Keepers of the Stones and Stars

by Michael Barakiva

Overview

Keepers of the Stones and Stars is a witty young adult contemporary fantasy about a group of five teens chosen by magical gems to save the world.

Save the world.
Get the guy.

Reed is leading his best life: he’s just kissed the boy of his dreams, his band is finally taking off, and he’s a shoo-in to getting elected as next year’s Student Council president. But he’s ready to give it all up when his suspiciously aristocratic guidance counselor tells him he has been chosen to go on the adventure of a lifetime.

Because Reed is the first of five Stone Bearers to be chosen by magical gems and granted their powers. All he has to do is unite all five and lead them to seal a portal that will release an onslaught of uncontrollable chaotic magical energies, and destroy the world as we know it. It’s up to the Ruby, Sapphire, Topaz, Emerald, and Amethyst Bearers to save the world, fulfilling their roles in a centuries-old cycle that dates back to 17th century Mughal India and the first Keepers of the Stones and Stars.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374314408
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	05/21/2024
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	407,355
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.80(d)
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Michael Barakiva, author of Keepers of the Stones and Stars, One Man Guy, and Hold My Hand, is an Armenian/Israel-American theater director and writer who lives in Manhattan with his husband. He is a graduate of Vassar College and the Juilliard School, and an avid cook and board-game player.

Editorial Reviews

03/04/2024

Barakiva (Hold My Hand) combines queer sensibilities and Aztec, Middle Eastern, and South Asian influences in this sweeping and ambitious tale. After kissing his dream boy, music-loving high school junior Reed de Vries is on top of the world. When he meets a mysterious guidance counselor named Mr. Shaw, however, he doesn’t expect for his life to turn upside down. Mr. Shaw informs him that Reed is the first of a ragtag group of snarky teens—or the Bearers—that Mr. Shaw must unite to save the world from a portal that threatens to plunge society into madness. But Mr. Shaw has secrets of his own, and when horrific truths come to light, Reed discovers that the only people he can trust are his fellow Bearers as he struggles to hold the realm together. Copious pop culture references occasionally overshadow the story’s unique worldbuilding, original magic system, and quirky characters. Nevertheless, the narrative’s twists and turns are enormously fun to watch unfold, and fans of queer romance and intersectionally diverse ensembles will find a lot to love in Barakiva’s beguiling tale. Ages 14–up. (May)

Publishers Weekly

"An imaginative, funny, and of-the-moment race to save the world." —Kirkus

"[A] sweeping and ambitious tale." —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher