The perfect beach read for shōjo manga fans who like a little fantasy magic with their love triangles.
Aquatic adolescence meets magical girl intrigue in this surfside romantic comedy.
Sea sprite Coral works as a surf instructor for a hotel. She has a little stepsister, Maki, who is a kappa. Maki’s father, Taki, runs a boba shop and is married to Coral’s mom, Leora, who is a fashion designer. Coral’s friends include siren Anemone, whose legs turn into twin fish tails when wet, and dryad Lillyana, who has plant powers and a penchant for nudity. Maki teases Coral about her huge crush on Nick Inferno, a fire ifrit. In fact, there are plenty of crushes to go around in this story. Coral also finds Lance Riptide, the hotel owner’s privileged son, irresistibly cute, and Lillyana subjugates a boys’ volleyball team with giant plants in order to flirt with them. On top of that, the student body at Littoral High School is gaga for Nick and Ember, his “smoking hot” billboard model twin sister. The romantic comedy and drama that ensue take center stage along with a touch of mystery around Coral’s secret powers and missing father. The full-color artwork gives each anthropomorphic species its own palette (for example, kappas are green, while ifrits are yellow and orange) and frequently shows off the cast’s buff and curvaceous swimsuit bodies.
The perfect beach read for shōjo manga fans who like a little fantasy magic with their love triangles. (bonus comics) (Graphic fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2023
ISBN: 9781645059790
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Seven Seas
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
In addition to the supernatural elements, Brosgol interweaves some savvy insights about the illusion of perfection and...
A deliciously creepy page-turning gem from first-time writer and illustrator Brosgol finds brooding teenager Anya trying to escape the past—both her own and the ghost haunting her.
Anya feels out of place at her preppy private school; embarrassed by her Russian heritage, she has worked hard to lose her accent and to look more like everyone else. After a particularly frustrating morning at the bus stop, Anya storms off, only to accidentally fall down a well. Down in the dark hole, she meets Emily, a ghost who claims to be a murder victim trapped down in the dank abyss for 90 years. With Emily’s help, Anya manages to escape, though once free, she learns that Emily has traveled out with her. At first, Emily seems like the perfect friend; however, once her motives become clear, Anya learns that “perfect” may only be an illusion. A moodily atmospheric spectrum of grays washes over the clean, tidy panels, setting a distinct stage before the first words appear. Brosgol’s tight storytelling invokes the chilling feeling of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline (2002), though for a decidedly older set.
In addition to the supernatural elements, Brosgol interweaves some savvy insights about the illusion of perfection and outward appearance. (Graphic supernatural fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: June 7, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-59643-552-0
Page Count: 224
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2011
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world.
On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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