Deep in lore but hollow in heart.
Lira and Reyker face endless hardships as they search for a way to take down the Dragon.
After the fall of Stony Harbor, Lira mourns the supposed death of Reyker and rejects her new powers from the blood of the Fallen Ones. All she knows is that she wants to kill Draki, the half-god known as the Dragon who’s bent on conquering all. Now Veronis, the god who saved her from drowning, demands she free him, showing her visions of villages burning and her loved ones dying if she refuses. This propels Lira on a quest to find the serpent-goddess Ildja, Draki’s mother, deep in the Dragon’s kingdom. The sooner she frees Veronis, the sooner she can focus on the Dragon. Meanwhile, Reyker toils under Draki, having made a bargain that he’ll be his Sword if he’ll release captives after each raid. He’s also certain Lira is dead. The two unknowingly orbit one another as the Dragon and the Fallen Gods skillfully manipulate them. If they can reunite and work together, maybe they can figure out the Dragon’s weakness. Fueled by frustrating missed connections and a seemingly undefeatable antagonist, Lira’s and Reyker’s stories drag. Training and battle scenes trump character development, making the dramatic turns fall flat. The next installment hints at more of the same.
Deep in lore but hollow in heart. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-982556-28-0
Page Count: 300
Publisher: Blackstone
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world.
On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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