Dedicated fans of the series will appreciate it, but it probably won't win new converts. (Science fiction. 12 & up)
The fourth installment in Testa’s teen saga of space exploration, the Galahad Series.
A year into their mission to establish a new home for humankind beyond the edge of the known universe, the crew of the Galahad has had their share of trials. There hasn’t been much time to deal with the usual issues of teen angst and first loves, but that doesn’t mean these aren’t part of the mix. Dealing with relationships is the central issue in this outing, from friendship to love to loss. Most importantly, how does the team build a relationship with a new species? Vulturelike creatures appear, pace and then attach themselves to the outer hull of the ship. Are they a threat? Mere observers? Perhaps they are messengers…but from whom and from where? The Council has to put aside their personal considerations to resolve the best course of action—for the ship and the crew, their mission and all that remains of humanity. Slow to start, this book regains momentum halfway through to race toward an open conclusion. With only two more books in the series, the next installment should pick up the pace.
Dedicated fans of the series will appreciate it, but it probably won't win new converts. (Science fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7653-2110-7
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Tor
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2011
A fast-paced series opener.
Dorothy wasn’t the first young girl to take an epic journey down the Yellow Brick Road.
Long before becoming the Good Witch of the South, Glinda Gavaria was a wide-eyed, red-haired white teenager from Quadling Country whose biggest worry was what career she would be forced to accept. Poised to follow in her mother’s footsteps as a seamstress, Glinda quickly learns that life in Oz is nothing like what it seems. Her mother, a seemingly benign seamstress, is actually a powerful sorceress whose revolutionary faction is trying to restore Princess Ozma to the throne, stolen from her while fighting against the four wicked witches who have a stranglehold on the four Oz kingdoms. In Fiedler’s dystopian reimagining of the Oz mythos, the country is suppressed by four wicked witches who forbid the use of magic while subjugating the citizens to the rule of a secret evil sorceress to whom the witches owe their allegiance. While this novel stands alone on its own merits, readers familiar with Baum’s original series will enjoy spending time with famous characters such as the malevolent Mombi and Nick Chopper midway through his transformation into the Tin Woodsman. The author crafts an intricate world filled with excitement and magical creatures, but unfortunately Glinda’s character does not fully crystallize before she is swept up in her adventure.
A fast-paced series opener. (Fantasy. 12-17)Pub Date: May 16, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-6971-5
Page Count: 432
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: Feb. 19, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017
This emotional journey for a time-traveling guy and his now–girl-next-door is better suited to romance readers than...
There’s no time like the present in this time-travel romance.
Teenager Harper Croft, apparently abandoned by her (inexplicably) aloof mother, moves to Iowa to live with her widower uncle, Jasper. It’s been six years since she saw her childhood buddy, now-17-year-old Kale Jackson, but their friendship soon turns into romance. But Kale finds it hard to be present, mentally and literally. He’s traumatized by his seemingly uncontrollable and increasingly frequent travels through time, having spent several months traveling back to World War II. With unexplainable absences and injuries, Kale has earned his gruff dad’s wrath and brother’s dismissal. Kale’s baffling unwillingness to demonstrate his ability is as logically flawed as the oversimplified explanation of time travel, but here, it’s cast as neither superpower nor curse but a metaphor for coming-of-age. Each of the white protagonists (also co-narrators) deals with familial woes, but girl gamer Harper is far less angst-y than broody mechanic Kale. Debut author Cole focuses more on exhilarating relationships than excellent adventures; she uses the slow pacing to develop her characters but tends toward repetitive descriptions and moralizing.
This emotional journey for a time-traveling guy and his now–girl-next-door is better suited to romance readers than science-fiction aficionados. (Fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5107-0766-5
Page Count: 332
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Review Posted Online: March 5, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2017
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