Readers would be more invested in the ending if they could experience the actual beginning. (Science fiction. 14-18)
Two young people join forces in the abandoned temples of the planet Gaia in this sci-fi series opener.
After successfully (and illegally) gaining passage to Gaia, Amelia, a white American, is raiding its temples to earn passage back to Earth only to be caught by other scavengers. She’s saved by Jules Addison, a young, black English archaeologist, who interrupts the tense encounter between Amelia and the scavengers. After temporarily escaping capture, Jules and Amelia decide to help each other. They carry their own secret motives about why they wish to access the temples. Jules wants to find clues his father knows exists on Gaia to save Earth, clues left by the coded messages of the Undying. Amelia desperately needs money to save her sister. It is their respective altruistic intentions that lead them into a dangerous plot much bigger than their own. Only slightly varying clichéd tropes—smart guy meets rebel girl—Kaufman and Spooner offer little imagination in this forced coupling, nor in the Latino side characters. Related in the protagonists’ alternating voices, the complex back story regarding Earth’s apocalyptic decline due to devastating climate change and how humans discovered Gaia tantalizes readers. Instead, these potentially engaging details are glossed over and compressed into Jules’ early chapters, where telling and not showing slows the story down.
Readers would be more invested in the ending if they could experience the actual beginning. (Science fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 9, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4847-5805-2
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2017
Combines the best parts of the earlier books with confidence and creativity, sustaining strong momentum throughout.
Friendships, romance, and long-awaited answers combine for a triumphant trilogy closer.
A couple of dramatic prologues and some early exposition bring readers up to speed about the mysteries and players of Hemlock Falls. Winnie Wednesday, Erica Thursday, and Jay Friday have formed a clue-gathering trio collectively known as the WTF triangle. The three agree to work together to uncover the truth behind mysteries involving Winnie’s missing father and Erica’s late sister. Winnie’s star has risen in this entry: Characters who teased her during the events of the first book are now cheerfully welcoming toward her, and her romance with werewolf Jay continues to heat up. Her ongoing guilt and trauma over deaths from prior books ground the narrative, while sprinkled-in pop-culture references and a recurring Emily Dickinson motif showcase her nerdy personality. Changes in the format—such as scriptlike dialogue sequences and daily schedules for the Nightmare Masquerade—break up the narration in creative ways. The eventual reveal of a looming threat that’s targeting everyone Winnie knows starts the countdown of a ticking clock within the story. Meanwhile, a slew of fantasy monsters ensure high enough stakes, suspense, and action to bring the story to a heart-racing and satisfying conclusion. Winnie and Jay present white, and Erica is cued Latine.
Combines the best parts of the earlier books with confidence and creativity, sustaining strong momentum throughout. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 19, 2024
ISBN: 9781250339485
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Tor Teen
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
For fans, a finale that satisfies.
Picking up just after the end of Legendary (2018), Garber continues to build the world of Caraval with a final installment, this time focusing equally on both Dragna sisters’ perspectives.
After they released their long-missing mother from the Deck of Destiny, Scarlett and Donatella hoped to rebuild their relationship and gain a new sense of family. However, Legend also released the rest of the Fates, and, much to their dismay, the Fallen Star—essentially the ur-Fate—is only gaining in power. As the Fates begin to throw Valenda into chaos and disarray, the sisters must decide whom him to trust, whom to love, and how to set themselves free. Scar’s and Tella’s passionate will-they-or-won’t-they relationships with love interests are still (at times, inexplicably) compelling, taking up a good half of the plot and balancing out the large-scale power games with more domestic ones. Much like the previous two, this third book in the series is overwritten, with overly convenient worldbuilding that struggles nearly as much as the overwrought prose and convoluted plot. While those who aren’t Garber’s fans are unlikely to pick up this volume, new (or forgetful) readers will find the text repetitious enough to be able to follow along.
For fans, a finale that satisfies. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: May 7, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-250-15766-9
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: April 6, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2019
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