The Burning Sky

Gr 9 Up—When her guardian purposefully ruins her meticulously prepared potion to prevent her from performing a rite at a local wedding, 16-year-old Iolanthe Seabourne tries to revive it by bringing down a bolt of lightning and instead brings down a load of trouble. Turns out, Iolanthe has been kept hidden her whole life because of a prophecy that she would destroy the Bane, a powerful mage and tyrant who rules the Realm. The teen would be happy lying low, but Prince Titus has spent his life training to avenge his family and restore power to his throne, and he is determined that she fulfill her destiny. The fun begins when Titus brings Iolanthe to London-real, nonmagical London-and pressures her to enroll in Eton College with him disguised as a boy named Arthur Fairfax. Though Iolanthe is initially furious at Titus, romance quickly begins to crackle as they plot how to save the Realm. This first book in a trilogy thankfully lacks a cliff-hanger ending, instead promising more adventures in a vividly realized fantasy world.—Eliza Langhans, Hatfield Public Library, MA