Disappointingly uneven.
A teen finds herself in moral and legal turmoil.
Eighteen-year-old Finley Dunn became fast friends with Mya Green, River Madden, and Eli Kalluk in preschool. Four years ago, following a shootout that left Finley’s and River’s fathers dead, Finley and her mom fled Anchorage for Los Angeles. But Finley’s grandmother has died and bequeathed Finley her house, so she’s back in Alaska. Her return fuels Mya’s fears that her presence could shake loose a secret that would make their friendships implode. The secrets multiply when Mya throws a drug-fueled party at a house her real estate agent mom is showing. Finley injures Jason Walker, a homeless man sheltering there, who then disappears. Finley’s wracked with guilt, especially because she and her mom experienced homelessness in L.A. To keep them all out of trouble, Mya must conceal the crime—and keep Finley from confessing. As the search for Jason intensifies, Finley’s increasingly conflicted first-person narration explores such issues as justice, peer pressure, and housing insecurity (which is portrayed with great nuance). In third-person chapters, Mya scrabbles to keep her secrets under wraps. Flashbacks to four years prior build to shocking revelations. Unfortunately, despite a suspenseful premise, the expository narration and underdeveloped characters dampen the story’s emotional impact. Mya’s cold affect feels particularly two-dimensional despite the author’s attempts to show her family’s struggles and dysfunction, and readers may find Finley’s susceptibility to Mya’s influence frustrating. Most characters read white, and Eli’s surname cues him as Indigenous.
Disappointingly uneven. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9780593900611
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2025
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
© Copyright 2025 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.
