To Dance the Moon and Stars

In their dazzling graphic novel romantasy, debut creator MS and Marquez (Game of Code) follow a high priestess-in-training struggling to reconcile her responsibility to her family’s legacy with her passion. After a lifetime of training, teenage Myra believes that she should be ready to succeed her grandmother as the high priestess of Ah’ron, but she has yet to receive her first vision from the god Alrun. Burdened by the weight of the kingdom’s expectations and the increasing nearness of mysterious shadows plaguing the country, Myra wants to make her grandmother proud. She also yearns to explore her suppressed passion for dance, which is taboo in Ah’ron for its purported power to unleash an ancient evil. Ahead of a festival, dashing Prince Eyden—heir to the throne and Myra’s childhood friend—returns home from abroad, where he lived freely as a commoner. As he and Myra take a twilight stroll through the palace gardens, he urges her to reconsider the life and responsibilities thrust upon her. When her grandmother suddenly falls ill and the dark forces loom closer, Myra is forced into the role of acting high priestess and must figure out how to combat the progressing shadows. Each page of this luminous fantasy is alight with lush botanicals, glowing lanterns, and shimmering stars, transfixing the reader in magic and movement informed by “ancient Indian dance forms,” per a creators’ note. Fans of fairy tales and mythology will delight in this wondrous offering. Ages 12–up. (July)