Review: Westfallen by Ann Brashares and Ben Brashares

Westfallen by Ann Brashares and Ben Brashares

Westfallen
Ann Brashares and Ben Brashares
Simon & Schuster
Published September 17, 2024

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About Westfallen

From #1 New York Times bestselling Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants author Ann Brashares and her brother Ben Brashares comes an action-packed middle grade alternate history thriller that asks what it would be like to wake up in present-day America if Germany had won World War II.

Henry, Frances, and Lukas are neighbors, and they used to be best friends. But in middle school, things can change fast—Frances has become an emo art-girl, Lukas has gone full sports bro, and Henry has gone sort … Continue reading

Review: Lies We Conjure by Sarah Henning

The Lies We Conjure by Sarah Henning

Lies We Conjure
Sarah Henning
Tor Teen
Published September 17, 2024

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About Lies We Conjure

Knives Out meets The Inheritance Games with magic in this standalone supernatural thriller by Sarah Henning: thirteen witches, a locked-room murder, and two non-magical sisters trapped in a deadly game of Clue

Ruby and her sister, Wren, are normal, middle-class Colorado high school students working a summer job at the local Renaissance Fest to supplement their meager college savings.

So when an eccentric old lady asks them to impersonate her long-absent grandchildren at a fancy dinner party at the jaw-dropping rate of two grand―each―for … Continue reading

Review: Greta by J. S. Lemon

Greta by J. S. Lemon

Greta
J. S. Lemon
Farrar, Straus, & Giroux
Published September 10, 2024

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About Greta

J. S. Lemon’s middle grade debut is an utterly transformative, fiercely original, and surprisingly funny story about consent, friendship, healing, and a beauty that transcends all else. 

Greta Goodwin’s life is changing. On top of moving to a new neighborhood far away from her best friend, Lotti, she’s also starting middle school. Greta isn’t totally ready for boys, bras, and bad cafeteria food. She still feels like a little kid compared to those female classmates who have suddenly matured over the summer. Girls … Continue reading

Review: The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

The Hazel Wood (The Hazel Wood #1)
Melissa Albert
Flatiron Books
Published January 30, 2018

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About The Hazel Wood

Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice’s grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: her mother is stolen away-by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother’s … Continue reading

Review: Jaden Powers and the Inheritance Magic by Jamar J. Perry

Jaden Powers and the Inheritance Magic by Jamar J. Perry

Jaden Powers and the Inheritance Magic
Jamar J. Perry
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published August 27, 2024

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About Jaden Powers and the Inheritance Magic

In this magical middle grade fantasy perfect for fans of The Marvellers and Amari and the Night Brothers, a shy boy must step up and become his own hero after his best friend disappears at a magical school. 

Jaden and Elijah have been best friends since they were born. They’re so close that Jaden doesn’t even mind that he’s constantly living in talented, high-achieving Elijah’s shadow-well, he doesn’t mind much.

But then Elijah disappears, leaving … Continue reading

Review: Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

Once Upon a Broken Heart (Once Upon a Broken Heart #1)
Stephanie Garber
Flatiron Books
Published September 28, 2021

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About Once Upon a Broken Heart

How far would you go for happily ever after?

For as long as she can remember, Evangeline Fox has believed in true love and happy endings… until she learns that the love of her life will marry another.

Desperate to stop the wedding and to heal her wounded heart, Evangeline strikes a deal with the charismatic but wicked Prince of Hearts. In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to … Continue reading