A sweet delight.
A pair of teens who love murder mystery games band together to solve an actual crime.
Sixteen-year-old Virginia, who reads white, is in Florida for the funeral of the legendary Claude, owner of the roseate spoonbill–pink condo that’s known as Castle Claude. Virginia’s Shalimar-scented Grandma Lainey lives in this oasis, along with other retirees. Most of them are die-hard theater-loving folk who, like Virginia, enjoy acting out and solving murder mystery games, particularly one called Killing Me Softly. The reading of Claude’s will is a scripted affair, with a final prompt for a mystery to solve—“A little razzle-dazzle, but make it deadly,” as Grandma Lainey comments. Claude’s passing draws greedy would-be heirs: Claude’s disapproving sister and her nephew. Also in attendance is condo resident Mr. Gutierrez’s grandson, Felix, who presents Latine. Claude was “fairy godfather” to Felix and Virginia, but the two never met until now. Virginia’s easy, flowing badinage with Felix piques her interest: “Is he flirting or killing time?” When an actual dead body appears at Castle Claude, the pair try to solve the case and secure the condo’s future. There’s a whimsical lyricism to the story’s twists. Sellet makes supporting characters part of the fabric of this chosen family, adding a welcome dollop of agency and silliness to this truly enjoyable story at whose center lies the adorable bond between two awkward, lonely teenagers who find connection in each other and the extended Castle Claude community.
A sweet delight. (Mystery. 13-18)Pub Date: April 21, 2026
ISBN: 9781250360199
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A gripping tribute to resilience.
A girl with amnesia and a boy suspected of harming his girlfriend overcome adversity to find the answers they seek.
A 17-year-old girl wakes up in a ditch, disoriented and with no memory of who she is or what happened. Found by the Alton, Oregon, police, she is brought to the station. Soon after, Wayne Boone, a man claiming to be her father, shows up. He has photos of her on his phone and her high school ID card, with the name Mary Boone. Wayne convinces the police to release Mary into his custody. The more time Mary spends with Wayne, however, the weirder things get: He’s unaware of her food allergy, and as her memories start to return, they don’t conform with Wayne’s versions of her life. In the town of Washington City, across the Willamette River, Drew is in a bad place. His girlfriend, Lola, has disappeared, and Drew was the last person to see her. His adoptive dads and cousin are the only ones who support him; everyone else, including the sheriff, thinks he’s responsible for Lola’s disappearance. Intent on finding Lola, Drew finds help in an unlikely ally, Lola’s best friend, Autumn, who is the sheriff’s daughter. But will they find Lola in time? The two immersive storylines bring to life the trials and frustrations each main character faces in this debut, which is a thrilling delight right up to the unexpected and bittersweet conclusion. Most characters are cued white; one of Drew’s dads is Guatemalan.
A gripping tribute to resilience. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781728270111
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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