Labyrinth Lost

Zoraida Córdova

Sep 2016 · Brooklyn Brujas Book 1 · Sourcebooks, Inc.

About this ebook

The first book in the Latinx-infused Queer fantasy series from Zoraida Córdova, highly acclaimed author of The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina, that follows three sisters—and teen witches—as they develop their powers and battle magic through epic questing in the realms beyond.

Alex is a bruja and the most powerful witch in her family. But she's hated magic ever since it made her father disappear into thin air. So while most girls celebrate their Quinceañera, Alex prepares for her Deathday—the most important day in a bruja's life and her only opportunity to rid herself of magic.

But the curse she performs during the ceremony backfires, and her family vanishes, forcing Alex to absorb all of the magic from her family line. Left alone, Alex seeks help from Nova, a brujo with ambitions of his own.

To get her family back they must travel to Los Lagos, a land in-between, as dark as Limbo and as strange as Wonderland. And while she's there, what she discovers about herself, her powers, and her family, will change everything...

Brooklyn Brujas Series:

• Labyrinth Lost (Book 1): Alex's story—set in the mythical fantasy world of Los Lagos
• Bruja Born (Book 2): Lula's story—urban fantasy set on the streets of Brooklyn
• Wayward Witch (Book 3): Rose's story—set in the magical lost realm of Adas

Perfect for fans of:

• Teen LGBTQ books
• Latin American fiction
• Witch books
• Myths & legends
• Dark fantasy quests

Praise for Labryinth Lost:

An NPR Best Young Adult Book of 2016

Tor.com's Best YA SFF of 2016

A Bustle Best Book of 2016 Selection

A Paste Magazine Best Books of 2016

"[Labyrinth Lost] kicked off...an incredible rise of non-hetero hexing."—Dahlia Adler, Tor.com

"A richly Latin American, giddily exciting novel."—New York Times Book Review

"A brilliant brown-girl-in-Brooklyn update on Alice in Wonderland and Dante's Inferno. Very creepy, very magical, very necessary."—Janiel Jose Older, New York Times bestselling author of Shadowshaper

Ratings and reviews

Alex is a bruja, and a very powerful one at that. The only problem is that she doesn't want anything to do with magic. She doesn't want to accept her fate as an encantrix, and is dreading her Deathday celebration, where she will celebrate and embrace her power with her family. Alex tries to perform a complex spell to rid herself of her magic, but it backfires horribly, sending her entire family to the mythical land of Los Lagos. Now Alex must put her trust in a mysterious boy named Nova, who claims that he can help her navigate through Los Lagos and save her family. I was so excited to read Labyrinth Lost. The world of Los Lagos sounded so interesting and I couldn't wait to go on an adventure with Alex and Nova. Unfortunately, though, it took me a really long time to get into this book. It took me over a month to finish it because it wasn't holding my attention. I did eventually get invested in the story, but it took much longer than I would have liked. Once I passed the halfway point, I finished it pretty quickly. But it took me about half of the book until I cared about the characters or was interested in their troubles. Ultimately, I think a large part of why I became more interested in Labyrinth Lost was the world. I didn't care as much about the characters when they were in our world. The story seemed to drag and not much was really going on. Alex was constantly complaining about not wanting her powers, and nothing was really happening. I honestly didn't feel very connected to the characters at all. Then, when we got to see Los Lagos, everything changed. Los Lagos is like nothing I have ever read before. I really love the religion and world that Zoraida Cordova created. It was so unique and I was so enthralled by the intricacies of it. You could almost feel how passionate she was about this world she created as you were reading it. For me, there was such a difference in the parts of the book that took place in the real world and those that took place in Los Lagos. I did end up enjoying Labyrinth Lost, but it didn't blow me away. There were definite aspects of the book that I really loved, and others that didn't really do much for me. I did predict some of the plot twists that occurred towards the end of the book, so the plot didn't really blow me away. But, there was still something magical and wonderful about this book. Even though it took me a while to become committed to it, I ended up enjoying the ride. I am definitely interested to see where this series will go. It is supposedly composed of companion novels with stories revolving around Alex's sisters. I have no idea where the story will go or what it will be like to have that change in point of view. After the way Labyrinth Lost ended, I really can't guess where the next two companion novel will take us. I guess I will have to wait until next year to find out.

Thoroughly enjoyed this story! The world of brujas and brujos is just he dark, amazing magic I am into. Can't wait to read the next one. brilliant book !!

I loved this book. The twist at the end is driving me crazy waiting for the next one.

About the author

Zoraida Córdova is the author of the award-winning Brooklyn Brujas series and The Vicious Deep trilogy. Her short fiction has appeared in Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, and Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women and Witchcraft. She is the co-editor of Vampires Never Get Old, a YA anthology forthcoming from Imprint/Macmillan in fall 2020. Her upcoming YA novels include Star Wars: A Crash of Fate, and Incendiary, book one in the Hollow Crown duology (Disney/Hyperion 2020). Zoraida was born in Ecuador and raised in Queens, New York. When she isn’t working on her next novel, she’s planning her next adventure.