Blood City Rollers

Gr 7-10–Thirteen-year-old Mina Murray dreams of becoming an Olympic figure skater. After she lands a quadruple axel in competition, she suffers a bad fall, ruining the performance and breaking her arm—her Olympic dreams dashed. While waiting for her ride, Mina is abducted and swiftly introduced to the world of the Paranormal Roller Derby (PRD). The Vamps need a new jammer (a position that must be filled by a human), and they offer Mina a deal: if she agrees to join their team, they will heal her arm. As Mina learns the ins and outs of the PRD, she also gets to know her teammates and makes personal breakthroughs as well. Mina’s lack of understanding of the paranormal world is reflected by the limited worldbuilding. However, rules and roles of the PRD are clearly defined and easy to follow, and the team members are introduced with pronouns included. The full-color artwork makes it easy to follow the chaos of the derby with clearly distinguishable teams.