A disappointing sequel that fails to capture the cohesiveness of the first book.
A science-infused political sci-fi thriller.
The irrepressible Jimi continues to throw caution to the wind to help her chimera (humans who have enhanced their DNA with animal genes) friends in their fight for equality. A few months after the conclusion of Spliced (2017), Jimi finally reunites with love interest Rex, but when their friend Doctor Guzman is wrongfully arrested for a chimera’s death, the 17-year-old and her friends seek to clear his name and uncover the secrets behind the facility that last treated the deceased chimera. The heroine continues to rescue her modified friends with her ingenuity and bravery, which begins to grate due to predictability and reliance on tired tropes. All roads lead to tech billionaire Howard Wells, but he barely makes an appearance even though his reach is omnipresent. The romance fails to come to life and often falls in dated gender territory. Awkward dialogue and belabored exposition mar the otherwise effective exploration of relevant and timely issues, such as personhood, genetic experimentation, slave labor, and more. The long-lasting impact of prejudice and the evils that are perpetrated in its name are poignantly woven in with some success, but uneven pacing and characterization detract, and the worldbuilding falters to the point of distraction. A big reveal in the last chapter hints at more to come, but fans might not return for future entries.
A disappointing sequel that fails to capture the cohesiveness of the first book. (Science fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4090-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
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
Truly fantastic.
This dark fantasy duology opener has a magic school, a death, and five students who find themselves stranded in the wilderness.
Ren Monroe is a promising student wizard at Balmerick, a private school in the city of Kathor. Along with her best friend, Timmons, Ren is one of the few welfare students attending on a scholarship, and despite being one of the most accomplished people at the school, finding a placement in one of the top houses is proving difficult and is a hurdle in the way of the secret mission Ren has set out to accomplish. When a portal spell goes awry and Ren, Timmons, and four other students from different walks of life are thrown together into the Dires, an uncharted land where the last dragons lived, one of them ends up dead and the rest need to learn to work together to make their way back home before they succumb to the harsh environment or the terrifying revenant following them. This may well be the chance Ren was looking for to prove her worth. Placing elements of a locked-room mystery and an original magic system within the familiar trappings of a school for magic, this is a no-holds-barred tale of revenge, atonement, and the pursuit of justice set in a world diverse in skin color and social classes. Ren is a protagonist for the ages: equal parts smart, calculating, and ruthless, forming a lethal package as an avenging angel.
Truly fantastic. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: March 28, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-66591-868-8
Page Count: 368
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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