Like a Curse will be released on October 22, 2024. It is the sequel to Like a Charm, and closes the Like a Charm duology.

Now that Ramya Knox has discovered that there’s a whole world of Hidden Folk existing under her nose in Edinburgh—and that she’s a witch—she’s determined to defeat the sirens and learn what her newly discovered family is like without their looming threat. And, with the siren Portia’s influence rapidly spreading over the human and magical worlds, Ramya knows she has to act fast. The only problem is that she has to master her magical abilities first…and that turns out to be much harder than she’s bargained for.

Alongside old and new friends alike, Ramya must rally her magic and her determination if she wants to defeat Portia before she suffers a defeat she won’t be able to recover from.

I’ve rarely read an incredibly satisfying, self-contained book followed by an equally brilliant sequel. Like a Curse, though, is exactly that. I truly loved Like a Charm, blending fantasy and realism into something I couldn’t help but adore, and the sequel fully lived up to my expectations.

Once more, I unabashedly adore Ramya. Her determination, anxiety, and struggle to prove herself made it difficult to put down her story, and her relationships (especially with Opal) truly gave the book shine with new depth. Although I don’t want to spoil the book, I will say that I particularly loved the ending. McNicoll manages to bring together this duology’s many threads—friendship, magic, neurodiversity, forgiveness, understanding, secrets—and create an incredibly satisfying conclusion that put a spin on fantasy unlike anything I’ve ever read.

I highly recommend Like a Curse (and the Like a Charm duology) to readers ages nine and up who enjoy middle-grade fantasy and are looking for a book that puts a twist on the genre.

An e-ARC of this book was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions expressed here are my own.

The Night Mother will be released on October 8, 2024.

Night cloaks Madeline Tock’s small town. She spends her days with her father on their graveyard island across the river, where she listens to the whispers of the dead as they journey beyond. They whisper a warning, too: to fear the creator of the constant night.

The Night Mother: half a myth, who crosses the sky with her lantern to harvest the souls of the dead. Only she’s gained a taste for power and the freedom that eternal night allows her—and the living souls it enables her to harvest.

When the Night Mother comes for Madeline’s village and her father, she’s determined to prevent her from stealing them all away. But the Night Mother wants something from Madeline too, and Madeline soon realizes that she can bring back the sun—if only she can defeat the Night Mother first.

The Night Mother delivers a dark fairytale of a story accompanied by gorgeous, detailed illustrations. The art is absolutely beautiful – Sharpe’s layered images are full of color and precision and fully absorbed me. Perhaps best of all, the art perfectly matches the feel of the story, crafting an immersive experience that I absolutely loved. At times, I felt it could be a little text-heavy, reading more like an illustrated book than a graphic novel, but especially past the opening scenes there was a better balance between text and art – and I think that might’ve been partially because I just loved the art so much that I wanted to see more of it!

​I really enjoyed the story as well. The Night Mother truly feels like a fairytale – but rather than the sanitized versions commonly found today, it harkens back to the dark roots of the Grimm Brothers, where a happily-ever-after was far from guaranteed. Although a relatively simple story, it unfolds with smooth precision, introducing in a relatively short page count a variety of compelling, fascinating characters, most of all so Madeline and the Night Mother. I hope to read future volumes of this story! I recommend The Night Mother to lovers of older middle-grade, original fairytales, and dark fantasy ages eleven and up. 

By Nico

When Zach and his friends get attacked by a monster from another world, it’s hard not to panic. After all, even his worst problems—like his struggles in school and grandmother’s illness—are firmly grounded in modern, normal Australia.

Then Zach and his friends are introduced to the Tower, a secret organization spanning the globe that detects magical interlopers like the one they encountered and banishes them before they can wreak havoc. They’re given the choice to simply remain silent about what they’ve seen or become full members of the Tower—where they can defeat the otherworldly creatures and learn to harness the magical currents that flow between the worlds to perform spells themselves.

Zach’s life seems to be looking up. He’s literally learning magic—and, with his newfound healing abilities, he might even be able to save his grandmother. But keeping half of his life secret is more complicated than he could’ve imagined, and Zach must decide whether he’s willing to do what it takes to become the mage his friends, and the Tower, needs him to be.

