Fifteen original stories featuring young werewolves—present, past, and future. Most of these shape-changers share a sort of tragic nobility, whether they wear their curse proudly (in Esther M. Friesner's "A Winter's Night," a Gypsy defies his Nazi pursuers) or in shame (young Adek despairingly joins the 13th-century Childrens' Crusade in Susan Schwartz's "Wolf's Flock"). Some run into the traditional persecution, but several meet acceptance, and even friendship: lycanthropism is portrayed as an affliction like alcoholism or Hansen's disease: more feared than dangerous. Readers looking for gore and grue are likely to be disappointed, but the great terror of the Change is repeatedly and effectively conveyed; one stoW (Anne E. Crompton's "Met by Moonlight") is definitely grotesque. The mood does lighten occasionally: in Elizabeth Scarborough's "Wolf from the Door," a college student named "Ms. Garou" demonstrates unusual qualifications for wildlife study, and the rock drummer in Sherwood Smith's "Monster Mash" has a real problem when a Battle of the Bands is scheduled for Hallowe'en. A strong, well-chosen collection.
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1988
ISBN: 0060267984
Page Count: 271
Publisher: Harper & Row
Review Posted Online: May 12, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1988
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION
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This hefty sequel to Six of Crows (2015) brings high-tension conclusions to the many intertwined intrigues of Ketterdam.
It's time for revenge—has been ever since old-before-his-time crook Kaz and his friends were double-crossed by the merchant princes of Ketterdam, an early-industrial Amsterdam-like fantasy city filled to the brim with crime and corruption. Disabled, infuriated, and perpetually scheming Kaz, the light-skinned teen mastermind, coordinates the efforts to rescue Inej. Though Kaz is loath to admit weakness, Inej is his, for he can't bear any harm come to the knife-wielding, brown-skinned Suli acrobat. Their team is rounded out by Wylan, a light-skinned chemist and musician whose merchant father tried to have him murdered and who can't read due to a print disability; Wylan's brown-skinned biracial boyfriend, Jesper, a flirtatious gambler with ADHD; Nina, the pale brunette Grisha witch and recovering addict from Russia-like Ravka; Matthias, Nina's national enemy and great love, a big, white, blond drüskelle warrior from the cold northern lands; and Kuwei, the rescued Shu boy everyone wants to kidnap. Can these kids rescue everyone who needs rescuing in Ketterdam's vile political swamp? This is dark and violent—one notable scene features a parade of teens armed with revolvers, rifles, pistols, explosives, and flash bombs—but gut-wrenchingly genuine. Astonishingly, Bardugo keeps all these balls in the air over the 500-plus pages of narrative.
How can such a hefty tome be un-put-down-able excitement from beginning to end? (glossary) (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62779-213-4
Page Count: 560
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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