Lobizona

Manuela "Manu" Azul is a 16-year-old caught between two realms in Romina Garber's stunning start to the Wolves of No World series.

Manu knows that there is something different about her: for one, she has "star-shaped silver pupils" with "yellow sun" irises. She also experiences period pain that is so intense her mother, formerly a nurse in their native Argentina, gives her pills that knock her out for three days. Because of these abnormalities, Manu feels dependent upon her mother and lives sheltered under Ma's rules. Manu is further confined by the fact that she and Ma are illegal immigrants hiding in Miami from both ICE and Manu's father's crime family. In the same day, the woman who has hidden Manu and her mother for years is attacked and Manu's mother is taken away by ICE. Within hours, Manu is left with nothing but hints of the secrets her mother kept from her. Determined to figure out the truth behind her lineage, Manu discovers a tangle of Argentine folktales and magic, unexpected new werewolf and bruja friends and that she is not only illegal in the U.S.--she also doesn't quite belong to this world.

Garber, who also writes under Romina Russell (Zodiac), uses exquisite prose to build an elaborate, gorgeous world that is likely to appeal to fans of Anna-Marie McLemore and Elana K. Arnold. Manu's exploration of her identity--both in Miami and elsewhere--reflects how Latinx communities have historically been and continue to be affected by U.S. politics. From the book's harrowing opening, Manu is set on a fantastical journey of self-discovery that subverts and reinterprets familiar fairytale tropes. --Clarissa Hadge, freelance reviewer

Powered by: Xtenit