Justine Pucella Winans (Bianca Torre Is Afraid of Everything) makes their middle-grade debut with The Otherwoods, an excitingly suspenseful portal horror led by a cleverly humorous, adorably queer, and intrepid nonbinary tween.
Twelve-year-old River Rydell pretends they can't see the shimmering portals inviting them to the Otherwoods, "a world overlapping our own, where monsters reign" and "the darkness of magic runs free." Yet the place is persistent, and every disgusting creature that slips through is visible to River. "The Otherwoods is coming for you," warn the spirits (yet another group of beings only River can see).
No one believes in River's ability, which requires awkward exercises in self-control. Namely, not screaming out loud over what their classmates cannot see slithering on their desks. Standing out is something River already struggles with; "it [doesn't] help to be deadnamed in front of the whole class" by Ms. Deery, who is "the type of monster that everyone [can] see." At least "amazing" Avery Davis stands up for River. Unfortunately, the first time they hang out together after school, a monster attacks and takes Avery into the Otherwoods. River, knowing only they can help their crush, goes in after her. Now, River must finally face the truth about why the Otherwoods has always beckoned.
Winans conjures a chilling atmosphere. River is unsettled by the "wet, mossy... rust" scent of the foggy land, its "strange, color-changing trees," the low buzz of magical energy "compelling them forward." Every moment in the eerie place tests River's mettle. They brave a gnashing winged beast, a lizard-like horror erupting with tentacles that ooze ink, a valley writhing with stomping and clawing and bleeding things--as well as a cursed bridge and a "very unhelpful psychic." Support comes via Xavier, an "endearing and annoying" spirit who becomes like an older brother ("How rude, asking a spirit how he died when we only just met."); Mr. Fluffy Pancakes, River's kickass cat sidekick who protects against possession; and Charles, the six-foot-tall bug monster under River's bed. Teasing, situational antics and wry deliveries hit perfectly ("Stab and hope for the best!"). Above all, River's magic is a brilliant parallel to their nonbinary identity: "River could be murdered by monsters and everyone would tell their body they were simply imagining it." The Otherwoods is creepy fun with a queer heart, and a cunning and determined protagonist whose growing self-confidence is a joy to experience. --Samantha Zaboski, freelance editor and reviewer
Shelf Talker: A clever, sarcastic, and loyal nonbinary tween must play hero to save their crush from a magical otherworld in this middle-grade horror novel celebrating queer tweenhood.