The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto, by Adrianna Cuevas

You might think that The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto, a middle grade fantasy by Adrianna Cuevas (April 2023, Farrar, Straus and Giroux), is about ghosts on a ranch....but since this is my Timeslip Tuesday book, you can guess that actually it's time travel, not hauntings, creating fantastical mayhem (sorry for the spoiler!).  It is set on a ranch though, and so, very reluctantly, is the young protagonist.

Cuban American middle schooler Rafa (Raphael) and his best friends decided to take their fantasy adventure game to the next level, real life, and got busted when the school slushie machine they were absconding with breaks loose and crashes into the principal's car.  Rafa's dad skips all the regular punishments, and packs him off to spend a month working at a friend's ranch in New Mexico. Rafa is distressed about leaving his Miami friends, but even more worried about leaving his mother, who has cancer.  

But Rafa is a really good, cooperative kid, and soon he's learning the parts of a horse and getting to experience manure for the first time.  And there's a really cool girl his own age, Jennie Kim, the Korean American daughter of the ranch librarian. She too has a sadness-the recent death of her father.  But their growing bond is formed not just from shared sadness, but from their partnership in figuring out what's up with all the weirdness going on at the ranch (and a shared love of snacks).

A mysterious man in a green sweater keeps showing up...which isn't that odd. But Rafa being blamed for unpleasant mischief he had no part in is, and that's just the start of reality on the ranch going seriously off-kilter.  And when Rafa learns who the strange man is, and what he wants, he's faced with a desperately serious situation (spoiler--it involves time travel, and Rafa's mom....)

It's a truly engrossing story, and though there's sadness here the twists and turns make for entertaining reading.  Although it's a little distracting to think too much about the dad's questionable decision to keep Rafa from spending potentially precious time with his mother, the story more than kept my enthusiasm high. A secondary character, a veteran suffering from PTSD who looks after the ranch's horses, was a great addition to the ensemble, providing a grounding adult perspective.   And the mystery that need solving was very satisfying in a thought-provoking time travel way.

short answer--I liked it lots!

This week's roundup of mg sci fi/fantasy from around the blogs (12/17/23)

 Here's what I found this week; let me know if I missed your post!

The Reviews

An Adventure Through the Togetherwood, by Sean Anderson, at Literary Potpourri 

The Eyes & the Impossible, by Dave Eggers, at Book Barmy

Gargoyles: Guardians of the Source, by Tamsin Mori, at Mrs Sydney's Famous World's Smallest Library

Goblin Monday (Goosebumps House of Shivers 2), by R.L. Stine, at Mark My Words

Graysen Foxx and the Curse of the Illuminerdy, by J. Scott Savage, at Log Cabin Library

Holly's Secret (Woodwalkers 3) by Katja Brandis, at Mark My Words

Juniper's Christmas, by Eoin Colfer, at Faith Elizabeth Hough

Last Exit to Feral, by Mark Fearing, at Ms. Yingling Reads

Lia Park and the Heavenly Heirlooms (Lia Park #2), by Jenna Yoon, at Kiss the Book

The Mossheart’s Promise, by Rebecca Mix, at Pages Unbound 

 The Quest of Danger (Once Upon a Tim 4) by Stuart Gibbs, at Mark My Words

The Secret Library, by Kekla Magoon, at YA Books Central

Three Tasks for a Dragon by Eoin Colfer, at A Library Mama

Two at Falling Letters--The Unfortunate Wish of Melony Yoshimura & The Last Hope in Hopetown

Three mini reviews at  Utopia State of Mind -- The Tale of the Gravemother by Rin Chupeco, The Destiny of Minou Moonshine by Gita Ralleigh, and Peril at Price Manor by Laura Parnum

Authors and Interviews

Gregory Slomba (The Deliverers Series), with series review, at The Secret Files of Fairday Morrow 

 Sam Thompson (Wolfstounge and The Fox's Tower), at KidLit TV

Igo Rab (Faery: the Tiend), at Fantasy-Hive

this week's roundup of mg sci fi/fantasy from around the blogs 12/10/23

Please let me know if I missed your post or a post about your book!

The Reviews

Champions of the Fox, by Kevin Sands, at Cracking the Cover

The Dark Lord's Daughter, by Patricia Wrede, at Ms. Yingling Reads

Hither & Nigh, by Ellen Potter, at Pages Unbound  

Hollowthorn, by Kalyn Josephson, at Ms. Yingling Reads 

The Ice Children, by M. G. Leonard, at Book Craic and Sifa Elizabeth Reads 

The Lumbering Giants of Windy Pines, by Mo Netz, at Mark My Words

No Way Out (Shadowhouse #3), by Dan Poblocki, at Puss Reboots

THE PUPPETS OF SPELHORST — Kate DiCamillo, at Rosi Hollinbeck

Shiver Point: It Came From the Woods, by Gabriel Dylan, at Twirling Book Princess

The Sky Over Rebecca, by Matthew Fox, at Teen Librarian Toolbox

The Thirteenth Circle, by MarcyKate Connolly and Kathryn Holmes, at  Mark My Words

The Wild Robot Protects, by Peter Brown, at proseandkahn

Worst Broommate Ever! by Wanda Coven, at Bookworm for Kids 

Two at  A Library Mama --Abeni’s Song and Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston |

Authors and Interviews

James Haddell (Tales of Truth and Treasure Book 4: Dagger, Spear and Sword), also with a review, at Scope for Imagination

The Sky Over Rebecca, by Matthew Fox, for Timeslip Tuesday

The Sky Over Rebecca, by Matthew Fox (November 14, 2023, Union Square Kids in the US,  April 14, 2022, Hodder Childrens in the UK), is my favorite of all the new to me books I've read so far this year.  It was supposed to be last week's timeslip Tuesday, but when I was done reading it, instead of sitting down to review it, it was all too fresh and raw and sad in my mind (in a good way) for me to want to think cogently about it.

