WHERE THERE BE SPIES

In this sequel to Where There Be Monsters (2025), a tween balances the challenges of her new interplanetary boarding school with leading fellow adventurers to find a missing artifact.

Glory Brown is excited for her first day at the Parliamentarium of Junior Spherinauts. Despite still seeing the magical auras that are reminders of former government official Paxton’s curse, she’s finally following in her Spherinaut mom’s footsteps. But school life is different than Glory imagined. Her roommate is a jerk, her friendship with Marcus’ friend Ellie seems doomed, and she’s scared that people are treating her differently because she’s “mazyheaded” (cued as neurodivergent), or, worse, because her mom’s famous. When an important Spherinautical chart that Glory touched goes missing during an Outersphere field trip, Glory and Marcus, who defends her, become targets of mean, discriminatory gossip. Glory is sure that Paxton is behind the theft. If Glory can find her and get the map back, she can prove that she deserves to be at the Parliamentarium—but her determination may do more harm than good. The book shines in its creative, immersive worldbuilding. Glory’s coming-of-age journey has more impact than the storyline involving the antagonist, and some events seem to occur largely to serve the plot, but the story contains enough action to maintain interest. Readers who clearly remember the series opener will better appreciate this one. The first volume established that Glory and Marcus are Black.

A solid sequel.