As Black As Ebony

Gr 10 Up—Lumikki, a teenage girl attending an elite boarding school, is practicing her leading role in the school's production of Snow White and the Huntsman and is torn between the love of Sampsa, who is playing the role of the Huntsman onstage, and Blaze, her transgender ex-boyfriend who returns mysteriously after more than a year. But the novel grows darker when Lumikki begins receiving threatening notes from a secret admirer calling himself The Shadow. Childhood memories start to resurface, causing her to question her beliefs about her parents, family, and even herself. The communication becomes increasingly ominous, until Lumikki must put herself in danger to confront her stalker and protect others. The book feels awkward at times, which may be due to meanings or emotions being lost in translation, or possibly it requires familiarity with the first two installments in the series to fully grasp the characters and setting. Amy McFadden does a good job of narrating the story, fearlessly throwing herself into Swedish and Finnish pronunciations.