(2) YA In 1934, eighteen-year-old aspiring Chicago actress Henny wins a ticket to Los Angeles and the promise of a screen test. Unfortunately, it turns out, there are men in Hollywood looking to take advantage of aspiring starlets. Henny encounters the ghosts of young women who were murdered in the business, whom only she can see, and she must team up with Declan--a stunt performer who seems immune to injury even in the most punishing situations--to seek justice. Their supernatural abilities are mere assets to their wit and determination as they navigate glitzy parties and the seamy underbelly of Los Angeles in a novel that will likely have greater appeal to historical fiction and mystery fans than to fantasy readers. The story, which unfolds in alternating first-person narrations, is tightly wound and truly stress-inducing in places, with emotional revelations that cause characters to doubt everything they thought they knew. The descriptions of 1930s movie sets and surrounding scenery are lush and convincing, with animated minor characters fleshing out a well-researched setting. The novel shares characters with Murder for the Modern Girl (rev. 7/22)--Henny is that book's protagonist's younger sister --and will likely entrance readers both familiar with and new to the world.

Reviewer: Sarah Berman | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2023

(2) YA There's an "angel killer" stalking the streets in this flapper-era dark fantasy set in late-1920s Chicago. Ruby ­Newhouse only strikes men with bad intentions, and since she happens to have telepathic abilities, she's able to enter the dark minds of her victims. She kills for fun, because she's a girl after a good time, but never anyone innocent. ­Shapeshifter Guy, seemingly meek and mousy, works at the city morgue and is doggedly determined to catch the angel killer. But sparks fly between Guy and Ruby before either of them learns the other's secrets, changing the course of their plans. With a dangerous criminal conspiracy targeting Ruby's beloved father, she and Guy must pursue the truth at all costs, even if it means their own identities might be exposed. Secondary characters add even more zing to the story: a flinty reporter makes an unlikely ally, as does a gorgeous socialite with more depth than meets the eye. As the bodies pile up, readers will be breathless to witness the final showdown. Fast-paced; glamorously chaotic; and, with its grisly undertones, somewhat uncomfortably unforgettable.

Reviewer: Sarah Berman | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(3) YA When his best friend Essie Roe, a witch, outs him as a "blank" (immune to magic), Mal flees and uses his skills to help his partner, Boone, hunt magical artifacts around the world. Five years later, they go in search of a magical knife that Mal can use to get his revenge. This lyrically written, globe-trotting historical fantasy will enthrall sophisticated teen readers.

Reviewer: Barratt Miller

(3) YA Desperate to take up her grandmother's mantle and become the island's witch, Avery Roe will do anything to escape her mother's house--including striking up a relationship with a Polynesian whaler who claims he can break her mother's binding spell. Set in nineteenth-century New England, this well-executed blend of romance, historical fiction, and magic will enchant fans of the subgenre.

Reviewer: Barratt Miller