Sky of Seven Colors

After her best friend and crush, Andrew, falls into a coma following a hiking incident, 17-year-old Meg returns to the woods where it happened. There, she encounters a pair of gray-skinned giants from a parallel fantasy world who claim they’ve summoned her to fulfill a prophecy: their monarch must take a human bride to revive his magic and save their people from a terrible fate. Hopeful that the king might be able to heal Andrew, Meg agrees to help them. Upon entering their world, she finds a stark, monochrome realm, where her chestnut hair and “eyes of hue” are uniquely prized. But the air is slowly poisoning her (“humans weren’t created for our earth,” the giants explain), and she can’t return to her world on her own; the only thing keeping her alive is her stern, inscrutable betrothed’s healing magic. Now she must find a way to awaken Andrew without marrying the king, who holds her life in his hands. Via evocative prose, Nelson skillfully portrays the unsettling world and its deep sense of place and history. Themes of love, loyalty, and sacrifice reverberate throughout this quietly gratifying debut. Human characters cue as white. Ages 13–up. (Aug.)