The edge of in between /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

A spellbinding, twisty, magical retelling of The Secret Garden that takes readers on a journey through what separates the living and the dead.

Lottie lives in Vivelle, a vibrant city where life exists in brilliant technicolor and nearly everyone is born with magic, including Lottie. But when tragedy strikes, color is stripped from Lottie's heart and from the world around her. Taken in by her reclusive uncle, Lottie moves into Forsaken, a vast manor located in the gray wasteland between the Land of the Living and the Land of the Dead.

There, Lottie discovers more secrets and mysteries than she ever dreamed possible. Even so, she is filled with nothing but despair. But when splintered magic threatens to consume everyone and everything she still holds dear, Lottie must find a way to thaw both the world and the hearts of those around her--before time runs out.

In this stunning portrait of love, loss, magic, and hope, one girl finds the strength to overcome tragedy--and finds a way to embrace the gifts that make life worth living.

Praise for The Edge of In Between :

"A lyrical, graceful conjuring of the landscape of grief [that] doesn't just reimagine a children's classic, but does it with great love."--Jacqueline West, author of The Books of Elsewhere series and Long Lost
"Brilliant and empowering...a book that belongs in the hands of every middle-grade reader." --Lindsay Currie, author of What Lives in the Woods

"Richly layered with emotional truths, The Edge of In Between embraces all the fragile elements of grief and sorrow, hope and love--as well as the strength (so very much like magic) that resides inside us all." --Heather Kassner, author of The Plentiful Darkness

Excerpt provided by Syndetics

After dinner, Lottie took down several jars of paint from the shelf along her wall, which she would start with as her base colors. Then she grabbed a fresh palette. She got to work adding in a little here, a little there, mixing them together until she had replicated the colors of the leaf cyclone from outside the treat shop well enough to start. She quickly fell into a rhythm, first building in the background of the sidewalk and the corner of Felicity's shop and working forward from there. The magic warmed in her chest and worked its way through her, tying her heart to her hands. Time slipped by as Lottie worked, as the image on the paper formed and the light outside her window dimmed to dark. She swished a few final strokes, then set the brush down and lifted the painting. Lottie's heart leapt inside her as the painted leaves flickered, then fluttered, then swirled in front of her eyes exactly as they had while she waited for her father. She could even catch a hint of the scent of cider emanating out from the enchanted painting, and could hear the low murmur of the late afternoon streets. And, like all of her art, this painting felt exactly like the moment she'd captured. The flurry of the city, the contentment, the comfort of a delightfully predictable afternoon. A final painting for this season's collection. She set it down to dry and leaned back in her chair. Warmth flowed through her, pulsing in her fingertips from the use of her magic. Soon enough, she'd fall into a contented sleep. Lottie pulled herself up and changed into her pajamas before crawling into bed. A few minutes later, her parents stopped by to tuck her in, say their good nights, and give her a kiss on the cheek. As soon as they left, Lottie pulled a well-­worn book from the shelf next to her headboard: The Enchanted Garden . It had been hers ever since she was a baby, a gift from her mother, and was a bedtime story favorite. The deep green cover and golden lettering winked in the light from her bedside lamp. She cracked the weary spine open and reveled in the bright illustrations. Then she read, for the hundredth, or maybe even the thousandth, time, the story of a magical garden that grew wild and free, spilling over its stone walls and spreading throughout the whole entire world. A garden that gave magical gifts and healed broken hearts. The book started with a riddle, one Lottie didn't fully understand. The gray words were printed in large angled letters on the center of the first page and were surrounded by an illustration of a desolate gray stone wall. Leafless gray ivy crept across the stone at all angles and nearly hid the wall behind it. It was all very strange for a book with life and color bursting from all the other pictures. The riddle read: There once was a door that wasn't a door, And a bed that wasn't a bed. Where mossy green carpet shot up from the floor, This key with the heart must be ____. "It's okay if it takes some time to figure out what things mean," her mother had said one night when Lottie had asked about it. That had been years ago--­back in the days when they read The Enchanted Garden together as a bedtime story. "Sometimes answers don't come until you ask the right questions." Lottie had nodded and snuggled into her mother's shoulder. Truth be told, Lottie had thought about the strange riddle very rarely since, caught up in all the other more important bright and beautiful things she had to do. Like collecting color. And collect it she did. Lottie collected color in far more than just jars of pigment or on paint-­stained fingers. She looked for it everywhere, gobbling it up in books, and films, and art, and more. She breathed it in and lived it out. She drank it through her eyes. Her magic flowed inside her as easily and fully as the wind wound through the trees. And she would never, ever let it go. Excerpted from The Edge of in Between by Lorelei Savaryn All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Publishers Weekly Review

