Hooky

In this middle-grade magical adventure, twins Dani and Dorian find some unlikely teachers when they miss the bus to magic school. Dorian's antics may have branded them traitors in the witch world, but that doesn't stop them from receiving instructions from a town soothsayer, making friends with local kids, or taking in a misguided princess aiming to save her kidnapped prince. But there is a darker plot brewing beneath the surface of this kingdom that will pit witchkind against the rest of the kingdom. Most of the characters are compelling and sympathetic, although some readers might find some of their motivations to be somewhat trite. Originally a webcomic, this book is beautifully and brightly colored with lovely, atmospheric details. Color-coded speech bubbles may help some readers track who is speaking, although many of the greens are close enough that they're not easily discernible. This is much longer than most middle-grade graphic novels, so hand to a reader with stamina. Great for fans of Sophie Escabasse's Witches of Brooklyn (2020) or Molly Knox Ostertag's Witch Boy series.

Twin witches and their friends encounter magic and mishaps in this story based on a popular WEBTOON series. When 12-year-old witch twins Dorian and Dani Wytte miss the bus on the first day of school, it's only the beginning of their troubles; the bus has teleported to a secret location. Not wanting to fess up to the mishap, the siblings head to their Aunt Hilde's in hopes that she'll be their tutor for the year and not tell their parents what happened. Instead, they uncover a plot by a community of evil witches to take power. Together with new friends, including a soothsayer, a princess, and some town kids, the twins--now suspected of being traitors--must prove their innocence and get to the bottom of everything. The central conflict plays with the ideas of good and evil as well as biases and assumptions. Many of the large cast of characters grapple with self-doubts and questions of self-worth. All the young protagonists have something to prove, and together they begin to grow. Tur's episodic and fast-paced plotting plus a cliffhanger ending will keep readers engaged and itching for the next volume. The energetic, manga-style art matches the energy of the characters, and the dramatic color palette adds to the strong sense of this witchy world. The panel-breaking compositions are fun and support the pacing. All major characters present White. Full of magical adventure and heart. (Graphic fantasy. 8-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.