Exciting news: Esme’s Wish has a cover! Illustrated by
The sea, once it casts its spell,
holds one in its net of wonder forever.
— Jacques-Yves Cousteau
I’m also excited to share some snippets from two early reviews already in.
Esme’s Wish garnered a five star review from Sarah Scheele at Readers’ Favourite:
“This colorful, well-constructed tale is as much detective story as fantasy and deftly blends both elements into a page-turning plot that hooks the reader in. I was fascinated by the creative water world of Aeolia, described in Elizabeth Foster’s limpid, seductive prose. As Esme learns, “The history of Aeolia is writ in water,” and I liked the elaborate, detailed spin the story took on this idea.”
Diane Donovan at Midwest Book Review had these kind words to say:
“Esme’s Wish is an enchanting young adult story in which two genres – mystery and fantasy – wind together well under the one cover… The first thing to note about Esme’s Wish is its language, which offers up poetic descriptions that pull young adult readers into the story. Atmospheric descriptions are thick with sensations and emotions… Esme’s odyssey is filled with the kind of action and adventure that keeps young readers immersed in her changing perspectives and experiences. The result is a vivid story packed with twists and turns that will keep readers involved up to its unexpected end.”
If you are interested in manga-style illustrations, check out Furea’s designs on Instagram and on her website. There is a word in Japanese – ‘setsunai’ – which relates to the bittersweet recapturing of past joys or losses, to the prickle of poignancy at the ephemerality of beauty, or the realisation of time passing. In my view, Furea’s work is infused with such sentiment. The cover she has created, saturated with the blue of sea and sky and depicting a city rising in the distance, sends me into the same dreamy space I hope Esme’s Wish will create for its readers!