A decent kickoff to a post-apocalyptic series.
Survivors of a calamitous event carry on.
It’s been some time since a deadly virus wiped out most of the world’s population. White teen Sawyer somehow survived, and he’s been on his own foraging for food and doing his best to stay alive, but there isn’t much purpose for him beyond that. Olive-skinned teen Sara survives with her father, Jacob, holed up in a location that is quickly running out of food. Circumstances push Sawyer and Sara out of their territories and on the road south, and eventually the two teens bump into one another and form a connection. More survivors emerge, and as a small community starts to take shape in a deserted Spanish Mission, relationships are tested and familial bonds are strained. The bloody and violent novel will certainly scratch an itch for readers who adore The Walking Dead and other post-apocalyptic fare, but the author doesn’t add anything new to this well-worn genre. The dialogue leaves much to be desired: Characters exposit and openly declare intent with little flourish or subtlety. The book’s strength is its tactical vision of a lawless disaster zone. Survivalists will find much to engage with here, and fans of political give-and-take will get something to chew on as well. A sequel is alluded to in the novel’s final moments, but the book contains a solid stand-alone story.
A decent kickoff to a post-apocalyptic series. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-948671-05-7
Page Count: 300
Publisher: Month9Books
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy.
A war between gods plays havoc with mortals and their everyday lives.
In a time of typewriters and steam engines, Iris Winnow awaits word from her older brother, who has enlisted on the side of Enva the Skyward goddess. Alcohol abuse led to her mother’s losing her job, and Iris has dropped out of school and found work utilizing her writing skills at the Oath Gazette. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Her rival for the job is handsome and wealthy Roman Kitt, whose prose entrances her so much she avoids reading his articles. At home, she writes cathartic letters to her brother, never posting them but instead placing them in her wardrobe, where they vanish overnight. One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on. This is more of a wartime tale of broken families, inspired youths, and higher powers using people as pawns. It flirts with clichéd tropes but also takes some startling turns. Main characters are assumed White; same-sex marriages and gender equality at the warfront appear to be the norm in this world.
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-85743-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
The well-paced romantic tension is a highlight of this enjoyable duology closer.
Even a war driven by gods can’t sever communication between journalist lovers Iris and Roman in this steampunk-adjacent romantic adventure.
A prologue sets the scene: Dacre, a god strummed to sleep by magic in Divine Rivals (2023), will not slumber forever. His willingness to wage war to acquire more powerful magic leads him to lay waste to entire towns, and Inkridden Tribune journalist Iris Winnow and war correspondent Roman Kitt can no longer be assured the other is safe—or even still alive. In Iris’ world of cigarette smoke, copper pipes, and driving goggles, colleagues affectionately call each other by their last names, watch each other’s backs, and face danger on the front lines. Though Underling Correspondent Roman is traveling with Dacre’s army, he questions why he was healed of his grievous wounds, while at the same time, he gradually recovers memories of Iris and recalls that she was special to him. Their magically connected typewriters allow for the rediscovery of their love and for communicating potentially deadly information about the invasion of Hawk Shire. The story primarily unfolds from Iris’ and Roman’s viewpoints, and while the prose occasionally uses well-worn phrases, Anglophiles will particularly enjoy the worldbuilding, and returning readers will welcome appearances from Capt. Keegan Torres; her wife, Marisol; and Dacre’s archnemesis—and wife—the goddess Enva. Main characters present white.
The well-paced romantic tension is a highlight of this enjoyable duology closer. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250857453
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
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