Gr 9 Up--Maddie Morrow is a pariah at home--the girl whose mother killed her brother. Havenfall, the family inn, is the only place she feels like herself. There, magical realms are connected via tunnels, and every summer solstice the inn hosts a trade and negotiation summit between them. Maddie hopes to take over the inn from her Uncle Marcus one day. When a sealed tunnel to a realm of magical monsters is opened and her uncle is attacked, Maddie must keep the summit going, track down a monster, and learn about the power plays by realm dignitaries. Aided by a mysterious new employee named Taya and her friend Brekken from the Fiordenkill realm, Maddie fights to save the inn and the balance between the realms. As mysteries about her past are revealed, Maddie is torn between her attraction to Brekken, who she fears betrayed her, and Taya, who is searching for her brother and can understand the pain of losing a sibling. The realms are described briefly in a second-hand manner, as very few humans survive visiting them. The story is a combination of issues and mystery, with a touch of fantasy on the side. The narrative captures all the apprehension and anxiety of suddenly taking on an adult role in life. The ambiguous ending leaves room for a sequel. VERDICT A suspenseful, engaging tale of a young woman trying to unravel her past to save her future. A solid purchase for young adults.--Tamara Saarinen, Pierce County Library, WA

A teen is thrust into a leadership role when conspiracies are afoot at the multiverse's inn.Maddie Morrow is one of the few humans in the know about Earth's being one of the Adjacent Realms; her uncle is the Innkeeper at the crossroads between them and neutral host of the yearly diplomatic summit between the magical realms of Byrn and Fiordenkill. Solaria used to participate prior to the war that led to the door to Solaria's being sealed shutbut with some of the shape-shifting Solarians still loose. Maddie wants nothing more than to be her uncle's successor, but her wish comes too quickly when he's debilitated during a chaotic night that results in Solaria's seal being cracked. While doing her best to conceal the happenings (and just how much danger everyone is in) so as to keep the diplomacy on track, Maddie teams up with a shifting roster of allies to try to discover who is responsible for the opening door, whom she can trust, and what everyone's true motives are. The twists are plentiful, though some are predictable. The romantic storyline with Maddie's best friend, Fiorden Brekken, is mined for did-he-or-didn't-he betrayal tension; readers may wish more had come from her attraction to Taya. While most charactersregardless of realmdefault to white, brown-skinned characters (such as Marcus' Fiorden husband) are represented.Fun premise and setting with a popcorn intrigue plot. (Fantasy. 12-adult) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Maddie Morrow is always The girl with the dead brother. The girl with a mom on death row. Only during the summers, at the enchanted Inn at Havenfall, the peaceful neutral ground between the Allied Realms, can she escape this reputation. It's only at the inn where denizens of these dangerous magical realms can be truly safe. It's also where Maddie can find Brekken, the serious Fiorden warrior that she's kind of in love with. While her uncle Marcus, the caretaker of Havenfall, welcomes her, he reminds her of the danger of the realms that have been blocked off from Haven the boundaries between the worlds have begun to come loose, and, terrifyingly, Marcus must leave Maddie in charge. Can she hold everything together long enough to prove she belongs at Havenfall? And even if she can, will the Havenfall she loves remain the same? Holland is no stranger to intricate worlds, as readers who loved Everless (2018) and its sequel will remember, and this new series starter is equally compelling.--Stacey Comfort Copyright 2020 Booklist

In this gripping fantasy by Holland (Evermore), a teen mediates between magical peoples as a peace agreement is torn asunder. Every summer, delegates from the three Last Remaining Adjacent Realms arrive in intersecting tunnels under the Rocky Mountains; beneath the Inn at Havenfall, they renew their agreement to stand united against a fourth, vilified realm, Solaria. When 16-year-old Maddie Morrow, niece to new Innkeeper Marcus, ignores her parents' wishes and hops a bus to Haven for the summer, she is reunited with "fairy-elf-warrior type" Brekken, a childhood friend on the verge of becoming something more. Marcus, in charge of overseeing the accord, is soon attacked, purportedly by a shapeshifting member of Solaria, and the leader of another delegation kills a Solarian in the tunnels below. Assuming Marcus's mantle, Maddie must safeguard the delegates from other intruders while investigating a magical smuggling ring and Brekken's sudden disappearance. Holland populates her idyllic summit with a panoply of magical characters and powers, fantasy elements that overlay tight--if sometimes predictable--plot beats that ramp up the suspense. Ages 14--up. Agent: Stephen Barbara, InkWell Management. (Mar.)