Savaryn's (The Circus of Stolen Dreams) detail-rich, fantastical retelling of The Secret Garden traverses the intricate, winding path of grief. Twelve-year-old artist Lottie lives in the Land of the Living's capital, Vivelle, a magical and vibrant city. She and her parents are some of the lucky few who've maintained their magic, existing in technicolor alongside the Living Gray, whose magic and color have faded. Lottie was certain her color would never atrophy, since "it couldn't be that hard to keep it, if a person wanted it badly enough," until Lottie becomes a Living Gray herself following her parents' sudden deaths. She's taken in by her uncle and her Living Gray cousin Clement, and upon uncovering a mysterious garden on their property, the pair realize it's possible to get their magic, and their color, back. With vivid prose, Savaryn delicately captures the achingly real toll of loss through the lens of art while expertly navigating faith and grief's impact on mental health. Readers will relish the lush, eerie atmosphere and Lottie and Clement's heartwarming friendship. Most characters cue as white; Clement has brown skin. Ages 8--12. Agent: Chloe Seager, Madeleine Milburn Literary. (Apr.)

Booklist Review

Savaryn's novel offers a luminous retelling of The Secret Garden. Lottie lives in Vivelle, a place of color and magic. One night, her world turns upside down when her parents die, and in her intense grief, she becomes one of the Living Gray, people who lose their color and their magic either from age or a severe shock. She accepts an invitation to live at her uncle's home, Forsaken, which has relocated to the In Between, the place that the souls of the dead cross on their way to the Ever After. Slowly, she begins to work through her sorrow, inspired by the beautiful frozen and hidden garden she finds and works to restore. Savaryn has counterparts for the main characters of The Secret Garden (including the robin) and they fulfill their roles accordingly, but at the same time, they are their own people. The narrative is sensory and textured, from the vat of sorrow that powers the house, allowing it to move through the In Between, to the garden slowly coming to life. Even a simple meal shared with the gardener's family is a sensory feast. Lottie takes in her experiences and works through her grief thoughtfully and at her own pace, so it rings true and isn't a "lesson." This is a book about loss, and Lottie discovers that it is not something one gets over but, rather, is something with which one learns to live.

Kirkus Book Review

An enchanted garden offers an orphan and her cousin a chance to heal their broken hearts. In this lightly gothic fantasy retelling of The Secret Garden, artistic Lottie uses her special magic to imbue her paintings with a vitality that makes them feel alive. Her talent, like all such gifts in the Land of the Living, is innate. However, not everyone holds onto their magic. Magic and color usually fade as one ages, and people join the Living Gray, unable to use magic or see color and becoming devoid of any pigmentation. Sudden shocks can also drain a person's magic instantly; after the accidental deaths of her parents, Lottie becomes a Living Gray. She is sent to live with her estranged uncle, who endlessly roams the In Between seeking the ghost of his wife. Lottie and her cousin, Clement, another Living Gray, discover a hidden garden that gives them hope of reclaiming the magic and future they once believed lost. As with the original classic, this story highlights themes of redemption and companionship. The blossoming garden and Lottie's friendship with Clement help her understand the interconnectedness of emotions and the empowerment that comes with having hope. While the novel is highly imaginative, certain plot and worldbuilding elements feel complex to the point of confusion, disrupting the reading experience. Lottie is cued as White, and Clement has brown skin. An inventive but overcomplicated twist on a classic. (Fantasy. 9-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Lorelei Savaryn is an author of magical stories for children. She holds a BA in creative writing and works in schools as an instructional coach. When she isn't writing, she spends her time amid the beautiful chaos of life with her husband and four children outside of Chicago. She is also the author of The Edge of In Between and The Circus of Stolen Dreams . You can find her online at LoreleiSavaryn.com and on Instagram @LoreleiSavaryn or on Tiktok @Lorelei_Savaryn.