Atmospheric writing and a premise that’s as fresh as newly turned earth can’t compensate for an overcrowded plot, making...
Gothic surrealism as everlasting as a ghost’s kiss blends with coming-of-age angst for the modern age.
Byrne introduces readers to a world in which entering one’s own grave is a rite of passage for 13-year-olds on par with Sweet 16 parties and graduation celebrations. Each year, newly teenage kids eagerly await receiving the keys to their very own personal graves. In fact, “a person’s grave was a window to her innermost thoughts. To go into another person’s grave was like eavesdropping on someone praying—it was beyond improper; it was flat out wrong.” The Windhams, a white family of grave keepers, live in upstate New York. High school junior Athena spends all her free time in her grave, but younger sister Laurel hasn’t embraced the ritual, much to the chagrin of her overprotective parents. It’s an eerie concept with just enough curiousness to make a person want to know more. Byrne’s masterful presentation of minute details makes the whole ritual world feel so real readers will want to Google it. But while the story is as layered as any cemetery worth its salt, it also juggles multiple storylines, including: the death of a sibling and the loss of a child; home schooling vs. traditional school; suffocating loneliness and a missing child. The result is a congested plot and obtuse characters.
Atmospheric writing and a premise that’s as fresh as newly turned earth can’t compensate for an overcrowded plot, making this a good effort but a challenging read. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-06-248475-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play.
Garber returns to the world of bestseller Caraval (2017), this time with the focus on younger, more daring sister Donatella.
Valenda, capital of the empire, is host to the second of Legend’s magical games in a single year, and while Scarlett doesn’t want to play again, blonde Tella is eager for a chance to prove herself. She is haunted by the memory of her death in the last game and by the cursed Deck of Destiny she used as a child which foretold her loveless future. Garber has changed many of the rules of her expanding world, which now appears to be infused with magic and evil Fates. Despite a weak plot and ultraviolet prose (“He tasted like exquisite nightmares and stolen dreams, like the wings of fallen angels, and bottles of fresh moonlight.”), this is a tour de force of imagination. Themes of love, betrayal, and the price of magic (and desire) swirl like Caraval’s enchantments, and Dante’s sensuous kisses will thrill readers as much as they do Tella. The convoluted machinations of the Prince of Hearts (one of the Fates), Legend, and even the empress serve as the impetus for Tella’s story and set up future volumes which promise to go bigger. With descriptions focusing primarily on clothing, characters’ ethnicities are often indeterminate.
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play. (glossary) (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: May 29, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-09531-2
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: March 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice.
A teenage, not-so-lonely loner endures the wilds of high school in Austin, Texas.
Norris Kaplan, the protagonist of Philippe’s debut novel, is a hypersweaty, uber-snarky black, Haitian, French-Canadian pushing to survive life in his new school. His professor mom’s new tenure-track job transplants Norris mid–school year, and his biting wit and sarcasm are exposed through his cataloging of his new world in a field guide–style burn book. He’s greeted in his new life by an assortment of acquaintances, Liam, who is white and struggling with depression; Maddie, a self-sacrificing white cheerleader with a heart of gold; and Aarti, his Indian-American love interest who offers connection. Norris’ ego, fueled by his insecurities, often gets in the way of meaningful character development. The scenes showcasing his emotional growth are too brief and, despite foreshadowing, the climax falls flat because he still gets incredible personal access to people he’s hurt. A scene where Norris is confronted by his mother for getting drunk and belligerent with a white cop is diluted by his refusal or inability to grasp the severity of the situation and the resultant minor consequences. The humor is spot-on, as is the representation of the black diaspora; the opportunity for broader conversations about other topics is there, however, the uneven buildup of detailed, meaningful exchanges and the glibness of Norris’ voice detract.
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-282411-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
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