(2) 4-6 "Sometimes the real danger is not what you thought it would be at all." So begins the story of Darleen, young (fictional) star of silent movie serials. It is 1914, and Darleen keeps her family's small film company afloat with her weekly celluloid adventure serial, The Dangers of Darleen. Short on money and hungry for publicity, her uncles set up a staged kidnapping to drum up excitement for Darleen's onscreen adventures. What could go wrong? Life and film-serial drama become hopelessly entwined as Darleen finds herself tied up in the back of a car with real kidnappers and an orphaned heiress who has been abducted for her fortune. The deliciously outlandish plot includes lookalike heroines, wicked villains, cliffhangers, and an eventual happy ending. Nesbet re-creates the pace and melodrama of early films in her prose: "Oh, do be cautious! I'm afraid they're dangerous, desperate men." The strong character development and rich historical setting elevate the novel beyond period froth. When the tale begins, Darleen is used to being pushed around by directors (her uncles) and just pretends to be brave for the audience. By the end, Darleen discovers that she really is brave and that she can take control of her future. The author's note places the novel in the context of film history and sends curious readers to watch the early serials that inspired this story.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2020

(4) 4-6 In 1941, eleven-year-old Gusta is sent to live with her grandmother, who runs an orphan home in Maine. As the story unfolds, she gets in trouble for protesting at the local mill, writing about the true meaning of patriotism, forming an orphans' band, and more. Gusta also finds the missing (magic) "Wish" her mother told her about and uncovers a family secret. While overstuffed, the novel is heartfelt and thought-provoking.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(1) 4-6 In 1989, Noah's parents whisk him from Virginia to East Berlin, where they change his name and impose rules, especially "They will always be listening." As the novel unfolds, there's growing evidence that Noah's mother isn't what he thinks she is (The Americans, anyone?). Nesbet's atmospheric page-turner is edgy, emotionally rich historical fiction; sidebars include information about East Germany and the Cold War.

Reviewer: Monica Edinger | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2016

(2) 4-6 In Linnet's village, girls mustn't touch the lourka, a musical instrument, before they're twelve. Linny, who's built one for herself, expects to die for her transgression. Instead, friend Sayra fades into the unreachable Away. Searching for a cure, Linny leaves her magic land for countries where mathematics, science, and craft contend against one another. Nesbet's fable explores science, logic, and imagination through eventfulness and visual richness.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2015

(2) 4-6 In this sequel to The Cabinet of Earths, Maya and her friend Valko struggle to outwit Henri de Fourcroy's spell, contending with convulsive waves of magic that promise to change not just Paris but all the world. The logic of Nesbet's plot is rather ornate, but there's plenty of strength and charm here--especially in the animated, personal voice of the narrator.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2013

(2) 4-6 In Paris with her family for a year, Maya finds herself in a life-or-death struggle after becoming keeper of the mysterious Cabinet of Earths. Maya's bright, engaged narrative voice whisks us along with breezy, intelligent energy; words are neatly fitted, nicely unpredictable, and resonant with multiple meanings. Nesbet's story is a-shimmer with magic, in plot, characters, and literary style.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2012