Nic Blake And The Remarkables
Angie Thomas
Best selling YA author Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give) makes her middle grade debut with the launch of a new contemporary fantasy trilogy inspired by African American history and folklore.
Nik Blake is a remarkable living in the unremarkable world. She is given a hellhound for her twelfth birthday but isn’t allowed to learn the magic to become a manifestor like her dad. Unfortunately, before she has time to convince him she is old enough, a series of shocking and at times terrifying events send Nic and her two friends on a quest to save her father from imprisonment and discover her own identity.
This gripping fast-paced story will appeal to those readers who enjoy the notion of co-existing worlds with the darker elements of demons, magic and shapeshifters. Nik is a likeable protagonist and there is plenty of humour which sits alongside the action. Broken families is a strong theme as Nic meets her unknown brother and below the plot, Thomas seeks to set out how black people have been treated both historically and currently.
The ending is satisfying but leaves us eagerly waiting for more Manifestor adventure as a second book is promised.
Published by Walker Books (336 pages)
