Hello, reader!

It’s time once again for another fabulous blog tour put on by Dave @ The Write Reads! I’m so excited for my stop on the tour for a new middle grade novel that will be coming out in 2021 called Amari and the Night Brothers. This book has magic, danger, and an intrepid young Black girl at the very center. How could I not want to participate? The fact that the cover just blew me away absolutely sealed the deal!

As always, I want to thank Dave @ The Write Reads, the publisher, Egmont Books, and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for my participation in this tour. It’s always appreciated, but especially so when I end up enjoying the book so much!

But I’m getting ahead of myself, aren’t I? Check out the rest of this post to see why I adored this book so much 💕

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“An epic middle grade supernatural adventure series, soon to be a major movie starring Marsai Martin. Perfect for readers aged 8+ and fans of Percy Jackson, Nevermoor and Men in Black!

Amari Peters knows three things.

Her big brother Quinton has gone missing.
No one will talk about it.
His mysterious job holds the secret . . .

So when Amari gets an invitation to the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, she’s certain this is her chance to find Quinton. But first she has to get her head around the new world of the Bureau, where mermaids, aliens and magicians are real, and her roommate is a weredragon.

Amari must compete against kids who’ve known about the supernatural world their whole lives, and when each trainee is awarded a special supernatural talent, Amari is given an illegal talent – one that the Bureau views as dangerous.

With an evil magician threatening the whole supernatural world, and her own classmates thinking she is the enemy, Amari has never felt more alone. But if she doesn’t pass the three tryouts, she may never find out what happened to Quinton . . .”

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If you were a reader as a kid, do you remember that feeling of picking up a book featuring a character around your age going on magical adventures and instantly falling in love? I remember that feeling and I still chase it as an adult. And, I’m happy to report, Amari and the Night Brothers gave me that exact feeling as soon as I started reading!

In this book, we’re following a young Black girl named Amari Peters. Amari is a girl that has a lot on her mind as the story opens. She’s just gotten into a fight that ends in her scholarship to a fancy school being revoked, she’s dealing with bullying from the rich kids who thought she never belonged there in the first place, and, worst of all, her big brother, Quinton, has been missing for the last six months. People keep saying that Quinton probably got mixed up in the usual things that catch young Black men in the projects, but Amari knows that the brother she adored would never get caught up in stuff like that. And Amari gets her proof when a mysterious package arrives from her missing brother. Soon, she is thrust into a world where all the supernatural creatures we think don’t exist are real and she’s been invited to join the same organization her brother worked for. Amari sees this as her chance to finally get some answers and to find her brother.

Y’all, I loved this book! This was an absolute delight to read! I immediately fell into the story from page one and found incredibly easy to immerse myself in the world. It was just so much wonderful! Like a quick, delectable snack that just makes your whole day brighter!

Let’s talk about the characters, first and foremost. I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to see more and more middle grade books with young Black kids front and center. Little Amari made me want to hug her and fight literally everyone that kept being mean to her. Seriously, I was ready to throw some hands at some completely fictional characters 😤 B.B. Alston does an incredible job of creating a character that is instantly relatable, who you want to root for from the get-go, and who’s future you find yourself so thoroughly invested in so quickly. Amari is such a beautiful character who goes through some incredible growth throughout the book. And I adored quite a few of the side characters, as well, especially Elsie! I was worried about these characters like they were legitimately my own children, lol. I love when I can connect to characters so completely!

I also really enjoyed the world of Amari and the Night Brothers. It was a lot of fun learning about the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs and I loved all the different departments. I would definitely want to work for the Department of Creature Control. It’s easy to forget about the world around you when you’re discovering the depth and breadth of the supernatural world along with Amari. And, as a person that absolutely loves a competition aspect to a book, I was super pumped to read about Amari’s trials to try and keep her spot in the super secretive Bureau. Like, yes, girl, show them how amazing you are! Honestly, the pages flew by and I was a little sad when the story was over. Thank goodness this is just the first book in a series!

Final thoughts: Do you like your middle grade fantasy to have secrets, magic, danger, and strong Black girl coming into her own? Then you are gonna love Amari and the Night Brothers! It is a perfect blend of captivating characters, an incredibly fun world, and a dash of mystery to keep you flying through the pages. I thoroughly enjoyed myself the entire time I was reading this and I cannot wait for the next book!

Star rating: