Thirteens

July 1, 2020

Gr 3-7-An enthralling mystery beats at the heart of this middle grade fantasy. Just before her 13th birthday, Eleanor is rescued from her burning home and sent to live with her relatives in the idyllic town of Eden Eld. Eden Eld is perfect-perhaps a little too perfect. No crime, no poverty, no graffiti on its streets, and though the mining and timber industries are long forgotten, money simply appears in the town coffers. But the price of perfection runs high; every 13 years, three children vanish from the community and are never heard from again. Eleanor and her two newfound friends are queued to be the next set of disappearances. Determined to fight back, they embark on a whirlwind adventure to save themselves and change the tide of history. Soon they are questioning who they can trust, including community pillars and their nearest and dearest, and scouring the town for clues about the arcane agreement that binds Eden Eld. Despite a promising premise and its interesting setting, the novel has plot and structure issues that make it a frustrating read. Eleanor and her friends solve several problems through spontaneous bursts of intuition and luck, causing readers to be given a chaotic ride rather than a carefully crafted story of suspense and resolution. But most disappointing was the tale ending in medias res. Mid-flight and mid-adventure, the three newly minted 13-year-olds barter for more time to solve their problems, and are granted an extra year. This disheartening finish leaves the work feeling incomplete. VERDICT Recommended for larger fiction collections committed to also purchasing the next book in the series.-Lauren Younger, Univ. of Dallas Lib.

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 15, 2020
Three preteens uncover the secret, supernatural history of their Oregon town. Following her mom's disappearance in a fire, Eleanor relocates to too-perfect Eden Eld to live with relatives. She devises a "How To Be Normal" plan to give herself a fresh start: don't talk about Mom or things that aren't there, go to school, and smile. But, when Eleanor meets classmates Otto and Pip, she almost immediately starts to stray from her plan. Otto and Pip can see the things Eleanor sees--the "wrong things"--like the giant black dog with red eyes that seems to be everywhere. The trio's strange connections go even deeper, proving to be more than mere coincidence. Local legends say that every 13th Halloween, on their shared 13th birthday, three children go missing. If the legends are true, Eleanor, Otto, and Pip will be the next to disappear. Can they stop fate before it's too late? Marshall's paranormal middle-grade debut reads like an expanded, kid-friendly version of Ursula LeGuin's The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas (1973). Though the characters, both child and adult, perhaps too readily accept their eerie reality without question, the well-laid clues and interwoven original fairy tales compel the plot forward. The cliffhanger ending--filled with juicy, unresolved revelations--hints at a much-needed sequel. Otto is brown-skinned; the rest of the cast is assumed White by default. "Wrong" in the right kind of way. (Suspense. 9-12)

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August 1, 2020
Grades 4-7 There's something off about Eden Eld. This picturesque town is a little too perfect, if you ask Eleanor, who has recently come to live there with her aunt and uncle. And surely that grandfather clock, ticking steadily backwards, wasn't outside of her bedroom when she first arrived. Marshall stokes the eerie vibes of her fantasy-imbued mystery right off the bat, and readers who get a thrill from chills will enjoy puzzling out Eden Eld's sinister secrets alongside Eleanor and her two new friends, Otto and Pip. The mysteries are all tied to a book of unsettling fairy tales, which holds clues to help the kids evade the wrong things following them through town?a red-eyed dog, a cat made of ashes, and a bone-rattling bird?and worst of all, nefarious adults. While a few coincidences are too convenient, the plot still holds surprises for the reader, and the mystery-house quality of Eleanor's new home holds innate appeal. With its ending primed for a sequel, hand this series starter to fans of Katherine Arden's Small Spaces (2018).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

August 17, 2020
Eleanor Barton, who will turn 13 in a few days, on Halloween, has just moved into Ashford House in picturesque Eden Eld, Ore., to live with her Aunt Jenny and Uncle Ben. Hoping to put her tragic past behind her, Eleanor is determined to ignore the “wrong things” only she can see—including a grandfather clock with backward-moving hands that has appeared outside her room, and an enormous black dog with glowing red eyes that seems to be following her. But new friends Pip Foster and Otto Ellis can see the wrong things, too, and soon Eleanor learns there’s more to Eden Eld than meets the eye. The truth behind why the wrong things appear—and why those who see them disappear—may lie in a book of unusual fairy tales and Ashford House itself. Though characterizations are slightly flat, Marshall (Rules for Vanishing) excels at employing eerie, atmospheric narration (“And everywhere, the purple flowers grew, their petals peeling back from their centers like sneering lips”). A fast-paced plot combined with the unsettling implications and logic of fairy tales ensures that this supernatural series starter will keep readers up at night. Ages 8–12. Agent: Lisa Rodgers, JABberwocky Literary.