The conclusion to the intrigue-heavy duology set in an alternate America sees its protagonist fomenting revolution.
Following the events of Muse (2021), Claire and Gov. Remy Duchamp, now her husband, are stuck in temporary exile in Wardenclyffe Tower after an attempted coup to overthrow Remy. As Remy recovers from his wounds, he keeps himself apart from Claire, giving her the freedom she has always yearned for even though she’s nursing a broken heart. But survival comes first, and to secure that for herself and those she cares for, Claire needs to be a worthy adversary to the soon-to-arrive King Washington, initiating a series of events that may well lead to the end of the First American Kingdom. This entry walks back from the magic and science of the first book to concentrate on politics with a convoluted plot featuring underdeveloped plans and deus ex machina. Claire’s feminist struggles and the light shed on the subjugation of women are highlights. However, there is a tension between the goal professed in the author’s note to write “a commentary on the perils of white feminism, of what happens when those women grab what they can from the patriarchal buffet, and damn everybody else,” and this story that centers two White leads in an America in which slavery never existed and Native Americans are invisible. The romance between Remy and Claire unfortunately feels unearned and would have benefited from deeper exploration.
Underwhelming. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 17, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-06-284029-5
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
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Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
21
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Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
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Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world.
On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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