An effective combination of traditional and modern YA elements.
A hilarious, angst-ridden YA novel about a teenage girl acclimating to life at a new high school by Griffin (Beauty and the Wiener: A Rescue Dog Romance, 2017, etc.).
Adrianna Bottom was bullied relentlessly at her old school in Seattle, and she’s determined not to experience the same fate at Beverly Hills High. But she’s off to an inauspicious start. As if having the surname Bottom weren’t enough, her father is a self-proclaimed “Bathroom Baron” who made his fortune selling novelty bathroom accessories. Her parents are parlaying their newfound wealth into a reality TV series starring Adrianna—whom they call the “Porcelain Princess.” On her first day of school, she accidentally exposes her Wonder Woman–underwear-clad bottom to her entire biology class, a feat that’s also filmed for the reality show. She does manage to meet three new people, however: a beautiful girl named Harper; Harper’s ex, Lennox; and the geeky Kevin. Harper immediately warns Adrianna of the social suicide that would result from fraternizing with Kevin, who, among other nerdy pursuits, spends his weekends doing fantasy live-action role-playing with friends. Adrianna soon finds herself leading a dual existence—hanging out with Harper and other popular kids during weekdays and role-playing (behind a mask) with Kevin on weekends. Adding to her woes is reality show producer Corbin, who’s determined to do anything—no matter how humiliating or socially disastrous for Adrianna—to garner a larger viewing audience. This book embraces some traditional aspects of YA literature—including a romance and a quest to be popular—but it avoids trendy dystopian or paranormal aspects. Griffin perfectly captures the characters’ adolescent angst, and many readers will relate to Adrianna’s dilemma—she wants to do what’s right, but she’s so emotionally scarred by past bullying that she feels crippled by indecision. Indeed, the author’s characterizations of Adrianna, Kevin, Harper, and even Lennox make this YA novel transcendent. The addition of live-action role-playing and reality television keeps the story feeling contemporary, and there’s just enough bathroom humor to add laughs without being too heavy-handed.
An effective combination of traditional and modern YA elements.Pub Date: March 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-63375-593-2
Page Count: 354
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Review Posted Online: Feb. 23, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Conniving adults can’t halt first love in this glowing fantasy tale.
This debut YA novel sees a stage magician’s apprentice struggle with secrets as a handsome rogue enters his life.
It is 1898, and 16-year-old Londoner Thomas Pendleton longs to attend Oxford and write poetry. Instead, at the behest of his parents, he’s become an apprentice to magician Neville Wighton the Great. The two have mastered an illusion in which Neville leaps out into the audience only to vanish in midair and reappear in a private box above. This shocking feat has gained the attention of Paolo il Magnifico, another illusionist, who’s astounded that the veteran Neville has achieved a late-career bloom. Paolo sends his own rakish assistant, 19-year-old Saverio Moretti, to learn the trick’s secret. Sav encounters Thomas in Manchester Square and questions “the way he stared, the way he fumbled for words.” Indeed, Thomas is attracted to the good-looking young man, though for the sake of his family’s finances, he’s been courting wealthy Amelia Ashdown. The romantically experienced Sav pursues the naïve teen, pretending to be a tailor’s apprentice and reporting on Neville’s act to Paolo. Sav doesn’t intend to fall in love—nor can he imagine that Thomas possesses hidden powers over movement and light. Can either young man escape the deceitful webs spun by the adults in their lives? Struck through with late-Victorian charm, Reynolds’ novel is an intimate combination of romance and fantasy. Presented as diary entries, chapters alternate between the viewpoints of Thomas and Sav, and deft portraiture reveals Neville as a cruel master (His smile “looked...wrong, like a puzzle piece that was forced into a spot where it was not meant to fit”). Amelia, unfortunately, spends much of the narrative in the background despite her dramatic potential. But the author triumphs elsewhere, convincing readers of Sav’s caddish ways and then immersing them in Thomas’ earnest passion for poetry (he initially recites Shakespearean sonnets). Romance fans should love the emotional seesaw that carries through to a clever final deception, one that brings frightening social realism to this lightly magical tale.
Conniving adults can’t halt first love in this glowing fantasy tale.Pub Date: Nov. 6, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-64063-563-0
Page Count: 380
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Review Posted Online: Jan. 4, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An exuberant runaround carried along by the heady rush of first love.
Two teens become drawn to each other after supernatural events send them searching for answers in this fast-paced romantic adventure by Drake (Assassin of Truths, 2018, etc.).
Seventeen-year-old Philadelphian Analiese—nicknamed Ana—knows something about death. Her parents passed away when she was 2, and she was adopted and raised by her aunt and uncle. Three months ago, her uncle died; he loved her and her cousin equally, and he taught Ana how to cope with her panic attacks. Now, just as he’s gone, Ana finds that she has need of his counsel. The strangeness starts in biology class, when a frog that Ana’s about to dissect suddenly comes back to life. Then an old man, a stranger, saves her from being struck by a car, resulting in his own fatal injury. As he lies dying, he entrusts Ana with his bag: “Take it to my grandson,” he says. “Don’t let anyone see you have it. You’re in danger, Analiese. Run. Don’t stop.” So begins an adventure that will change her life. How does the old man know her name? And can she trust his grandson, Marek Conte, as much as she’s attracted to him? Soon, the pair find themselves in Rome, falling for each other as they hunt down clues that Marek’s grandfather left behind—clues that will reveal the truth of how Ana’s parents died and about Ana’s previously unknown powers. Drake writes from a first-person, present-tense perspective and imbues her narrator, Ana, with plenty of character. Ana’s proneness to panic attacks, for example, sits naturally within the story, serving no plot-relevant purpose but adding to her emotional depth. Her thoughts are suitably teenage in tone, but even when she finds herself objectifying Marek, Drake allows her the self-awareness to know that she’s edging toward cliché. The rollicking story rolls along nicely throughout, with plenty of moments of introspection. The various antagonists that the two encounter seem unaccountably enigmatic at times, but this is a minor quibble, as teen readers will join willingly in the chase.
An exuberant runaround carried along by the heady rush of first love.Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-64063-508-1
Page Count: 350
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Review Posted Online: Jan. 4, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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