The Tower Between is a fun, fast-paced middle-grade series opener for fans of world-within-our-world stories and ensemble casts. The very idea of the Tower grabbed me immediately, and loved digging into what truly felt like how such an organization would exist within our modern world—with all the associated complications, practicalities, and sci-fi edge! The threads of folklore, science fiction, and more found in the other worlds accessed through the Tower were very strong, and lent those worlds a lot of personality.

​I would’ve loved to get to know Zach and his personal conflicts/life a little better—the subplot with his grandmother lent his character a lot of dimensionality, and I would’ve loved to see more of that with the rest of his family. That said, I feel like the relationships and characters within the primary cast were extremely well fleshed out. I often find it hard to keep track of large casts, but I didn’t have that problem with this book, as they all had a distinct flair and personality. I particularly loved the magic system here—although different schools or categories of magic can easily feel cliché, their execution here makes them truly come alive and feel different from others I’ve read. I recommend The Tower Between to readers ages ten and up who love fantasy adventures with big casts of characters.

Thank you to the author for providing an e-copy in exchange for an honest review! All opinions expressed here are my own. 

Greta will be released on September 10, 2024.

The world around Greta is changing far too quickly for her to keep up. Between an upcoming move, entering middle school, and her longtime best friend, Lotti, getting distracted by boys, Greta feels left behind by the fierce, never-ending changes around her that she doesn’t feel part of. When a boy finally takes notice of her, she thinks maybe this is her chance to become part of this incomprehensible new world. But instead, she’s left shattered, scared, and even more lost than before.

As she struggles to put words to what’s happened to her, even to Lotti, Greta starts to change, in ways utterly different than everyone around her. But while her newfound differences are looked at askance by those around her, for Greta, they’re a way to become herself at last: to find beauty, and freedom, with a kind of change that finally feels right.

If you like straightforward, predictable stories with familiar characters and beats to provide escapism and a quick laugh, Greta is absolutely not something you’ll want to read. But if you’re more like me—someone who enjoys deep, thoughtful, and fundamentally unexpected stories—I highly recommend this book.

I finished this book a week ago now, and I’m not exaggerating when I say I’ve thought about Greta every day during that time period. I’ve read hundreds, maybe thousands, of middle-grade books, and I can think of few others that possess the same combination of incredible oddity and incredible humanity.

It took me several chapters to get into the story, as the uncanny, almost surreal aspects of it only begin appearing once Greta’s normal life is established. However, I was so interested in the premise that I didn’t even consider stopping reading, and it definitely lived up to that. The whole story has a dreamlike quality overlayed on a fundamentally realistic portrayal of middle school which gave it a truly unique atmosphere, and I particularly loved how the characters, including Greta, responded to the changes in her life.

Greta is the rare book that truly leaves you with more questions and answers, and yet imparts such a fundamental sense of peace and well-being that you can’t help but feel satisfied after finishing it. I highly recommend Greta to readers ages eleven and up, particularly those who enjoy unique and thought-provoking stories.

​An e-ARC of this book was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Impossible Creatures will be released in the US on September 10, 2024.

When Christopher fishes a griffin out of a mysterious lake, he hardly expects an even more remarkable girl to follow it. But Mal does just that—and she needs his help.

Mal and the griffin are from the Archipelago, a hidden pocket of magic in the modern world where creatures out of storybooks thrive. Despite its glorious possibilities, though, not all is well in the Archipelago; magic is vanishing, and the creatures that rely on it to survive are vanishing too. Mal is determined to uncover what’s going wrong, and to do that, she needs Christopher.

Together, they traverse the islands in search of an answer to the waning magic, which will require not just human allies but aid from the Archipelago’s hidden creatures to uncover. But when the cost to cure the islands is revealed to be one Mal and Christopher may not be willing to pay, they must rely upon all their wits—and their friendship with one another—to save the Archipelago, and the world, before the damage becomes irreversible.

Impossible Creatures effortlessly calls to mind the character-driven, worldbuilding portal fantasies that made me fall in love with middle-grade fantasy to begin with, while balancing a plot original enough that I never was even tempted to roll my eyes at a cliché turn of phrase or twist. Recalling elements of, at turns, The Neverending Story, The Book of Three, and The Dark is Rising, all accompanied by a set of gorgeous illustrations that made me think of Greenwild, I’ll definitely be recommending this beautiful, timeless story.

