cover image Starcrossed

Starcrossed

Elizabeth C. Bunce, Scholastic/Levine, $17.99 (368p) ISBN 978-0-545-13605-1

On the lam after a failed theft, 16-year-old runaway Celyn bluffs her way out of the city with four young nobles. She finds refuge as maid to one of them, Lady Merista, in a snowbound mountain castle. When Lord Daul discovers Celyn's thieving tendencies, he forces her to spy for him. Delving even deeper into the castle's secrets than she reveals to Daul, Celyn's eyes are opened to the myriad secrets and schemes of its many guests and occupants. In choosing her path, she confronts her own past, uncovers a rebellion that could lead to civil war, befriends a prince, contemplates religious persecution, and faces betrayal. She also encounters long-forgotten magic and comes to understand the mystical aptitude that ruined her life and set her on her path of crime. Couching her characters and setting in top-notch writing, Bunce (A Curse as Dark as Gold) hooks readers into an intelligent page-turner with strong themes of growth, determination, and friendship. Celyn's journey will leave readers asking for more, especially as the first-rate story neatly sets up a sequel. Ages 12–up. (Oct.)