Totally Psychic by Brigid Martin

Title: Totally Psychic

Series: n/a
Author: Brigid Martin
Source/Format: Bookish Firs; Hardcover
More Details: Middle Grade; Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Inkyard Press; August 15, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

This debut middle grade series stars a Cuban-American tween medium navigating friends, family and ghosts!

Paloma Ferrer is psychic. In fact, everyone in her family line has “the gift.” Now that Paloma has come into her powers, she dreams of a famous medium to celebrities, being just like her beloved grandma. When Paloma’s parents move them from Miami to Los Angeles, she hatches a plan to get her career as a medium up and running: Host seances at her new school and stream on social media Build her profile and make a name for herself Avoid detection from her tattletale of a little sister
But when a reading gone awry leaves Paloma in a sticky situation with a new friend, she’ll need more than a crystal ball to find her way out of this mess.

I read an early excerpt of Brigid Martin’s Totally Psychic through Bookish First and was very intrigued as well as charmed by the main character’s enthusiasm for her abilities. The rest of the story lived up to my earlier positive feelings about it.

Totally Psychic was delightful with plenty of supernatural hijinks alongside such themes as change and making new friends amid growing up and into one’s own. Set against a backdrop of a significant move from Miami to Rancho Cucamonga, California, as well as ongoing tension between Paloma Ferrer and her parents.

I liked Paloma as a character. The story spent enough time in Miami with her family and friends that I got a sense of how they interacted with one another—and the ground rules about how mediums used their abilities in the story— which helped with understanding Paloma’s sadness about the move. After all, she wanted to be just like her abuela, a famous medium that was a big deal both in and outside of her family. But her love of her powers and desire to follow in her abuela’s footsteps was an area of consternation with her mother. And that particular relationship reminded me of another book I read in July called Holly Horror. It was a very different story of course, since it was a young adult novel with a darker tone. However, in that review—you can find that HERE—I mentioned how Evie Archer’s backstory made her susceptible to supernatural trouble. That same sort of situation was here as well, with Paloma keeping secrets and trying to solve everything on her own when the situation went wrong, rather than reaching out more to the adults in her life for help. But a big part of the story was Paloma’s character growth, and her journey involved learning the cost of being irresponsible with her powers as well as realizing that she needed better communication with those in her life.

So Totally Psychic had a good balance between the supernatural aspects and the personal conflicts within the lives of the characters. It was, all around, an enjoyable read.

About the author....

Brigid Martin is a New York based writer and publishing professional, fulfilling her goal of working in an industry that promotes educational and diverse content for children. With several years of sales experience at companies such as Scholastic, Perseus Books Group and Disney Publishing Worldwide, she's had the privilege of reading and promoting the works of many talented authors throughout her career. She holds a B.A. in English Literature and Music from Stony Brook University as well as a M.S. in Strategic Marketing Communications From Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Inkyard Press) via Bookish First in exchange for an honest review, thank you!