The Grimoire of Grave Fates

Book Synopsis

Professor of Magical History Septimius Dropwort has just been murdered, and now everyone at the Galileo Academy for the Extraordinary is a suspect.

A prestigious school for young magicians, the Galileo Academy has recently undergone a comprehensive overhaul, reinventing itself as a roaming academy in which students of all cultures and identities are celebrated. In this new Galileo, every pupil is welcome--but there are some who aren't so happy with the recent changes. That includes everyone's least favorite professor, Septimius Dropwort, a stodgy old man known for his harsh rules and harsher punishments. But when the professor's body is discovered on school grounds with a mysterious note clenched in his lifeless hand, the Academy's students must solve the murder themselves, because everyone's a suspect.

Told from more than a dozen alternating and diverse perspectives, The Grimoire of Grave Fates follows Galileo's best and brightest young magicians as they race to discover the truth behind Dropwort's mysterious death. Each one of them is confident that only they have the skills needed to unravel the web of secrets hidden within Galileo's halls. But they're about to discover that even for straight-A students, magic doesn't always play by the rules. . . .

Contributors include: Cam Montgomery, Darcie Little Badger, Hafsah Faizal, Jessica Lewis, Julian Winters, Karuna Riazi, Kat Cho, Kayla Whaley, Kwame Mbalia, L. L. McKinney, Marieke Nijkamp, Mason Deaver, Natasha Díaz, Preeti Chhibber, Randy Ribay, Tehlor Kay Mejia, Victoria Lee, and Yamile Saied Méndez

Review Quotes

★ "Eighteen heroes, individual yet not alone, beautifully find self-respect and force their school to change." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Readers who've been burned by less culturally sensitive wizard schools will rejoice... The range of racial, ethnic, gendered, variously abled, and neurodiverse identities in a magic school setting is vastly appealing, and meditations on 'chosen one' clichés and sly meta-commentary make this especially enjoyable for genre-savvy readers."--The Bulletin

"[A] magical mystery." --Publishers Weekly

"Highly recommended for readers who love genre blending, magic with morals, and a good whodunit." --Booklist

"Exceptionally diverse and delightfully funny." --School Library Journal

"A resonant message of hope for a better future, magical or otherwise." --BookPage

About the Author

Margaret Owen was born and raised at the end of the Oregon Trail, and now lives and writes in Seattle while negotiating a long-term hostage situation with her two monstrous cats. In her free time, she enjoys exploring ill-advised travel destinations and raising money for social justice nonprofits through her illustrations. She is the author of The Merciful Crow and its sequel, The Faithless Hawk, as well as Little Theives.

With stories from contributors: Cam Montgomery, Darcie Little Badger, Jessica Lewis, Hafsah Faizal, Julian Winters, Karuna Riazi, Kat Cho, Kayla Whaley, Kwame Mbalia, L. L. McKinney, Marieke Nijkamp, Mason Deaver, Natasha Diaz, Preeti Chhibber, Randy Ribay, Tehlor Kay Mejia, Victoria Lee, and Yamile Saied Mendez.