A somewhat drawn-out but ultimately heartwarming story that examines themes of community and friendship.
In Boyle’s fantasy novel, a mysterious American town in the early 1900s gets turned upside down by the actions of a newcomer from a century in the future.
After a fateful truck accident in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, TV actor Madeline Drake wakes up to find herself in a strange place on Thanksgiving. At first, she thinks it’s the set of her current show, The Star Bright, which takes place in the fictional town of Bethlehem, Wyoming, in the early 20th century; in it, she plays saloon proprietor Calliope Corfield. “From what she could see, this place was a close replica….Except this felt so very real.” Madeline soon realizes that she’s trapped in the actual town of Bethlehem in 1907—more than 100 years in the past. It turns out that every resident was led there by a guide named Shandy, and each has some misfortune that they want to escape. Madeline soon learns that Shandy can’t take her home until Christmas,so she decides to reopen the town’s closed saloon. Some of the more conservative townspeople disapprove of Madeline’s activities, but they inspire others. Parathinia Minch, the town’s postmistress, who’s highly trusted for her discretion, is keeping an unwanted secret that could split the town in two, while Savannah Clarke, a resident from the Civil War era who prefers not to celebrate the holidays, starts involving herself in town matters after stumbling upon handwritten Christmas wishes. Boyle’s story of placemaking and letting go of the past is sure to enchant readers with its charming cast and reflective prose. The pace of the novel is overly slow at times, and the logistics of its time-travel elements are unsatisfyingly explained. However, Madeline, Parathinia, and Savannah are winning characters with rich personalities that push back against small-town expectations; in the end, they bring the people of Bethlehem together for an unforgettable holiday season.
A somewhat drawn-out but ultimately heartwarming story that examines themes of community and friendship.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An engrossing, action-packed sequel with a compelling cast.
A woman must undergo fearsome trials to free the imprisoned Titans of Greek myth in Owen’s fantasy novel, the second in a series.
Advancing from minor office clerk in the Order of Thieves to Queen of the Underworld, Lyra Keres’ star should be rising. But thanks to Cronos, King of the Titans, she and her longtime friend and fellow thief Boone have been ensnared in a new challenge beneath the earth: Hot on the heels of winning the twisted Crucible Games, Lyra—who has recently been granted goddess powers—finds herself trapped in Tartarus. Separated from her beloved Hades, she must liberate the fearsome Titans from seven Locks to restore the cosmic balance. As Lyra progresses through the Locks engineered by the Gods—each as tricky and lethal as the last—the pressure mounts as the Titans repeatedly remind her, “You will be our savior.” Rhea, the wife of Cronos, reveals that Lyra began this quest “a hundred and fifty years ago,” adding further devastation to the task at hand; the knowledge is helpful, but also painful, as Lyra reflects, “Suddenly, I don’t want to know that it’s real. Because then I have to contemplate how many times I might have ended up in Tartarus already.” As she materializes in and out of time pockets, Lyra sees Hades’ troubled childhood unfold and struggles not to intervene to save the man she loves. In this second entry in the author’s Crucible series, following The Games Gods Play (2024), Lyra’s cynical quips continue to make her an engaging protagonist. Her inner monologues are balanced with hope, love, and longing for Hades as she meets various versions of him. While resilient, Owen’s heroine is also vulnerable (“Was I his pawn in more ways than I ever realized?”). Her introspection effectively contrasts with the simmering rage and restraint in Hades’ chapters. The supporting Titans are given more depth than the traditional myths allow, weaving a knotty family fabric for the reader to navigate alongside Lyra.
An engrossing, action-packed sequel with a compelling cast.Pub Date: Oct. 21, 2025
ISBN: 9781649378538
Page Count: 500
Publisher: Entangled: Red Tower Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: yesterday
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.
Using mystery and romance elements in a nonlinear narrative, SenLinYu’s debut is a doorstopper of a fantasy that follows a woman with missing memories as she navigates through a war-torn realm in search of herself.
Helena Marino is a talented young healer living in Paladia—the “Shining City”—who has been thrust into a brutal war against an all-powerful necromancer and his army of Undying, loyal henchmen with immortal bodies, and necrothralls, reanimated automatons. When Helena is awakened from stasis, a prisoner of the necromancer’s forces, she has no idea how long she has been incarcerated—or the status of the war. She soon finds herself a personal prisoner of Kaine Ferron, the High Necromancer’s “monster” psychopath who has sadistically killed hundreds for his master. Ordered to recover Helena’s buried memories by any means necessary, the two polar opposites—Helena and Kaine, healer and killer—end up discovering much more as they begin to understand each other through shared trauma. While necromancy is an oft-trod subject in fantasy novels, the author gives it a fresh feel—in large part because of their superb worldbuilding coupled with unforgettable imagery throughout: “[The necromancer] lay reclined upon a throne of bodies. Necrothralls, contorted and twisted together, their limbs transmuted and fused into a chair, moving in synchrony, rising and falling as they breathed in tandem, squeezing and releasing around him…[He] extended his decrepit right hand, overlarge with fingers jointed like spider legs.” Another noteworthy element is the complex dynamic between Helena and Kaine. To say that these two characters shared the gamut of intense emotions would be a vast understatement. Readers will come for the fantasy and stay for the romance.
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9780593972700
Page Count: 1040
Publisher: Del Rey
Review Posted Online: July 17, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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