It’s wintertime, and that means it’s time to curl up with good books! If you loved the new Walt Disney Animation Studios movie Encanto, and you’re in need of some book recommendations, then we’ve got particularly good news for you, too! A new book is coming out that will be perfect for fans of the magical realism and family drama in that story. You’ll particularly love this new book if you’re a big fan of Encanto‘s main character Mirabel Madrigal!
According to the Goodreads summary, the new book “Witchling” by Claribel A. Ortega is “a magical adventure…about three witchlings who must work together to do the impossible if they have any hope of earning their full powers”. In this enchanting “middle grade Latine witch story”, Seven Salazar is a young witch in Ravenskill.
Apparently “every year, in the magical town of Ravenskill, Witchlings who participate in the Black Moon Ceremony are placed into covens and come into their powers as full-fledged witches. And twelve-year-old Seven Salazar can’t wait to be placed in the most powerful coven with her best friend! But on the night of the ceremony, in front of the entire town, Seven isn’t placed in one of the five covens. She’s a Spare!”
Since Spares are seen as less important than other witches, Seven and her two new Spare companions “perform the magic circle to seal their coven and cement themselves as sisters” — but when that fails, matters worsen and they remain inferior Witchlings who can’t do any powerful spells or magic. Without doing big magical spells or being in a powerful coven, the three Spares fear that they won’t become full-fledged witches.
The only solution, if the three Spares will be brave enough to do it, is “the impossible task…if they work together and succeed at it, their coven will be sealed and they’ll gain their full powers. If they fail… Well, the last coven to make the attempt ended up being turned into toads. Forever. But maybe friendship can be the most powerful magic of all”!
Just like Encanto, this fantasy book is full of “action-packed adventure”, an eccentric bunch of lovable characters, comedy, and “girl-power vibes”. Fans of “Amari and the Night Brothers”, “Harry Potter” books, or “Nevermoor” should also like this book, and the influences of the “Ghost Squad” author’s Dominican culture make this book even more appealing!
Claribel A. Ortega’s newest book “Witchlings” will be released on April 5 2022 — and remember, readers, that middle-grade adventure books or young adult fantasy adventure books can be surprisingly entertaining for adults, too!
