Summary
Riley Oh can't wait to see her sister get initiated into the Gom clan, a powerful lineage of Korean healing witches their family has belonged to for generations. Her sister, Hattie, will earn her Gi bracelet and finally be able to cast spells without adult supervision. Although Riley is desperate to follow in her sister's footsteps when she herself turns thirteen, she's a saram--a person without magic. Riley was adopted, and despite having memorized every healing spell she's ever heard, she often feels like the odd one out in her family and the gifted community.
Then Hattie gets an idea- what if the two of them could cast a spell that would allow Riley to share Hattie's magic? Their sleuthing reveals a promising incantation in the family's old spell book, and the sisters decide to perform it at Hattie's initiation ceremony. If it works, no one will ever treat Riley as an outsider again. It's a perfect plan!
Until it isn't. When the sisters attempt to violate the laws of the Godrealm, Hattie's life ends up hanging in the balance, and to save her Riley has to fulfill an impossible task- find the last fallen star. But what even is the star, and how can she find it?
As Riley embarks on her search, she finds herself meeting fantastic creatures and collaborating with her worst enemies. And when she uncovers secrets that challenge everything she has been taught to believe, Riley must decide what it means to be a witch, what it means to be family, and what it really means to belong.
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4--8--This latest installment of "Rick Riordan Presents" features Korean-inspired mythology filled with goddesses, witch clans, ghosts, and fantastical creatures. Despite her family's attempts at inclusion, 12-year-old Riley Oh has always felt invisible, like an outsider. They are Gom, one of six secret clans of gifted witches. Riley's adopted and doesn't possess the magical healing powers they all do. Driven by her need to belong, she hatches a plan with her sister Hattie to cast a spell that would share Hattie's magic with Riley. When the spell backfires, Riley must step up to save Hattie and confront the truth of her heritage. During her quest, Riley learns to challenge her biases and that every story contains more than one perspective. The most important lesson, though, is one of self-acceptance as she finds strength and belonging with those who love her. While most tweens aren't tasked with impossible missions to save the world, many can relate to Riley's feelings of insecurity and need for validation. She is a heroine whose flaws make her relatable in this highly imaginative and original story. Many Korean terms and authentic cultural references enrich the action-packed plot, including crave-inducing food descriptions. VERDICT Full of humor and thrills, this bewitching fantasy blends Korean mythology into an empowering adventure.--Sophie Kenney, Aurora P.L., IL
Publisher's Weekly Review
Korean American adoptee Riley Oh, 12 and selfless, is the only saram--"normal, non-gifted person without a lick of magic"--in her family, who are healers and part of the Gom clan. When Riley's denied the opportunity to take part in a magical initiation ceremony, she, along with her headstrong 12-year-old sister Hattie, also Korean American, protest, conjuring a spell that will split Hattie's magic with Riley. Their decision sets off a series of events that reveal Riley's biological parentage and threaten the whole community. And when Hattie's life hangs in the balance, Riley must find the last fallen star to bring her back. Riley and her biracial best friend, Emmett, a sardonic saram of Korean descent, encounter a slew of Korean mythological characters, including an inmyeonjo, a dokkaebi, and gwisin. As Riley and Emmett travel around L.A.'s Koreatown, readers familiar with Korean culture will appreciate references to staples such as H-Mart and noraebangs. Though overly detailed explanations of magic bog down this otherwise fast-paced adventure, unique clan identities are cleverly imagined, and Riley's emotional arc and journey to self-acceptance shine through. Ages 8--12. Agent: Carrie Pestritto, Laura Dail Literary. (May)
Horn Book Review
As an adopted member of the Gom, the Korean healing-witch clan, Riley wishes she had magic like her sister Hattie so she could finally fit in. Hattie's spell to give Riley half of her magic is preempted by some shocking news, though -- Riley isn't actually saram, a non-magical person, but instead is a member of the Horangi, the clan expelled for attempting to steal the goddesses' power for themselves. Undeterred, Hattie determines to summon Mago Halmi, the mother of all creation, to ask that Riley be transformed into a Gom, but the spell overtaxes her, and she collapses. Riley agrees to go on a quest to locate the "last fallen star" in order to save her sister. Kim has crafted her adventure from Korean myths, and the Riordan imprint's winning formula informs its construction: mythological monsters menace modern-day kids, who must learn to use their powers while contending with the gods/goddesses to prevent certain catastrophe. Riley is helped on her quest by her best friend Emmett, whose steadfast if unsentimental companionship offers a contrast to the reversals and layers of intrigue they encounter while tracking down the fallen star. The ending hints at possible sequels to this warm, well-plotted fantasy. Anita L. Burkam July/August 2021 p.116(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
When a spell goes wrong, a girl sets out on a quest to save her sister. Riley Oh and her sister, Hattie, are typical Korean American girls except for one thing: They know magic is real. When she turns 13 in two days, Hattie will finally become a full member of the Gom clan, able to wield magic on her own. But because Riley is adopted and saram, or nonmagical, the other clans will not allow her to have an initiation ceremony when she turns 13 in a month. Struck by this unfairness, Hattie finds a spell that will share her magic with Riley. Unfortunately, their plan goes spectacularly wrong, fracturing Riley's community and endangering Hattie. Feeling responsible for the calamity, Riley, along with her best friend, Emmett, will do whatever it takes to make things right, whether that means striking deals with fickle magical beings or considering the help of an ostracized magical clan. Exploring familial bonds, belonging, and community, this is a fast-paced urban fantasy drawing on Korean mythology. Riley and her friends navigate Los Angeles' Koreatown and run-ins with dokkaebi and inmyeonjo with a frantic, upbeat energy. Complications and twists keep the plot engaging and snappy. Emmett is cued as biracial (his mother was a Gom elder who married a saram with a Western surname; his father's ethnicity is not specified). A fun, new magical world that promises more adventures to come. (glossary) (Fantasy. 9-13) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
This opening installment in the Gifted Clans series interweaves Korean mythology and modern times to create a wholly unique world worthy of the Rick Riordan Presents imprint. Debut author Kim spins a fascinating tale of six witch clans, all of which hearken to their own respective patron gods and special powers, with readers following Riley Oh, a saram (nonmagical person) who more than anything desires to find her place in both the magical world and within her own adoptive family. After Riley's sister, Hattie, suggests that they concoct a spell to share her magic with Riley, that forbidden magic goes badly awry, and Riley must find a way to use her own strengths to set things right and rectify the past the present and assure the future of everything she holds dear. From a compelling and endearing supporting cast to the rich and tantalizing Korean cuisine explored in its pages, this pays homage to traditional Korean magic and mythos while infusing it with a contemporary story line and characters readers will fall in love with in an instant. Riley's unmistakable voice and her relatable search for and exploration of her identity will connect with readers at their cores, offering a truly promising start to a fantastical series.
