An adorable adventure with a thrilling ending: Readers will be excited for the next volume.
A witch and a vampire-turned-cat team up in this compilation of entries from a popular WEBTOON comic series.
Morgana only wants her magic to not be so erratic; it’d be nice to actually get a spell right once in a while. Her family has more ambitious aspirations, however: Her mom wants peace between the witches and a dangerous vampire clan. Their relationship has been tense for some time, but when an attempt at conciliation goes south, the problems escalate. In the chaos, Morgana accidentally transforms one of the vampires, Oz, into a little white, red-eyed cat. Turning him back, when she can’t even manage making tea, might be tough, and Oz’s clan thinks he’s been kidnapped and won’t let this go. Between possible traitors and a brewing war, Morgana must do her best to help Oz so she can help her family. As the stakes rise, vampires start becoming sick with a craving for witches’ blood, thanks to a curse supposedly inflicted on them by Morgana’s family. Morgana doesn’t know what to do, or whom to turn to. Could a mysterious new arrival be an ally? The adorable full-color art in contrasting tones of purples, rich browns, and pastels portrays scenes that are at times laugh-out-loud funny. Morgana is a sweetly naïve protagonist, and the intrigue is engrossing.
An adorable adventure with a thrilling ending: Readers will be excited for the next volume. (Manga. 13-18)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9781998854837
Page Count: 320
Publisher: WEBTOON Unscrolled
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2024
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
A disappointing final installment.
This trilogy closer scatters its characters across magical worlds as they try to save themselves from a terrible fate.
Cornelius Clover plans to sacrifice the magical people known as the keys from each of the four worlds in order to absorb the power of the deity Atheia and become a godlike figure himself. Atheia has other ideas, instead taking Romie Brysden as a vessel and embarking on a mission to destroy those who use the magic of her shadowy counterpart, the deity Sidraeus. Emory Ainsleif and Basil “Baz” Brysden, Romie’s best friend and brother, respectively, refuse to let all this happen—even if it’s said that “fate is already written.” Emory partners with Sidraeus, and Baz works under a mysterious god of balance to try to save Kai Salonga. The four worlds—and all magic users—face a dire fate unless Romie, Emory, Baz, and Kai can change the story. The clear worldbuilding established in the previous two books seems to slip from Lacelle’s grasp in this entry; the distinctions among the vessels, gods, and deities (the latter two are distinct) blur in confusing ways. The abundance of whimsically named characters wielding different types of magic slows the story, and the overarching message of love and forgiveness triumphing over evil suffers from a lack of subtlety. Strong queer representation undergirds the narrative, and readers will enjoy following Baz and Kai’s budding romance. Central characters present white.
A disappointing final installment. (maps, Sacred Lunar Houses & their tidal alignments) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 7, 2026
ISBN: 9781665970389
Page Count: 592
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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