To be honest, I was a bit skeptical of reviews that heralded Impossible Creatures as a modern classic, but within a few pages I understood immediately what they meant. Rundell’s writing is absorbing and immersive, with the kind of open, uncomplicated prose that makes it easy to get lost in without even realizing it. I really loved the cast, particularly Mal and Nighthand, whose dimensionality helped make the whole world feel more believable. I was a bit startled by the ending, but the promise of a series makes me believe that my initial reaction will be thoroughly resolved in later books.

Overall, I highly recommend Impossible Creatures to readers ages ten and up who are looking for a new fantasy series to obsess themselves with, or anyone who loves a good fantasy story with well-thought-out characters and twists.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions expressed here are my own.

By Nico

The Night Compass is the fourth book in the ongoing Wilderlore series; it is preceded by The Accidental Apprentice (book 1), The Weeping Tide (book 2), and The Ever Storms (book 3).

After the death—or murder—of the Tundra’s Keeper, Barclay and his friends head straight there to investigate. But it’s soon clear that far more is afoot: Audrian Keyes is on track to find Navrashtya, the missing Legendary Beast of the Tundra, and the only way to stop him is to find her before he does.

Alongside a team of talented Lore Keepers, Barclay and his friends set out for the unmapped northern regions of the Tundra, searching for any hint of Navrashtya. But Barclay soon finds his own way to track the Beast—a mysterious wild lore that no one else can feel…no one else, that is, except Audrian Keyes.

As they draw closer to Navrashtya and Barclay struggles to control the wild lore, he and his friends must stop Keyes before he deals irreversible damage to the Tundra—and shakes their confidence in the world they’re all determined to protect.

I’ve loved every book in the Wilderlore series, and The Night Compass was no exception. The halfway point is where too many series falter, but Wilderlore does the opposite here; it feels as though Foody has hit her stride in this series and with these characters, and I can’t wait to see where it goes next. Fast-paced, multifaceted, and with Foody’s trademark incredible worldbuilding, I sped through this book and was left wishing book five—and books six and seven, for that matter—had already been released.

The characters, as always, are awesome. At this point in the series I feel like I know all of them so well, which gives each of them the opportunity to grow and change and connect with each other in unexpected ways. In particular, I need to give a shout-out to Yasha and Keyes, and the developing relationships between both of them and Barclay. The twist with the wild lore is truly brilliant, and not only does it add extra depth to Barclay’s character, it gives Yasha and Keyes so much more complexity—and dangerousness.

I also loved this chance to dig more deeply into the world of Wilderlore. The journey through the Tundra puts Barclay and his friends closely in touch with the wilderland even without the addition of wild lore, and I can’t wait to learn more about this world in the next few books. I highly recommend The Night Compass (and the entire Wilderlore series) to readers ages ten and up, particularly anyone who loves multi-part fantasy series and fast-paced narratives. 

By Nico

The Last Ice Phoenix is the second book in the ongoing Heroes of Havensong series by Megan Reyes, which began with Dragonboy.

After a face-off with Chancellor Cudek that nearly destroyed the Meraki’s island, the four friends heralded as the Heroes of Havensong should be ready to face whatever comes next. Instead, with Blue stuck in a deep slumber, Wren on the verge of exile, River dreaming of her lost home, and Shenli struggling to come to terms with his new life, the four are more fractured than ever.

But Chancelor Cudek isn’t interested in giving them time to regroup, and events have already been set in motion. Back on the mainland under Cudek’s thumb, Shenli must grapple with his own history—and his priorities—to choose a path that will alter the course of the future. After exile by the Meraki elders, Wren finds herself among strangers whose secrets might be the key to unlocking Cudek’s weakness. And when an unexpected sickness sweeps across Meraki Island, Blue and River must seek out the last ice phoenix to provide a crucial piece of the remedy—even if neither is quite sure that they’re heroes after all.

There’s nothing I love more than a fabulous sequel that lives up entirely to the expectations set by the first book. The Last Ice Phoenix does this exactly. Although it took me a bit to dig into this story, probably because it’s been close to a year since I read the first book, before long I truly couldn’t put it down. A fast-paced plot, fascinating worldbuilding, and great characters have made this series one I’ll keep highly recommending, especially to fans of series like Wilderlore or Septimus Heap.

