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Fantastical books for middle grade readers!

Best for older children ages 8–12
Hamelin Stoop: The Battle of Parthogen by Robert B. Sloan
Beneath the Swirling Sky, Elizabeth Groening
Skate the Seeker by Jeff Ayers
boys’ fiction · girls’ fiction · all fiction
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Top resources

  • Try These Three Practical Questions to Discern Fictional Magic
  • How Do We Discern Good and Bad ‘Magic’?
  • Three Fantastical Christian Stories to Help Your Kids Head Back to School
  • The Death and Rebirth of Magic in Children's Fantasy

New books for teens + young adults

Best for readers ages 13–18—and beyond!
The Mermaid's Tale, L. E. Richmond
The Looking-Glass Illusion, Sara Ella
The Eternity Gate, Katherine Briggs
young men’s · young women’s · all fiction
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Top resources

  • Beware the Real Danger of Entertainment
  • Christian-Made Fantasy Can Shine Light in the Grimdark
  • How to Disciple Your Kids with Dangeous Books
  • How Reading Epic Fantasy Helps Me Be Brave
  • Engaging Fictional Violence in Our Real Worlds
  • Engaging That @&*% Our Stories Often Say

New fiction for adults

Challenging novels for wise readers 18 and up.
The Looking-Glass Illusion, Sara Ella
Light of Eidon, Karen Hancock
Wandering, Loren G. Warnemuende
men’s fiction · women’s fiction · all fiction
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Top resources

  • Even If We Like Fantasy and Sci-Fi, We Can Still Practice Accidental Legalism
  • How God Uses Story Villains for Our Good
  • Sensual Scenes in Fiction Pose Unique Temptations for Women
  • Stories With Bad Ideas Can Still Help Us Grow
  • Engaging Fictional Violence in Our Real Worlds
  • Engaging That @&*% Our Stories Often Say

Film, streaming, TV, video games

Help your kids engage their world for Christ!
Explore The Pop Culture Parent

Top resources

  • Let’s Not Excuse Movie and TV Porn For the Sake of ‘Redemptive’ Stories
  • Christians Can’t Consistently Blame Leftist Fiction While Pushing Our Own Propaganda

The Little Mermaid’s Live-Action Remake Fares Better Than Critics Forecast

Some new songs may flounder, but Ariel’s voice and Triton’s character redeem the 2023 Disney film. · Marian Jacobs
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Lorehaven helps fans of all ages explore fantastical stories for God’s glory. Find the newest fiction for young readers plus teens+YA and adults. Get articles and podcasts that engage the best Christian-made fantasy, sci-fi, and beyond. Subscribe free to join the Lorehaven Guild for monthly book quests!
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Lorehaven helps fans of all ages explore fantastical stories for God’s glory. Find the newest fiction for young readers plus teens+YA and adults. Get articles and podcasts that engage the best Christian-made fantasy, sci-fi, and beyond. Subscribe free to join the Lorehaven Guild for monthly book quests!
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/ Library
Author:
H. L. Burke
Ages:
middle grade teens + young adults
Genres:
fantasy
BookTags:
circus magic mystery steampunk
Publisher:
Uncommon Universes
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“Biblical themes dazzle and heroines must heal from harm throughout the wonders of H. L. Burke’s The Heart of the Curiosity.”
—Lorehaven review, 2021

Heart of the Curiosity

The Curiosity’s sole hope lies in a mythical power source hidden beneath the maze-like passages and trapdoors of the theater—the Heart.
H. L. Burke · June 2019 · No comments · fantasy for middle grade, teens + young adults

The secret lies with the Heart.

Born with a magical knack for manipulating emotions, Leodora’s only dream is to ensure her talented little sister dances on the biggest, brightest stage in the Republic: The Curiosity, a grand old theater of tradition and innovation. After escaping a cruel carnival, Leo secures her sister a place in the Curiosity’s chorus line, and herself a job as a professional audience member, swaying the crowd’s mood with her magic. The girls have a home for the first time in their lives.

Then a tragic accident darkens the theater. A greedy businessman begins blackmailing Leo, and financial woes threaten to close the show forever. The Curiosity’s sole hope lies in a mythical power source hidden beneath the maze-like passages and trapdoors of the theater—the Heart. And Leo’s only friend Paxton, nephew of the theater’s stagemistress, is the key to finding it.

While Leo and Paxton hunt for the Heart, the blackmailer’s threats loom larger. Mysterious figures, cryptic clues, and deadly traps hinder the search at every turn. If the friends cannot recover the Heart in time, Leo and her sister will be cast out of the only home they’ve ever known, and the final curtain will fall on The Curiosity.

Review of Heart of the Curiosity

Biblical themes dazzle and heroines must heal from harm throughout the wonders of H. L. Burke’s The Heart of the Curiosity.
Lorehaven Review Team, 2021

Magical ability, or knack for trouble? Leondra and little sister Muse are young orphans in H. L. Burke’s young-adult novel Heart of the Curiosity. They both escape from a carnival and flee to the biggest theater in the city, the Curiosity. In a beautifully drawn steampunk world, everyone has a “knack.” Muse, a dancer, can levitate. Leo hates her own knack for influencing emotions— the carnival boss used her to get people to buy tickets. Surely it will be different at the Curiosity! Leo just wants to protect her sister, not herself, but as mystery and romance unfold it becomes apparent she needs inner healing from abuse. Can Paxton, part of the quirky family that runs the Curiosity, team up with Leo to find the theater’s fabled power-source, while helping her see her future? Biblical themes dazzle throughout the wonder at the heart of this tale.

Best for: Teen readers and older.

Discern: Violence and moral complexity, such as when people kill in self-defense but then hide the deaths from corrupt police.

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Lorehaven helps fans of all ages explore fantastical stories for God’s glory. Find the newest fiction for young readers plus teens+YA and adults. Get articles and podcasts that engage the best Christian-made fantasy, sci-fi, and beyond. Subscribe free to join the Lorehaven Guild for monthly book quests!
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