Recommended for sophisticated readers who enjoy a fully immersive paranormal experience.
The Katerina Trilogy wraps up with a sometimes-confusing but action-packed climax.
Necromancer Katerina still yearns to attend medical school, but she satisfies her need to learn medicine with the tutelage of a Tibetan physician. She is at least partly motivated by her desire to cure her supernaturally afflicted love interest, the czar’s son, George Alexandrovich. When the czar informs her that he approves of her marriage to George, it seems like a dream come true, until he also tells her that she cannot study medicine. Complex paranormal conflicts, set up in the first two books, now become even more labyrinthine, which may make readers wish they had created a score card while reading the previous two works. The Light and Dark Russian courts are at odds with each other, and an evil, undead pretender to the throne, Konstantin, has occupied the vampiric body of Danilo, a crown prince who attempted to forcibly marry Katerina in The Unfailing Light (2012). He—they?—kidnaps her and takes her to Egypt on a quest for an immensely powerful sword. Bridges has built a believable and flawlessly depicted world that effectively combines historical fact and paranormal fiction in this smart, romantic adventure. Characters remain well-realized, but multiple intrigues already set up in the trilogy make it impossible for this work to stand alone.
Recommended for sophisticated readers who enjoy a fully immersive paranormal experience. (Paranormal romance. 11 & up)Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-385-74026-5
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 21, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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