A gripping supernatural tale that delivers a superlative cast and unyielding tension.
Paranormal abilities and events put a teenager and her loved ones in peril in this third installment of a YA dark fantasy series.
Del Larouche can see others’ pasts when she’s in a trance. But this also draws spirits, including one that attacked her “eccentric family”: mentor Mama Dedé, benefactor Armand Baptiste, and Jimmy Wawoo, a teen whose “mental condition kept him trapped at a much younger age.” Del, hoping to protect them, goes off on her own, though she stays in New Orleans. One night, she nearly becomes the victim of an assault but manages to fight off the assailants. Unfortunately, Del can’t remember what she did to one of the men, who’s now likely dead. While a menacing individual tied to the unlucky assailant searches for “that witch” Del, an older stranger cryptically offers to help the teen find her “path” and refine her ability, giving her horrifying visions of and access to the lost dead. Meanwhile, that spirit’s attack has rendered Mama Dedé practically comatose. Desperate for assistance, Armand and Jimmy hope for an accommodating spirit via a Ouija board, but instead stir up an entity more dangerous than they anticipated. As in the preceding installment, Quinton’s 1960s-set tale centers on dynamic characters. Quite a few take the narrative reins, from Armand and Jimmy to returning former cop Frank Morgan and a particularly nasty villain who allows “The Red,” an apparent presence, to take over. The story itself is relentlessly moody; most of what Del does carries a potential threat—taking late-night walks to her apartment after work, putting herself in a trance to check in on her family, and engaging with a co-worker who senselessly loathes her. Frequent dreams or dreamlike states come alive with haunting descriptions, such as Del suddenly developing an “itchy, squirmy feeling” in her own bedroom and Armand having an unsettling daydream that makes him break out in a sweat and causes his throat to convulse. The ending, rather than presenting a thorough resolution, opts for a doozy of a cliffhanger.
A gripping supernatural tale that delivers a superlative cast and unyielding tension.Pub Date: June 10, 2022
ISBN: 9781736659038
Page Count: 382
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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