Bruja Born

May 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-In the wake of her younger sister Alex coming into her powers as an Encantrix, everything Lula thought she knew about herself and magic seems less certain. Lula Mortiz has always been the healer, the beautiful one. That was before Alex's spell to dismiss her Encantrix powers went awry in Labyrinth Lost, sending Lula and all of her family to the underworld of Los Lagos. When Lula is involved in a fatal bus crash, she's determined to bring back her boyfriend. Maks has been the one stable thing in her life, but every bruja knows it's impossible to beat Death. This sequel picks up shortly after the events of the previous installment, but from Lula's first-person perspective. Córdova blows the world of the "Brooklyn Brujas" series wide open as readers learn more about the Mortiz family and the Deos and also meet the Knights of Lavant and the leaders of the Thorne Hill Alliance who manage all magical beings within the city. Zombies and hunts for answers bring Lula and her circle across Brooklyn in this plot-driven novel. Lula's introspective narration shifts neatly to high action as the zombie outbreak heats up and Lula works to restore the balance between life and death. A cliff-hanger of an epilogue and question surrounding youngest sister Rose and sometimes-ally Nova will leave fans eager for the next volume. VERDICT A fast-paced story sure to appeal to fans of the original and urban fantasy.-Emma Carbone, Brooklyn Public Library

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2018
Lula Mortiz tries to save her boyfriend, Maks, by cheating Death; however, Lady de la Muerte is not so easily bested.Some months after Lula and her family have returned from their ordeal in Los Lagos (Labyrinth Lost, 2016), the Mortiz family tries to find its way to a new normal. Normal for a bruja, that is. Falling back into high school life isn't easy, though, and Lula's sinmago boyfriend simply can't understand what she has been through. Unable to cope with this "new" Lula, Maks breaks up with her on the way to the last soccer game of the year, leaving her devastated. But when a freak accident kills everyone involved--except Lula, who is saved by her magic--the Mortiz sisters cast a canto to heal Maks, with devastating results. Magic always comes with a price, often a string of unintended consequences. The choice to save Maks, though well-intended, spurs a supernatural chaos, throwing the entire order of the world out of balance. Lula and her sisters must put a stop to the wheels they put in motion, resulting in an epic adventure to save not just Maks and the city they love--but Lady de la Muerte herself. Even readers new to the series will leave this world mostly satisfied and excited about where the Mortiz sisters will go nextAn exciting read with a wonderful Latinx feel woven throughout.(Fantasy/horror. 14-18)

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May 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 This companion to the well-received Labyrinth Lost (2016), the first book in the Brooklyn Brujas series, focuses on second sister Lula, whose healing powers are tested to the extreme. After a horrific school-bus accident, Lula, who barely survived, decides she must save her boyfriend, Maks, even though he's technically dead. With the help of her witch sisters, Lula casts spells that work?or do they? Maks returns, but he is casimuerto, an almost dead. In the process, Lula has also disturbed the balance of worlds by dislocating Lady de la Muerte. Lula knows it's her responsibility to find the Lady's spear and make things right. That's no easy task, as all manner of undead now roam Brooklyn, and the mysterious Knights of the Lavant, sometimes allies and sometimes foes, want control. The book is at its best examining the relationship between Lula and her sisters as brujas, but also as teens, who have the same yearnings and petty arguments as any girls. For readers coming for the ghouls, there are plenty of those, too.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

Starred review from May 1, 2018

Gr 9 Up-In the wake of her younger sister Alex coming into her powers as an Encantrix, everything Lula thought she knew about herself and magic seems less certain. Lula Mortiz has always been the healer, the beautiful one. That was before Alex's spell to dismiss her Encantrix powers went awry in Labyrinth Lost, sending Lula and all of her family to the underworld of Los Lagos. When Lula is involved in a fatal bus crash, she's determined to bring back her boyfriend. Maks has been the one stable thing in her life, but every bruja knows it's impossible to beat Death. This sequel picks up shortly after the events of the previous installment, but from Lula's first-person perspective. C�rdova blows the world of the "Brooklyn Brujas" series wide open as readers learn more about the Mortiz family and the Deos and also meet the Knights of Lavant and the leaders of the Thorne Hill Alliance who manage all magical beings within the city. Zombies and hunts for answers bring Lula and her circle across Brooklyn in this plot-driven novel. Lula's introspective narration shifts neatly to high action as the zombie outbreak heats up and Lula works to restore the balance between life and death. A cliff-hanger of an epilogue and question surrounding youngest sister Rose and sometimes-ally Nova will leave fans eager for the next volume. VERDICT A fast-paced story sure to appeal to fans of the original and urban fantasy.-Emma Carbone, Brooklyn Public Library

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.