A dynamic thriller featuring a compelling father-and-son spy team.
A hapless father becomes an accidental hit man, much to his son’s chagrin, in Hix’s debut YA novel.
Fourteen-year-old Luke Wimms’ life is turned upside down after he starts joining his father on lucrative assassination operations. As a single dad, Larry Wimms has done his best to be a good parent to Luke after his wife’s abandonment of the family a decade ago. All the boy knows of his father is that he has a goofy sense of humor, loves to tell stories, and is an out-of-work meat department manager for a grocery store chain. Out of financial desperation, Luke and Larry decide to relocate from central Colorado to Los Angeles. While staying at a hotel on the way, Larry discovers a dead man in an adjoining room filled with automatic weapons, bundles of cash, drones, disguises, and a computer with detailed mission instructions. Dismissing his son’s reasonable objections, Larry capitalizes on his resemblance to the dead man, and an ensuing comedy of errors finds him assuming the hired killer’s identity. A series of calamitous murder missions involving a Russian tycoon, a pharmaceutical kingpin, and a Korean general yields huge payouts, but as Larry gets greedy, other operatives close in. Hix displays a knack for characterization in this entertaining romp, and his choice to tell the story from a teenager’s perspective makes it uniquely satisfying. Hix sketches both main characters creatively and authentically: Luke is an outspoken young man who seeks to protect his clueless dad, while Larry makes a series of reckless decisions despite his son’s best efforts. Luke’s earnest first impressions of contemporary LA’s big-city smells are both believable and hilarious: “I was used to clean, crisp mountain air, but this smelled like a mixture of rotten eggs and a big wet dog. It slapped me across the cheek like I had been back talking to some adult.” Although the book is geared toward YA readers, there’s enough action, intrigue, and humor to engage a wide audience. Hix cleverly leaves the novel’s surprising ending open for further adventures.
A dynamic thriller featuring a compelling father-and-son spy team.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 9798986877204
Page Count: 414
Publisher: Fat Cat Publishing House
Review Posted Online: Feb. 14, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A suspenseful story that starts off with great promise but fails to deliver.
A teenage girl struggles with the question of whom to trust in the age of social media exposure.
Thanks to Connie’s mom’s family vlog, her life is anything but private. She enjoyed it at first, but now, between the mean comments online and the cruel mockery from peers in real life, Connie feels like she’s in a prison. Her sister, Isla, says it’s worth it for the money, but Connie isn’t sure if that’s really true. Connie’s anger over Mom’s refusal to heed warnings that revealing so much puts them in danger continues to build. When she’s left alone for two weeks while Mom and Isla go on a college road trip, local girls start dying, and a fan reaches out on social media in an unsettling way, leaving Connie worried about her safety. White-presenting Connie’s sense of humor is charming, and her insights will earn readers’ sympathy as the tension builds. As emotions rise, Preston’s poetic language beautifully captures Connie’s feelings about her mom’s obsession with social media and her confusion about who is worthy of her trust. The topics of safety and the uncharted waters of social media are skillfully woven into the plot. However, some inconsistencies weaken the overall story: Apart from Connie, the characters are too lightly developed, and some plot points don’t align with earlier events and motivations, making the ultimate revelation a disappointment.
A suspenseful story that starts off with great promise but fails to deliver. (Thriller. 12-18)Pub Date: Dec. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9798217028009
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
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