A rousing entry in a consistently engaging supernatural saga that shows no signs of slowing down.
This fourth installment of Tansley’s paranormal YA series follows a modern-day teenage spellcaster as she confronts dark magic in the 16th century.
Four families have been locked in a “life-and-death struggle” with numerous outside enemies for centuries. To uncover the origins of that bond, high schooler Kat, a Langley heir, puts together a powerful spell. She and several friends, including at least one ancestor from the other three families (Kingsley, Radcliffe, and Mallory), use magical mirrors to travel to their ancestral homes and gather the spell’s ingredients. Their enemies, which include “dark warlocks,” target each set of travelers and one individual’s fate is thrown into question. Later, Kat casts the spell, which sends her and three allies to 1591 England and into the bodies of their ancestors. They arrive just as six families are planning their centennial renewal of the sinister Dark One’s seal. However, Kat, who’s currently inhabiting the body of Lorelei Langley, soon learns of a plan to weaken that seal and allow a terrifying evil to escape. Tansley, following up The Girl Who Loved Ghosts (2019), packs this series entry with supernatural elements, including the eponymous ghosts, scene-stealing telepathic gargoyles, and, of course, time travel, which Kat attempts without the magical-mirror portals. The novel’s first half, with the search for ingredients breaking the cast up in various locales, moves at a sluggish pace, mostly due to relentless nods to earlier installments, which also involved travel into the past. However, the story picks up when it centers on Kat and Lorelei; the author skillfully tackles their dual personalities, as it’s clear when Kat is checking in with her friends (such as romantic interest Evan in Ian Kingsley’s body) and when Lorelei, who’s unaware of Kat’s presence, takes the reins. The final act, while exciting, is more invested in setting up another sequel than in providing a firm resolution.
A rousing entry in a consistently engaging supernatural saga that shows no signs of slowing down.Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2025
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 332
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: June 25, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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