Bibi is gek op haar vader en op haar vriendje Simmie. Huppelend naast haar vader zingt ze: ‘Papperdepapperdepapa.’ Soms is ze boos op hem. Gelukkig gebeurt dat niet zo vaak. Met Simmie beleeft ze spannende en grappige avonturen. Ze kunnen ook goed nadenken. Af en toe hoor je hun hersens kraken. ‘Als er geen vogels waren, zou ik ze wel missen,’ zegt Bibi. Ze zit met Simmie aan de oever van het kanaal. In een boom zingt een merel en in het kanaal zwemmen drie eenden. ‘Nee, hoor,’ zegt Simmie. ‘Die zou je niet missen.’ ‘Wel waar,’ zegt Bibi. ‘Als iets niet bestaat, mis je het ook niet,’ zegt Simmie. ‘Hoe weet jij dat nou?’ Simmie kijkt haar strak aan. ‘Mis jij het struispaard?’ vraagt hij. ‘Het wat?’ ‘Het struispaard.’ vanaf 4 jaar nur 281 www.antonvanderkolk.nl www.mark-janssen.nl www.van-goor.nl www.unieboekspectrum.nl Van Goor maakt deel uit van Uitgeverij Unieboek | Het Spectrum bv, Houten – Antwerpen

Als sich die junge Aiyana in New York zum ersten Mal als Solotänzerin präsentiert, erleidet sie einen mysteriösen Unfall. Wer ist ihr geheimnisvoller Retter Leonardo? Und was will Helena, die Lichtgestalt aus dem Zwischenreich, von ihm? Ihre Freundin Moira warnt Aiyana davor, ihrem Herzen zu folgen, doch die Leidenschaft lässt sich nicht aufhalten, selbst dann nicht, als sie erfährt, dass Leonardo einer uralten Vampirfamilie angehört. Aiyana bereut ihre Entscheidung, als sich das indianische Symbol auf ihrem Rücken golden verfärbt und sich die Erfüllung einer schicksalhaften Bestimmung abzeichnet, die Aiyana nicht wahrhaben will. Ihre Verwirrung steigt, weil sie spürt, dass Leonardo etwas Entscheidendes vor ihr verbirgt. Plötzlich ist nichts mehr, wie es einmal war und mysteriöse Anschläge auf ihr Leben häufen sich …

From Publishers Weekly

When middle-aged spinster Mira Fenn returns to her birthplace, Las Vegas, N.Mex., to try to find out what happened to her mother, Colette, who disappeared from their mirror-filled house without a trace years earlier, she finds a town full of ghosts and contradictions. Domingo, the hereditary caretaker of Mira's ancestral home, tells her that the house has been asking him to paint it in new and brilliant colors. As Mira and Domingo explore the house's awakening intelligence, their intricately entwined family histories and their own growing relationship, they find out more about color magic, Colette and Mira herself than they might have wanted to know. Conferring magical life on ordinary objects and people with a sweet flair reminiscent of Charles De Lint and Pamela Dean, Lindskold (Through Wolf's Eyes, etc.) spins a lovely and original yarn that ends up sadly tangled with unresolved questions; though billed as a stand-alone work, the novel contains a sequel's worth of untied loose ends. Mira phlegmatically declares that having more questions than answers is "fine with me," and anyone who agrees will find this an extremely enjoyable read. Agent, Kay McCauley. (May 18)
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From Booklist

Starred Review Obsessed with color and mostly ignored by her elegant mother, Mira spent her childhood waited on by silent women in an ornate house full of mirrors in Las Vegas, New Mexico. When mother disappears, Mira is sent to a foster family in Idaho that, changing its name, soon moves to Ohio, where the foster parents encourage Mira's budding artistic talent as she grows up, trying to be as normal as possible. She becomes an art teacher and, after her foster parents die in a car wreck, starts investigating her mother's disappearance and the Las Vegas house. She had known that she had a trust fund and that her trustees had specified that her foster parents change their name--and that they never take her to New Mexico--but not that she owns the house. Returning to Las Vegas, she finds that her mother's disappearance has never been explained. Strange things start happening: the silent women of her childhood reappear, ghostlike; she meets a woman hanged in the late 1800s; as she reads her foster mother's journals, clues to the truth about her mother and the house emerge. Lindskold conjures the atmosphere of nontourist New Mexico, beautifully evoking Las Vegas' long, turbulent history while spinning a fantastic yarn about Mira's odd inheritance. Neither an explosive story nor an edge-of-the-seat-thriller, the novel's strength lies in the unfolding of Mira's character. Regina Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

From Publishers Weekly

Lindskold (Through Wolf's Eyes) delivers an enjoyable but unremarkable series launch. Brenda Morris, an innocent quarter-Chinese college student, is abruptly thrust into the hidden world of the Thirteen Orphans, descendants of magicians who take the forms of Chinese zodiac animals and draw magic from the game of mah-jongg. Brenda fights valiantly against otherworld elements who seek to steal the Orphans' power, but indulges in a painfully juvenile crush on a killer who attacks her father. From a fascinating premise, the narrative stalls repeatedly under the weight of awkward exposition, explanation of magic and mah-jongg and analysis of offscreen events. Stiff, unrealistic dialogue interrupts crisp, clean narrative prose. The only sparkle comes from mysterious assassins Flying Claw and Righteous Drum. After this serviceable setup, readers will mostly hope for the interesting sequel promised by the abrupt conclusion. (Nov.)
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From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–Nineteen-year-old Brenda Morris lives a comfortable life bounded by a loving family, good friends, and her college studies. One summer night, though, after a young man dressed like a Chinese warrior attacks her father and uses magic to alter his memories, Brenda learns that she is descended from one of 13 nobles who fled another world to seek refuge on Earth. Now, after almost a century, the heirs of those exiles are under attack. Brenda joins with a handful of other descendants in a desperate attempt to save their heritage. Yet she also finds herself drawn to the attacker. Who is friend, and who is foe? Lindskold has created a convincing tale of a young woman entering adulthood, assuming responsibility for herself and for others, and making sometimes-wrenching decisions. Action is brisk in the first and last thirds of the book, while the middle concentrates on developing relationships between the characters and providing background information. The story is nevertheless an attention-grabber throughout. It ends with questions and conflicts still unresolved, while the unexpected arrival of a new character sets up the next book in what promises to be an engrossing series. Recommend this one to teens who enjoy urban fantasies by authors such as Charles de Lint, Jim Butcher, or Lilith Saintcrow.–Sandy Schmitz, Berkeley Public Library, CA
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