Recent Adventure & Fantasy Reads to Enthrall Middle Grade Readers

Fall is the season for magical things. And many of those magical things can be found in books. Have a seat, open the pages of these speculative fiction books, and see what adventures await and what magical places you'll travel to.

The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate Dicamillo 

Gentle Brother Edik finds Beatryce, curled in a stall, wracked with fever, coated in dirt and blood, and holding fast to the ear of Answelica the goat. As the monk nurses Beatryce to health, he uncovers her dangerous secret—the king of the land seeks just such a girl, and Brother Edik knows why. And so it is that a girl with a head full of stories ventures into a dark wood in search of the castle of one who wishes her dead. 

Willodeenby Katherine Applegate 

When the annual migration of hummingbears, a source of local pride and income, dwindles and no one knows why, Willodeen, armed with a magical birthday gift, speaks up for the animals she loves and vows to uncover this mystery.

Kaleidoscope by Brian Selznick 

A ship. A garden. A library. A key. Two people bound to each other through time and space, memory and dreams. At the center of their relationship is a mystery about the nature of grief and love which will look different to each reader. 

Sisters of The Neversea by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Lily and Wendy have been best friends since they became stepsisters. But with their feuding parents planning to spend the summer apart, what will become of their family—and their friendship? Little do they know that a mysterious boy has been watching them from the oak tree outside their window. A boy who intends to take them away from home for good, to an island of wild animals, Merfolk, Fairies, and kidnapped children, to a sea of merfolk, pirates, and a giant crocodile. A boy who calls himself Peter Pan.

Paola Santiago and the Forest of Nightmares by Tehlor Kay Mejia

Months after confronting the legendary La Llorona, Paola starts dreaming again, this time about fantasmas that are stalking her and someone who might be even more dangerous—her estranged father.

The Force of Fireby Sayantani DasGupita 

A descendent from a long line of demons who build interspecies relationships to fight tyranny works competitively to control her dangerous fire-breathing skills, before a Serpentine Governor's charming son enlists her help to defeat a growing rebellion.

Healer of the Water Monter by Brian Young

When Nathan goes to visit his grandma, Nali, on the Navajo reservation, he knows he's in for a pretty uneventful summer. Still, he loves spending time with her and his uncle Jet, though it's clear when Jet arrives that he brings his problems with him. One night, while lost in the nearby desert, Nathan finds someone extraordinary: a Holy Being from the Navajo Creation Story—a Water Monster—in need of help. Now Nathan must summon all his courage to save his new friend. With the help of other Navajo Holy Beings, Nathan is determined to save the Water Monster, and to support Uncle Jet in healing from his own pain

The Anti-Book by Raphael Simon 

Mickey finds a book that promises to erase whatever is written in it, and after filling the page with all the things and people he dislikes, he finds himself in the anti-world where everything familiar is gone.

KiKi Kallira Breaks A Kingdom by Sangu Mandanna 

Drawn into the mystical world she created, Kiki Kallira must battle against her fear and anxiety to save two worlds—the real and imagined—from the wrath of an ancient deity bent on total destruction.

Josephine Against The Sea by Shakirah Bourne

When she discovers her father's new girlfriend, Mariss, is actually a sea creature eager to take her place as his first love, Josephine must convince her friends to help her and use her cricket skills to save her dad from Mariss's clutches.

The Memory Thief by Jodi Lynn Anderson

When sixth-grader Rosie begins to see magic, she learns that her mother's dwindling memory is tied to an age-old battle between the light of the moon and the darkness of witches.

The Dragon In The Libraryby Louie Stowell

Reluctant reader Kit discovers her wizarding powers and the magic she can wield through books to help save the local library, and its resident dragon, from a power-hungry tycoon.

The Accidental Apprentice by Amanda Foody

Eleven-year-old Barclay Thorne yearns for the quiet life of a mushroom farmer, but after unwittingly bonding with a beast in the forbidden Woods, he must seek Lore Keepers to break the bond and return home.

Eva Evergreen and The Cursed Witch by Julie Abe

Young witch Eva Evergreen embarks on a journey to find& the source of the powerful, magical storm known as the Culling and put an end to it once and for all.

Even and Odd by Sarah Beth Durst

When sisters Even and Odd are trapped and unable to return home to the mundane world they live in, they, with the help of a unicorn named Jeremy, must stop a power-mad wizard from creating an ecological disaster.

One Jar of Magicby Haydu Corey Ann

Joining her family in her community's annual New Year's Day magic-capturing ceremony, a 12-year-old girl who has always been lucky captures just one tiny jar of magic, revealing the true nature and beliefs of her loved ones.

The World Between Blinks by Amie Kaufman

With the whole family reuniting for one last summer vacation at Nana's, cousins Jake and Marisol are prepared for an extraordinary trip of their own. Following a map Nana left behind, the cousins sneak out to a nearby lighthouse, then accidentally slip into another world! The World Between Blinks is a magical place, where all sorts of lost things and people wind up. Everywhere they turn, the cousins find real mysteries from history and a few they thought were just myths. But the man who holds the key to Jake and Marisol's journey home doesn't want to be found...and if the cousins don't catch him fast, they could end up lost in this world forever.

The Firebird Song by Arnee Flores

Tied by destiny, Prewitt the Bargeboy and Calliope the Lost Princess set out on their twelfth birthdays, determined to end the reign of the evil Spectress and her marauders by calling the Firebird back to Lyrica.

The Stolen Prince of Cloud Burst by Jaclyn Moriarty

Esther, an ordinary middle child, returns to school after a quiet summer to discover that her friends haven't returned and the mountains surrounding the school, usually alive with Faeries, have become dark and threatening with Shadow Mages, and it's up to Esther to do something extraordinary.

The Last Shadow Warriorby Sam Subity

Abby Beckett comes from a long line of elite Viking warriors known as the Aesir, being trained her whole life to hunt the creatures known as Grendels. The problem is there hasn't been a sighting of a Grendel in centuries and the Viking Council wants to disband the Aesir. But when her father is attacked by one and no one believes her, Abby embarks on a journey to protect her family's name and stop the plot to destroy them Aesir.

Nightingale by Deva Fagan

After twelve-year-old Lark, determined to escape her squalid life, steals a magical sword from the Royal Museum, she reluctantly becomes the next Nightingale, destined to vanquish an ancient evil.

The Hidden Knife by Melissa Mair

After a tragedy, Vicky bands together with new friends to seek justice in dangerous Glass City, where the magical gargoyles are always watching.

Maya and The Return of The Godlings by Rena Barron

After bringing her father back into the human world, twelve-year-old Maya, a guardian-in-training, is forced to return to The Dark and restore what she left behind, the one thing keeping the veil from falling—her father's soul.

The Other Side of Luckby Ginger Johnson

Ignored because she is a daughter, Princess Una sets out to find the Silva Flower, and her path crosses with Julien, a pauper hoping to free his father by finding the same flower.

Have trouble reading standard print? Many of these titles are available in formats for patrons with print disabilities.

Summaries provided via NYPL’s catalog, which draws from multiple sources. Click through to each book’s title for more.