Princess Ash, a young teen, is looked down upon because of her disability—she has a crushed leg and uses a cane—and her long absence from Haven, the capital, to which she’s only recently returned. Even her once-beloved older brother, crown prince Lucen, has not been welcoming. Splinter, a squire, is disliked because most people think she’s a girl, and girls aren’t supposed to be squires. Splinter, who does not feel like a girl or boy, is regularly harassed and bullied by other squires, with Lucen taking the lead. After Ash declares her support for Splinter, Splinter swears to protect the princess. The queen has asked Ash to befriend two daughters of a noble family suspected of working against the crown to spy on their household. Ash does so with increasing reluctance: She and Splinter both like her new friends. Then Ash is kidnapped from the palace. While Ash looks for ways to escape from her captors, who are taking her north, Splinter sets out to find Ash, accompanied by guilt-ridden Lucen, now grappling with the repercussions of his awful behavior toward both his sister and Splinter. A story that successfully hits all the notes for middle grade fantasy offers just the right amount of action, tension, and political intrigue along with appealing (mostly white) main characters and a satisfying resolution that will have readers eager for book 2 in the planned trilogy.

"An essential middle grade fantasy where all readers will find heroes to love and to cheer!" --Alex London, author of Battle Dragons and The Princess Protection Program

"Every kid deserves to see themselves as princesses or knights or whatever role they wish to play, and Nijkamp carves out the space for them to do so. Thoughtful, inclusive, and an outright joy, Splinter & Ash shines; a new classic that belongs on the shelves of every fantasy reader." --Nicole Melleby, author of Hurricane Season and coeditor of This Is Our Rainbow

"Splinter & Ash is a rare gem: a shining example of a fantasy novel that will engage readers of any age." --A. J. Sass, award-winning author of Ellen Outside the Lines and Ana on the Edge

New York Times bestselling author Marieke Nijkamp's middle grade prose debut is an immersive medieval fantasy starring queer and disabled young heroes. For two young misfits, a dangerous quest to save their kingdom will also mean saving each other. For fans of B. B. Alston's Amari and the Night Brothers, Soman Chainani's School for Good and Evil, and Tamora Pierce's Tortall books.

Ash--or Princess Adelisa--is the youngest child of the queen, recently returned to the city of Kestrel's Haven after spending six years on the other side of the country. Ash was hoping for a joyous reunion, but the reality is far from it. Her mother is holding the kingdom together by a thread; her brother has only taunts and jibes for her; and court is full of nobles who openly mock and dismiss Ash, who uses a cane and needs braces to strengthen her joints.

Splinter is the youngest child of one of Haven's most prominent families. She's fierce, determined, and adventurous, and she has her sights set on becoming a knight just like her older brother. Even if everyone says she can't because she's not a boy. So what She's not a girl, either.

A chance encounter throws Ash and Splinter into each other's orbits and changes the course of the kingdom's history. The princess and her new squire will face bullies, snobs, gossips, and their own disapproving families. But when they uncover a shadowy group of nobles plotting to overthrow the queen, they will show everyone how legends are born. Together.

The first in a trilogy, bestselling author Marieke Nijkamp's medieval fantasy is an action-packed love letter to nonbinary, queer, and disabled kids. Splinter & Ash evokes the classic adventure and atmosphere of fantasies by Lloyd Alexander and Tamora Pierce and the fresh, inclusive lens of writers such as Rick Riordan, Angie Thomas, and Soman Chainani. It invites everyone--no matter who they are or what they look like--to fight for what they believe in.