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PHALAINA

Passionate but patchy in execution.

A British naturalist’s young daughter draws seekers benign and decidedly otherwise in this French import.

In a tale with a powerful premise despite notably ragged execution, Manon, who is mute and described as resembling people with albinism, spends seven years in a convent orphanage in London while both her father’s killer and her mother’s secretive folk search for her. Her name is based on a French pun that is pointed out twice but doesn’t work in English. As Manon’s true nature is gradually revealed through her father’s letters to his great friend Charles Darwin, the pursuit finally comes close enough to send her fleeing into the streets to take refuge with Molly, a bighearted street poet with a loyal and unusually intelligent dog. Readers are likely to feel whipsawed, as the barrage of very short chapters brings frequent changes in scene, point of view, and tone. Several victims are killed and mutilated in gruesomely explicit detail; Molly and even the dog also narrate, sometimes to comical effect. The thoroughly demonized bad guys—who want Manon as a scientific specimen and key to her father’s vast fortune—are pitted against pursuers who, due to parallel evolution, look human(ish) but have very different ancestors and intimate connections with the natural world. Brière-Haquet folds in some topical themes as she steers events to a soaring climax and forced but tidily happy ending. Both the omniscient narration and other characters use demeaning language in reference to Manon’s eyes and skin, and her characterization evokes common disability tropes. Everyone presents as White.

Passionate but patchy in execution. (Eco-fantasy. 14-18)

Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-64614-182-1

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Levine Querido

Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022

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POWERLESS

From the Powerless Trilogy series , Vol. 1

A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.

The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.

Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.

A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)

Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023

ISBN: 9798987380406

Page Count: 538

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023

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THE REAPPEARANCE OF RACHEL PRICE

Readers will be captivated by this twisty thriller and its uncompromising protagonist.

The mother Annabel Price thought was dead returns with a story about where she’s been—but 18-year-old Bel knows she’s lying.

Ever since Rachel Price’s unexplained disappearance 16 years ago, true-crime fans have come up with plentiful theories about what happened. Bel and her family members, who are white, cobbled together lives for themselves after a jury found Bel’s father, Charlie, not guilty of murdering his wife. Beset with medical bills for his elderly father, Charlie recently agreed to participate in a documentary about the unsolved mystery. Black British filmmaker Ramsey Lee is well into the process of interviewing the Prices when his project gets an unanticipated boost after an exhausted, disheveled Rachel staggers back into town. Rachel is eager to resume her role in the family, but the inconsistencies in her accounts raise alarms for Bel. With the help of the youngest member of the filmmaking team, Bel sets out to learn what really happened. Along the way, someone else disappears, and Bel uncovers a tangle of lies that make it impossible for her to trust people she thought she knew. When things come to a head the night of her grandfather’s 85th birthday party, Bel ends up in a race for her life. The last quarter of the novel tears along at a breakneck pace before arriving at a satisfying and unexpected conclusion.

Readers will be captivated by this twisty thriller and its uncompromising protagonist. (Thriller. 14-18)

Pub Date: April 2, 2024

ISBN: 9780593374207

Page Count: 448

Publisher: Delacorte

Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024

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