ALA Booklist (Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 CDT 2018)

From the author of YA novels The Memory Trees (2017) and Shallow Graves (2016) comes the adventures of Mara in an archipelago called the City of Islands. Mara works for the Lady of the Tides as a diver, but she dreams of one day becoming a mage's apprentice. The bizarre skeletons she finds at the bottom of the ocean spark a chain of events that has her sneaking into the fortress of the Winter Blade, but the truths she finds unleash secrets long buried. Magic in this gritty world is fueled by music, and Wallace brings it all to life with a sense of wonder. As Mara discovers the magic in herself, she faces betrayal, truths, and a journey that necessitates bravery. Wallace mixes fairy-tale elements with a haunted fortress ruled by a mad scientist and his creations that's reminiscent of Frankenstein. This is an exciting adventure with dazzling characters, magic, mystery, and self-discovery.

Horn Book (Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)

Mara finds an undersea trove full of bones that together look like the remains of a lizard with wings and other strange amalgamations. Mara secretly hopes that the Lady of the Tides will reward her by helping her become a mage, but Mara surprises herself with untapped magic of her own. Wallace uses sonorous language to build a convincing world of spell-songs among seafolk.

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

In the newest fantasy realm from Wallace (The Memory of Trees), female empowerment and inclusion are a natural part of life. Twelve-year-old orphan Mara has longed to become a mage. After a string of tragedies, she is forced to dive for the Lady of Tides, an influential mage, looking for magical treasures belonging to the founders, long-vanished, underwater-dwelling creatures who were responsible for the creation of the City of Islands. Mara-s luck takes a turn for the better after she discovers the bones of hybrid creatures, which the Founders were known to have created. But what she had hoped would be her ticket to becoming a mage actually sends her on a treacherous journey in which she tries to break into a nigh-impenetrable fortress and discovers a plot that could threaten the city-s continued existence. Mara-s emotional reactions are at times curiously underwhelming, particularly her discoveries of a profound betrayal and her own magical abilities. However, Wallace-s world offers dreamlike imagery, a fresh concept, and a haunting atmosphere. Ages 8-up. Agent: Adriann Ranta Zurhellen, Foundry Literary + Media. (July)