the order of the key

The Order of the Key by Justine Manzano

Jacklyn Madison never expected to be attacked by a beast on an evening snack run. Add a rescue mission enacted by a trained regiment of teenaged warriors, and her night officially becomes just like a scene from one of her beloved comic books. Turns out, her parents were once members of the Order of the Key, gifted humans that protect humanity from creatures spilling through inter-dimensional rifts.

Unable to control her newfound abilities, Jacklyn and her family rejoin the Order. After an attack on their headquarters leaves Jacklyn questioning their leadership, Kyp—the boy who led her initial rescue—reveals a darker secret. The Order’s leader may be corrupt, and Jacklyn’s questions could put her family in danger.

Drawn into the search for proof, Jacklyn must use her guts and magical brawn to protect her family, her friends, and herself from the monsters spilling from rifts, and those hiding within the Order.

Re-release Date: November 23, 2021

The Order of the Key
Justine Manzano

Published by Sword & Silk Books

ISBN: 978-1-68433-504-6

Add it on Goodreads
Add it on Storygraph
Add it on BookHype

For purchase options, visit
the bookshop.

Trigger Warnings: Mentions of miscarriages and child death, destructive behavior, PTSD flashbacks, graphic violence, strong language.

Already read The Order of the Key? Check out these fun extras!

Praise for The Order of the Key

“Manzano absolutely kills it with characterization in this novel. She makes it so very easy for her audience to picture each of the characters right down to the sounds of their voices…[she] left me no option but to hang on to the edges for dear life and turn pages as quickly as I could.”

~ Ms. J Mentions…

“The Order of the Key…has enough tropes and traditions to feel familiar and comfortable in the genre, but at the same time enough twists and nuances to read as something fresh and exciting. The characters are tightly drawn, each with their own motivations. The “good guys” and “bad guys” don’t blend into amorphous lumps. Even the villains are the heroes of their own stories, at least in their own minds…I highly recommend The Order of the Key for readers of fantasy, urban fantasy, and paranormal fiction, and I am excited to add it to my classroom library to share with my students.”

~ Jennifer L. Gadd, Teacher and MG Author

“The old saying, ‘power corrupts but absolute power corrupts absolutely’ rears its ugly head among the members of the Order and the Head of it…various characters in the story were so duplicitous that it was hard to tell the good ones from the bad ones. And that made for a tremendously complicated storyline which was a kick to read. Guess you can call that depth of character. I call it fun!!”

~ G. Themann