Seeming unrelated, things start to change for her when she rescues a bird in the woods. He's a prince and he wants to reward her for her bravery and kindness by making Eren his champion. What does a bird's champion do? They fight "frost fangs" -- wolf-like creatures that feed on people's insecurities.
It turns out that these frost fangs have been waging a war and the birds have been the sole defense, but their strength is diminishing. If no one does anything, the frost fangs will take over and humanity will be lost to its insecurities. This being a middle reader, everything will fall on Erne, Alex, and a few of their friends to save the world (or at least their school). The showdown takes place at the school dance, where Eren must first overcome her own fears and anxieties and then convince her peers to do likewise.
I found it a clever fantasy novel with some heavy-handed messages about building up self-confidence and learning to turn off voices of doubt in your head. There's some messy stuff about whether Erne is "aromantic" or simply not ready for romantic relationships -- given her age, in my opinion, the difference is unimportant and distracting. The far stronger message is that everyone has doubts about themselves, but it is important to not let them paralyze you from living your life and standing up for what you believe in. It's not a new message, but the packaging here is quite clever and the story is memorable.
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