An action-packed tale that answers some long-awaited questions; fans will look forward to the promised sequel.
The origins of Kyoshi, from the beloved television series Avatar: The Last Airbender, have been shrouded in mystery—until now.
Orphaned Kyoshi is treated as an outcast in the small coastal village of Yokoya. To survive she works in the mansion of Avatar Yun as his servant and companion. When she accompanies Yun to a treaty negotiation, violence breaks out, unleashing Kyoshi’s hidden earthbending capabilities and throwing doubt on Yun’s legitimacy. Yun and Kyoshi engage in a ritual to find out who the true Avatar is only to be betrayed by one of his mentors, Jianzhu, forcing Kyoshi to flee. With the help of Rangi, a Firebender warrior and friend, they now must evade Jianzhu and his extensive network. Kyoshi receives tutelage from a group of bandits, the self-proclaimed Flying Opera Company, in hopes of taking revenge on Jianzhu. As with the original, a mix of East Asian cultures provides the template for character profiles and worldbuilding. Yee (The Epic Crush of Genie Lo, 2017) artfully weaves in political entanglements as well as complex cultural identities to fully immerse readers in Kyoshi’s world. The pace strikes a careful balance between page-turning conflicts and revelations of Kyoshi's past. Each page is efficient in its storytelling, furthering the plot without lessening the suspense. Knowledge of the original series is ideal for full enjoyment.
An action-packed tale that answers some long-awaited questions; fans will look forward to the promised sequel. (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: July 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3504-2
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A trilogy opener both rich and strange, if heavy at the front end.
Riggs spins a gothic tale of strangely gifted children and the monsters that pursue them from a set of eerie, old trick photographs.
The brutal murder of his grandfather and a glimpse of a man with a mouth full of tentacles prompts months of nightmares and psychotherapy for 15-year-old Jacob, followed by a visit to a remote Welsh island where, his grandfather had always claimed, there lived children who could fly, lift boulders and display like weird abilities. The stories turn out to be true—but Jacob discovers that he has unwittingly exposed the sheltered “peculiar spirits” (of which he turns out to be one) and their werefalcon protector to a murderous hollowgast and its shape-changing servant wight. The interspersed photographs—gathered at flea markets and from collectors—nearly all seem to have been created in the late 19th or early 20th centuries and generally feature stone-faced figures, mostly children, in inscrutable costumes and situations. They are seen floating in the air, posing with a disreputable-looking Santa, covered in bees, dressed in rags and kneeling on a bomb, among other surreal images. Though Jacob’s overdeveloped back story gives the tale a slow start, the pictures add an eldritch element from the early going, and along with creepy bad guys, the author tucks in suspenseful chases and splashes of gore as he goes. He also whirls a major storm, flying bullets and a time loop into a wild climax that leaves Jacob poised for the sequel.
A trilogy opener both rich and strange, if heavy at the front end. (Horror/fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: June 7, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-59474-476-1
Page Count: 234
Publisher: Quirk Books
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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