It’s often hard to get to know all the characters when a book is told from multiple points of view, but especially in this book I felt like I was able to connect with Blue, Wren, River and Shenli all so deeply. I particularly love how the characters—particularly Shenli—have some of the most developed and thoughtful character arcs I’ve read in this genre lately. Although this book often stepped into more intense territory, placing it solidly in upper middle-grade, I felt that it was essential to turning what easily could’ve been a predictable story into one with so many unique twists and characters that I can’t believe I’ll have to wait another year for book 3! I highly recommend the Heroes of Havensong series to readers ages eleven and up. 

The Ghostkeeper will be released on July 23, 2024.

Ever since Dorian Leith very nearly died—and gained the unexpected ability to see ghosts as a result—he’s dedicated himself to helping ghosts find peace and enter the afterlife. Sure, his job doesn’t make him very popular, particularly since most people would rather pay ghastly exorcists to destroy household ghosts than a ghost therapist to help their hauntings work through their problems, but every time Dorian teaches a ghost new coping skills or helps another client move on into the afterlife, it brings him such satisfaction that he can’t imagine doing anything else.

That is, until the key to Death’s Door vanishes—and the town is suddenly plagued by an influx of angry ghosts who can’t find their way into the afterlife, no matter how many times Dorian helps them reframe their struggles. Dorian knows he’s the only one who’s able to help the ghosts, not to mention the only one who cares. But finding the key means risking the first true relationship with a living human he’s had in years—and any sense of self he has beyond the ghosts he cares for.

​I did not expect to love a graphic novel about a queer ghost therapist to be this awesome and endearing, but The Ghostkeeper seemed determined to exceed my expectations from the first page. To begin with, I loved the art style, and in particular how the ghosts were portrayed; the blue-tinged characters and in particular the clearly different speech bubbles helped keep the story clear and moving at a fast pace, and made the dialogue easier to follow than most other graphic novels I've read. The use of color schemes and panel shapes created a fabulous sense of atmosphere, and worked together with the quirky characters and fast-paced plot to create a story I couldn't put down.

But I'd be remiss if I didn't mention one of my favorite aspects of the story - Dorian himself. I connected with him so deeply - his internal struggles, his determination to help ghosts, his self-sacrificing propensity, his insecurity, and the depth of his friendships. The ghost therapist concept is brilliant to begin with, but The Ghostkeeper brings it alive, and the incredibly realistic (but also hilarious) strategies that Dorian uses to counsel the ghosts grounded the premise and made it utterly believable. I was particularly drawn to the way Dorian struggles to separate what he needs from what the ghosts need, a thread of realism that helped wholeheartedly sell me on the entire story.

I highly recommend The Ghostkeeper to readers ages eleven and up, particularly those who enjoy gorgeously illustrated graphic novels, brilliant characters, and a touch of ghostly horror.

An e-ARC of this book was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

First Test: The Graphic Novel will be released on July 2, 2024.

Keladry of Mindelan has always known she wants to be a knight—and now, she’s the first girl to take advantage of Tortall’s new law that decrees that girls, as well as boys, can become pages. But not everyone is thrilled about the decision, and the training master, Lord Wyldon, insists on putting her on probation, which no other page has ever had to endure.

Although many expect her to back down, Kel is determined to become a knight—even though that means enduring the hatred and taunts of other pages, and even standing up to the unfair system of hazing. One day, Kel is sure, she will prove everyone who doubts her wrong, and become a true protector of the small.

The original First Test by Tamora Pierce is one of my all-time favorite books, so when I saw there was a graphic novel adaptation coming out, I knew immediately I had to read it. That said, I had my misgivings: just like when I see a movie adaptation of a book I love, I was sure it couldn’t remotely compare to the original story.

Instead, I found myself instantly engrossed in one of the best novel adaptations I’ve ever encountered.

For fans of the original First Test, there is so much to love in this book—most of the dialogue is pulled directly from the novel, and it felt much more like a visual representation of the novel than a new story with elements of it, as too many adaptations often do. Although of course cutting some scenes or sequences was necessary, I loved how Devin Grayson and Becca Farrow used panel arrangement to convey a sense of time or a montage of scenes, creating the sense of all those scenes without narrating them all individually. The art really captures the spirit and personality of all the characters, particularly Kel and Neil, and I found myself hoping as I devoured this book that there would be adaptations of the rest of the series, too!

