The Court of Miracles

May 11, 2020
Grant’s ambitious debut, which launches a trilogy inspired by Les Misérables and The Jungle Book, opens in 1823 Paris, where the criminal underground comprises nine guilds bound by a governing body dubbed the Miracle Court. Olive-skinned Eponine (“Nina”) is just nine when her rage-filled father, Thénardier, sells her older sister, Azelma, to the Guild of Flesh’s ruthless leader, Kaplan (“the Tiger”). To spare Nina the same fate, Azelma arranges for the fledgling cat burglar to join the Guild of Thieves, thus earning her its leader’s protection. Court law forbids guilds from interfering in each other’s affairs, but that doesn’t stop Nina from attempting to rescue Azelma—or from plotting to thwart the Tiger when, six years later, he sets his sights on Cosette, Thénardier’s 12-year-old ward. Vividly sketched characters, high stakes, and a harrowing plot distinguish Grant’s tale, which champions justice and found family while opposing human trafficking. Nina’s tender relationship with Cosette offsets the story’s brutality, and her flirtations with a merciless assassin, a passionate revolutionary, and others inject humor and romance. Ages 14–up. Agent: Josh Adams, Adams Literary.

In this series opener, narrator Ajjaz Awad perfectly crafts the fierce and determined voice of Nina as she traverses hardships in an alternative French world brimming with competition. Awad's pronunciation of French locations and phrases sounds authentic, offering the listener the opportunity to connect with the French culture. Using a crisp voice, Awad showcases Nina's cutthroat and menacing demeanor while she commits burglaries as a member of the Thieves Guild. Narrator John Lee expertly voices the stories of the Miracle Court throughout the book. This young adult fantasy has a lot of action and drama, and Awad brings it all to life, enhancing the desperation of the characters. J.O. � AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

September 1, 2020

Gr 9 Up-Narrator Ajjaz Awad brings Nina, the heroine in Grant's debut novel, to life, using a rough vocal pattern that creates an audio mise en sc�ne suggestive of poverty and abuse. In this alternate Paris and interesting reboot of Les Mis�rables, France has not succumbed to revolution. Louis XVII sits on the thrown but never imagines as he rules above, so rule the nine guilds below: over beggars, thieves, assassins, gamblers, mercenaries, smugglers, prostitutes, opium-eaters, and men of letters. Awad wields her voice with as much fluency as Nina wields her own weapons and native cunning as she battles the dreaded Tiger, lord of the Guild of Flesh, to whom her corrupt father has sold Nina's older sister. Brief historic interludes taken from mythopoetic sources read in a modulated, scholarly style by noted actor John Lee add depth. VERDICT Recommended for those who enjoy a good tale-not quite fantasy but certainly otherworldly..-David Faucheux, Lafayette, LA

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