Creatures, comedy, and coming out: check.
Assisting an intermediary between the worlds of myths and humans is easier than asking the football hero to homecoming.
High school senior Bridger Whitt is determined to escape humdrum Midden, Michigan, so he can finally be himself (read: determine his hetero-, homo-, or bisexuality far from familiar faces). When he is accepted by a Florida college, he realizes the only way he and his single mom can afford it is to fatten his coffers via part-time employment. Answering a very peculiar ad, he’s hired to assist the terminally tackily attired Pavel Chudinov, who is charged with ensuring humans don’t mix with cryptids. And the sudden abnormal influx of creatures in Midden (troll, unicorn, mermaids, etc.) has them burning the mythic candle at both ends. As if dodging toxic troll spit while maintaining his GPA wasn’t challenge enough, Bridger must also contend with his burgeoning feelings for dreamy Puerto Rican neighbor Leo, who just might also be into him. Bridger, gal pal Astrid, and Pavel are white. The strength of the content, pace, and character cast outweigh intermittent and repetitive pronouncement of clichés or reminders of a character’s weirdness. Bridger’s inner turmoil over his sexuality is delivered as confusion not self-deprecation, and on the periphery, he gradually realizes that he’s making a bigger deal out of it than any of his contemporaries.
Creatures, comedy, and coming out: check. (Fantasy. 13-17)Pub Date: Sept. 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-945053-24-5
Page Count: 298
Publisher: Duet
Review Posted Online: Aug. 6, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2017
An enjoyable, if predictable, romantic holiday story.
Is an exuberant extended family the cure for a breakup? Sophie is about to find out.
When Sophie unexpectedly breaks up with her boyfriend, she isn’t thrilled about spending the holidays at her grandparents’ house instead of with him. And when her grandmother forms a plan to distract Sophie from her broken heart—10 blind dates, each set up by different family members—she’s even less thrilled. Everyone gets involved with the matchmaking, even forming a betting pool on the success of each date. But will Sophie really find someone to fill the space left by her ex? Will her ex get wind of Sophie’s dating spree via social media and want them to get back together? Is that what she even wants anymore? This is a fun story of finding love, getting to know yourself, and getting to know your family. The pace is quick and light, though the characters are fairly shallow and occasionally feel interchangeable, especially with so many names involved. A Christmas tale, the plot is a fast-paced series of dinners, parties, and games, relayed in both narrative form and via texts, though the humor occasionally feels stiff and overwrought. The ending is satisfying, though largely unsurprising. Most characters default to white as members of Sophie’s Italian American extended family, although one of her cousins has a Filipina mother. One uncle is gay.
An enjoyable, if predictable, romantic holiday story. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-368-02749-6
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
Full of drama, emotional turmoil, and high stakes.
What happens to the world after the dust from a revolution has settled?
Friends Annie and Lee were children from very different circles when Atreus killed Lee’s father, dragonlord Leon Stormscourge, ending the uprising on the bloodiest day in Callipolis’ history. For too long the dragonriders held all the power while their people starved and lived in fear. Nine years later, a new generation of dragonriders is emerging, children selected and trained on merit, not bloodlines. Their dragons are finally mature enough for them to compete for Firstrider, a position of power that can give Lee back a small part of what his family lost. However, not only is Lee competing against Annie, but rumors are circulating that some of the royal family have survived and have dragons of their own. Everyone will have to make a choice: Restore the old regime, support the First Protector and the new caste system he created, or look for a new way, no matter what the cost. From the beginning, this book pulls readers in with political intrigue and action. What keeps them invested, however, are the complex relationships between many cast members. Choices are complex, and the consequences for all could be deadly. The world is well fleshed out and believable. Annie and Lee are light skinned; secondary characters are diverse, and race is a nonissue in this world.
Full of drama, emotional turmoil, and high stakes. (author’s note) (Fantasy.14-17)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-51821-1
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
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