Deliciously romantic and drenched in dark magic.
Former lovers reunite and uncover the sinister secrets of a traveling circus.
Time is running out for almost-19-year-old Esmeralda Montero. To stay in the Carnival Fantástico and earn enough to escape Costa Mayor, where she faces “a one-way ticket to the frontlines of war,” she must come out on top in the Running, a competition to determine the Carnival’s next brightest star. When Esmeralda finally receives an invitation to perform for the Running as La Paloma Blanca: Fortune Teller Extraordinaire, she’s determined to shine. She’s shocked to run into ex-boyfriend Ignacio Olivera, the son of the comandante who sent her to prison, with whom she has a complicated history. The cruelty of his tyrannical and murderous father, Héctor, compels Ignacio to defect from the army and expose his father’s corruption. While searching Héctor’s office for evidence, Ignacio finds flyers for the Carnival; on their reverse are mysterious letters written in the same ink Esmeralda used in her last letter to him, one that broke his heart. Esmeralda and Ignacio team up to help one another achieve their goals, soon realizing how much they need each other if they hope to survive and save their kingdom from threats they uncover. The leads’ second-chance romance simmers with passion and clever banter. Beneath her feisty exterior and his disciplined image, they long to feel special and worthy, feelings they validate in one another. Most characters in this early-20th-century, Latine-inspired world are brown-skinned.
Deliciously romantic and drenched in dark magic. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026
ISBN: 9798217024469
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Joy Revolution
Review Posted Online: Nov. 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2025
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 heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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