Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow
Jessica Townsend
Little, Brown and Company, Hatchette Book Group, 2017
Hardcover: 480 pages
Trigger Warnings: Minimal violence within a controlled setting. Emotionally abusive/abandoning parents
About the Author: Australian author Jessica Townsend made a WUNDERful debut (pun intended) with her middle grade fantasy novel, Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow. Although she has been a copywriter for 8 years and an editor for a children’s wildlife magazine, Townsend has been working on this magical series for over ten years and was inspired by her move to London. Her hard work and beautiful stories has led to contracts for a three book series and a preemptive movie deal with 20th Century Fox.
“What you have is so much more than that… And you get to decide what that means. Nobody else”
Failed a test? Got stuck in a snowstorm? Drank sour milk? Blame Morrigan Crow – everyone else does. Unlucky enough to be born on Eventide, Morrigan is one of the registered cursed children and is thus at fault for everything that befalls her town. At ten years old, she has had to write countless letters apologizing for everything – from bad batches of jam to broken hips. Although all of the cursed children will die at midnight on their eleventh birthday, even Morrigan’s predetermined death goes awry when she’s given a second chance. As she becomes the apprentice for prestigious explorer, Jupiter North, Morrigan begins to find a home in the magical city of Nevermoor. However, while she competes in the Trials to join the Wundrous Society, she questions what makes her special and if she will even survive long enough to be a member of this promised family.
Overshadowed by her curse, Morrigan begins to uncover life and friendship in Nevermoor. This novel is whimsical, clever, and full of a vibrant cast of characters that remind Morrigan of her value and gifts. Townsend balances humorous dialogue and character moments with an intricate and political world that faces its own curse of the Wundersmith, a mysterious monster of a man who still inflicts horror despite his banishment 100 years ago. Morrigan and her friends at the Deucalion Hotel are sure to inspire wunder as readers “step boldly” into a world of magic, secret societies, enormous cats, umbrella transportation, and adventure.
PRR Writer, Anna Gerwig
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