The Serpent's Secret (Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond, #1) by Sayantani DasGupta
Published by Scholastic on February 27th 2018
ISBN: 1338185705
Pages: 351
Goodreads

Kiranmala would be happy to be an ordinary middle school student in New Jersey. To her embarrassment and annoyance,  her parents have always insisted on telling her stories about her role as an Indian Princess of mythology and legend. Then on her twelfth birthday, the stories become reality as her parents disappear, a giant demon destroys her house, and she makes the acquaintance of two princely brothers who whisk her away to the world of underworld mythology where she learns that she is really the daughter of the Snake King and the Moon. Now she has only so much time to learn the history of her birth world, fight her jealous serpentine siblings, and save her beloved human parents. Lots of action, friendship and trust building, and a unwarranted amount of demon goo as Kiranmala accepts her place as a demonslayer. There is truly something for everyone. An author’s note further explains the folktale characters that appear in the story. Book Two is in production.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth