B.B. Alson’s Amari and the Night Brothers (Supernatural Investigations, 1) is a fast-paced, high-stakes fantasy novel sure to delight middle-grade readers. I appreciated the myriad moral dilemmas, real-world social critiques, and quirky inclusion of yetis. The magical world-building is tons of fun. There’s so much detail and suspense – wow!

Amari Peters, a preteen Black girl, lives in the projects with her big brother, Quinton, and their mom. Quinton is the perfect son, brother, student, and community member. Being his kid sister is a lot to live up to, but there’s no sibling rivalry, just lots of love! When Quinton goes missing the police assume he’s involved in illegal activities, so they don’t put much effort into finding him. Through it all, Amari is loyal to her brother and refuses to believe the worst. However, she soon discovers Quinton was hiding something from his family.

Quinton is a lead agent at the very secretive and very selective Bureau of Supernatural Affairs (BSA) and, before his disappearance, Quinton arranged to have Amari tryout.

Amari leaps at the opportunity, hoping she will be able to find her brother. She soon discovers that prejudice, class-distinction, and bullies are just as present at the BSA as they are back home

With danger mounting, and with newfound powerful magic of her own, Amari won’t let anything stop her from finding her brother.

I loved this book and so did the young readers in my life. I was thrilled to discover it’s part of a series and can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel!