Fans of the first book may overlook the uneven pacing, especially if they are engaged by Hope and Bran’s romantic tension...
Two modern time-traveling groups vie for control of their shared time machine.
Into the Dim (2016) introduced white, 16-year-old Hope to the Viators, her family’s time-traveling group. While they attempt to minimize the influence of their travels on current events, a splinter group, the Timeslippers, more recklessly pursues its quest for power. The Timeslippers’ newest plan involves gaining control of the time machine through a meeting with Nikolas Tesla in 1895. When the Timeslippers’ leader’s son, Bran (who acts as a spy for the Viators thanks to his crush on Hope) alerts the rival group, they also travel to 1895 for a countermission. The New York City settings vividly expose America’s long history of socio-economic class divides, contrasting the luxury of the Waldorf Hotel against the horrific conditions of a mental hospital. But considering that the mission must be completed in 72 hours (or all travelers risk being trapped in 1895), an inordinate amount of time is spent on such frivolous activities as having fancy dresses made. These interludes derail the frantic pace readers expect from a time-sensitive adventure story. And though the Tesla storyline concludes, the Viators-Timeslippers conflict remains unresolved, leaving room for another installment. Most characters read as white, though one minor character is mixed-race (black/white).
Fans of the first book may overlook the uneven pacing, especially if they are engaged by Hope and Bran’s romantic tension and surprising back story. (Science fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-544-60957-0
Page Count: 448
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2017
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations.
Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the “enchanted circus” trope.
Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome “golden-brown” sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarlett’s arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets.
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-09525-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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