A fiery denouement to a metafictional fantasy tale.
In Portman’s conclusion to her YA epic-fantasy trilogy, a teenage novice fantasy writer, trapped in the world of her amateur fiction, attempts to support an uprising on a doomed planet.
In The Twin Stars (2021), the first installment of this series, 16-year-old Olive Joshi, the granddaughter of a successful Indian author, was transported into a universe she’d concocted in her own mind, featuring planets roasting in an unstable binary star system. In this place, tyrant Burnash faces opposition from his superpowered sister, Coseema—a confident, idealized version of Olive herself. However, Olive’s arrival has coincided with—or perhaps caused—a series of calamities. Coseema became corrupt in her desire to become all-powerful, and solar flares and heat storms have increased. Olive, meanwhile, is seen as the “Muse,” a goddess figure; only Coseema and some rebels know her real identity. However, when she’s separated from her reality-changing pen and notebook, she’s as helpless as any minor character. Olive tries to aid the fight against Burnash by using her knowledge of her villains, including their conflicts and motives. But, as their creator, she’s guilt-ridden over what she’s wrought: “What have I done? Everything—all of this—is my fault.” The notion of a writer trapped in a setting of their own making is hardly original; for example, Cornelia Funke’s Inkheart (2003) taps into the same idea, as does Sangu Mandanna’s Kiki Kallira Breaks a Kingdom (2021) with drawings, rather than prose. However, Portman shows skill when it comes to pacing, executing twists, and escalating stakes, and this effectively carries this concluding story along. Olive, as an unpracticed storyteller, hasn’t thought things through entirely, so there’s justification for occasional sketchiness and derivative elements; it explains why creatures called Deimons are a little too close to the Dementors of the Harry Potter series, for instance, or why the climax seems pulled directly from the pages of Marvel or DC Comics. Still, the fact that both Portman and Olive strive to find goodness in every character—even evil ones—is praiseworthy.
A fiery denouement to a metafictional fantasy tale.Pub Date: April 25, 2023
ISBN: 9781738968701
Page Count: 322
Publisher: TITAN1STUDIOS
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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 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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