Author: Gabrielle Prendergast
Publisher: Orca Book
Genre: fiction, MG, fantasy, adventure, hi-lo

Fourteen-year-old Blue Jasper takes his younger siblings, twins Indigo and Violet, out for a hike to give their mother a break. One moment the twins are scampering in the trees right ahead of him, and the next moment they are gone. As Blue frantically searches for them, a strange woman appears in the forest claiming to be the Faerie Queen Olea of Nearwood and the twins’ real mother. Now because of a magical pact, Blue's mother's life will be in danger if he can't find the twins before the next sunset. Blue must find his way into the magical forest known as the Crosswood and through the dangerous Faerie lands beyond it. Will he be able to find the twins in time? And will they be able to find their way out again? This is the first book in the Faerie Woods series.

Although the main character is 14, the stated reading age of this book is nine to 12, which makes it a great book for less-than-keen readers, whether they’re preteen or teen. (Orca Books’ clever new moniker for hi-lo/reluctant-reader books is “ultra-readable page turner.”)

Hi-lo novels (high interest, low vocabulary level) with male main characters are much needed, and this one delivers. It’s a fun fantasy, with a more straightforward plot than its sequel, The Wherewood, but no less satisfying for that. Do read this one first to get the most benefit of the series.

Blue, the main character, has a strong voice, and the action clips along, heavy on well-written dialogue. Though the rules of the faerie world are complicated, this novel makes them easy to understand. It’s a fun read, not so outrageously fantastical that one can’t immerse themselves in this world and, well, believe in it!

- Pam Withers