A dazzling, emotional story of love, loss, and living in the moment.
A teen girl gets to live the best week of her life, but something feels wrong.
Tegan Rossi wakes up in the secret-hideout lava tube of her childhood vacations on the Big Island of Hawaii. She doesn’t remember how she got there, why she’s there, or really anything since graduating high school a few weeks prior. When she finds Kai Kapule, the childhood friend from Hawaii she’s kept in touch with, she concludes she must have come to surprise him. Tegan gets caught up in paradise with Kai, letting herself give in to the moment. But things aren’t quite right: Nightmares haunt her sleep, her scar from an old sports injury is gone, no one can reach her parents, and she’s got an unexplainable hourglass tattoo. This debut novel is captivating and moving. Most of the story is told from Tegan’s present-day point of view, with her memories and messages from Kai woven in. The nightmare she has keeps building on itself, revealing more of her lost memories, creating anticipation and suspense. There is hope in second chances, mixed with first love and the fear, heartache, and joy of living. Some of the best experiences Hawaii has to offer are highlighted, including shave ice, waterfalls, snorkeling, and malasadas. Kai’s name cues him as Hawaiian; Tegan is implied white.
A dazzling, emotional story of love, loss, and living in the moment. (Fantasy romance. 14-18)Pub Date: April 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-951710-11-8
Page Count: 303
Publisher: Month9Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
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
SEEN & HEARD
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy.
A war between gods plays havoc with mortals and their everyday lives.
In a time of typewriters and steam engines, Iris Winnow awaits word from her older brother, who has enlisted on the side of Enva the Skyward goddess. Alcohol abuse led to her mother’s losing her job, and Iris has dropped out of school and found work utilizing her writing skills at the Oath Gazette. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Her rival for the job is handsome and wealthy Roman Kitt, whose prose entrances her so much she avoids reading his articles. At home, she writes cathartic letters to her brother, never posting them but instead placing them in her wardrobe, where they vanish overnight. One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on. This is more of a wartime tale of broken families, inspired youths, and higher powers using people as pawns. It flirts with clichéd tropes but also takes some startling turns. Main characters are assumed White; same-sex marriages and gender equality at the warfront appear to be the norm in this world.
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-85743-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
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