Despite its shortcomings, this important and timely novel is a painful, lovely exploration of mending a mother-daughter...
A mother and daughter with a strained relationship cope with the legacy of horrific violence.
Zara is the daughter of an interfaith marriage between her mostly secular parents: a Bosnian Muslim mother and white Catholic father. She is an ordinary American girl in many ways despite her fraught relationship with her traumatized mother—Zara knows that Nadja was a refugee, but her mother’s emotional distance has stopped her from learning the details of her past. An ISIS bombing at a Rhode Island farmers market leaves Zara wounded and her mother comatose but also opens up the path for Zara to finally understand her mother’s story. At the hospital she develops a close friendship with a spiritually seeking, biracial (Haitian and Irish) boy who is there visiting his grandmother. Interwoven chapters tell the story of Nadja in 1990s Bosnia, where she was an equally ordinary adolescent, treasuring mix tapes from her Serbian boyfriend. But the Bosnian War changes everything, and Nadja finds herself a survivor of genocide, having experienced crimes so horrific she’s blocked them out. Ethnic and religious conflict among modern Europeans contrasts sharply with racist Islamophobia in Zara’s contemporary New England. The search for faith and meaning pervades the story, but, disappointingly, the narrative too often filters spirituality through Western and Christian lenses. The long, complex history of the South Slavs is also overly simplified.
Despite its shortcomings, this important and timely novel is a painful, lovely exploration of mending a mother-daughter relationship. (author’s note, bibliography, glossary) (Fiction. 13-17)Pub Date: May 15, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-399-17554-1
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Feb. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2018
PROFILES
A purple page turner.
This sequel to Clockwork Angel (2010) pits gorgeous, attractively broken teens against a menacing evil.
There's betrayal, mayhem and clockwork monstrosities, and the Shadowhunters have only two weeks to discover—oh, who are we kidding? The plot is only surprisingly tasty icing on this cupcake of a melodramatic love triangle. Our heroes are Tessa, who may or may not be a warlock, and the beautiful Shadowhunter warrior boys who are moths to her forbidden flame. It's not always clear why Tessa prefers Will to his beloved (and only) friend Jem, the dying, silver-eyed, biracial sweetheart with the face of an angel. Jem, after all, is gentle and kind, her dearest confidante; Will is unpleasant to everyone around him. But poor, wretched Will—who "would have been pretty if he had not been so tall and so muscular"—has a deep, dark, thoroughly emo secret. His trauma puts all previous romantic difficulties to shame, from the Capulet/Montague feud all the way to Edward Cullen's desire to chomp on Bella Swan. Somehow there's room for an interesting steampunk mystery amid all this angst. The supporting characters (unusually well-developed for a love-triangle romance) include multiple compelling young women who show strength in myriad ways. So what if there are anachronisms, character inconsistencies and weird tonal slips? There's too much overwrought fun to care.
A purple page turner. (Fantasy. 13-16)Pub Date: Dec. 6, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4169-7588-5
Page Count: 528
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2011
Skillfully weaves together political intrigue, complex sibling relationships, and magic.
Four royal siblings reunite, seeking the Ivory Key, a legendary object that could unlock an incredible source of magic and rescue their country from impending war.
For centuries, Ashoka has relied on magic to fuel its economy and protect its borders. But the magic is running out, and Vira, the newly crowned maharani, is desperate. A suspect in the murder of Lord Harish, Vira’s betrothed, shows signs of ties to the Kamala Society, a secret organization that sealed all the magic quarries when Ashokan provinces fought to control the mining trade. To unlock them and save Ashoka, Vira must retrieve the Ivory Key, but she requires the help of her three estranged siblings, who each have their own reasons for obtaining it. Vira’s twin, Ronak, wants to sell it so he can start a new life. Her half brother, Kaleb, who is accused of murdering his stepmother, the previous maharani, longs to clear his name. Her sister, Riya, who has not revealed her true identity as the rajkumaari to the Ravens, a rebel group she has joined, wishes to prove her loyalty to them. Raman’s immersive, enchanting world is rich in Indian cultural influences. Alternating points of view allow every protagonist to shine, and the epilogue told from a fifth perspective offers a tease for the duology’s next installment.
Skillfully weaves together political intrigue, complex sibling relationships, and magic. (Fantasy. 13-17)Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-358-46833-2
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
