Smart and sweet, comforting and moving.
When high school football hero Ryan Stiles is found dead at the bottom of a ravine, the only person not consumed by grief is his younger brother.
Jonathan has reason to believe his brother’s death was no accident. While everyone around him goes through the many stages of grief, Jonathan can only investigate. The book works as parallel mysteries: On one track are the shady details of Ryan’s death, and on the other are the religious and spiritual questions brought up by his demise. Jonathan’s friend Henry and Ryan’s girlfriend, Tristan, help him solve the murder, while the mysterious “Jesus Jackson” helps Jonathan with his theological needs. Daley’s use of Jesus as a sounding board for Jonathan’s crisis of faith makes for the book’s most surreal and intimate moments. The author argues the necessity of faith regardless of where it is placed, a simple concept that is refreshed when delivered in such an unusual fashion. The book excels, sidestepping holier-than-thou rhetoric and addressing the pain of loss head-on as well as painting a wonderful depiction of a young man coming to terms with how he was raised and how he wants to lead his own life. The mystery element and minor romance are icing on the cake: well-executed and finely tuned, complementing the book’s major themes in all the right ways.
Smart and sweet, comforting and moving. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-9293-4506-9
Page Count: 278
Publisher: Poisoned Pen
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
Reserve this for dedicated fans of the first book
Wicket Tate returns, her happily-ever-after ending from Find Me (2013) disintegrating into troubles with police detective Carson, boyfriend Griff, and new pal and fellow hacker Milo.
She’s got family troubles too: Her foster mother is sticking with her even though she exposed her foster father as a rapist and thug, but it’s taking a toll. A little bit of private skullduggery at a political event turns complicated when the gruesomely murdered body of a girl is found, and Wick becomes involved. The layering of motivations and actions should provide intrigue and suspense, but it often ends up being confusing. With so many red-herring trails to follow, it’s impossible to determine whether the many people attempting to control and direct Wick’s actions are benevolent or just using her. This seems to be a middle muddle of a trilogy entry, as a third title is clearly indicated at the end. Wick is represented as an expert hacker, but most of her attempts to get information involve impersonation, theft, and breaking and entering rather than computer know-how. Despite the introduction of a second possible beau, even the romance turns tepid, though the body count continues to climb.
Reserve this for dedicated fans of the first book . (Suspense. 12-16)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-06-222906-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: June 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014
This thoughtful, considered action-adventure will have readers pondering even after they’ve closed the book
Picking up where Blackout (2013) left off, Wells continues to look at the impact of terrorism and the morality of war.
The United States is under attack, with Russia landing troops in the Pacific Northwest and saboteurs striking without warning. Aubrey and Jack have been recruited into the military, and after just a few weeks of basic training, they are forced into the field on their first mission. With Aubrey’s ability to become invisible and Jack’s to read minds, they hope they can find the secret weapon deployed against them: an electromagnetic-pulse device that knocks out all electrical functions with no warning, wreaking havoc. Little do they know the secret weapon is just like them—a pair of teens infected with an enhancement virus as youngsters. Zasha and Fyodor have trained their whole lives for this, and Zasha in particular isn’t about to let anything—or anyone—get in their way. Amid the action, Wells raises deep questions. As Aubrey struggles to understand why killing enemy soldiers isn’t murder, Jack and their platoon mates (other “lambdas” like themselves) struggle to understand why the burden of warfare is being thrust on their young shoulders. Jack and Aubrey wrestle with these issues and more as the story races to a satisfying conclusion.
This thoughtful, considered action-adventure will have readers pondering even after they’ve closed the book . (Science fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-06-227502-8
Page Count: 384
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
