cover image Rea and the Blood of the Nectar (The Chronicles of Astranthia #1)

Rea and the Blood of the Nectar (The Chronicles of Astranthia #1)

Payal Doshi. Mango and Marigold, $19.95 (350p) ISBN 978-1-64543-763-5

Debut author Doshi employs the commoner-turned-royalty trope in this absorbing portal fantasy quest centering two Indian siblings. When her twin brother Rohan goes missing in the middle of the night before their 12th birthday, just after she beats him and his friends in cricket during a midnight match, Rea Chettri feels responsible for his embarrassment and blames herself for his disappearance. Along with her best friend Leela, and determined to solve mysteries surrounding the twins’ household and absent father, Rea takes up a quest to find him. Via clues obtained through riddles that appear in Rea’s dreams, the friends visit a banyan tree that works as a portal to Astranthia, an Enid Blyton–esque world where “day is night and night is day.” Navigating perils in Astranthia, Rea and Leela meet a guide named Xeranther who informs them that only those with the “blood of the nectar”—royalty—are able to travel between worlds the way they have. The somewhat self-conscious narration can cater too much to the Western gaze, employing extensive descriptions (for example, of Diwali), but Rea’s enduring faithfulness urges readers to the finish line. Ages 8–12. (June)