Especially at the beginning, some of the worldbuilding might be a little confusing for readers unfamiliar with Tortall, so I highly recommend checking out the character guide and glossary in the back. Although I’m often a little leery of supplemental materials like these, Grayson and Farrow did an excellent job of creating thorough and readable guides that allow new readers to orient themselves, without making previous Tortall readers feel bogged down by pages of worldbuilding.

I highly recommend First Test to both old and new fans of Tamora Pierce’s books ages ten and up, or anyone who enjoys excellent, fast-paced fantasy graphic novels!

An e-ARC of this book was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Read our review of First Test (Book 1 in the Protector of the Small Quartet) by Tamora Pierce!

By Nico

Wren has always dreamed of joining the Coven, where every witch and magical source train together to protect the land. But despite her magical gifts, that’s never been an option; her brother died years ago from a witch’s spell gone wrong, and her ailing father can’t handle the truth about what she is. So she cares for him as he gets sicker and hides her magic instead. Surely, it’s a small price to pay for keeping him alive.

But Wren’s life is shattered when her father falls victim to a deadly magical plague. Desperate, she seeks out the only person who might be able to help her: Tamsin, the village witch.

​Tamsin used to be the Coven’s most powerful witch. Now, though, what remains of her life after breaking the Coven’s most sacred rule has been consumed by their punishing curse: she can no longer experience love or joy unless she steals it from those around her. She has no good reason to work with dreamy, inexperienced Wren, or meddle again in the kind of magic that left her cursed in the first place. But she agrees to help Wren hunt down the witch responsible for the plague anyway, and as they search for the culprit—a search that brings them dangerously close to Tamsin’s own past—she begins to feel something for Wren that she was certain was impossible: love.

I went into this story all but certain that it wouldn’t surprise me. The heartless witch, the idealistic newbie, a shared quest that becomes a burgeoning romance—although I was looking forward to digging into Sweet and Bitter Magic, since it came highly recommended, I didn’t truly expect it to be anything I hadn’t read before. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Yes, all these tropes are present in the story, but they take an almost unrecognizable form beneath Tooley’s deft pen, weaving two characters I couldn’t help but fall in love with even as they fell in love with each other. Wren’s conflict is infinitely relatable; the conflict she feels between what she wants and what she feels is right, and the guilt she feels when pursuing her own dreams, made her instantly leap off the page. Tamsin, too, felt completely real. Where many characters like her are just canonically impartial and heartless, the fact that she quite literally cannot feel love—and her longing to—made her far more complex than others like her, and that combined with her spectacular backstory gave her character incredible depth. Tooley’s writing was absorbing from the very first page, and I didn’t want to leave behind the fascinating world and spectacular cast when the book came to a close. I highly recommend Sweet and Bitter Magic to fans of queer romance, superb characters, and engrossing storylines ages twelve and up. 

By Nico

Pia has been raised on Dantessa’s thousands of games: strategic queekers, fast-paced slaptrap, and even noctis, where competitors must play against Lady Death herself. She’s always dreamed of the day when she’ll turn twelve and become a Player herself, able to participate in the magical Great Game that determines standing and wealth in Dantessa and measures your worth at the games you play.

But when Pia’s gramps is forced to leave after his standing drops too low, she goes against all his advice and joins the competition at the center of the Great Game: greater noctis, where teams compete every year to secure the city’s future, win ultimate glory, and gain a prize sizable enough to rescue her gramps.

Winning against wealthier, better trained, highly competitive teams is hard enough. But alongside her new teammates, the Seafoxes, Pia soon realizes that to get what she wants, they can’t just win—they’ll have to defy everything the Great Game, and Dantessa, stands for.

I've loved some of Deva Fagan's previous novels, most notably The Mirrorwood, so I was thrilled to read A Game of Noctis. Hands-down, this is my new favorite book by her.

I often hesitate to call stories original, given the vast dialogue of books over time, but I fail to think of another way to describe the setting of this story. The use of games as the primary driving force/determinant of social standing in this world immediately grabbed my attention and refused to let it wane throughout. The idea of a world based on games at first glance seems both outrageous and idyllic, but A Game of Noctis manages to make it neither, creating a fresh and interesting setting.

