A suspenseful, engaging coming-of-age tale.
A teenage Serbian girl goes on a dangerous—and illuminating—adventure after her parents disappear from their home in this YA novel.
As the story opens, 16-year-old Sanda listens once again to her parents arguing in their native language. She feels unloved, particularly by her mother, and has only one real friend, Lauren, in her London high school. Then her big crush, Joe Mullins, asks her out, much to her surprise. Not long afterward, a menacing Serbian man visits Sanda’s parents, and it seems as if their immigration status may be in jeopardy. Later, Sanda gets upset when she observes Joe chatting with more popular girls, but she’s soon reassured that he’s serious about their forthcoming date. When she returns home, however, she discovers her parents and most of the family’s possessions gone. She does find some old photos, though, including one of her father as part of a militaristic group and one of herself as a baby. Strangely, both are inscribed with other people’s names. After Joe calls her on her cellphone, Serbian thugs arrive and try to drug her; she later wakes up unharmed in a van outside her home, and, amazingly, Joe is there with her. The pair embarks on an amazing journey, which includes travel to Serbia and encounters at a horrendous children’s prison camp. By narrative’s end, Sanda connects with new friends and relatives and embraces her transformed life—including a budding romance in France. Debut novelist Brittan has written a gripping YA novel set against the backdrop of the horrors and fallout of the 1990s Bosnian war. Sanda is a particularly appealing heroine, as she’s forced to rise above her paralyzing insecurities and take decisive actions—whether it’s planning a prison escape or admitting her feelings to Joe. Although the Bosnian back story is sometimes confusing and some of the characters fall a bit into caricature, this novel is generally believable and compelling. Best of all, there’s an enjoyable fairy-tale–like finish to Sanda’s story.
A suspenseful, engaging coming-of-age tale.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-0993233401
Page Count: 162
Publisher: Blowfish Books Ltd
Review Posted Online: April 9, 2015
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Readers will be captivated by this twisty thriller and its uncompromising protagonist.
The mother Annabel Price thought was dead returns with a story about where she’s been—but 18-year-old Bel knows she’s lying.
Ever since Rachel Price’s unexplained disappearance 16 years ago, true-crime fans have come up with plentiful theories about what happened. Bel and her family members, who are white, cobbled together lives for themselves after a jury found Bel’s father, Charlie, not guilty of murdering his wife. Beset with medical bills for his elderly father, Charlie recently agreed to participate in a documentary about the unsolved mystery. Black British filmmaker Ramsey Lee is well into the process of interviewing the Prices when his project gets an unanticipated boost after an exhausted, disheveled Rachel staggers back into town. Rachel is eager to resume her role in the family, but the inconsistencies in her accounts raise alarms for Bel. With the help of the youngest member of the filmmaking team, Bel sets out to learn what really happened. Along the way, someone else disappears, and Bel uncovers a tangle of lies that make it impossible for her to trust people she thought she knew. When things come to a head the night of her grandfather’s 85th birthday party, Bel ends up in a race for her life. The last quarter of the novel tears along at a breakneck pace before arriving at a satisfying and unexpected conclusion.
Readers will be captivated by this twisty thriller and its uncompromising protagonist. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: April 2, 2024
ISBN: 9780593374207
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
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