The Best Children's Book Picks: JUNE 2025 US POST Edition - Mr Ripley's Enchanted Books

 

Lauren Magaziner - The Incorruptibles - Publisher ‏: Aladdin - Publication date : ‎June 10, 2025 - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎978-1665968669 - Hardback - Age: 9+ 

A girl joins the human resistance against sorcerer tyranny in this “breathless” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) first book in the exciting upper middle grade fantasy series The Incorruptibles that’s Keeper of the Lost Cities meets The Marvellers.

Fiora Barrowling lives in a world where sorcerers rule over humans. After surviving an encounter with The Radiance—the very worst of the sorcerers—she’s whisked away to the incredible Incorruptibles (“Inc”) Academy, a school for resistance fighters in training. But most of the other students think Fiora hasn’t earned her place there, and when things start to go wrong and it seems the sorcerers have a spy in the academy, all eyes are on Fiora. With all odds stacked against her, can Fiora prove that she belongs?

Amber Chen - The Blood Phoenix - Publisher:  Viking Books for Young Readers - Publication date ‏: ‎June 17, 2025 - ISBN-13 ‏: ‎ 978-0593622780 - Hardback - Age: 10+

The sequel to Of Jade and Dragons, a thrilling and epic silkpunk fantasy inspired by the legendary Qing dynasty. Perfect for fans of Elizabeth Lim and Xiran Jay Zhao.

Two years after Ying leaves the Engineer’s Guild and the ghost of her father’s unjust death behind, life seems to regain a semblance of normalcy. But the winds of unrest continue to stir within the Nine Isles, and the aftermath of a horrific pirate attack by the mysterious Blood Phoenix fleet forces Ying back into the tense political world of the new High Commander, Ye-yang. And soon, Ying, Ye-yang and her former friends from the guild must work together to find a way to outsmart the cunning pirates who terrorize the straits—and the elusive mastermind who’s controlling them.

Meanwhile, Ying’s sister, Nian, now lives in the capital, awaiting the day she will finally marry the High Commander. While her relationship with Ye-yang remains distant, she finds company in her friendship with the fourteenth prince, Ye-kan, and discovers her unexpected affinity for governance and strategy. But the capital is more dangerous than she expects, and when a dark conspiracy arises, Nian and Ye-kan must unravel the mystery in time to prevent the High Command from collapsing from within.

New dangers arise at every moment, threatening to tear the Nine Isles apart. In order to sail through this storm, Ying and her loved ones must make difficult choices amidst terrible betrayals. With the world on the brink of destruction, will they find a way to defeat their enemies and survive? And will it be worth the cost?

• Rosalyn Ransaw - Smoke & Mirrors Publisher : ‎Amulet Books - Publication date ‏: ‎June 10, 2025 - ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎978-1419770135 - Hardback - Age: 8+ 

An exciting and twisty middle-grade debut mystery novel—perfect for fans of From the Desk of Zoe Washington and The Parker Inheritance—about the disappearance of a famous magician, and one boy’s quest to find the truth

Spending the summer with his aunt as the only Black kid in a small Midwestern town was bad enough, but now Andy Carter’s summer has been effectively ruined.

His dad’s parole hearing is postponed, he misses his friends, and—when an old barn burns down—he’s stuck taking the blame. Andy is sentenced with helping the barn’s owner, a cantankerous old man, renovate his crumbling mansion—a mansion that hides a mystery.

It was once owned by the famous magician the Red Knave. In 1954, the Knave was a wanted suspect in the town’s most infamous murder before disappearing without a trace.

The whole town is sure the Red Knave is guilty, but to Andy, things just don’t add up. Investigating a mystery from the ’50s isn’t the same as spending time with his dad, but Andy can’t help but be drawn into the Red Knave’s exciting world of magic and illusion. To solve the Knave’s final vanishing act, Andy teams up with another boy he doesn’t quite trust. Secret by secret, they try to uncover the Red Knave’s identity and learn why his last performance came to such a tragic end.

With a gripping combination of hidden doors, shocking twists, and deep emotional heart, Smoke & Mirrors asks the question: How much of the truth is what you can get people to believe?

Rachel Hartman - Among Ghosts - Publisher ‏: ‎Random House Books for Young Readers - Publication date : June 24, 2025 - ISBN-13 : 978-0593813720 - Hardback - Age: 10+ 

A few things to know about the town of St. Muckle’s: It’s too out-of-the-way to interest greedy lords, and too damp and muddy for marauding dragons to burn. And anyone, from a humble serf to a runaway nun, may earn their freedom by living for a year and a day within the town walls. Seven years ago, Charl and his mother fled to St. Muckle’s and made it their safe-haven, building a new life in this so called Peasant’s Paradise. But when Charl sees something impossible—a ghost—soon the embers of his past are threatening to engulf his world in flame. A tragic accident is quickly followed by murder, a deadly plague, and a mercenary dragon.

Charl manages to escape to an abandoned abbey outside of town, but finds no safety within those ruined walls. A treacherous nun, a chorus of murdered girls, and the fearsome Battle Bishop await, ready to ensnare him in a complex web of history, magic and fate. For some things should never be forgotten, however much they haunt us, and Charl will need all his wisdom and resiliency if he is to fight for the world he knows…and the people he calls home.