After years trapped on a space station, seething with fury, a girl gets the chance to broaden her horizons.
It’s been one year since Tula shipped the only two other humans away from the Yertina Feray Space Station, hoping to save their lives (Tin Star, 2014). Tula’s been on the station for years, craving revenge on the charismatic human sociopath who tried to murder her, left her for dead and blew up the spaceship carrying her family. Living with extraterrestrial species and running her own shop (selling sweets, salts and waters) is tolerable, and an ET named Tournour loves her, but this can’t be her real life. Castellucci’s well-structured plot includes an unexpected gold-rush–like bustle on the station (because a valuable plant suddenly blooms on the planet below); escapes, travel and reunions for Tula; a government to fight; and a caste system to erode. However, continuity’s a problem: A key event from Tin Star has changed during the gap between books. The change is acknowledged but never explained, and its nature shifts illogically even within this volume. Prose is often leaden (“In that moment, my heart broke”), repetitive or awkward (“I fumbled along this path of trying to grow up and I didn’t know how to come of age”), with much forced narrative interpretation.
Thoroughly original outer-space scenario wrapped around clunky prose. (Science fiction. 13 & up)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-59643-776-0
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2014
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The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES
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A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
32
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Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
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