Publisher's Weekly Review
In this clever and fast-paced magical mystery, Gailey (River of Teeth) introduces Bay Area PI Ivy Gamble, who usually tracks down adulterers and insurance scammers. Then, Marion Torres, headmaster at Osthorne Academy for Young Mages, walks into Ivy's office and asks her to solve a murder. Sylvia Capley, the school's health teacher, was found bisected head-to-toe in the library, and Marion does not agree with the findings of accidental death; she's certain it was murder and wants Ivy to prove it. Reluctantly, Ivy visits the school-where her magically gifted twin, Tabitha, whom Ivy greatly envies and resents, happens to teach. To Ivy's surprise, it's just like a regular high school, except that the kids are armed with magical arsenals. One student stands out: Alexandria DeCambray, whose brother believes he is the chosen one foretold in a prophecy. As Ivy continues her investigation, she ruminates on her past choices, especially as she tries to rebuild her relationship with Tabitha. A budding romance with one of the school's teachers also complicates matters. Petty, petulant Ivy is hard to like, but her story is a wonderfully quirky mystery filled with inviting characters and gripping surprise twists. Agent: DongWon Song, Howard Morhaim Literary. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
DEBUT Oakland-based PI Ivy Gamble chases adulterous partners and money-hungry families, until a new client asks her to investigate the death of a health teacher at the Osthorne Academy for Young Mages, where Ivy's estranged twin sister, Tabitha, works. Tabitha possesses magic in spades, but Ivy does not. The headmaster at the school insists that the teacher's death is not accidental, and if that's true, someone on the grounds is a killer. Ivy grudgingly takes the investigation, uncovering both typical and unusual scenes at a boarding school for magical elites: secret relationships and mean girls, not to mention the prophecy of the Chosen One. As Ivy hunts for answers to Sylvia Capley's gruesome death, details about her childhood and bias against magic emerge, and she finds out just how much the past can affect the present. VERDICT Gailey's debut is an energetic modern fantasy that plays rough with relationships and personal beliefs, from youth to adulthood. Ivy's emotional investigation will strike a chord in anyone who has ever felt like they don't belong. Highly recommended for all collections.-Kristi Chadwick, Massachusetts Lib. Syst., Northampton © Copyright 2019. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.