Momo Arashima Steals the Sword of the Wind

Description

Momo Arashima just wants to be normal. But she's about to become legendary . . . All Momo Arashima wants for her twelfth birthday is to be normal. At home, she cares for her absentminded widowed mother. At school, kids bully her for mixing up reality with the magical stories her mother used to tell her. But then a terrifying death hag straight out of those stories attacks Momo in a very real way - and she's rescued by a talking fox, calling himself Niko. So it's fair to say all hopes for normalcy are now long gone . . . Turns out Momo's mom has been keeping a pretty big secret - she's actually a Shinto goddess, who used to protect a passageway to Yomi, also known as the land of the dead. That passageway is now under attack, making Momo's mom gravely ill, and meaning countless evil spirits are threatening to escape and destroy humanity. And on top of that, Momo is the only one who can stop them. Joined by Niko and Danny, Momo's former best friend - whom she never planned to speak to again, much less save the world with - Momo must embrace her identity as half-human, half-goddess to unlock her divine powers, save her mother's life, force the demons back to Yomi - and save the world while she's at it.

Misa Sugiura's ancestors include a poet, a priestess, a samurai, and a stowaway. She writes contemporary young adult and middle grade fiction, and lives under a giant oak tree with her husband, two sons, two cats, and a gray-banded king snake. You can find her online at MisaSugiura.com