Rea and the Blood of the Nectar

by Payal Doshi

It all begins on the night Rea turns twelve. After a big fight with her twin brother Rohan on their birthday, Rea's life in the small village of Darjeeling, India, gets turned on its head. It's four in the morning and Rohan is nowhere to be found. It hasn't even been a day and Amma acts like Rohan's gone forever. Her grandmother, too, is behaving strangely. Unwilling to give up on her brother, Rea and her friend Leela meet Mishti Daadi, a wrinkly...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1645437639
• ISBN13: 9781645437635
• Release Date: June 2021
• Publisher: Mango & Marigold Press
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.6" x 8.0"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

A vividly-written adventure-filled fantasy with important themes

Rea and the Blood of the Nectar is a beautiful middle grade portal fantasy. Rea is a 12 year-old girl who lives in the Darjeeling area of India. She resents her popular twin brother Rohan who she feels is treated better by her family. She often feels invisible. On the night of their 12th birthday, Rohan mysteriously goes missing. Rea, along with her friend Leela, portal through a banyan tree to a magical botanical realm called Astranthia, to search for Rohan. The world building is lush and vibrant, with deadly serpent lilies, a blood sucking banshee and an evil queen. There are themes of sibling rivalry, family, secrets, courage, self-worth and friendship. Rea is a flawed character, often impulsive and sometimes inconsiderate. Yet she is intelligent, brave and determined to do what is right. She grows and triumphs in the face of adversity, and learns to value herself and others. Her budding friendship with the steadfast and loyal Leela is one of the many strengths of the story. Rea and the Blood of the Nectar is a vividly written, enjoyable, adventure-filled fantasy with important themes that can be enjoyed by teens and adults, as well as middle grade readers. I'm looking forward to the sequel. Highly recommended. #BooksForwardFriends