Engrossing, moving, and intricately detailed.
This duology closer following 2024’s The Last Bloodcarver explores how far you would go to save what you loved most.
As powerful a healing art as heartsoothing can be, it all boils down to the transfer of energy. Even a heartsooth can’t bring a dead body back to life without taking another, equivalent, life in exchange. Nhika gave her life and the gift of her heartsoothing to save Kochin, the unlikely ally she grew to love. But six months later, she wakes up with no knowledge of how she lived before or why—and Kochin, whom she does remember, is nowhere to be found. Past and present converge as war descends on the land of Theumas, and Nhika works to piece together the truth of what happened. Meanwhile, Kochin finds himself at the very end of his strength and morals, torn between defiling his art—Nhika’s parting gift to him—and reclaiming it. Le picks up where the previous installment left off without slacking the pace, and she immediately draws readers back into her Vietnamese-inspired fantasy world where there are neither heroes nor villains, saviors nor monsters, but only flawed and fragile people fueled by desperation and love. The characters are richly and sensitively portrayed, and Nhika and Kochin’s slow-burn romance is well integrated into the plot even as they fight for the “peace, freedom, [and] love” they’ve never known.
Engrossing, moving, and intricately detailed. (map) (Fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: March 18, 2025
ISBN: 9781250881540
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
A compelling romance inhabited by complex and appealing characters.
When star hockey player Alec Barczewski’s estranged childhood friend, Dani Collins, moves to town, they end up in a mutually beneficial fake-dating relationship that reignites old feelings.
Following her parents’ divorce, Dani and her mom move in with Dani’s hockey legend grandfather in Southview, Minnesota, where she spent a month every summer as a child and where her friendship with Alec grew. Between visits, the two were pen pals, but they eventually fell out of touch. Despite some tensions over their loss of friendship, the high school seniors reconnect. Desperate to get off Harvard’s waitlist, Dani needs another extracurricular activity, while Alec—whose reputation took a hit when a photo of him holding a bong appeared on social media—is eager to improve his tarnished image for NHL scouts. The pair strike a deal: They’ll fake date, making Alec look like a stable guy whose academically gifted girlfriend is related to hockey royalty, and in exchange, he’ll get Dani a team manager position that will catch the eye of Harvard’s admissions officers. Eventually, complicated feelings about their past, stressful family relationships, and their brewing romance boil over. Romance fans will love the deliciously tension-filled scenes between Alec and Dani, who are believable friends with heavy demands weighing on them. They feel like real teenagers, and readers will enjoy rooting for them as the well-paced story unfolds. Main characters present white.
A compelling romance inhabited by complex and appealing characters. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9781665921268
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
A promising premise that’s lacking in spice.
A fall romance with a New England backdrop.
Autumn leaves aren’t the only stunning thing to hit the town of Briar Glen—so has good-looking new boy Jack Harper, and Lucy Kane is enamored with both. Her new crush is the perfect thing to take her mind off the fact that Java Junction, part of a global chain, is opening across the street from Cup o’ Jo, Lucy’s mother’s coffee shop, where they take pride in baking everything from scratch and avoiding artificial ingredients. But there’s more than coincidence in the timing of the arrivals of both Jack and Java Junction: The Harper family moved to Briar Glen specifically to open this franchise location, which will bring competition that threatens Cup o’ Jo. This scenario has the makings of a perfect autumnal adversaries-to-lovers romance, but the writing lacks charm and chemistry. Jack seems to be completely enamored with Lucy, but her character isn’t sufficiently developed to warrant his attention. Lucy’s friends are continually supportive of her but have few distinguishing characteristics, and the story is weakened by confusing timelines and repetitive elements. The resolution relies upon successes that come too easily and do not feel earned. Major characters are cued white.
A promising premise that’s lacking in spice. (Romance. 12-16)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781339030753
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
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