The Wish Monster and Never Thirteen

White, J.A. The Wish Monster

October 1, 2024 by HarperCollins

E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus

Hudson Causeway is pretty much invisible at school; even his teacher, Mr. Bishop, doesn't seem to remember his name. He just has one friend, Quinn, who is obsessed with the video game Blood Reign, and his mother is super overprotective. He has a well developed routine, stopping by Mr. Kazem's Hisana Market, saying hello to retired teacher and crossing guard Mrs. Beagle, and wondering about his father, who died before he was born. When he realizes that his neighbor and classmate, Violet, has a new dog, he's a little confused. He vividly remembers Midnight dying, and the students at school sending her cards, but when he mentions it to Quinn, his friend thinks Hudson is hallucinating. Violet, however, looks spooked when he mentions it, for good reason. After Midnight's death, she heard a voice calling to her from a cave in the park, and found the Wish Monster, who offered her three wishes. When she made one, and Midnight came back, it became apparent that in payment, the monster wants her to bring someone else to make a wish. Mr. Kazem's store is failing, and he's always wanted a bigger retail empire... which his wish brings him. It also causes Quinn to disappear, since the new store is built over where he lived. Mr. Kazem brings his friend, Mr. Bishop, who is still teaching at 68, who is offered the chance to be a noted historian, to bring back his deceased wife, or to be young again. He becomes himself at 12, but with all of his knowledge. Again, no one but Hudson seems to realize what has happened, although his mother knows something she's not telling him. Soon, the Wish Monster gets more and more people to make wishes, which has a horrible effect on the town, since every wish has unintended consequences. Why is it that Hudson and his mother are the only people who can remember what the world was like before the wishes? And what does the Wish Monster really want? There are too many delicious twists in this that I don't want to ruin!!

Strengths: White's Night books has been hugely popular in my  library, and this was even better! It is a rare middle grade book that surprises me, and this one even made me tear up a little. I love the secondary characters like Mrs. Beagle, who misses being able to help kids, and Mr. Bishop who is just... tired. Trust me, there are very, very few people over the age of 55 who are still teaching! Mr. Kazem's wish was completely understandable. I loved that Violet finally saw Hudson, and that the two became friends. The ending... whew. Lots and lots of action, but then a rather sad, philosophical ending. I feel like I should have Mrs. Causeway over to tea and tell her that while "every child is a wish that came to life", not all wishes end the way one would hope. 
Weaknesses: The cover isn't great. It's all a little too vague, and the green and purple don't say "super scary" to me. This might take hand selling, but readers of Nightbooks will pick it up for that reason alone. 
What I really think: While it would be great to be able to make wishes and have them just come true without complications, that just doesn't happen. This is why books like Whitesides' The Wish Makers, Snyder's Bigger Than a Breadbox, and Eager's Half Magic are so intriguing. What if wishes DID come true, but there were stringent parameters for getting just what we wanted? 
 

McAnulty, Stacy. Never Thirteen (The Evers #2)
October 1, 2024 by Random House Books for Young Readers

E ARC provided by Netgalley

**Probably too many spoilers! You've been warned!**

After Ivy's adventures in Forever Twelve, she has been recuperating at home, and has been allowed to return to West Archer Academy, although not as a second year student. She has a new roommate, Aurora, and is working with Abigail to find out a way to be made mortal again, but to retain her memories. Sadly, her great-grandmother Betty (need Grace) passes away, as does her dog, Biscuit, although Ivy makes him immortal! In the aftermath of Gigi's funeral, Ivy gets her journals that she wrote when she was Grace, hoping for some clue. Also, Este is approached by the woman who turned her into an Ever, who is now going by the name of Judith. Judith claims that any time an Ever is made mortal, it breaks the chain, and there are consequences. Meanwhile, Ronan is struggling with trying to figure out how his role as a seer works in a world where there are Evers, and his aunt is adamant that Evers (whom she calls "shadow people") are evil, and want to strip seers of their powers. Dom has decided that he really wants to be made mortal, and Ivy agrees to help him. He makes videos of himself to help him remember, but when he wakes up after Ivy's ministrations, he is confused and angry. We also get flashbacks of Este's early life, and learn more about her and why she is so committed to remaining immortal. There is a delightful scene where Ronan and Ivy kiss; this is a problem! Not only are there supernatural problems to consider, but they are also a little embarrassed and avoid each other. Sadly, there's an accidental tussle with Ronan's older brother, Dean, that ends with their aunt really having it out for Evers, especially since he and Ivy had also located a mall security guard who was immortal. Ivy manages to find some good information in Gigi's journal, and gets a tip from a very old friend that changes everything. Will the Evers and the seers be able to get along, and will the Evers be able to regroup after this latest round of challenges? With Ms. Strange retiring, they also will need someone new to help them out at West Archer. 

Strengths: First of all, OF COURSE Ivy makes Biscuit immortal. Wouldn't any of us do this? It also makes sense that Gigi dies, and this puts several things into motion that the Evers need to solve. The romance between Ronan and Ivy is great, and I love that someone references the horrible fate of Romeo and Juliet to them. Seeing Este's back story was interesting, and find a couple of other Evers, while a little unlikely, was intriguing. Dom's plight was heart breaking, but he did eventually regain some happiness; it was realistic that this would be a difficult process. 
Weaknesses: Weirdly, I could have used a little more information about what was going on in school, not that there was really time to do this, with so much supernatural stuff going on. I could have used a small reminder about how the Evers had money, kept cycling back to West Archer, and were aided by Ms. Strange, but this wasn't strictly necessary. There was a great recap at the beginning, which helped a lot. 
What I really think: Definitely purchasing, since the first book has been a popular choice in my library, and I'm glad that this is probably just a duology, although I think there is more to be told about Judith taking the librarian job at West Archer Academy! And what if Judith turned all of the Evers mortal, and they just forgot HER? Hmmm. It's a good book that makes you think!