An imperfect protagonist—and novel—with a lot of charm.
Self-involved, self-destructive Loli seeks thrills and chaos, but one mystery adventure carries her kicking and screaming to the point of self-reflection.
High schooler Naloli Tamryn Crawford is bored with life in Woolridge Grove, where there are few other Black girls. Doting best friends Ryan Pope, who reads White, and Cairo Dahmani, who is Moroccan, enable her shenanigans. When Loli decides to throw an impromptu rager at an ex-boyfriend’s house, few questions are asked before they’re onboard with what becomes a historical event. So Loli never has to reveal that the party is actually a ruse to right a wrong before it’s revealed and can break Ryan’s heart. Still, the party changes everything as, among other rumored happenings, Cairo is tapped to become a supermodel, Ryan experiences a moment that puts his sexuality in question, and Loli becomes entangled in a risky competition with an appealing but anonymous individual. Like the accompanying playlist that punctuates the story’s beats with song titles naming chapters, the novel uses tropes compellingly. Loli hates cliché, but even she would have to accept that her budding romance with the Mysterious Voice from the party proves to be as predictable as it is dangerous. And ultimately that’s the rub: Loli pursues being interesting in ways that often make her anything but and selfishly puts her relationships in jeopardy, but the novel doesn’t offer much depth as to why, which may frustrate readers.
An imperfect protagonist—and novel—with a lot of charm. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: June 6, 2023
ISBN: 9781641294201
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Soho Teen
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A uniquely arranged bouquet of terrors, as disturbing as it is beautiful.
A family’s secrets rise to the surface as a young man investigates a suspected murder.
Evander, who’s 17 and lonely, never leaves his room in the manor on Hazelthorn Estate. He’s told he’s too fragile and is locked away “for his safety” while an elderly butler feeds him brain-addling “medicine.” But one night changes Evander’s life—and the manor’s future—forever. Byron Lennox-Hall, Evander’s billionaire guardian and the family’s patriarch, dies unexpectedly. Relatives descend upon Hazelthorn like vultures as a shocking twist reveals that Byron left everything to Evander alone. Without Byron around to keep his only grandchild and presumed heir, Laurence “Laurie” Lennox-Hall, away from his ward, Laurie and Evander become the unlikeliest of allies. When they were boys, Laurie attempted to kill Evander—but, maddeningly, Evander can’t stop thinking about him. He also suspects that someone murdered Byron. Drews’ latest starts off as a straightforward whodunit and turns into something that’s far more sinister—and delicious. From descriptions of moth-eaten decay to vivid floral imagery, Drews luxuriates in atmospheric prose. Their literary green thumb nurtures intertwining themes of monstrosity and abuse alongside yearning, first love, queerness, and mystery. The slow-burn romance at the root of this blend of gothic and body horror is as tender as it is unforgettable. Evander is cued as autistic, and main characters present white.
A uniquely arranged bouquet of terrors, as disturbing as it is beautiful. (author’s note) (Horror. 13-18)Pub Date: Oct. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9781250376299
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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