I also loved how Fagan executed the flaws of this world. She manages to create a society that is clearly flawed, and whose flaws are examined and dissected, without falling prey to common dystopian tropes that might make the world feel flat. Certainly, all the characters are not objectively ‘good’, but I do truly believe that nearly all of them are doing their best to make things better, which made me enjoy the entire story so much more than I would have had it presented a binary, us-versus-them worldview.

The characters were also excellent. Getting to know the Seafoxes over the course of this story was one of my favorite parts of A Game of Noctis; my evolving understanding of them, particularly of Serafina and Pasquale, made me keep turning the pages. But Pia definitely stood among them all; tenacious and clever, I fell in love with her from page one. I highly recommend A Game of Noctis to readers ages nine and up who are looking for a fast-paced adventure that they won’t be able to resist falling in love with!


Thank you so much to Deva Fagan for sending a copy of A Game of Noctis in exchange for an honest review! All opinions here are my own. 

The City Beyond the Sea is the sequel to Greenwild, and the second book in the ongoing Greenwild series. If you haven’t already read Greenwild, look out – there are spoilers ahead!

The City Beyond the Sea will be released on June 4, 2024. 

Now that the Greenwild has woken up to the threat posed by the Grim Reapers, Daisy Thistledown is determined to finally travel to the Amazon and rescue her beloved mother. But then Daisy gets a surprise message from her mother that urges her to find a place still clouded in myth: Iffenwild, a cousin city to the Greenwild that hid itself away so long ago its very existence is under question.

With the help of a quirky, magical theater company, Daisy and her friends find their way into the Iffenwild. Iffenwild hasn’t been untouched by the Grim Reapers, though, and it’s up to Daisy and her friends to secure its people’s help—even if that means saving them first.

The City Beyond the Sea has all of the best aspects of fantasy sequels without any of the too-common letdowns. Thomson takes advantage of the established characters and world to deliver a fantastic, multilayered tale, one that never falters into the weaker plot of many second novels. In fact, I’d be hard-pressed to say that The City Beyond the Sea isn’t as good—or even better—as the first book in the series. Just as in the first book, Thomson takes a familiar genre and crafts a tale that manages to combine the nostalgia of past favorite fantasy books with a uniqueness and spark that make the story impossible to put down.

To begin with, the worldbuilding is top-notch. Worlds-within-our-world are not uncommon, but as in all of this book, Thomson brings something fundamentally fresh to this trope, creating a setting that brims with color and interest. I loved reading about the Greenwild in book 1, but it was impossible not to fall equally in love with Iffenwild, the Nautilus theater company, and every intricacy of this new setting. Thomson is able to describe so vividly I can see the world without slowing down the story—and the gorgeous illustrations fill in all the details!

I also loved the characters. Truly getting to know Daisy, the Prof, and her friends better was one of my favorite parts of this book, but the new cast, especially Max, can’t be discounted—every character feels vibrant and unique. In The City Beyond the Sea, there is certainly a lot of conflict between them at times, but if anything, that made me love them even more. Seeing them in their darker moments as well as their hopeful ones made them all dimensional, and made the highs and lows of the story all the more impactful.

Blending action, adventure, and atmosphere, I highly recommend The City Beyond the Sea equally to middle-grade readers themselves and to teens and adults who love the genre—I truly loved it!

​An e-ARC of this book was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

By Nico

All Olivia wants is to be as remarkable, as magical, as the rest of her family. But despite her best efforts, she can't develop the Tiller magic that makes her family such renowned healers. So, when her older sister invites her to accompany her to Arden’s capital as her apprentice, Olivia's family is certain that this is her only chance to amount to much of anything.

But when Olivia discovers that she's been offered a spot at the new Unicorn Academy—an experimental school that brings together students of all magical disciplines—she sees her chance to find her place. The only problem? Not everyone is convinced that the guilds’ newfound unity is a good idea. And when Olivia’s sister is accused of unicorn poaching, she and the school are caught in the crossfire.

