Keepers of the Marsh

Twin sisters team up-despite drastically different personalities-to save their family from a bitter witch's curse in this rich and atmospheric middle grade novel.

Twelve-year-old Lana isn't looking for trouble when she ventures into the swampy marsh behind her family's home in Galveston Bay. She's just sweaty and bored and lonely, sick of sitting around doing nothing.

Her family never goes anywhere. Her mom and her sisters want nothing to do with her, and none of them will talk about their dead dad. With loads of unanswered questions and no other options, Lana decides to seek out the legendary Alligator Witch-if she's even real.

What Lana doesn't realize is that the Alligator Witch is very real, and has spent decades plotting her revenge on the town. When the witch swiftly casts a terrifying curse, the only person Lana can ask for help is her unfriendly and generally unwilling twin, Gracie.

Together, the twins embark on a memorable journey to make sense of the Alligator Witch's dark past, along with the unexpected role their family played in her descent. In spite of their differences, Lana and Gracie must unite to make things right and save their loved ones.

An enchanting read packed full of fascinating lore, girl-powered adventure, and just-enough danger, this story of sisterhood will keep readers hooked. Hand to fans of exciting, lightly magical sagas like The Midnight Children and The Jumbies.

“This low fantasy blends historical and contemporary elements with magic in a storyline that offers a healthy exploration of dealing with grief. The storytelling in this compact tale will sustain readers' interest before wrapping up with a satisfying resolution ... A heartfelt story that's filled with adventure.”-Kirkus Reviews

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Keepers of the Marsh

Twin sisters team up-despite drastically different personalities-to save their family from a bitter witch's curse in this rich and atmospheric middle grade novel.

Twelve-year-old Lana isn't looking for trouble when she ventures into the swampy marsh behind her family's home in Galveston Bay. She's just sweaty and bored and lonely, sick of sitting around doing nothing.

Her family never goes anywhere. Her mom and her sisters want nothing to do with her, and none of them will talk about their dead dad. With loads of unanswered questions and no other options, Lana decides to seek out the legendary Alligator Witch-if she's even real.

What Lana doesn't realize is that the Alligator Witch is very real, and has spent decades plotting her revenge on the town. When the witch swiftly casts a terrifying curse, the only person Lana can ask for help is her unfriendly and generally unwilling twin, Gracie.

Together, the twins embark on a memorable journey to make sense of the Alligator Witch's dark past, along with the unexpected role their family played in her descent. In spite of their differences, Lana and Gracie must unite to make things right and save their loved ones.

An enchanting read packed full of fascinating lore, girl-powered adventure, and just-enough danger, this story of sisterhood will keep readers hooked. Hand to fans of exciting, lightly magical sagas like The Midnight Children and The Jumbies.

“This low fantasy blends historical and contemporary elements with magic in a storyline that offers a healthy exploration of dealing with grief. The storytelling in this compact tale will sustain readers' interest before wrapping up with a satisfying resolution ... A heartfelt story that's filled with adventure.”-Kirkus Reviews

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Keepers of the Marsh

Keepers of the Marsh

by Maura Jortner

Narrated by Laura Knight Keating

Unabridged — 6 hours, 52 minutes

Keepers of the Marsh

Keepers of the Marsh

by Maura Jortner

Narrated by Laura Knight Keating

Unabridged — 6 hours, 52 minutes

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Overview

Twin sisters team up-despite drastically different personalities-to save their family from a bitter witch's curse in this rich and atmospheric middle grade novel.

Twelve-year-old Lana isn't looking for trouble when she ventures into the swampy marsh behind her family's home in Galveston Bay. She's just sweaty and bored and lonely, sick of sitting around doing nothing.

Her family never goes anywhere. Her mom and her sisters want nothing to do with her, and none of them will talk about their dead dad. With loads of unanswered questions and no other options, Lana decides to seek out the legendary Alligator Witch-if she's even real.

What Lana doesn't realize is that the Alligator Witch is very real, and has spent decades plotting her revenge on the town. When the witch swiftly casts a terrifying curse, the only person Lana can ask for help is her unfriendly and generally unwilling twin, Gracie.

Together, the twins embark on a memorable journey to make sense of the Alligator Witch's dark past, along with the unexpected role their family played in her descent. In spite of their differences, Lana and Gracie must unite to make things right and save their loved ones.

An enchanting read packed full of fascinating lore, girl-powered adventure, and just-enough danger, this story of sisterhood will keep readers hooked. Hand to fans of exciting, lightly magical sagas like The Midnight Children and The Jumbies.

“This low fantasy blends historical and contemporary elements with magic in a storyline that offers a healthy exploration of dealing with grief. The storytelling in this compact tale will sustain readers' interest before wrapping up with a satisfying resolution ... A heartfelt story that's filled with adventure.”-Kirkus Reviews


Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

This low fantasy blends historical and contemporary elements with magic in a storyline that offers a healthy exploration of dealing with grief. The storytelling in this compact tale will sustain readers’ interest before wrapping up with a satisfying resolution. . . A heartfelt story that’s filled with adventure.
—Kirkus Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

2025-03-08
Twelve-year-old Lana Parker has been warned away from the marsh bordering her neighborhood in Galveston, Texas, but an intriguing discovery leads her there anyway.

Lana has little in common with her fraternal twin, Gracie, and younger sister, Duck. Since their dad died of a virus two years ago, her family members have retreated: Mom into listening to audiobooks and writing poetry, Gracie into K-pop music, and Duck into video games. With her best friends gone for the summer and her grandmother in a nursing home following a recent stroke, Lana is bored. She escapes to Nana’s nearly empty house, where she discovers a mysterious golden key and a letter addressed to her father, admonishing him to “do your duty. The Alligator Witch is always there.” Most people regard the witch as a legend, but Dad believed in her, so Lana decides to see the instructions through. But when she enters the marsh seeking the witch, her mother and sisters face unintended magical consequences. Lana’s sincere first-person narrative is interspersed with sections following early-20th-century New York City teen spiritualist Zofia Kowalczyk and another pair of fraternal twins who lived in Galveston during the devastating Big Storm of 1900. This low fantasy blends historical and contemporary elements with magic in a storyline that offers a healthy exploration of dealing with grief. The storytelling in this compact tale will sustain readers’ interest before wrapping up with a satisfying resolution. Main characters read white.

A heartfelt story that’s filled with adventure.(Fantasy. 8-12)

Product Details

BN ID: 2940193317968
Publisher: Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date: 09/09/2025
Edition description: Unabridged
Age Range: 10 - 13 Years
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