cover image Crossing Over

Crossing Over

Anna Kendall, Viking, $17.99 (384p) ISBN 978-0-670-01246-6

Fourteen-year-old Roger has the singular ability to cross over to the Land of the Dead. For years, his evil uncle Hartah has dragged him to fairs where he is beaten until he crosses over—pain is the catalyst for Roger's transitions into the other world—and returns with information about customers' deceased loved ones. When Hartah dies suddenly during a battle for a ship, Roger is saved by his gift and taken to the Queendom where he works in the laundry and then serves as Queen Caroline's fool. His main challenges—enduring his unrequited love for the selfish, spoiled, and silly Lady Cecilia; surviving the warring queens; and finding a way to Soulvine Moor, where his mother died, in hopes of finding her among the dead—do not always do their part to drive the plot. Debut author Kendall's prose is at times lackluster, but an atmospheric depiction of her hero's journey and freshly imagined vision of the afterlife should resonate with gothic fantasy fans. Ages 14–up. (Oct.)