Review: Road of the Lost

Book cover image for Road of the Lost.

Review: Road of the Lost

Book cover image for Road of the Lost.Road of the Lost

by Nafiza Azad

Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2022

ISBN: 9781534484993 (hardcover)
ISBN: 9781534485006 (paperback)
ISBN: 9781534485013 (eBook)
$23.99 CAD (hardcover)
$16.99 CAD (paperback)
$11.99 CAD (eBook)
336 pages

Ages: 14 years old and up

 

Review by Kelly Bergevin

Author of The Candle and the Flame, Nafiza Azad returns with her new YA fantasy novel, Road of the Lost. Croi has grown up in the human world believing herself to be a brownie. When the glamour begins to break, a summoning spell pulls her through a portal to the world of the fae, and a handsome prince begins appearing in her dreams. As Croi tries to uncover the mystery of who she truly is, she also finds herself in the centre of two warring kingdoms. Road of the Lost examines friendship, first crushes, and hard decisions. Azad also uses Croi to take an interesting look at the feeling of being uncomfortable in your skin that many feel during puberty. The characters and story were compelling. I especially liked that the fae royalty were written with varying skin tones, unless most Western fantasy novels in which the ruling fae are white, and lesser fairies are more environmentally created. This book would be good for younger teenagers with strong vocabularies, as the themes are age-appropriate for 12 years old and up, but the writing is quite aureate. The ending leaves room for a second book, which I’m hoping will be announced soon.