So much fun! Amari and the Great Game picks up a year after the first book ended, with Amari preparing to go back to supernatural summer camp, and this year the supernatural community's distaste for magicians is heating up because its governing body is currently trapped in a magical time freeze. Amari needs to investigate the time freeze to clear her name; meanwhile, the secret league of magicians is asking her to take on leadership, and if she refuses, a more dangerous magician would step up.

I enjoyed this book a lot more than the first as I was more familiar with the world, the plots here are pretty straightforward, and Amari has a growing group of supportive friends. While addressing serious topics, this book still manages to be goofy and fun: I particularly love all the gags that come with the talking elevators. An interesting element is how social media plays a role in the plot again with characters livestreaming and creating hashtags. While this was a little odd to read about, I think it is nice for readers to see characters using social media to have a voice and stand up for what they believe in. And as can often be the case for reading middle grade as an adult, the way this book presents its themes can come off as a little on the nose (standing up against bullying, corrupt government, a strong line being drawn between good and evil, etc.), but all of the issues it touches on are important and will speak to young readers.

My only continued complaint would be that I'm still uncomfortable with how hierarchical, competitive, and elitist the Bureau tends to be, even with its 12 and 13 year old trainees. I'm wondering if this is something that will be challenged in future books? I also think there could be room in future books for Amari to question what it means to be a agent-in-training when she disagrees with the views of the government (like the deportation of "UnWanteds" in this book, and the general hatred towards magicians).

I really enjoyed being back with Amari again and I'm so glad this series exists! (Do we know yet how many books there are going to be?) Definitely one so many young readers will love. I already can't wait to find out what happens next in book 3!

I loved hopping back into this world. As a black woman I am so happy that this series exists. I love the idea of young girls reading this series and being able to imagine themselves in fantastical situations where they are the hero.

An excellent sequel to Amari and the Night Brothers. I enjoyed this one just as much, if not more. The cliffhanger, though! Can't wait to continue this series.

I received this book as an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I read this immediately after reading the first book in the series “Amari and the Night Brothers.” I loved that book, but I actually think I enjoyed this one more. In this book you find out more information about the characters and their lives. This made it more personable. Although I like Amari, I liked a lot of the characters and I felt a tug-a-war with who I was routing for. I felt sorry for the people who were the villains, but I felt the disappointment when Amari had set backs too. This struggle kept me reading. My investment made me want to know how it ended.

This was one of my most highly anticipated titles for this year and it did not disappoint! I was so happy to get back into Amari's world. This book was fast paced and action packed. I absolutely loved the character development and the progression of the relationships between characters. Now I'm back to eagerly awaiting the next Amari book! I highly recommend this book for readers that enjoy fantasy, sci-fi, and/or adventure. Readers that love the Harry Potter, Nevermoor, or Maya and the Rising Dark series will likely fall in love with this series as well!

Wow, I definitely worried that this next installment wouldn't live up to how fantastic the first one was, but I was very wrong. This one may actually be better! I absolutely adore Amari and loved seeing her grow into her magic. The storyline was fast-paced and I was hooked right away, causing me to read it in two days. While there were a few plot points that I called from the beginning, there were still so many surprises that I did not care and appreciated the twists and turns Alston added into the story. The new characters were fantastic and awful (as they were meant to be!) and I appreciated learning more about the supernatural beings that lived in their world as my understanding of Amari's world grew. I cannot wait to read the finale book and will continue to recommend Amari as an excellent series for fantasy and magic readers at my library!

Amari and the Night Brothers hooks you immediately and pulls you in to a strange new magical world. I loved it. Unfortunately, Amari and the Great Game is very much the second book in the series. We no longer need a huge set-up of a new world, and we already know the stakes are high and that they are about to grow higher. But I don't think this was quite as successful as the first book. I do, however, think it is fun and engaging and it does advance the overall arc of the plot of the series. And it has me desperate to read the third book and find out what happens next!

The general idea of Amari and the Great Game is that Amari is fighting on two fronts- first with a new investigation into why a time freeze has frozen the most powerful people in her world of supernaturals. And secondly in an actual game of her life to take over the League of Magicians (whether she wants to or not). Mostly the dual role of her challenges worked, and familiar friends and foes came back in more complicated ways. More importantly, Alston sets up a larger context for a battle between the magicians versus the rest of the Bureau... and between magic and Unwanteds generally versus those who fear them. I think the themes of fighting prejudice, learning to navigate the world even when it is unjust- these are great and handled beautifully. I just kept hoping for a little more. I really hope book three delivers on much of that promise, and sends Amari into an investigation that steps her further into understanding her own magic and that of the Bureau. We shall see! Four solid stars.

