Review: The Peculiar Peggs of Riddling Woods

Title: The Peculiar Peggs of Riddling Woods
Author: Samuel J. Halpin
Series: – –
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
Age Range: 9+
Available: Now

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This is the story of a sleepy town called Suds. A place where stories fill the air of children who keep turning grey and disappearing without a trace…

Poppy and Erasmus are certain there’s something peculiar going on in Suds, and they’re determined to unravel its secrets. But when they discover the answers might lie in the darking and twisting woods, can they find the courage to creep inside and solve this riddling mystery?

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Review: Spell Mason

 Title: Spell Mason
Author: Alex C. Vick
Series: Light Mage #2
Genre: YA Fantasy
Length: Novel
Available: Now

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Devin is a Light Mage on the run. When his boyfriend is accused of murder and sentenced to death, Devin manages to rescue him just in time. The two boys escape the magical dimensions for Tudor England, hoping to remain anonymous while they figure out what’s going on.

But witchcraft is a capital offense in the sixteenth century. It’s not the best place for a pair of seventeen-year-old Light Mages to hide, especially when one of them doesn’t know he’s carrying a deadly tracking spell. In order to have any chance of clearing their names, they’ll have to accept help from some unlikely sources and push the limits of their combined magical abilities.

The alleged murder could change things forever. Light Mages are the trusted protectors of the earthbound dimension. Discrediting them could turn magical society upside down. The stakes are high, and the potential prize is more than enough to turn any magician’s head.

All Devin has to do is stay alive long enough to uncover the truth. 

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Review: The Girl with the Shark’s Teeth

Title: The Girl with the Shark’s Teeth
Author: Cerrie Burnell
Series: – –
Genre: Children’s Fantasy
Length: Novel
Available: Now

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Minnow is different from the other girls in her town and there’s plenty to set her apart: the blossom of pale scars which lie beneath Minnow’s delicate ears, the fact that she has an affinity with the water which leaves people speechless, and that once – she is sure – in deep, deep water, her body began to glow like a sunken star. 

When her mum gets into trouble and is taken from their boat in the dead of night, Minnow is alone with one instruction: sail to Reykjavik to find your grandmother, she will keep you safe. Minnow has never sailed on her own before, but the call of the deep is a call she’s been waiting to answer her whole young life. 

Perhaps a girl who is lost on land can be found in the Wild Deep. 

The stunning middle grade debut from Cerrie Burnell.

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Review: Storm Hound

Title: Storm Hound
Author: Claire Fayers
Series: ?
Genre: Children’s Fantasy
Length: Novel
Available: Now

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Storm of Odin is the youngest stormhound of the Wild Hunt that haunts lightning-filled skies. He has longed for the time when he will be able to join his brothers and sisters but on his very first hunt he finds he can’t keep up and falls to earth, landing on the A40 just outside Abergavenny.

Enter twelve-year-old Jessica Price, who finds and adopts a cute puppy from an animal rescue centre. And suddenly, a number of strange people seem very interested in her and her new pet, Storm. People who seem to know a lot about magic . . .

In Claire Fayers’ electrifying adventure Storm Hounds, Jessica starts to see that there’s something different about her beloved dog and will need to work out which of her new friends she can trust.

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Review: A Darkness of Dragons

Title: A Darkness of Dragons
Author: S.A. Patrick
Series: Songs of Magic #1
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
Age Range: 9+
Available: Now

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After playing a forbidden spell-song to save a village from rats, 12-year-old piper Patch Brightwater is thrown in jail. But there he meets Wren – a noble girl under a rat-shaped curse – and together they befriend Barver, a fearsome dracogriff, and set off on a grand adventure filled with sorcerers, dragons, bandits…and one very deadly enemy.

From the depths of the Tiviscan dungeons to the highest peak of Gemspar Mountain, this stunning book reminds us of the soaring joy of adventure, the captivating danger of magic, and of the delight of finding friends in unexpected places.

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Review: Spell Tracker

Title: Spell Tracker
Author: Alex C. Vick
Series: Light Mage #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Length: Novel
Available: Now

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Luca has a problem his magic can’t solve. The boy he’s loved since they fought side-by-side as gladiators in Ancient Rome is about to die for the last time. Luca’s only chance to prevent it is to make a deal with the Spell Tracker, who demands Luca’s own life as collateral.

At seventeen years old, Luca is a Light Mage, the rarest of magicians. He’s able to navigate the earthbound dimension without losing his memory of its magical counterpart. Like an invisible kind-hearted ghost, he helps others to graduate their life paths and take up their chosen magical professions.

But this time, with the help of the Spell Tracker, Luca is earthbound again for real as a high school senior. The boy he’s here to save is nothing like he expected, and before long his head and his heart are all over the place, as well as his intended rescue.

The Spell Tracker can hardly wait for him to fail. The life of this particular Light Mage is something he’s wanted for a very long time…

Spell Tracker, the first book in the Light Mage series, is a contemporary fantasy story with time travel, m/m romance, and no cliffhanger. Additional content information is available via the Look Inside feature on Amazon. Recommended for 14+

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Review: Twice Magic

Title: Twice Magic
Author: Cressida Cowell
Series: Wizards of Once #2
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
Age Range: 9+
Available: Now

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This was once the story of a young boy Wizard and a young girl Warrior who had been taught since birth to hate each other like poison.

But now, the boy Wizard and girl Warrior have been brought together in the Badwoods and they have witnessed the shocking consequences of the Stone That Takes Away Magic. They will need to cast aside their differences once more–for an Evil Spell has broken free.

It’s up to Xar and Wish to find the ingredients. But it means entering dangerous territory unannounced…

Cressida Cowell brings her trademark wit to this spellbinding sequel, along with the stunning artwork and heartfelt adventure that has made her beloved around the world, weaving a story that is sure to transport readers to a world that will enchant and bewitch them.

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Review: Lionheart

Title: Lionheart
Author: Thea Harrison
Series: Moonshadow #3
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Length: Novel
Available: Now

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From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Thea Harrison comes the final story in her spellbinding Moonshadow trilogy…

King Oberon reigned over his Dark Court in Lyonesse for centuries, until an assassination attempt laid him low. Now he lies unconscious in his snow-bound palace, while his Power battles the enchantment that threatens to end his life.

A skilled trauma surgeon and magic-user, Dr. Kathryn Shaw reigns at the top of her profession in New York. Then comes a challenge she can’t resist—she is asked to cure the uncureable. Just getting close enough to try healing Oberon is a dangerous proposition. When she does reach him, he awakens too soon.

Roused from darkness by Kathryn’s presence, Oberon confronts the beautiful stranger who claims she wants to save his life. But the enchantment has frozen his emotions. How can he learn to trust her when he can’t feel anything?

Oberon’s desire is icy, devoid of all tenderness. Not only must Kathryn match wits with him, she must also fight her reaction to his touch, because there is so much more at stake than her own endangered heart.

For the Dark Court faces its most deadly peril yet. Its ancient enemy Isabeau, Queen of the Light Court, is obsessed with its annihilation, and Oberon must be brought to remember his loyalty and affection for his people.

Because if he won’t fight for them, Lyonesse itself may very well be destroyed…

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Review: Witchsign

Title: Witchsign
Author: Den Patrick
Series: Ashen Torment #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Length: Novel
Available: Now

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From celebrated YA author Den Patrick comes WITCHSIGN, the first novel in a fresh and exciting new fantasy trilogy 

It has been seventy-five years since the dragons’ rule of fire and arcane magic over Vinkerveld was ended, and the Empire was born. Since, the tyrannical Synod has worked hard to banish all manifestations of the arcane across the lands. 

However, children are still born bearing the taint of the arcane, known to all as witchsign. So each year the Emperor sends out his Vigilants across the continent to detect the arcane in these children. Those found tainted are taken, and never seen again. Steiner has always suspected his sister Kjellrunn of bearing witchsign. But when their father’s attempt to protect her from the Invigilation backfires, it is Steiner who is mistakenly taken. However it is not death which awaits Steiner, but an Academy where the children with witchsign learn to master their powers – some at the cost of their lives. Steiner is determined to escape the Academy and protect his sister from this fate.

But powerful enemies await him at every turn, and Steiner finds himself taken on a journey straight into the heart of the Empire’s deepest secrets, which will force him to reconsider everything he has known about witchsign.

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Review: Tempests and Slaughter

Title: Tempests and Slaughter
Author: Tamora Pierce
Series: Numair Chronicles #1
Genre: Teen Fantasy
Length: Novel
Available: 6th Sept (UK)

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Arram. Varice. Ozorne. In the first book in the Numair Chronicles, three student mages are bound by fate . . . fated for trouble.

Arram Draper is a boy on the path to becoming one of the realm’s most powerful mages. The youngest student in his class at the Imperial University of Carthak, he has a Gift with unlimited potential for greatness–and for attracting danger. At his side are his two best friends: Varice, a clever girl with an often-overlooked talent, and Ozorne, the “leftover prince” with secret ambitions. Together, these three friends forge a bond that will one day shape kingdoms. And as Ozorne gets closer to the throne and Varice gets closer to Arram’s heart, Arram begins to realize that one day soon he will have to decide where his loyalties truly lie. 

In the Numair Chronicles, readers will be rewarded with the never-before-told story of how Numair Salmalín came to Tortall. Newcomers will discover an unforgettable fantasy adventure where a kingdom’s future rests on the shoulders of a talented young man with a knack for making vicious enemies.

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