An enveloping drama of conflicting kingdoms.
Crilly’s YA fantasy novel teems with politics and pirates.
The adventure begins with a highly organized group of pirates. Veena is a young woman who lives under the pirate king Zavaxer, whose rule can be challenged by anyone willing to fight him in a duel. It is through such tough but fair policies that the pirates keep order. Veena and her uncle journey to a city called Lyrah. The two are there ostensibly to represent the interest of their king, but Veena (who will be called Violet for the mission) has plans to inspire an insurrection. Meanwhile, another young woman, named Katjia, arrives in Lyrah. Katjia hails from a nomadic people who have fallen upon tough times; she and her brethren are in search of somewhere to stay until the rains return to their native land of Onkay. In Lyrah, Katjia meets 14-year-old prince Marley, and the two hit it off—Marley even invites Katjia and her kin to stay in a royal courtyard. Both Katjia and Marley are suspicious of Violet—when they confront her and her uncle leaving the city, their suspicions prove correct. The story is divided into various first-person narratives and supplemented by the author’s occasional simple black-and-white illustrations that provide faces for the names. Although many characters appear throughout the work, the technique of allowing them to tell their own stories keeps the narrative manageable (while the characters partake in subterfuge, they tend to speak directly). While there is more going on beyond the main characters’ escapades (such as some letter-writing intrigue back in Lyrah), the story progresses smoothly—and sometimes more violently than one might expect from YA fantasy. (A knife ends one character’s days as a “crimson flower of blood soaked her lilac dress.”) The dialogue tends toward the blunt (one individual states, without any hint of subtext, “I’m glad I met you”), but the plot’s deft combination of complexity and clarity keeps the pages turning.
An enveloping drama of conflicting kingdoms.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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
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