The Wrinkled Crown

September 7, 2015
Nesbet’s (A Box of Gargoyles) charming though predictable fantasy introduces Linny, about to turn 12. In her mountain village of Lourka, that milestone will keep her out of danger, since any girlchild who has ever touched a lourka (the village’s eponymous musical instrument) will be spirited away by evil Voices on her 12th birthday. Linny has not only touched a lourka, she has fashioned one of her own; yet when the day comes, the Voices take her best friend Sayra instead. Linny ventures beyond her mountains for a way to bring Sayra back, discovering in the strange lands of the Broken City that there is an ancient prophecy she resembles about the Girl with the Lourka, and that she is being swept up into a revolution far beyond her control. Spritely characterization, complex worldbuilding, and efforts to create a landscape of moral ambiguity nearly balance Nesbet’s thoroughly telegraphed plot and tendency to drop threads of story. Linny herself, despite being something of a cliché of the spirited heroine, has enough interiority and dimension to maintain interest. Ages 8–12.

September 1, 2015
A rebellious girl breaks a community taboo, unintentionally endangers her dearest friend, and scrambles through a series of dangerous encounters to make things right. Nesbet's confident worldbuilding creates a fascinating picture of two diametrically opposed cultures: wrinkled (pastoral, magical, and mysterious) and Plain (filled with hard surfaces and sharp angles, technologically advanced, and deeply suspicious of magic). She populates this world with characters simultaneously familiar and fresh. There's heroine Linnet, friend and companion Elias, a scheming magician, a power-hungry regent, a mad scientist of sorts, a helpful, newly discovered relative, and a magical cat, among others. Each plays a role as Linny travels the length of the world to seek a remedy for her friend Sayra's sickness. The plot gallops along from capture to escape and triumph to disaster, with multiple instances of each and cliffhangers aplenty. Meanwhile, the author paints a thought-provoking picture of the ways that misunderstandings and miscommunication can create animosity and how both the conflicts of those in power and the power of story can shape the lives of everyday citizens. The messages are clear; luckily they are delivered with enough subtlety to keep the tone from turning preachy. With hints of a sequel to come, this agreeable adventure introduces an appealing, spunky heroine and sets the stage for more conflict and compromise to come. (Fantasy. 10-14)

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Starred review from August 1, 2015

Gr 3-7-Linny is approaching her coming-of-age "twelve ceremony," when she will at last be able to touch a lourka-the almost magical, exquisitely toned, stringed instrument, named for Linny's village in the wrinkled hills. The instrument has been forbidden to her until now. The trouble is, Linny has already broken this strict rule and made her own lourka, which she plays in secret, and only her best friend Sayra knows. This transgression sets in motion a chain of events that leaves Linny no choice but to journey to Bend, the Broken City of the plains, to find a remedy for the curse she has inadvertently caused to threaten Sayra's life. Fortunately for Linny, her good friend Elias will not let her go alone. Facing a host of Orwellian gray-suited map-making enemies and with the assistance of a Half-Cat and a magician, Linny discovers that her journey has already been foretold, right down to the very dress she wears, given to her by her mother for her birthday. War is imminent in the Broken City as magic clashes with math and science, and when Elias and Linny are separated, Elias is recruited as a terrorist. Linny must use all her intelligence and intuition to save them both. Nesbet has a sure touch in bringing this breathless tale to tween readers. Her characters are realistic and likable. Nesbet's writing is deft and unpredictable, with adventure following adventure, keeping readers hooked to the end, and with hints of a sequel to come. Linny's strength lies in her willingness to embrace scientific knowledge and marry it to the magic of intuition. The Broken City can be a metaphor for many current destabilized regions, but it's a place where a young girl can save the world if she uses her intelligence-and learns to read a map. VERDICT This well-developed fantasy/adventure is a first purchase for middle grade collections.-Jane Barrer, United Nations International School, New York City

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