by Terri Clark ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2012
This modern twist on the fallen-angel tale won’t drive any tourists to Hollywood.
A supernatural adventure and romance mixed with soul searching.
Seventeen-year-old Aly can’t believe her luck when winning a magazine contest whisks her, her best friend, Des, and her older sister, Missy, to Los Angeles to meet her hunky teen idol, Dakota Danvers. The girls are met in LA by Jameson, Dakota’s brooding-but-hot assistant and given the star treatment, including a photo shoot with Dakota—who turns out to be much more than meets the eye. He is, in fact, the son of Lucifer (yes, that Lucifer). Despite the girls’ first positive impressions of Hollywood, its shine quickly dims as they find themselves pawns in a battle that pits Heaven against Hell. The girls’ Hollywood adventure is rolled out in chapters alternating between Aly’s voice, which is riddled with teen slang, and Jameson’s, which has a serious tone that adds believability to his early reveal that he is a fallen angel trying to get back into the good graces of his ethereal boss. Woven into the narrative are Aly’s feelings about her own faith, which has been heavily tested by her mother’s death two years before and her bumpy relationship with her sister. Despite heavy themes, though, it's ultimately another piece of paranormal chick lit.
This modern twist on the fallen-angel tale won’t drive any tourists to Hollywood. (Paranormal romance. 12 & up)Pub Date: May 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-7387-1925-2
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Flux
Review Posted Online: March 20, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
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BOOK REVIEW
by Niki Burnham and Terri Clark and Ellen Hopkins and Lynda Sandoval
by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
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BOOK REVIEW
by Laura Nowlin
by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2013
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
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BOOK REVIEW
by Laura Nowlin
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