Three wounded but valiant protagonists confront a monstrous evil with human roots in this promising series opener.
Nadia’s mother’s abrupt departure left her family bereft and her training in the Craft unfinished. In Captive’s Sound, the New England village where Nadia moves with her dad and little brother to make a fresh start, evil has had 400 years to grow. Too late to avert the car crash that coincides with their arrival in town, Nadia’s rescued by Mateo, the mysterious local boy whose prophetic dreams foretold the crash. His dreams arise from the ancient family curse that prompted his mother’s suicide. Breaking a central rule of the Craft, Nadia confides in Verlaine, the odd social outcast who caught her working magic; a tentative friendship develops. With Mateo’s family history well-known, his only friends were Elizabeth, a beautiful, longtime ally, and Gage, a new boy in town. Now a supernatural bond strengthens Nadia and Mateo’s mutual attraction. Determined to lift the curse, Nadia’s horrified by what she discovers—her antagonist could easily defeat a fully trained witch. Rooted in unswerving devotion, this evil was chosen. Yet knowing it didn’t have to be this way only makes it scarier. Gray switches the third-person narrative viewpoint among four compelling characters, keeping readers glued to the page. This riveting tale will keep readers up late and clamoring for the next installment. (Paranormal romance. 12 & up)
Pub Date: March 5, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-196120-5
Page Count: 400
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
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
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
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