The third book of Ritter's Oddmire trilogy (Changeling, rev. 9/19, and sequel) sees the four friends -- Tinn, Cole, Fable, and Evie -- making their way into the depths of a mine, searching for Tinn and Cole's father, who disappeared there many years ago. The plot they unearth is "pretty standard apocalypse, really": an effort by the "delvers" and their Lowest of Low Priests to unleash fire and chaos. In thwarting and surviving this threat, the skills and qualities of each friend are vital, underscoring and deepening their team bonds. This is very much an action story, with abundant visual description and an accessible writing style that ranges from epic prophecy to contemporary vernacular (the collapse of the world is ushered in with a sound "like when someone tried to eat crackers in the back of the classroom during reading time without anybody noticing"). Populated by a variety of folkloric beings such as spriggans, elves, nymphs, goblins, kobbolds, and fairies, along with a few humans, Ritter's fantasy offers plenty of playful interest as a world of its own. Black-and-white spot illustrations enhance the immersive qualities of setting and action. Deirdre F. Baker July/August 2021 p.124(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Twin brothers, one a human and one a goblin changeling, seek their own paths but find the end of the world in this sequel to The Unready Queen (2020). Tinn and Cole, brothers once as close as could be, are growing apart. Cole seeks to solve the mystery of their long-lost father, while changeling Tinn feels like an outsider in his human family. But amid the worsening earthquakes and the vanishing people and magical creatures, the boys must work together. Something very dangerous is happening under the Wild Wood, something much worse than the dark Thing that had menaced them all until the recent battle. In a lovely, successful inversion of expectation, the boys and their friends bring protective adult family along on their dangerous adventure (although of course circumstances conspire to require the children to do the bulk of the world-saving alone). In the deepest caverns, the adventurers encounter new magical creatures unlike any they've met before and discover that rebuilding a family is messy and painful. Can they trust the rået, the Tommyknocker, and the kobbs? The giant magma serpent? As they defeat a "pretty standard apocalypse," the boys learn, as one goblin says, "Things dinna ever go back ta the way they were. Thass na how life works." Previous titles cue the boys as White. Cinematic adventure and hope amid darkness, flavored with silliness: a winner. (Fantasy. 9-12) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.