Review by Kaitlyn Chan
Aladdin, November 8, 2022
736 pages, Hardcover, $29.99, 978-1-5344-3852-1
Middle Grade, Ages 8-12
Fantasy
“There’s nothing here.”
Sophie wasn’t sure who’d said it—but all her friends had to be thinking the same thing as they trudged through the long moonlit grass, which seemed to stretch endlessly into the darkness.
She squinted at the sky, checking the stars again.
“There has to be something,” she murmured.
Every clue they’d solved.
Every truth they’d pieced together.
All of it had led to this place.
This moment.
This rare chance to finally get ahead of their enemies.
Fantasy was always the genre I gravitated toward when I was younger, searching not only for developed characters but developed worlds: unique and beautiful places I could imagine myself travelling. Shannon Messenger’s Keeper of the Lost Cities is the epitome of the middle-grade fantasy series my younger self sought. Messenger offers a diverse and complex world and fills it with main characters who deal with familiar young adult issues alongside saving the world. The most recent addition Stellarlune only continues this tradition, keeping the reader engaged and satisfied with moments that have built up throughout the series.
One of the most notable elements of Messenger’s series is her realistic characters. Most of the main characters are young adults and act as such, sometimes allowing their emotions to guide their actions or making jokes about crushes and “shipping”. These characters add life to the novel, and readers become attached to the characters and witness how they and their relationships develop as they grow older. The series also includes realistic adult characters such as Sophie’s adoptive mother, Edaline, who teaches Sophie to prioritize herself and her feelings even amidst hectic circumstances. Messenger ensures that all these main characters—or “good guys”—are three-dimensional. They can make mistakes, act selfishly, and sometimes prioritize the wrong things, but they’re always doing the best they can with the tools and the knowledge they have.
It is also easy to empathize with the characters, especially the main character Sophie Foster, who the readers follow throughout the series. In this most recent book, Sophie seems to embrace her leadership role, and despite setbacks or doubts, she trusts her decision-making abilities and skills more than in previous books. She also desires for those older than her to respect her ability to assess risks and make the best choice, which many young adults may find relatable as they begin making choices for themselves. A great strength of Stellarlune is how it encourages young readers to trust and listen to themselves as Sophie does despite many of her friends or elders telling her that she shouldn’t. The audience for this novel will hopefully come away with more confidence in their judgement and compassion for themselves, even when they make the wrong choices.
One of the other most important parts of fantasy is worldbuilding, and the Keeper of the Lost Cities series delivers this aspect in every novel. There are lands for elves, gnomes, trolls, goblins, and ogres that exist separately from the human world, and the characters travel between these places. Most of Stellarlune takes place in the Lost Cities—the elves’ land—with few scenes in the human world. Messenger’s descriptions of the Lost Cities are enchanting and paint a scene filled with unique flora and fauna. This imagery rarely bogs down the plot and offers enough detail to enchant readers.
This series might seem daunting, spanning over nine books and counting, but Messenger keeps readers engaged with cliffhangers, love triangles, magic battles, and more. The Keeper of the Lost Cities novels are an excellent choice for middle-grade readers who enjoy a wide range of characters, mesmerizing and magical worlds, and many twists and turns. Stellarlune continues and builds on these characteristics that make the series enjoyable. And if you don’t naturally gravitate toward fantasy like my younger self, this series is a great place to start.
Kaitlyn Chan is a current student at UBC, studying English Literature and Creative Writing. Fulfilling the typical stereotypes of English majors, Kaitlyn enjoys reading, writing, and tea. She spends her free time training for triathlons, singing songs in her bedroom, and trying not to buy more books.
YOUNG ADULTING 