Next book

CRASH

From the Game series , Vol. 3

Leveled up and out, this is a terrific, multifaceted finish to a sci-fi trilogy tailor-made for gamers.

This final novel in the Game trilogy finds Miki and Jackson fighting evil forces mentally and interdimensionally.

Middle-volume Push (2014) found the alien nemesis, Drau, crossing dimensions and entering Miki’s real life. Now, in the aftermath, Miki is anguished by her father’s hospitalization and her best friend’s coma. Her existence is ruled by the will of the omniscient and eternal Committee. They can control both time and space and pull her without warning into the deadly live-action cybergame, ostensibly to save humankind. Miki’s boyfriend, Jackson, also a pawn of the Committee, is always reverently at her side but can do little to alleviate her guilt and terror. Her entire perspective changes in a one-on-one death match that ends with a Drau begging her for mercy. As the Committee, bored and bloodthirsty, looks on like Romans in an arena, she begins to comprehend the true villains. Silver’s message becomes clear as Miki and Jackson come to understand that unity brings power and emotion can trump intellect. Although the battle scenes feel like reruns at this point, Miki’s chaste and deep love for Jackson gives continuity to the story as it reaches its satisfying conclusion.

Leveled up and out, this is a terrific, multifaceted finish to a sci-fi trilogy tailor-made for gamers. (Dystopian romance. 13-18)

Pub Date: June 1, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-06-219219-6

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: March 16, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2015

Awards & Accolades

Likes

  • Readers Vote
  • 21


Our Verdict

  • Our Verdict
  • GET IT


  • New York Times Bestseller

Next book

CARAVAL

From the Caraval series , Vol. 1

Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations.

Awards & Accolades

Likes

  • Readers Vote
  • 21


Our Verdict

  • Our Verdict
  • GET IT


  • New York Times Bestseller

Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the “enchanted circus” trope.

Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome “golden-brown” sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarlett’s arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets.

Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)

Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-250-09525-1

Page Count: 416

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016

Next book

SOME MISTAKES WERE MADE

A powerful tale of found family and first love.

After a year away, Ellis returns home to confront her past.

Graduating from high school far from everything familiar was not part of Ellis Truman’s original plans, but she nevertheless ended up spending her senior year with her aunt in California. In Indiana, Ellis practically grew up with the Albrey family and their three tightknit sons, Dixon, Tucker, and Easton. Now, Tucker wants her to return home for matriarch Sandry Albrey’s 50th birthday celebration on the Fourth of July—but Ellis is dreading seeing Easton, as they haven’t talked since she left. Chapters alternate between past and present, and much of the story unravels slowly: How did she come to live with the Albreys? What caused Ellis to then end up in San Diego? What happened in her relationship with Easton? Patient readers will find the heartfelt tension pays off. With her father in and out of jail and an absent mother, socio-economic differences separating Ellis from the middle-class Albreys don’t go unnoticed, and Ellis’ down-to-earth journey shows how she unpacks her feelings about her relationship with her parents. The slow-build romance is swoonworthy, and young adult fans of Colleen Hoover seeking emotional devastation and unforgettable characters will find much to enjoy here. Characters read as White.

A powerful tale of found family and first love. (Fiction. 14-18)

Pub Date: May 10, 2022

ISBN: 978-0-06-308853-5

Page Count: 384

Publisher: HarperTeen

Review Posted Online: Jan. 10, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2022

Close Quickview