How to Free a Leviathan - by Meg Cannistra (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Do you know a fairy with a fever? Or a sasquatch with a stomach ache? Giada Bellantuono is the one to call. She's no ordinary veterinarian. She has the power to heal all kinds of fantastic creatures! Now she and Sinistro, her black cat familiar, have left their home in New Jersey to train with magical veterinarians around the world. And a conference in Argentina has come just in time. A company called C&C Medicinals is kidnapping and hurting magical animals to make medicine for humans! Giada knows firsthand how dangerous the company can be. She saved a unicorn from one of their henchmen just last month. Once Giada gets to Argentina, she'll spread the word. But there's something suspicious going on at the conference, and Giada and Sinistro suspect that C&C Medicinals is at the root of it. Before they can do anything about it, Sinistro is kidnapped! With help from old friends and new ones, including a shy young leviathan, Giada will do whatever it takes to bring down C&C Medicinals and save Sinistro. This [is the] third and final installment in the Giada the Healer series"--

Book Synopsis

It's Giada against C&C Medicinals in the fight to protect a leviathan--and all magical creatures.

Do you know a fairy with a fever? Or a sasquatch with a stomach ache? Giada Bellantuono is the one to call. She's no ordinary veterinarian. She has the power to heal all kinds of fantastic creatures!

Now she and Sinistro, her black cat familiar, have left their home in New Jersey to train with magical veterinarians around the world. And a conference in Argentina has come just in time. A company called C&C Medicinals is kidnapping and hurting magical animals to make medicine for humans! Giada knows firsthand how dangerous the company can be. She saved a unicorn from one of their henchmen just last month. Once Giada gets to Argentina, she'll spread the word.

But there's something suspicious going on at the conference, and Giada and Sinistro suspect that C&C Medicinals is at the root of it. Before they can do anything about it, Sinistro is kidnapped! With help from old friends and new ones, including a shy young leviathan, Giada will do whatever it takes to bring down C&C Medicinals and save Sinistro.

This third and final installment in the Giada the Healer series, which award-winning author Laura Ruby called "perfect for fans of Rick Riordan," perfectly blends action-packed thrills with a tender exploration of grief.

Review Quotes

Praise for How to Heal a Gryphon:

"I could live with these characters and in this world for a good long while. Bring on the sequel!"--New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy

"Take one headstrong, lovable heroine, one snarky cat familiar, a family of gryphons, a rich and immersive magical world plus a search for a missing brother and you get How to Heal a Gryphon, a funny, fantastical mystery with nods to Italian history and mythology. Perfect for fans of Rick Riordan."--Laura Ruby, Two-Time National Book Award Finalist and author of the YORK Trilogy

"Cannistra's entertaining narrative features wonderful descriptions of places and events that will transport readers. Stupenda!"--Kirkus Reviews

"Via a world where magic and modern medicine coexist, and a secret spell-casting community lives undetected year-round, Cannistra writes a compassionate quest that interrogates tradition, legacy, and humans' effect on the natural world."--Publishers Weekly

"Giada is a joy to befriend; she's aware of her shortcomings but also confident in her magic, and she unapologetically delights in her fat body and all that it's capable of. It's worth a trip to this enchanting (and enchanted) Italian coast."--Booklist

"In this well-paced story, Cannistra expands on her worldbuilding through intriguing cross-cultural elements. Over the course of the book, Giada faces intense emotional threats [and] takes many high-stakes risks, and the narrative validates her feelings and offers space for her to fully experience them. An emotionally raw trilogy closer."--Kirkus Reviews

"The characterization of Giada is believable and relatable. She is also a great example of positive body diversity. The strength and heart of the story is the relationship between Giada and Sinistro. The love between them purrs off the page. A touching tale."--School Library Journal