Cover for book Heir

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Fans of Sabaa Tahir’s Ember in the Ashes series will love this spinoff duology. Full of all the elements which Tahir’s fans are used to (stunning prose, enthralling mythology, and deeply relatable characters) this book easily grabs the readers’ attention and holds on to it. Set 20 years after the conclusion of the Ember series, this novel follows Quil (the baby Ember fans saw born in that quartet) now as a grown man ready to take the throne of the Martial Empire. A series of events force Quil and his best friends Arelia and Sufiyan (another descendant of characters from the last series) to travelRead More →

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With her recent book for middle grade readers, Impossible Creatures, Katherine Rundell tells a tale of possibility. While the book soars on the fringes of imagination, with its talk of griffins, berserkers, unicorns, and sphinxes, it recounts the power of courage, determination, and a fierce passion for protection. It tells the story of two young people, Malum Arvorian and Christopher Forrester who have an allegiance to wild and living things. Rundell is herself a magician when it comes to creating characters and putting them into situations where their best selves emerge. For example, although Mal’s Aunt Leonor is a sullen and gruff character, she putsRead More →

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While not intended to teach Hindu mythology, We Shall Be Monsters by Tara Sim provides mythological cues and is a loose reimagining of the myth of Halahala. And because mythology is a mirror of humankind, Sim’s story has power to speak to all readers. Set in Dharati, India, We Shall Be Monsters features Kajal, who vows to bring her sister Lasya back from death. Because her body isn’t burned soon enough after death, Lasya warps into a bhuta, a wraithlike ghost with the ability to claim lives of its own. With her abilities to revive the dead, Kajal hopes to give her sister life againRead More →

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A.A. Vora has written a clever and creative allegory with her novel Spin of Fate. Vora bases her fantasy on Indian philosophy and lore, including a glossary “Of Language and Nomenclature” to assist readers. She also tackles some relevant social topics like borders, poverty, bigotry, prejudice, and religion. In this first installment of what promises to be a series, readers meet sixteen-year-old Aina, who lives in Malin until—against all odds—she inexplicably ascends to Mayana. “Mayana is an idyllic realm, free of Malin’s monsters and violence and corruption. Free from the tyranny of Kaldrav’s reign, from being hunted by his soldiers. It is a realm protectedRead More →

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Io Ora lives in the Silts, a city that’s constantly battered by flood waters and the ill will of those who distrust other-born like Io. Io is a cutter, descendent of the Fates, sister to a spinner and a drawer. She has the power to see life threads– and sever them. She uses that power to make a living as a private investigator, supporting herself and her sister Ava. What starts as a routine infidelity investigation ends in a murder case when her target is murdered by a Wraith, a woman whose life-thread has been severed and should be dead. This case brings her toRead More →