The starseekers

In 1964, Cynthia Rhodes is an arcane engineer for NASA, contributing to the space race while raising her two sisters and hosting a magical-education show. Unfortunately, someone is sabotaging fuel tests, and when a rival dies in an accident, Cynthia takes up the Rhodes family tradition of using magic to solve mysteries and searches for answers. Luckily, her handsome cohost, Theo Danner, is happy to partner her to investigate the mystery. Cynthia and Theo will have to look at old grievances and new connections to determine who might kill to get what they want, while also working on their budding relationship. Longtime fans of the Murder and Magic series (most recently, The Improvisers, 2024) will be rewarded with some fun cameos, but the colorful cast of characters will appeal to new and returning readers alike. Glover deftly mixes history with fantasy, adding an intriguing slant to the NASA human computers as well as issues like discrimination and student protests. Recommended for fans of magical historical fiction like Maurice Broaddus' 2017 novella, Buffalo Soldier, or Leslye Penelope's The Monsters We Defy (2022).

Weaving celestial magic into the history of the first crewed NASA flights, the elaborate fourth installment in Glover's Murder and Magic series (after The Improvisers) pits Black aerospace engineer and mage Cynthia Rhodes against a conspiracy to stop the latest space launch. Super-genius Cynthia, who sleuths in her spare time, is game to tackle the mystery and enlists the investigative help of Prof. Theo Danner, an eminent marine archaeologist and her cohost on a children's educational magic program. Cynthia and Theo pry into the secret labs at her NASA research center as well as "the most enchanted house in D.C." to figure out who is responsible for a recent museum theft, what is making a new rocket fuel synthesized from a legendary alchemical mixture fail explosively, and how these things may be connected. As this central mystery grows ever more tangled, readers may have difficulty following along. Fortunately, Glover fills out the stage with domestic drama, the civil rights protests of 1964 America, and budding attraction between Cynthia and Theo, all of which keep the pages turning even in the more convoluted moments. Fans will be pleased to see Glover's alternate history expanded into a new era. Agent: Jennie Goloboy, Donald Maass Literary. (Jan.)

Glover continues her loosely connected "Murder & Magic" series with this follow-up to The Improvisors. Cynthia Rhodes is an arcane engineer at NASA, helping achieve the goal of reaching the moon. When a series of accidents befalls her project, Cynthia notices the involvement of a dangerous magical curse, the same one that afflicted a magical museum curator. Cynthia teams up with her grandparents' former assistant turned arcane archeologist, Theodore Danner, with whom she works to get at the heart of an ever-expanding and ever more deadly mystery. All roads lead to an unparalleled treasure rumored to be connected to a famous musician. As Cynthia and Theo race against an enemy who is willing to kill to obtain the treasure, they will need to use all their knowledge, both magical and otherwise, to save the day. The action is enough to keep the plot moving without overwhelming the story, while the cameos by characters from previous books will tickle fans and invite newcomers to seek out the earlier titles. VERDICT Glover's ability to weave and construct historical events within a layer of magic is astounding and entirely believable; this is another absolutely wonderful installment in her series.--Laura Hiatt