A radiant cast headlines this diverting tale set in a wondrous, faraway land.
In Shaffery’s YA fantasy novel, a 17-year-old with newfound magic faces an evil sorceress.
Young Nyla, of the medieval-like realm of Tenebris, has survived a battle with the powerful sorceress Dinora. But now she’s stuck; a curse binds the teenager to a manor house. Apparently, her magic, which she suddenly inherited from a long-dead Mage, can’t free her. So she needs help from her friends: Xander, a boy who doubles as Nyla’s potential romantic interest, and Shamira, a female, magic-wielding, catlike creature called a “pumpkie” who communicates telepathically. Meanwhile, Dinora harbors animosity for the friends’ island country of Tenebris and plots its annihilation. Nyla and the others anticipate a war with Dinora, who has the capacity to literally build her own army, including “rock creatures” that she conjures. If the youngsters can get word to Tenebrese cities as well as the pumpkie clans, the citizens of Tenebris can gather arms and brace themselves for the inevitable clash with evil. The author eases readers into this second installment of her series, continuing the story with accommodating reminders of the preceding book’s events. The trio of friends is endlessly appealing, particularly regarding Nyla and Xander’s subtle romance and descriptions of Shamira’s distinctive features (twitching whiskers, occasionally standing on her hind legs). Much of this narrative is a buildup to whatever calamity the angry sorceress has planned, and it feels more invested in setting the stage for the trilogy’s finale than in standing on its own. As such, the villainous Dinora appears only periodically, and often alone. She can, however, still send creatures to attack the people of Tenebris as Nyla contends with a formidable curse with her loyal comrades by her side. Shaffery ornaments her novel with colorful prose, deftly limning “scarlet and plum leaves,” a pumpkie’s “tawny fur,” and Nyla’s signature “silver hair and lilac-colored eyes.”
A radiant cast headlines this diverting tale set in a wondrous, faraway land.Pub Date: May 24, 2023
ISBN: 9798986173238
Page Count: 402
Publisher: Brs Writes L.L.C.
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring.
When Death-Cast doesn’t call, fate intertwines the lives of two boys, both haunted by their pasts and with futures they can’t escape.
In this third installment of the series that opened with 2017’s They Both Die at the End, Paz Dario waits every night for Death-Cast to call—as it should have for his father nearly 10 years ago, when Paz shot him to save his mother’s life. But the call never comes. Death-Cast killed Paz’s dreams of an acting career: No one will hire him now because the world sees him as a villain. When Paz tries (not for the first time) to put an end to his suffering, an unexpected encounter with Alano Rosa, the heir of Death-Cast, stops him. Both in a place of desperation, Alano and Paz sign a contract to live for Begin Days instead of waiting for their End Days. As suspenseful and emotionally wrenching as the previous titles in the series, this new installment explores heavy themes of abuse, mental health, self-harm, and suicide. Paz grapples with a recent diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. Silvera surrounds Alano and Paz with a web of complex relationships. Although the protagonists fall fast for one another and form a deep connection over Alano’s desire to support Paz, Silvera emphasizes the importance of professional help. Both Alano and Paz have Puerto Rican heritage. The cliffhanger ending promises more to come.
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring. (content warning, resources) (Speculative fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780063240858
Page Count: 720
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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
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