Review of Kelcie Murphy and the Academy for the Unbreakable Arts by Erika Lewis

Kelcie Murphy and the Academy for the Unbreakable Arts by Erika Lewis
Format:  E-ARC
Publisher:  Starscape/Macmillan
Number of pages:  331 
Publishing:  March 1st, 2022
Source: Publisher via MB Communications

Opening Lines:  "No one was ever supposed to find her.  Her mother's magic and father's sacrifice made sure of that.  But they did."  

One day on a field trip to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Kelcie is startled by the appearance of her social services case worker, Elliott and a police officer.  Her first thought is that she's moving group homes again, but when they lead her down into the basement of the museum, she become suspicious.  She's even more shocked when they morph into ice fairies.  Elliott promises to tell Kelcie who her parents are, in return she must agree to place her hands on an ancient artifact while reciting words in a language, she didn't even know she knew how to speak.  I'm seriously having Percy Jackson vibes with this opening.  

Eventually, Kelcie is able to break free from her captors and follows them hoping they will finally tell her about her parents, but then they seemingly vanish next to a tree.  As Kelcie explores the tree and places her necklace on the tree bark, she is transported to the Otherworld, a place that has known nothing but war, with the land of Winter and Summer trying to defeat one another.  The Academy for the Unbreakable Arts is situated in the land of Summer and trains it's students to be warriors.  Upon her arrival, Kelcie meets Niall and learns that a new term is starting at the magical school, and she has arrived in time to complete the trials for entrance.  Receiving a coveted spot at the Academy will mean that Kelcie will be trained by the legendary Celtic warrior, Scáthach, and possibly she can finally find information about who her parents are, and why they abandoned her in Boston Harbor eight years ago.  Yep, feeling a little bit of Sophie from the Keeper of the Lost Cities vibes now.  

 Kelcie begins the story not knowing who her parents are and that she has any magical powers.  Once she unleashes her magic it at first overwhelms her, such power is difficult to manage, with the help of her new friends she begins to learn how to control it.  Not only does she have one power, but she is Saiga, one who can control multiple elements, like air, fire and wind, which sets her apart from the other students, causing her to feel isolated at first.  The only element she has difficulty with is water, because of a fear resulting from a near drowning incident when she was abandoned in the Boston Harbor.   Kelcie's confidence begins to grow as she becomes more knowledgeable about her family and powers.   The Academy setting reminded me of the Magisterium Series by Holly Black and a little bit of the Lightning Thief too.  I loved the way each of the teams/units (Fianna) consists of individuals from different Dens (grouped by their magical powers, like Chargers, Adders, Cats, Ravens and Saiga).  I find the magic that they each wield is quite interesting, and the challenges that they face as a part of the initiation quite fun.  Each one of the members of a team brought their own strengths to the challenges and combined it felt like they were unstoppable.  Kelcie grows into her team, and you can see how they're becoming more than just friends but a family who rely on and care for one another.    Plus, Niall and Kelcie make such a cute couple, rooting for them for sure.   Lastly, I enjoyed the Celtic mythology the story is inspired by, although I'm finding I haven't read nearly enough.  I did appreciate the inclusion of a glossary at the back of the book with descriptions for the terms used in the story, the various legends the characters are based off and loved the descriptions of the monsters and creatures that Kelcie and her team face.  Overall, I enjoyed the battle scenes, the magical academy, the twist and turns, the surprising reveal at the end, the nice mixture of magical powers and the kick butt team.  Looking forward to seeing what happens next for Kelcie.  

    **A huge thank you to the publisher and MB Communications for the ARC**