Lowering the stakes and piling on the violence makes for a disappointing sequel
Anna and the boys are still on the run from the Branch, the mysterious organization that shaped them into human weapons of mass destruction (Altered, 2013).
Grocery shopping and training for combat, they hide out in a cozy cabin like a heavily armed Snow White and three dwarves, their uneasy domesticity troubled by flashbacks of pre-Branch life. Anna’s primary concern is with the family she’d forgotten: her sister, Dani, and their parents. Learning that Dani is alive and held by the Branch, Anna seeks help from Trev, the fourth boy, admitted Branch agent and questionable ally, to free her. As flashbacks proliferate, the dizzying plot twists and turns (or, like Anna and Nick’s intense relationship, is left dangling). Key developments pivot on characters readers haven’t met or are delivered in lumps of “while you were sleeping” exposition. Combat aside, Anna’s fairly passive: experiencing flashbacks, reading files, listening to witnesses describe events that occurred long before the story’s present timeline. The frantic pacing and underdeveloped characters are dizzying, distancing, occasionally boring—like hearing a detailed account of someone’s dreams—so dramatic events (and an accumulating body count) that should move readers have little emotional resonance. Building suspense is Rush’s strong suit, but, less earth-shattering than foreshadowed, the tidy resolution feels like false advertising.
Lowering the stakes and piling on the violence makes for a disappointing sequel . (Science fiction. 12 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-316-19715-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 19, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
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
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