A highly readable YA novel about teen life and romance.
A gay high schooler dives into the dating world in Roamer’s fifth YA novel in a series.
High school junior RV is excelling academically at the prestigious Boston Latin School, but his guidance counselor tells him that he needs to find some extracurriculars to make his college applications shine. His best friend, Carole, uses this as an excuse to make RV her campaign manager in her quest to become a representative on the powerful School Site Council. However, his boss at the local movie theater decides to promote him to projectionist, which comes with a new slate of stresses. Meanwhile, RV’s Lithuanian immigrant parents, who now know he’s gay—though they haven’t said much about it—expect more help at home from RV and his brother, Ray, including assistance flipping a house they recently purchased. As RV struggles to handle these new responsibilities, he’s thrown into a tentative new relationship with Luke, a handsome new classmate whom he meets at a swanky party. Will RV manage to keep all his plates spinning while embarking on that most terrifying of teenage endeavors: dating? Roamer’s prose is slick and accessible, and he succeeds in placing the reader right in the middle of RV’s anxious adolescent mind. Here, for instance, the teen chastises himself for looking forward to a planned date with Luke: “Don’t get too excited, RV. You’ve been there before. You know how these things go. And even if Luke says you didn’t screw anything up the first time, that second chance is also another chance for screwing things up.” The book isn’t entirely realistic; RV and his peers don’t talk much like contemporary American teens, and with the exception of the opinionated Carole, the secondary characters don’t feel very distinctive. Regardless, RV makes for an endearing protagonist, and fans of earlier books in the series will not be let down by this one.
A highly readable YA novel about teen life and romance.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-1-64890-490-5
Page Count: 130
Publisher: NineStar Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy.
A war between gods plays havoc with mortals and their everyday lives.
In a time of typewriters and steam engines, Iris Winnow awaits word from her older brother, who has enlisted on the side of Enva the Skyward goddess. Alcohol abuse led to her mother’s losing her job, and Iris has dropped out of school and found work utilizing her writing skills at the Oath Gazette. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Her rival for the job is handsome and wealthy Roman Kitt, whose prose entrances her so much she avoids reading his articles. At home, she writes cathartic letters to her brother, never posting them but instead placing them in her wardrobe, where they vanish overnight. One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on. This is more of a wartime tale of broken families, inspired youths, and higher powers using people as pawns. It flirts with clichéd tropes but also takes some startling turns. Main characters are assumed White; same-sex marriages and gender equality at the warfront appear to be the norm in this world.
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-85743-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations.
Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the “enchanted circus” trope.
Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome “golden-brown” sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarlett’s arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets.
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-09525-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
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