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A review by katykelly
Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston
4.0
Men in Black meets Harry Potter.
This will prove very popular, I feel. With elements of a familiar young wizard's story and world, with monsters and villains and plots, and with a diverse cast that give a wide readership a new heroine to root for, this has a lot going for it.
Amari experiences a lot of prejudice and bullying for being the 'scholarship kid' at a school where mainly privileged children go. She's already suffering the loss of her beloved elder brother, missing for several months. And now she's looking at exclusion for standing up for herself.
She realises that her brother may have been hiding a lot from her though, after mysterious objects and people turn up, and she finds herself nominated, by him, to join a new academic establishment... a magical one.
With intolerance and bullying still at play, but now with magical powers, creatures and cultures coming at her from all sides, it's a 'magic school' story with the initiation of Men in Black. And Amari wants in, if it can help her find out what happened to Quintin, who she knows isn't dead, but deeply involved in this world.
An enjoyable story to listen to, Amari is voiced well and sounds her age, the Audible copy moves quickly though most readers may prefer to read this at their own pace.
The elements you expect in this kind of story are there - mentors, friends and enemies at school, challenges and trials, powers and lessons, teachers and of course villains to be thwarted with teamwork.
I enjoyed the way the author built a world around Amari that can be followed up in future stories, the elements are in place for a whole series to continue this first episode. She's a bright, brave and inspiring young protagonist that gives readers a new sort of hero to root for.
Lots of fun, plenty of Potter-like familiarity with lots of different features that make this fresh and current.
For ages 9-14.
With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample Audible copy.
This will prove very popular, I feel. With elements of a familiar young wizard's story and world, with monsters and villains and plots, and with a diverse cast that give a wide readership a new heroine to root for, this has a lot going for it.
Amari experiences a lot of prejudice and bullying for being the 'scholarship kid' at a school where mainly privileged children go. She's already suffering the loss of her beloved elder brother, missing for several months. And now she's looking at exclusion for standing up for herself.
She realises that her brother may have been hiding a lot from her though, after mysterious objects and people turn up, and she finds herself nominated, by him, to join a new academic establishment... a magical one.
With intolerance and bullying still at play, but now with magical powers, creatures and cultures coming at her from all sides, it's a 'magic school' story with the initiation of Men in Black. And Amari wants in, if it can help her find out what happened to Quintin, who she knows isn't dead, but deeply involved in this world.
An enjoyable story to listen to, Amari is voiced well and sounds her age, the Audible copy moves quickly though most readers may prefer to read this at their own pace.
The elements you expect in this kind of story are there - mentors, friends and enemies at school, challenges and trials, powers and lessons, teachers and of course villains to be thwarted with teamwork.
I enjoyed the way the author built a world around Amari that can be followed up in future stories, the elements are in place for a whole series to continue this first episode. She's a bright, brave and inspiring young protagonist that gives readers a new sort of hero to root for.
Lots of fun, plenty of Potter-like familiarity with lots of different features that make this fresh and current.
For ages 9-14.
With thanks to Nudge Books for providing a sample Audible copy.