THE ADVENTURES OF MULBERRY MANOR

Teenage siblings are caught in the middle of a war involving superpowers and otherworldly creatures in Foreman’s SF novel.

Jade and Teddy Nicholson are taken to spend their summer with Mabel, a family friend they don’t remember. Their father drops them off at a manor in suburban Lakeside Estates before joining his wife on a business trip of unspecified duration. Jade suspects her secretive parents are actually part of a government agency. Before she and her younger brother can even settle in, reptilian beasts attack the manor. Luckily, Mabel has allies who boast impressive attributes, such as arms that turn into gigantic tentacles (“in an effortless gesture, the two tentacles jerked in separate directions, ripping the snakelike being in half”). Jade’s guess about her parents isn’t so far off—only the bureau they work for specializes in menaces that aren’t human and are not from this dimension. This particular bunch of lizard-like baddies has a specific target in mind: Jade herself. Mabel and the others fight to keep both kids safe and try to figure out what the villains are up to. Foreman’s novel drops readers into the story, introducing a horde of characters in the opening scenes; it’s a lot to take, in but also great fun once the action starts, with superpowers and exotic skills on full display. A few characters stand out, including Sasquatch, formidable opponent who’s exactly as advertised. The drawback to this loaded cast is that the spotlight gradually moves away from Jade and Teddy, whose sense of discovery becomes less and less essential to the narrative. Still, the prolonged, action-laden final act reveals surprises about Jade and features copious good guys in peril, along with some sad losses. There’s more than one cliffhanger and plenty of ground cleared for future installments to explore.

An exhilarating fantasy jam-packed with supernatural clashes.