This story has all the makings of a classic folktale: fierce friendships, non-stop action, and short, cliff-hanger chapters to keep you right on the edge of your seat! Chaya is a thief with a heart for justice and she's on the run from the king. She's not only trying to avoid capture, but to survive the unknown jungle alongside her two unlikely companions. It's a story that feels timeless and fresh all at once. And whether it's your next read or your next read-aloud, lower elementary readers are in for a treat!
Adventure is the last thing Barclay wants, and he's sure he won't find any apprenticed to a mushroom farmer. An accidental trip to the woods flings him into a hidden world of magic, Beasts, Beast collectors, and all the adventure he thought he didn't want.
Barclay's world is quirky and weird, and I'm so jealous I can't wander into the woods, bond with a Beast, and gain magical powers, too! Perfect for fans of Pokemon, How To Train Your Dragon, and Harry Potter!
This crime-horror-fantasy is set in the dark swamps of Arkansas, where evil men and an ancient creature are restless with their own dangerous desires. Miranda Crabtree, a quiet and haunted ferrywoman for a ruthless cartel, keeps her head down and avoids colliding with anyone outside of her secret found family. But when an unexpected package is delivered to her boat, a series of events are set off over the course of 48 hours, including but not limited to Slavic bathhouse demons, squished eyeballs, and vengeful house spirits.
Amari's adventure begins when she receives a package from her missing brother. Before he went missing, he nominated her for an elite summer camp with the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. She has a lot of catching up to do if she wants to fit in with her supernatural peers and solve her brother's disappearance!
Mesmerizing. Strange. Glorious.
I have to thank fellow bookseller Nicole for introducing me to this stunning book. The technical skill left me astonished. I wanted a bench, as though in a museum, to sit and quietly take in each page of black-and-white pen-and-ink line drawings. Van den Ende's debut is a wordless story of a small paper boat's epic journey across a vast and fathomless ocean. It teems with myriad flora and fauna that reside somewhere between fairy tale and reality. It intrigues. It beguiles. An elegant testament to solitude, strength, and bravery.
This is one of the best YA fantasy novels I ever read! It's got political intrigue, magic, romance and Bolivian folklore which makes this novel stand out from others. Fast paced and gorgeously written. Look out for the sequel too!!
Open this exquisite cover and enter a world equally dark and beautiful, a world where every captivating character is both hero and villain of their own story, their fellow characters' stories and the novel as a whole. And make no mistake, this is a sweeping #ownvoices fantasy. Epic in scope and using as it's foundation the mythology of the pre-Columbian Americas, the first book of the Between Earth and Sky series introduces a cast of incredibly diverse characters within a gripping political and religious plot that I could not put down.
Initially it rankles me, but books which force me to slow down from my usual reading pace and take nothing for granted... these are the books that often turn out most memorable. Case in point.
Few, if any, are writing fantasy at Clarke's level today, and this is a book I'll never forget. In the beginning the novel made me think of Borges and Mervyn Peake and, even more, of a couple books by Magnus Mills. Ultimately, I was reminded most of ideas in some of filmmaker Christopher Nolan's work. Clarke, though, takes her subject where only she could.
A gripping murder mystery in a smartly constructed world of magic, mages, and trolls. This multiple POV narrative chronicles the complex political and religious forces that affect ambitious student magician Onna, charming soldier Jeckran, and compassionate half-troll Tsira. The interplay of power, revenge, and zeal execute slowly but purposefully as Onna's career and Tsira's pursuit converge in wealthy city Hexos.
Set aside your preconceived notions: this is neither a postscript 'Harry Potter' nor a derivative apocalyptic novel. This is a compelling fantasy for fans of alternative timelines (two Chicagos), anti-hero narratives (Sloan is pissed off and NOT okay), and magic co-existing with our sense of reality.