Olivia, with help from her new friends, is determined to clear her sister’s name and uncover the real criminal before the conflict forces Unicorn Academy to close. But the secrets surrounding—and beneath—Unicorn Academy are more dangerous than Olivia imagined, and she soon realizes that learning the truth isn’t just about clearing her sister’s name.

For lovers of middle-grade fantasy who want a series opener that has the feel of an old favorite but with unique twists aplenty to draw you in, I definitely recommend Tangled Magic. The land of Arden was an awesome setting, with lots of intertwined history and magic that felt appropriately layered and deep without ever becoming confusing or info dump-y. Olivia and her friends were quite simply just fun to read about. Too many friendships feel forced, but the ones in this book never do, perhaps because they develop so naturally at the beginning of the story.

Although Tangled Magic is interconnected with a previous series set in Arden, I don’t think you’ll enjoy this book any less by not having read the earlier ones—I didn’t! Plus, I definitely want to go back and read the Unicorn Quest series now that I enjoyed Tangled Magic so much (at least, while I wait for the sequel, which I very much want to read after the ending of this one). I recommend Tangled Magic to readers ages eight and up who are looking for an exciting fantasy series to dig into.

​Thank you to author Kamilla Benko for providing an e-copy in exchange for an honest review! All opinions here are my own.

By Nico

Ramya’s grandfather was the only person who ever believed she was special. He was also the only person who believed her about the odd things she sees that no one else does. But it’s been years now since he was estranged from Ramya’s family, and she’s resigned to a life surrounded by teachers and other adults who write her off as lesser and stick her in remedial classes, never understanding that her neurodiversity doesn’t mean anything is wrong with her.

But everything changes when her grandfather leaves a book to her in his will—a book that introduces Ramya to the world only she can see, where mythical creatures and magic-users walk the streets of Edenborough beside her, disguised from human eyes.

It should be a fairytale come true. But everyone in the Hidden World is afraid of something—the sirens, whose love of sewing discord makes them a threat to everyone, magical and human alike. Ramya is the only one who can resist their powers, which means she’s the only one who has even a chance at stopping them. But the sirens have more than one way to dispose of their opponents, and Ramya will need all her courage, wit, and newfound friends to defeat them before they steal away everyone dear to her forever.

​Ramya is the kind of protagonist far too many would write off as unlikable, but on the contrary, she was exactly what I needed. The same qualities that some would deem unfortunate pulled me immediately into the story: her stubbornness, her uncompromising attitude, and most of all her firm conviction to be herself, to accept herself, no matter what everyone around her believes about her. The quiet anger that runs through this book, about the assumptions we make about others and the way society views people who don’t conform to the norm made what could’ve been a straightforward fantasy novel something I utterly adored. In particular, the seamless way magic and the modern day were intertwined grounded this book through all its twists and turns. And I absolutely loved the intertwined threads of neurodiversity and magic that ran through this book—I didn’t even know that was something I needed until I found it here. I highly recommend Like a Charm to readers ages nine and up. 

By Nico

Hitomi knows how to keep a secret. In fact, her life is full of them: her hatred of the tyrannical Arch Mage Blackflame, her magical abilities, and secrets hidden in her past. But right now, the one most likely to get her killed is her involvement in the Shadow League, a secret organization set on undermining Blackflame and freeing the city from his rule.

When Hitomi becomes part of the Shadow League’s latest mission—to rescue an outspoken family that’s attracted Blackflame’s ire—she expects it to be a typical operation. But when the plan goes awry, Hitomi must risk her life to protect the Shadow League.

If her other secrets come to life, she’ll be risking much more.

I loved Intisar Khanani’s novel Thorn, so I was extra excited to read Sunbolt. It didn’t disappoint. Despite its relatively short page count—or maybe in part because of it—the story brimmed with twists, curiosity, and details that made me utterly fall in love with these characters and this world. I think the worldbuilding was my favorite part of this book—although there were plenty of elements that were familiar, Khanani makes them into something utterly distinct, and I’m so glad there’s a sequel so I can plunge back into this world! There were so many unexpected twists and new settings in this book that it was consistently fast-paced and exciting without ever becoming confusing or convoluted. I highly recommend Sunbolt to lovers of quick, awesome fantasy (or anyone who loved Thorn!) ages twelve and up.

​Thank you to Intisar Khanani for providing an e-book copy of Sunbolt in exchange for an honest review!