It's the story of ten-year-old Kara, a lonely girl living in Stockholm with her mother.  Although her beloved Grandfather lives close enough to visit often, which is a comfort, she has no friends, just bullies.  But one day looking out the bus window on her way to school, she sees a snow angel...with no footprints left by its maker.  And that is the start of a magic timeslip adventure, that leads her to Rebecca and her little brother Samuel, two kids living in hiding on an island in the middle of the frozen lake where she and grandfather go ice skating.  

Even Kara's great happiness about making a friend (and being the sort of person who can make friends, which she had worried about), doesn't mean she's not curious about the strangeness of Rebecca and her circumstances.  Gradually she realizes that Rebecca and Samuel slipped through time to hide from the Nazis, the only two from her family to escaped being murdered by them back during WW II.  Now Rebecca and Samuel, who can't walk, are stuck in their island hideaway, in the middle of the Swedish winter, in need of food and warmth, which Kara tries to provide (I liked that Kara's mother is able to help with this, concerned about situation but trusting Kara to do the right thing without trying to take over).  Even the boy who is the worst of the bullies is drawn into the mystery and becomes a good companion and helper (Kara grew tired of living in fear, and punched him, which tilted the balance of their relationship enough so that he, not redeemed but with a greater appreciation of Kara, can reshape their relationship).  

But she can't think of what she can do to help them move on....until Rebecca's prophetic vision of an airplane, from the Allies in the war, landing on the frozen lake comes true.  And oh my gosh do things take an utterly gut wrenching turn at this point, and I wept.  

It is utterly gorgeous time travel, of just the sort of magical slipping through the years that I love best. It's not just the two kids from the past here in the present, but enough of Kara slipping back to make the whole thing dreamlike and wonderful (and also gut wrenching).  It won awards over in England where it was first published, and I'm so glad I heard about it and got hold of a copy.  If you like Action and Adventure, it might not work for you, but if you want a story of a remarkable friendship between brave girls in a cold and snowy setting, with time travel that will remind you of old favorites (and some tense moments that I would count as action with a small a) do seek it out!

I would so dearly love to give it to my young self, who would have read it over and over, but am glad I haven't gotten so old as to not love children's books (even though I have so many on hand that I don't get to reread as much as I'd like...)

this week's round-up of middle grade sci fi and fantasy from around the blogs (12/3/23)

an unusually short round-up this week...please let me know if I missed your post!

The Reviews

Amari and the Great Game (Supernatural Investigations #2), by B.B. Alston, at megsbookrack

The Beastly Baron of Beaux Bottom, by Jeremy Hullah, at Book Craic

Festergrimm (Legends of Eerie-On-Sea #4), by Thomas Taylor, at Log Cabin Library

Finney And the Secret Tunnel, by Jamie Lane Barber, at  Always in the Middle…  

The Little Match Girl Strikes Back, by Emma Carroll, at Ms. Yingling Reads 

Loki: A Bad God’s Guide to Ruling the World, by Louie Stowell, at Twirling Book Princess

Omega Morales and the Curse of El Cucuym, by Laekan Zea Kemp, at Charlotte's Library

The Secret of the Ravens, by Joanna Cacao, at Ms. Yingling Reads

The Secrets of Splint Hall, by Katie Cotton, at Sifa Elizabeth Reads 

Omega Morales and the Curse of El Cucuym by Laekan Zea Kemp

It was a pleasure to revisit Omega Morales in her second adventure--Omega Morales and the Curse of El Cucuy (Omega Morales, 2) by Laekan Zea Kemp (October 2023, Little Brown).  A new monster, the legendary Mexican boogeyman El Cucuy, has come to town, and he is kidnapping children, and sending adults into an enchanted sleep.  Omega, her cousin Carlito, and Clau, her ghost friend, are determined to defeat him, but the game he is playing with them has twists and turns that seem to make this almost impossible.

Fortunately Omega has a new magical creature friend at her side, who is both cute and brave, as well has help from other kids in town.  And although most of the adults in her family are asleep, she can still find some help through dreams with them, and those who aren't asleep try to help (with little success, though).  In the end, as was the case with the first book, it is understanding and empathizing with the monster that lets Omega put an end to his reign of terror.

As I said in my review of the first book in the series, Omega Morales and the Legend of La Lechuza, "it never ceases to amaze me how the familiar middle grade themes of navigating family and friends and one's own changing self can be explored in so many different magical ways."  And as was the case with the first book, Omega isn't just dealing with a monstrous external threat but is also struggling to understand her own magic and how it is manifesting.  As was the case in the first book, her mother and grandmother are not helpful in this regard (even when awake), and I continue to be displeased with them.  On the plus side, though, this sequel doesn't have the disturbing bullying Omega experienced in the first book.

It is a book dense with magic, dangers, and Omega's relationships with a swirl of other characters (lots of minor characters)--it pays to read it slowly, because if you are a fast reader like me, you might from time to time become unsure of the particulars of what's happening and who is involved.  And be warned--it ends with a cliffhanger.  But those two caveats aside, it's an engrossing and entertaining story!