A winsome tween protagonist steers this fun, quiet fantasy.
In this middle-grade debut and series launch, an orphan girl stuck in a subterranean world searches for a way home.
Sam has an awful lot of responsibilities for a 12-year-old. She cares for her little brother, Darby, who needs meds for recurring fevers, and for their guardian, Aunt C, who seemingly has bouts of dementia. One day, as a storm hits their North American town, the earth shakes, and Sam falls through a crack in the ground. Though initially alone in a gloomy, dank place, she quickly befriends others who tell her she’s in Under-Under. The leader down here, the Great Hildinski, surely can help Sam get back home, but this radiant, wooden-legged woman seems convinced that the tween stranger is a thief. Indeed, someone has stolen a “slice” of Under-Under’s solar-powered sun. Once Sam decides that recovering this sun piece will win over the Great Hildinski, she teams up with new friends as well as Darby and her cat, Gemini, who’ve somehow wound up belowground, too. But the thieves, who are also stealing Under-Under’s precious water, make a frightening bunch. Whatever’s short opening installment has a wonderful young hero. Sam is smart and softhearted, even when her family frustrates her. She’s witty, too, as when a character questions her courage with, “I thought you had some spunk,” and she retorts, in effect: Spunk, yes. Death wish, no. The story spotlights Sam’s journey as she picks up some helpful skills and periodically returns to the world above as an influential general threatens her country. Supporting characters entertain, particularly Darby and Gemini, who make the most of their occasional appearances. The author’s rough, almost childlike artwork flaunts a dark but colorful palette, making simple depictions of wolves and fish catch readers’ eyes. The ending, sadly, is a bit anticlimactic, though a sequel follows.
A winsome tween protagonist steers this fun, quiet fantasy.Pub Date: Oct. 26, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77731-968-7
Page Count: 204
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Oct. 5, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A spectacular return to a magical world.
Following the events of Impossible Creatures (2024), a devoted Guardian teams up with a brave princess to fight her power-hungry uncle and save the Archipelago’s dragons from a strange new threat.
Jacques the dragon summons Christopher Forrester back to the Archipelago from the human world: Dragons are dying, and no one knows why. Meanwhile, on the island of Dousha, Princess Anya’s grandfather, King Halam, has been murdered, and her father accused—though she knows he’s innocent. When Christopher and Anya take refuge on the islet of Glimt, the Berserker Nighthand helps them see how their twin missions to save the dragons and free Anya’s father are connected. They work together to create an antidote for the poison that’s killing the dragons and to keep Anya and her father safe from her murderous uncle. Meanwhile, Nighthand and Irian, the part-nereid ocean scholar, pursue their own important secret mission. Divided into three parts—“Castle,” “Dragons,” and “Revenge”—and containing elements of fairy tales, fantasy, and Shakespeare, this story continues the storyline established in the series opener, yet because it introduces new characters and obstacles, it could also stand alone. Dark-blond Anya (“five feet tall and all of it claws”) is a match for white-presenting Christopher, who, though he still misses Mal, finds that “it made a difference to have someone to move through the world with again. A friend changed the feel of the universe.” Mackenzie’s delicate, otherworldly art adorns the text.
A spectacular return to a magical world. (map, bestiary) (Fantasy. 10-15)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2025
ISBN: 9780593809907
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
PROFILES
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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