Rachel Marsh’s debut middle grade novel puts a contemporary spin on a Cajun legend.

Feliciana does not like living in Boston. She misses everything about Louisiana: her friends, living with her beloved grandmother, their food, and her mom actually being home sometimes. Now that Mom has married bland Bob and gone back to school, Feliciana barely sees her. Add a bully so bad she had to change schools, and Feliciana is feeling way out of place. Since her bully, Ashley, made fun of her accent and heritage, Feliciana is determined to hide her Cajun-ness from her new classmates to avoid Ashley 2.0. But her grandmother wants her to embrace her heritage, and has plan: she's sent Feliciana a rougarou to be her friend. Instead of the scary monster, Roux the rougarou is like an extra-large, magical dog with a healthy desire to protect Feliciana.

This middle grade novel has incredible world building. Blending Cajun creatures and folk tales into contemporary Boston allows Feliciana to find her place in Boston and accept all the parts of herself. The character development is excellent: Feliciana feels real, as do her friends and family. Adult characters are well developed as well, showing the nuance of relationships between family, friends, teachers, and students.

This story is a love letter to Cajun life. It was refreshing to see Cajun characters and lifeways on the page, especially with positive connotations. Feliciana finding a way to be proud of her heritage, especially when it was previously weaponized against her by a bully, was heart-filing and sure to be relatable.
Watching Feliciana find her place in an unfamiliar territory is an absolute delight. Marsh tackles tough topics, including assuming the worst of people after a trauma, dealing with real bullies, how bullies can traumatize you for other friendships, what real friendships look like, and all are covered in an authentic, readable, accessible way that doesn’t feel overt. Everything about this story feels natural and organic.

Of course, Roux the rougarou gives Feliciana a run for her money in the favorite-character category. Feliciana can see how rougarous got their reputation, but she can also see how their story got twisted along the way. The result is this fun twist on a scary folktale, which is sure to delight readers-- those who like to be spooked, and those who don't.

Thank you to the author, HarperCollins Children's, and Net Galley for a digital ARC such that I could share my honest opinions.

Rougarou Magic will be available September 10, 2024.

ROUGAROU MAGIC is such heartwarming and beautiful MG novel! Inspired by Cajun folklore, it's all about friendship, family, starting over, and remembering where you came from. (And if anyone is ever on the fence about reading it, just tell them there is a huge, lovable, tail-wagging, weather-controlling rougarou in it!!)

Such a wonderful story about the love of family, belonging, and finding your place in the world. Wonderful story for middle-grade students!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for free access to this e-ARC.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. This book weaves a Cajun myth through the pages. Even though Feliciana isn’t new to her Boston school, she still feels like the outsider. She learns that if you give people a chance; they can surprise you.

It’s a fast-paced, (almost) realistic story with good characters and an excellent magical animal companion that’s an all around great middle grade read! It hit all the emotional notes I expect from a book for this age level with good conflicts that never felt over the top or too frustrating even when the main character, Feliciana, makes mistakes that could be avoidable if she wasn’t so authentically 11 years old.

Slight spoilers: I really liked that this story took place a full year after Feliciana moved to Boston. A lot of books that feature a character who’s moved across the country tell a standard ‘fish out of water’ type of narrative and show the direct aftermath of a move, but this was much more nuanced.