Only for readers desperately waiting for this trilogy closer
Abbie, William and Simon return to face off against Max, the sole surviving member of the immortality-obsessed Conclave—or so they think….
Now a medical student as well as an aide in an East End hospital, Abbie works hard to put the dreadful events on Orkney behind her (Renegade, 2013). As always, the saintly Simon is by her side, but she remains deeply, contrarily in love with the sullen, churlish William. One night, her dead friend, Mariah, comes to her, eviscerating the maid and terrifying Abbie. Could Mariah be connected to a recent string of grisly murders? And what is Max’s role? Abbie, William and Simon bicker endlessly about strategy as they race to solve the mystery and put the Conclave to rest. Readers will find it baffling that Abbie clings to her animal attraction to William in the face of his childish choler, but cling she does (though she occasionally doubts…). Her stiff, melodramatic narration tells rather than shows as encounters and pseudoscience pile up. Abbie uses her awesome knife-fighting skills against all manner of opponents living and dead with remarkable ease despite extraordinary sleep deprivation and her usually traditional feminine attire. The bizarre, new twist Reeve introduces to the Conclave’s complicated history may well thrill scholars of 19th-century England, but it will also probably leave teen readers underwhelmed.
Only for readers desperately waiting for this trilogy closer . (Paranormal historical fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: April 8, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-7387-3877-2
Page Count: 360
Publisher: Flux
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014
An atmospheric and promising first installment.
A series opener blending fantasy and horror with an undercurrent of romance.
The sudden disappearance 50 years ago of the Sun Goddess, Raina, left the realm of Asidia awash in moonlight and misery. The annual Calling drafts boys, such as 18-year-old Kiara’s sickly brother, Liam, into the Knights of Eternal Star, who then venture into the accursed land of the Mist in search of answers. But Kiara’s brazenness captures the attention of the Hand of Death, the Commander of the Knights, and she’s recruited in her brother’s stead. Years of rigorous combat training have prepared Kiara well for the Knights—but not for the growing attraction between her and the Hand of Death himself, enigmatic Commander Jude Maddox. As they journey into the Mist, they must trust each other in order to survive and untangle the legends that just might save the realm. In a crowded fantasy field, the novel distinguishes itself by leaning into the macabre nature of its literally dark world, complete with shadow beasts, flesh-eating spiders, and the mercurial Mist itself. The unrelenting action sequences are not for the squeamish, and the dead (and undead) body count piles up. Cutscenes provide necessary narrative magic, reviving Kiara and Jude’s romance and buttressing the worldbuilding lore that opens many of the chapters. Main characters are cued white.
An atmospheric and promising first installment. (map) (Fantasy/horror. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 28, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374318
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Crowd-pleasing fun laced with political fire: a winner.
Bestselling author Faizal returns to the universe of We Hunt the Flame (2019) with a stand-alone duology opener.
Orphaned Arthie, brown-skinned with mauve hair, has created a criminal empire out of sheer pluck despite being Ceylani in Ettenia, where laws favor white people. She pulled legendary pistol Calibore from a stone plinth (though the prophecy that doing so would make her the nation’s leader turned out to be a hoax). She’s also built Spindrift, a teahouse-cum-bloodhouse, where she gathers secrets from wealthy humans and vampires, amassing power and security. Now Arthie has her sights set on vengeance—and the Ram, Ettenia’s masked monarch. When she and Jin, her brother-by-choice (who’s cued East Asian), are drawn into a heist, they assemble a diverse crew of immigrants whose roles riff on genre archetypes. The lush prose pulses with feeling as revelations are dropped and the tension ratchets up, keeping the pages turning as the motley gang plans to infiltrate a vampire society, retrieve a stolen ledger, and double-cross one of the Ram’s guards (who might be planning to double-cross them). Their ultimate goal: taking down the colonizing Ettenians and the exploitative East Jeevant Company. It’s all very exciting right up to the action-packed finale, which promises more conspiracy and (hopefully) justice to come. This compelling read offers interesting commentary on our society while feeling entirely real within the context of its own worldbuilding.
Crowd-pleasing fun laced with political fire: a winner. (map) (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2024
ISBN: 9780374389406
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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