The Rise of Issa Igwe

The Rise of Issa Igwe is an engaging middle grade fantasy set in a school by Shanna Miles. Released 22nd Oct 2024 by Union Square on their Kids' imprint, it's 360 pages and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. 

This is a top notch dark academia magic/ghost story for ca. 8-12 year old readers. It features some crossover appearances from characters in The Fall of the House of Tatterly, but it's not a sequel and it functions fine as a standalone read. Issa herself is intelligent, determined, a bit headstrong, and creative. The mystery is well constructed, and it's creepy, but not too scary for the target audience. 

This is Issa's story (she's also in Tatterly), and it's nice to see high quality books with a black girl in a central role. Representation is important. There are also central plot elements featuring Gulla culture and beliefs. 

Four and a half stars. It would make a great choice for public library acquisition (possibly for middle to secondary school as well, although acquisitions personnel should read it beforehand in areas of the USA subject to book challenges). Recommended for fans of dark academia, fantasy/ghost story readers, and maybe a binge/buddy read.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.