A great sequel to Amari and the Night brothers. It was engaging and fun to read about the continuing adventures.

Amari and the Great Game follows Amari the next summer after her initial introduction to Supernatural Investigations. When a time freeze rocks the supernatural world on her last day of school, the new acting Prime Minister bans all magicians and other "UnWanteds." If that wasn't enough, the League of Magicians decide it's time to stand up for magicians and for the Crown for the next magician leader to be claimed, and Amari is one of the few who can. Amari will have to fight to clear her name, figure out what to do with the League, and deal with all the other dangers that come her way.

This book is a great sequel. The tension from the first novel continues and ramps up as the danger and intrigue increases. There were many twists throughout the story, some that were more obvious, but a few that caught be by surprise. If you liked the first novel, you will not be disappointed.

I would highly recommend this sequel for intermediate and middle school classrooms.

When I finished Amari and The Great Game I found myself thinking:
-Noooooo. I don't want the story to end yet.
-Why ? Do we have to stop here? I want to keep going. I want to know what's next!
-Gimme, Gimme, Gimme more! I know this one hasn't even released yet, but I'm so ready for book 3!
So many of my students loved the first book and I know they are going to be thrilled as they read book 2! It will be a book that is a buzz creator and one that is passed around and around!

Amari and the Great Game is a wonderful fantasy Middle Grade book with witches, magic, and a strong group of characters. There are strange school adventures, hard decisions, and a circle of good friends. as Amari struggles to control her magic and to help her brother and her friends. She go from heroine to being avoided, from having magic to having it taken away ,while still being true to herself.

Amari just gets better and better. I can't wait for book three. This series is just as good as Percy Jackson!

If you loved Amari and the Night Brothers, you will sucked right back into Amari's world as she continues to battle evil. This book will leave you wanting book #3 immediately! A must buy for elementary and middle school libraries.

B.B. Alston has done it again! Amari and the Great Game is a high-energy, exciting dive back into the world of magic and the Agency. The end left me immediately ready to pick up book three- I need next year to hurry up and get here! One thing I love in particular, is all of the small world building going on in the background of these books - the side characters in particular add so much fun to the read!

B.B. Alston’s sophomore Amari story is FIRE, my friends!

Amari and the Night Brothers was one of my favorite middle grade books last year, and the Great Game is a worthy successor to that romp of a book.

Here, we find Amari in some trouble. She’s still trying to bring her brother Quentin out of the cursed coma he’s been in, and she’s trying to navigate a summer without her best friend, plus anticipating a new school year without her as well. Then the world turns upside down and it appears Amari may lose everything unless she can figure out how to stop a war.

There’s excitement beyond measure her, and a cliffhanger ending that will have fans eagerly waiting for the next installment.

The kids are gonna love this one!

This second installment in Amari’s story was as exciting as the first! She is a bright, positive heroine with top-notch skills. My students will love the magical world that B. Alston created and the battle between good and evil that Amari and her friends face.

Amari and the Night Brothers was one of my favorite middle grade books I read this year, so I was excited to read the sequel. Let me tell you that it did not disappoint! This one was just as good as the first book! I’m obsessed with the world that B.B.Alston has created as well as the wonderful characters. There is also great LGBTQIA rep, which is important to me.

Amari is back and readers won’t be disappointed!

I loved continuing to get to learn about her world as she advocates for magicians and battles new and old foes alike all while trying to balance her responsibilities as a junior agent.

Perfect for fantasy readers looking for the next series to obsess over. I can’t wait for the next book.

Amari is back!! Amari is determined to solve the new crisis that has hit the magical community for which magicians are being blamed. Not only that but she has no choice but to enter the Great. Game from the League of Magicians to determine who will be the Night Brother's successor. Amari continues to prove resourceful when she finds those willing to help her solve the time freeze mystery; big-hearted when she saves another magician and tenacious when she keeps going after being betrayed. This was an amazing sequel and a must-have for every middle school student!
Thanks, NetGalley!

I had the first book in this series on my TBR for a while. Since I started working at an elementary school, I have been trying to find more middle grade books I can suggest to my students. When I was approved for an ARC for the sequel, Amari and the Great Game, it was just the push I needed to dive into this magical world, and boy am I glad. So far this has been my favorite book of 2022 and I cannot wait for others to read it.

We return to the magical world of the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, and follow Amari on a magical journey through her summer program. Familiar faces return, and we meet a few new ones along the way. This is a fantastic series for any magical middle grade fan.

I’ve already purchased a few copies of the first book to add to gift to the 5th grade teacher’s for their classroom libraries and will be gifting the sequel when it is published late August. A fantastic series I cannot wait to keep reading!