Inventive and unexpected.
A scrappy survivor learns dangerous secrets in an artificial intelligence–heavy "post-apocalyptic hellscape."
In a devastated post–nuclear war North America where corporations reign supreme, radiation occasionally causes mutations, but the main impact is rampant cancer. What’s left of Kalifornya is an island called Dregs, where white teen Eve pilots a machina in the WarDome arena against bots that have malfunctioned and broken the First Law of Robotics (harming a human) in order to earn enough to cover her grandfather’s medication. When a match goes wrong and Eve is about to be killed, she lifts her hand and screams, causing the rogue robot to destruct—to her shock and everyone else’s. Unfortunately for Eve, Brotherhood fanatics exterminate “abnorms” and “deviates,” so she has to go on the run. She and her redheaded best friend, Lemon (a tiny girl with a big personality), find Ezekiel, an olive-skinned, blue-eyed “lifelike” (the most advanced androids ever made, but ones that broke free of robotic laws and slaughtered their creators). Hunted by multiple parties after the WarDome incident, Eve uncovers revelations about herself, thanks to Ezekiel, while also struggling to keep her loved ones alive. Between the worldbuilding, nonstop action, endless twists, and futuristic jargon, characters sometimes get lost in the shuffle. Refreshingly, romance and female friendship are given equal weight.
Inventive and unexpected. (Science fiction. 12-adult)Pub Date: May 29, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5247-1392-8
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: March 4, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
In addition to the supernatural elements, Brosgol interweaves some savvy insights about the illusion of perfection and...
A deliciously creepy page-turning gem from first-time writer and illustrator Brosgol finds brooding teenager Anya trying to escape the past—both her own and the ghost haunting her.
Anya feels out of place at her preppy private school; embarrassed by her Russian heritage, she has worked hard to lose her accent and to look more like everyone else. After a particularly frustrating morning at the bus stop, Anya storms off, only to accidentally fall down a well. Down in the dark hole, she meets Emily, a ghost who claims to be a murder victim trapped down in the dank abyss for 90 years. With Emily’s help, Anya manages to escape, though once free, she learns that Emily has traveled out with her. At first, Emily seems like the perfect friend; however, once her motives become clear, Anya learns that “perfect” may only be an illusion. A moodily atmospheric spectrum of grays washes over the clean, tidy panels, setting a distinct stage before the first words appear. Brosgol’s tight storytelling invokes the chilling feeling of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline (2002), though for a decidedly older set.
In addition to the supernatural elements, Brosgol interweaves some savvy insights about the illusion of perfection and outward appearance. (Graphic supernatural fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: June 7, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-59643-552-0
Page Count: 224
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2011
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.
After surviving a suicide attempt, a fragile teen isn't sure she can endure without cutting herself.
Seventeen-year-old Charlie Davis, a white girl living on the margins, thinks she has little reason to live: her father drowned himself; her bereft and abusive mother kicked her out; her best friend, Ellis, is nearly brain dead after cutting too deeply; and she's gone through unspeakable experiences living on the street. After spending time in treatment with other young women like her—who cut, burn, poke, and otherwise hurt themselves—Charlie is released and takes a bus from the Twin Cities to Tucson to be closer to Mikey, a boy she "like-likes" but who had pined for Ellis instead. But things don't go as planned in the Arizona desert, because sweet Mikey just wants to be friends. Feeling rejected, Charlie, an artist, is drawn into a destructive new relationship with her sexy older co-worker, a "semifamous" local musician who's obviously a junkie alcoholic. Through intense, diarylike chapters chronicling Charlie's journey, the author captures the brutal and heartbreaking way "girls who write their pain on their bodies" scar and mar themselves, either succumbing or surviving. Like most issue books, this is not an easy read, but it's poignant and transcendent as Charlie breaks more and more before piecing herself back together.
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression. (author’s note) (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-101-93471-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2016
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