Like a Charm, Elle McNicoll
Like a Charm, Elle McNicoll
List: $20.00 | Sale: $14.00
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Like a Charm

Author: Elle McNicoll

Narrator: Mirai

Unabridged: 8 hr 13 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 10/10/2023


Synopsis

After the death of her grandfather, nuerodivergent tween Ramya uncovers a world of mystery and magic—and she’s the only one who can see it! From the award-winning author of A Kind of Spark.

“Ramya, you have something this city needs. And it’s something that’s going to change everything.”

Ramya Knox is used to feeling cursed. People only notice her long enough to call her a troublemaker. Except Grandpa. He sees Ramya and her neurodiversity as enchanting. But when Grandpa dies, Ramya's world loses its charm...until she discovers he left behind one big secret: that magic is real and Ramya can see it. 

Trolls, vampires, kelpies, and more fantastical beings hide in the shadows for Ramya to discover. But the Hidden Folk need protection from the most dangerous creatures of all: the sirens. These beautiful monsters use their voices to get whatever they want, and lately they want power. And anyone who resists, anyone who is different, simply...disappears.

It's up to Ramya to finish her grandpa's work and expose the sirens for the villains they are--before their voices frown out the human and Hidden worlds forever.

About The Author

Elle McNicoll is a Scottish and neurodivergent writer, happily living in London. Her first children’s novel, A Kind of Spark, was a Carnegie Medal nominee and a Schneider Family Award Honor Book. Her second novel, Show Us Who You Are, is her love letter to neurodivergent friendships and her believe that disabled kids belong in genre fiction!


Reviews

Re-read in time for the sequel for once! -------------------- This story is exactly why I read middle grade books. It's something new, something special that doesn't feel like any story I've read before. A magical realism story set in Edinburgh, this has enough of the world we know to feel familiar, w......more

Ohhhh I loved this book (an MG fantasy set with wonderfully vivid descriptions and specificity in Edinburgh), but even more, I adored this heroine. Proudly neurodivergent Ramya is unflinchingly abrasive, unyieldingly loyal, deeply principled, and 100% lovable, and I adored following along on her exp......more

Goodreads review by Anniek

Every time I read middlegrade I realize I need more of it in my life, and this was such a great one! It was fun, and full of heart, and such an accessible read - I absolutely flew through it. Can't wait for the sequel!......more

Goodreads review by Shannon

Another fantastic middle grade fantasy novel featuring Ramya, a Scottish, neurodivergent girl who has dyspraxia (a condition I hadn't heard of before this book) who lives in Edinburgh and can see creatures others can't. I loved that this story was all about embracing our differences and that differe......more


Quotes

★ "By spinning a dark and delightful Edinburgh setting elevated by innovative twists on Scottish mythology, McNicoll paints a vivacious portrait of one neurodivergent tween’s experience navigating the world." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A magical, modern fantasy for anyone who has felt that they don't fit in." —Booklist

"An uplifting tale of magic, community, and acceptance." —Kirkus Reviews

"An engaging fantasy/adventure story ideal for anyone experiencing social alienation; it’s especially deft in its handling of the topics of neurodivergence and disability." —School Library Journal

"[A] passionate, solidly constructed middle-grade fantasy." —The Horn Book