A Canadian teen works to stop malevolent extraterrestrials from taking over Earth in this YA sequel to Lee’s H.P. Lovecraft–inspired The Midnight Games(2016).
Hamilton, Ontario, is still reeling months after terrifying beasts tried passing through a wormhole and a mysterious airship blasted the threat back to its own realm. Nate Silva, determined to track down that airship, called Sorcerer, treks through Hamilton’s North End during a heavy snowstorm. He comes across a rusty warehouse, and after he enters it, he learns that he’s actually inside Sorcerer—and that it’s about to take flight. This amazing craft and its crew have traversed time and space in a long-running battle against the Great Old Ones, a group of creatures plotting to colonize Earth. But humankind’s next threat won’t come from the sky; it turns out that the evil Nyarlathotep is already here, deep in the Pacific Ocean, ready to rise to the surface. Soon, Nate teams up with his grandfather, whom he’s never met before. The 80-something man, decades ago, survived a harrowing encounter at sea with something diabolical, and he may be the only one who can find its “underwater grave.” Lee enhances his novel with references to the Lovecraft mythos, although these don’t monopolize the narrative. Menaces include winged, clawed beasts called thrals and a creepy Cthulhu-worshipping cult (a remnant of the series’ first installment). However, there are other elements that smoothly tie into real-world events, including World War II, and a surprising passenger appears on Sorcerer, as well. Nate’s no-nonsense attitude befits a worthy hero, but Lee gives him just enough snarkiness to make him a believable teenager. The author further invigorates this sequel with vibrant detail, from the sounds of Sorcerer(“the airship sighed and shuddered like a huge beast with a broken heart”) to the description of the North End’s abandoned, dilapidated factories inhabiting “a Chernobyl-like wasteland.” A smashing cliffhanger sets up a potential third installment.
Familiar mythical creatures bolster this dark, ongoing adventure.Pub Date: June 15, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-989496-31-2
Page Count: 276
Publisher: Poplar Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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When a calamitous drought overtakes southern California, a group of teens must struggle to keep their lives and their humanity in this father-son collaboration.
When the Tap-Out hits and the state’s entire water supply runs dry, 16-year-old Alyssa Morrow and her little brother, Garrett, ration their Gatorade and try to be optimistic. That is, until their parents disappear, leaving them completely alone. Their neighbor Kelton McCracken was born into a survivalist family, but what use is that when it’s his family he has to survive? Kelton is determined to help Alyssa and Garrett, but with desperation comes danger, and he must lead them and two volatile new acquaintances on a perilous trek to safety and water. Occasionally interrupted by “snapshots” of perspectives outside the main plot, the narrative’s intensity steadily rises as self-interest turns deadly and friends turn on each other. No one does doom like Neal Shusterman (Thunderhead, 2018, etc.)—the breathtakingly jagged brink of apocalypse is only overshadowed by the sense that his dystopias lie just below the surface of readers’ fragile reality, a few thoughtless actions away. He and his debut novelist son have crafted a world of dark thirst and fiery desperation, which, despite the tendrils of hope that thread through the conclusion, feels alarmingly near to our future. There is an absence of racial markers, leaving characters’ identities open.
Mouths have never run so dry at the idea of thirst. (Thriller. 13-17)Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4814-8196-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FAMILY
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Two teens with a dark secret return to their old summer camp.
Childhood friends Esme and Kayla can’t wait to return to Camp Pine Lake as counselors-in-training, ready to try everything they couldn’t do when they were younger: find cute boys, stay up late, and sneak out after hours. Even Andy, their straight-laced supervisor, can’t dampen their excitement, especially after they meet the crushworthy Olly and Jake. An intuitive 17-year-old, Esme is ready to jump in and teach her cute little campers. But when a threatening message appears, Esme and Kayla realize the secret they’ve kept hidden for nearly a decade is no longer safe. Paranoia and fear soon cause Esme and Kayla to revisit their ominous secret and realize that nobody in the camp can be trusted. The slow buildup of suspense and the use of classic horror elements contrast with lighthearted camp activities, bonding with new friends, and budding romance. Similarly, Esme’s first-person point of view allows for increased tension and action as well as offering insight into her emotional and mental well-being. Discussions of adulthood, trauma, and recovery are subtle and realistic, but acts of sexism and machismo aren’t fully analyzed. While the strong buildup of action comes late, it leads to a shockingly satisfying finale. Major characters are White.
An eerie thriller reminiscent of summer horror movies that will keep readers on edge. (Thriller. 12-16)Pub Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12497-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Dec. 9, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2021
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