The Curse of Great Winter Academy

by Jessika Fleck, Brian Anderson (Artist), Gabhor Utomo (Illustrator)

Overview

"This thrilling mashup of boarding school, supernatural, and scary story tropes is the latest addition to the Choose Your Own Adventure series ... A page-turning, spine-tingling addition to a perennially popular series." - Kirkus Reviews

Break an impossible curse or die trying in this interactive book where YOU decide what happens next! Packed with 19 possible endings!

Choose Your Own Adventure books–the 4th bestselling children’s series of all time–are now available with even more pages, choices, and mystery for 10- to 12-year-old readers.

The Great Winter Academy for the Extraordinarily Talented is made up of students with paranormal and fantastical abilities. This year, YOU are one of three students who receive the impossible curse— retrieve a long lost heirloom stolen by the rival school, or die trying. Nobody has successfully broken the curse before, and many have met grisly ends. Will you try to find a way out of your curse? Or will you infiltrate the ranks of your rivals?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781954232181
Publisher:	Choose Your Own Adventure
Publication date:	06/17/2025
Series:	Choose Your Own Adventure New Classics , #4
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.66(d)
Lexile:	750L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

JESSIKA FLECK is the author of Murder at the Old Willow Boarding School, The Castaways, and The Offering Duology (Beware the Night and Defy the Sun). She lives in Illinois.

Editorial Reviews

"This thrilling mashup of boarding school, supernatural, and scary story tropes is the latest addition to the Choose Your Own Adventure series.

As a ninth grader at the Great Winter Academy for the Extraordinarily Gifted Students, you, Mildred Mendelson, have been chosen by the enigmatic Society of Misfits to break the Impossible Curse. You, your best friend, Annie, and new kid Lyle (who uses they/them pronouns) have until the next full moon to retrieve a stolen artifact from your rival school and thereby break the Curse—or die. Will your abilities to communicate with and animate dolls, Annie’s mimicry skills, and Lyle’s facility with water be up to the task? Maybe you should try to break the Alternative Curse with your close friend and crush, Arthur, instead? Your success depends on the choices you make as the twisty plot unfurls. This plot-driven adventure maintains a brisk pace, with readers making decisions every few pages. The 19 different endings include outcomes such as death, breaking the Impossible Curse, exposing the secret society, and becoming the society’s new Alpha. The characters’ motivations and allegiances change depending on what readers choose, but the supernatural powers remain constant. Those occult abilities plus scary (but never gory) elements—ghosts, creepy dolls and clowns, Zombie Cats—reward multiple readings. Occasional grayscale illustrations provide visual support; in them, most characters present white, while Lyle has dark skin and curly black hair.

A page-turning, spine-tingling addition to a perennially popular series. (Paranormal. 9-12)" - Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2025-05-03
This thrilling mashup of boarding school, supernatural, and scary story tropes is the latest addition to the Choose Your Own Adventure series.

As a ninth grader at the Great Winter Academy for the Extraordinarily Gifted Students, you, Mildred Mendelson, have been chosen by the enigmatic Society of Misfits to break the Impossible Curse. You, your best friend, Annie, and new kid Lyle (who usesthey/them pronouns) have until the next full moon to retrieve a stolen artifact from your rival school and thereby break the Curse—or die. Will your abilities to communicate with and animate dolls, Annie’s mimicry skills, and Lyle’s facility with water be up to the task? Maybe you should try to break the Alternative Curse with your close friend and crush, Arthur, instead? Your success depends on the choices you make as the twisty plot unfurls. This plot-driven adventure maintains a brisk pace, with readers making decisions every few pages. The 19 different endings include outcomes such as death, breaking the Impossible Curse, exposing the secret society, and becoming the society’s new Alpha. The characters’ motivations and allegiances change depending on what readers choose, but the supernatural powers remain constant. Those occult abilities plus scary (but never gory) elements—ghosts, creepy dolls and clowns, Zombie Cats—reward multiple readings. Occasional grayscale illustrations provide visual support; in them, most characters present white, while Lyle has dark skin and curly black hair.

A page-turning, spine-tingling addition to a perennially popular series.(Paranormal. 9-12)

Kirkus Reviews