The Water and the Wild

First-time author Ormsbee introduces Lottie Fiske, a 12-year-old orphan living in a boardinghouse and called “Oddy Lottie” by her classmates. Lottie has bigger problems than name-calling, however—namely the incurable disease that threatens best friend Eliot’s life. After Lottie makes a birthday wish to help Eliot, she is whisked away to Limn, a world below her own. Once there, Lottie finds that she, her new sprite friends Oliver and Adelaide, and a halfling wisp named Fife have been decreed outlaws by the cruel king of the Southerly sprites; this is due in part to Lottie’s fame as the last surviving Fiske, a family known for uniting the Southerlies, Northerlies, and wisps. A spirited beginning turns sluggish as the group journeys through forests and dangerous swamps to save Oliver and Adelaide’s father, a healer taken hostage by the king. The novel’s hasty resolution leaves many loose ends, yet Ormsbee’s humorous descriptions (Mrs. Yates, who runs the boardinghouse where Lottie lives, “stooped like wilted spinach”) and vivid creatures, such as the dreaded but loyal Barghest, should keep many readers intrigued. Ages 8–12. Agent: Beth Phelan, Bent Agency. (Apr.)