The Prince of Nowhere
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
This sweeping middle grade fantasy debut by Rochelle Hassan follows Roda and Ignis, who embark on an adventure filled with magic and mystery—perfect for fans of Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones.
Roda isn’t afraid of the monsters that roam the wilds of the Aerlands. She’s safe in her small town, which is surrounded by a wall of freezing, enchanted mist that keeps the beasts away. So when Roda rescues an injured crow on the instruction of her secret pen pal, Anonymous—whose letters arrive without warning and correctly predict the future—she’s surprised to learn she’s brought one of the so-called monsters home. Because her crow is really a shape-shifting boy named Ignis.
Ignis doesn’t remember where he was going before he crashed. But Anonymous brought him and Roda together for a reason—and the only way to find out what Anonymous wants is to follow the trail of baffling clues in Roda’s letters. Their perilous journey leads them into the mist and beyond, to a mysterious place called Nowhere. But Ignis has secrets, and the farther they get, the more Roda doubts she can trust him.
As a nefarious force closes in, they’ll have to put aside their differences and work together. For they might be each other’s only defense against an enemy who threatens their past, present, and future.
A JUNIOR LIBRARY GUILD GOLD STANDARD SELECTION!
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Twelve-year-old white-cued Roda lives with her mother and Aunt Dora in an Aerland city bordered by a paralyzing mist. Everyone knows that, while the mist is dangerous, it's meant to keep them safe; it petrifies anything that touches it, preventing the terrifying monsters of the wild from entering their town. After Roda rescues a small crow who seemingly tumbled through the mist, the bird turns out to be a shape-shifter named Ignis, a boy around her age who has no memory of what he was doing before he fell. Gathering up a series of letters, which Roda has been receiving from an anonymous source, the pair follow the notes and their ostensibly prophetic instructions beyond the mist and into the outside world, called Nowhere. Roda and Ignis travel across Nowhere's perilous landscape, populated by dangerous creatures such as gryphons, hoping to encounter Kader's Comet, which only appears once every 10 years and is rumored to be a portal between the past and present. Hassan grounds complex worldbuilding and characterizations with easily digestible writing and fluid dialogue. This keenly plotted fantasy debut blends a tranquil contemporary world with an epically time-rending adventure. Ages 12–up.
