An imaginative, daring start to what could develop in to a fantastic series.
A mysterious force known simply as the Darkness threatens a far-future Earth in Andreas’ debut YA sci-fi/fantasy.
Millions of years after an asteroid wiped out practically all life on Earth, the last traces of humanity have evolved into three separate races, each with its own distinct society. On the ground are the erdwons, a tribal people with cheetahlike legs and tails who live in huts. Meanwhile, the skywons—winged people—live in palaces surrounded by wealth and splendor in the heavens above, and the feshwons are an aquatic people with webbed fingers and flippers. The different groups know very little about one another, let alone Earth’s past history, believing the planet to have once been ruled by one race that banished a dark force called the Darkness, which eventually returned and destroyed them, until the Earth Mother created the three peoples. Now, however, entire clans are beginning to disappear, leaving people to worry that the Darkness has returned. Tor, an erdwon youth, crosses paths with a wounded skywon princess, Himmel, setting him on a course to potentially save the world. Andreas’ novel is blessed with a richly realized, deeply intelligent mythology, which helps distinguish it amid the sea of YA. He establishes all the various societies and peoples economically and with a keen eye for anthropological detail, making it as much of a delight to simply learn about the divergent cultures as it is to spend time with his likable cast of characters. Those eager for nonstop action might want to look elsewhere, but readers will find a great deal to love here if they’re fascinated by complex worldbuilding and a gradually building plot that allows its characters to breathe. Unfortunately, however, the book ends rather abruptly, and while this seems to promise a sequel, more concluding action would have allowed the ending to feel as naturalistic and well-paced as the rest of the novel.
An imaginative, daring start to what could develop in to a fantastic series.Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2014
ISBN: 978-1500303778
Page Count: 274
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Nov. 20, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Wrought with admirable skill—the emptiness and menace underlying this Utopia emerge step by inexorable step: a richly...
In a radical departure from her realistic fiction and comic chronicles of Anastasia, Lowry creates a chilling, tightly controlled future society where all controversy, pain, and choice have been expunged, each childhood year has its privileges and responsibilities, and family members are selected for compatibility.
As Jonas approaches the "Ceremony of Twelve," he wonders what his adult "Assignment" will be. Father, a "Nurturer," cares for "newchildren"; Mother works in the "Department of Justice"; but Jonas's admitted talents suggest no particular calling. In the event, he is named "Receiver," to replace an Elder with a unique function: holding the community's memories—painful, troubling, or prone to lead (like love) to disorder; the Elder ("The Giver") now begins to transfer these memories to Jonas. The process is deeply disturbing; for the first time, Jonas learns about ordinary things like color, the sun, snow, and mountains, as well as love, war, and death: the ceremony known as "release" is revealed to be murder. Horrified, Jonas plots escape to "Elsewhere," a step he believes will return the memories to all the people, but his timing is upset by a decision to release a newchild he has come to love. Ill-equipped, Jonas sets out with the baby on a desperate journey whose enigmatic conclusion resonates with allegory: Jonas may be a Christ figure, but the contrasts here with Christian symbols are also intriguing.
Wrought with admirable skill—the emptiness and menace underlying this Utopia emerge step by inexorable step: a richly provocative novel. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: April 1, 1993
ISBN: 978-0-395-64566-6
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1993
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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