A flavorful mille-feuille with equally tasty layers of dark magic, light comedy and salty determination.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“Nesbet’s style is both animated and animating...all elements of her story fairly quiver with life.” — Horn Book Magazine
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “A-shimmer with magic, in plot, characters, and literary style.Nesbet’s first novel is an impressive achievement, its substance and style gracefully blended.” — The Horn Book
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Blending elements of magic, science, and even horror with evocative prose and a confident narrative voice, Nesbet immerses readers in her contemporary Parisian setting.” — Publishers Weekly
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Nesbet has written a unique, interesting fantasy with just enough suspense to keep readers turning the pages long into the night. Fantasy readers of all ages, especially middle school students, will enjoy this story.” — Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “This debut novel of intrigue, family betrayal and an unsolved case of missing children will grip readers from first page to last. Readers will be swept along by the novel’s swift pace and enjoy the mystery’s unraveling with Maya and Valko as their companions.” — Shelf Awareness
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “In her debut novel, Nesbet has crafted a carefully imagined, magical world—one that is shrouded in mystery and keeps the reader engaged and guessing. With imaginative alchemy, compelling action, and sensitive characterizations, this novel will undoubtedly win over fantasy fans.” — Booklist
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Nesbet plays on both the charm of her Parisian setting and the shadowy eeriness of a city steeped in history to create an alluring sense of place that envelops readers from the first page.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Maya is a fully realized character...and readers will be rooting for her to find her strengths and save the day. This unique fantasy will catch its audience’s attention and leave them thinking about time, families, and immortality.” — School Library Journal
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “This debut novel of intrigue, family betrayal and an unsolved case of missing children will grip readers from first page to last. Readers will be swept along by the novel’s swift pace and enjoy the mystery’s unraveling with Maya and Valko as their companions.
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “A-shimmer with magic, in plot, characters, and literary style.Nesbet’s first novel is an impressive achievement, its substance and style gracefully blended.
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Nesbet has written a unique, interesting fantasy with just enough suspense to keep readers turning the pages long into the night. Fantasy readers of all ages, especially middle school students, will enjoy this story.
Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “In her debut novel, Nesbet has crafted a carefully imagined, magical world—one that is shrouded in mystery and keeps the reader engaged and guessing. With imaginative alchemy, compelling action, and sensitive characterizations, this novel will undoubtedly win over fantasy fans.
Nesbet’s style is both animated and animating...all elements of her story fairly quiver with life.
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Nesbet plays on both the charm of her Parisian setting and the shadowy eeriness of a city steeped in history to create an alluring sense of place that envelops readers from the first page.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “Nesbet plays on both the charm of her Parisian setting and the shadowy eeriness of a city steeped in history to create an alluring sense of place that envelops readers from the first page.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS: “In her debut novel, Nesbet has crafted a carefully imagined, magical world—one that is shrouded in mystery and keeps the reader engaged and guessing. With imaginative alchemy, compelling action, and sensitive characterizations, this novel will undoubtedly win over fantasy fans.
PRAISE FOR THE CABINET OF EARTHS:“Nesbet plays on both the charm of her Parisian setting and the shadowy eeriness of a city steeped in history to create an alluring sense of place that envelops readers from the first page.
The Bulletin for the Center for Children's Books
Gr 4–8—This sequel to The Cabinet of Earths (HarperCollins, 2012) begins shortly after Maya Davidson's victory against her wicked, "sort of" uncle, the powerful magician Henri de Fourcroy. Just as the 12-year-old is beginning to relax and enjoy her new life in Paris, strange things start happening around her. A mysterious swirl of dust that seems to have the shape and colors of a purple-eyed man is following her, and growing regions of magical transformation bring danger and threatening magical creatures to the city. When Maya inadvertently reads a letter that holds a magical compulsion, it seems that she will be forced to give up her own life in exchange for Henri's. With the help of her friends Valko and Pauline, Maya is determined to outwit the constraints of the letter and defeat Henri again. Magical gargoyles and their egg add to the mystery as Maya tries to understand what they need her to do and how they can help her with her mission. Nesbet creates threatening evil and an engagingly magical setting. She gives Maya real doubts and worries, particularly about protecting her family and her mother's recurring illness. Fans of the first book will enjoy this next installation, but it functions smoothly on its own as well.—Beth L. Meister, Milwaukee Jewish Day School, WI
Receiving birthday well-wishes is a delight, unless one of those greetings is on creepy green stationery that obligates you to reanimate a supposed-to-be-dead wicked relative. Demonstrating that Paris isn't always baguettes and bicycles, Maya's 13th-birthday happiness is challenged from every angle. Her mother falls ill, her best (and only) friend, Valko, is being sent to Bulgaria, and an off-putting ripple of something peculiar is gradually transforming Paris for the worse. Maya soon realizes that Henri de Fourcroy, the cousin she banished but didn't exactly kill, is behind the dark wave of strangeness changing the city. With the use of some sinister stationery, Henri binds Maya to helping him rematerialize at the eventual cost of her own life. Thus the struggle to save herself and the world from the growing circle of mischievous magic commences as gargoyles, a madwoman and a purple-eyed shadow stalk her. A twist of the magic makes its transformative effects visible only to Maya and Valko, cementing this as a battle they must strategically fight without adult help. Stone monsters and spells aside, this is at its core a tale of summoning intellect, guts and logic to save the day. This sequel to The Cabinet of Earths (2012) has, like Maya, only become more refined, its vividly sensory third-person narration artful and immediate. And though reading the previous book is helpful, it can substantially stand on its own. A flavorful mille-feuille with equally tasty layers of dark magic, light comedy and salty determination. (Suspense. 12-15)
