easy to read, exciting story and likeable characters. I also had the opportunity to review the first in the series previously, but found this book to be more enjoyable ( )

I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.

I could not put this book down. It is the second in the series but the author does a good job of filling in where you would have questioned things. After reading this I had to go back and read the first one. The author does a great job with character development and the storyline is flawless. Look forward to more from the author. ( )

I did have the pleasure of reading the first book in this series and was delighted to be asked to be an early reader for The Crimson Brand. I will admit I had some trouble getting into this book at first, but once in I couldn't put it down. There was most definitely a feeling of, "but I want more" when I reached the last page of this book. ( )

This was an all-around entertaining read. I won the opportunity to review this book through an online Early Reviewers draw.
Although I have not read the first novel - The Conjuring Glass - I found it quite easy to piece together what happened. The dialogue was well written, but the 3 main characters were interchangeable in most ways. I will be on the lookout for Penny and the rest on their next adventure. ( )

Though I don’t typically review much in the way of young adult fantasy, that’s not to say I don’t read it from time to time. I recently got selected as an advanced reader for this book by LibraryThing, and I really enjoyed it, even though I hadn’t read The Conjuring Glass, which is the first book in this series.

Because I haven’t read his previous work, I’m drawing my review strictly on the merits of this book alone, though I plan to read the first book – I’ve already bought it - but I wanted to write my review first.

The Crimson Brand, book 2 of The Phoenix Girls, has many reasons to recommend it to other readers and to libraries as a young adult selection. The story is well-written, interesting, and at times, exciting. I enjoyed the author’s characters a great deal, he writes about early teen struggles with alacrity and sensitivity, tackling some serious moments with finesse and style. The overall effect is that Brian Knight remembers what it is like to be a teenager. Perhaps my favorite character was Penny Sinclair. She struggles with many things throughout the story: the death of her mother, the uprooting of her life to live with her mother’s best friend Susan, learning to use magic, a talking fox, and things that want to kill her. Yet, she survives, and even flourishes in the presence of her friends Katie, Zoe and later on the addition of Ellen.

Overall, the story unfolds at a brisk, but comfortable pace. After just a few pages, the characters become familiar, and you find yourself wondering what will come next. Though all works have flaws, nothing major stands out to me in this book – there was no moment I can recall where something threw me out of the story – and I finished it quickly. If there is a glaring flaw, it is that he has not yet written the next story.

In a world filled with Harry Potter, it can be really hard to carve your own niche when standing in the shadow of such a phenomenon, but Brian Knight seems to be doing well. There are familiar elements that readers of Potter may enjoy, but there are new elements that build around familiarity to create a rich magical system that works, and is engaging.

I would definitely recommend this book to readers of young adult literature and to librarians who may be selecting materials for their y/a collection. As an avid reader of fantasy fiction, I wholly enjoyed The Crimson Brand, and I think you will, too. ( )