Keeper of the Rend

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Last Magician series comes a heart-wrenching middle grade debut steeped in magical realism about a bird-loving boy who moves to the countryside where he encounters dangerous creatures invading through a rip in the sky. Xavier T. Fletcher is an Odd Duck. At least, thats what everyone in his sleepy little suburb seems to think. Luckily, birds happen to be the aspiring naturalists favorite things, so he doesnt mind the label quite as much as you might expect. But when Xaviers father loses his job, everything changes. His family is forced to move to his Nana Susans farm. There, he meets Clementine, a strange, messy girl who doesnt see him as an Odd Duck at all. Too bad she has the unfortunate habit of using her slingshot to hunt the birds he loves. Xaviers not sure what to think when Clem assures him that they arent really birds. Hes even less sure when he discovers that Clem isnt lying. The bird-like creatures come from the Rend, a tear in the sky between our world and the Nothers, and the objects they carry in their beaks from that cold, dark place are dangerous. Its up to Xavier and Clem to find a way to keep the creatures out of our world. But how can he protect the Rend when he suspects Clem hasnt told him the whole truth about what shes doing?