A cerebral and engrossing work of speculative fiction.
In Ho’s debut YA SF novel, a teenager struggles with mental illness while performing at the highest level of a popular gaming competition.
In the near future, esports have become a major pastime, with specially designed, community-based fantasy characters called Combatants participating in fighting competitions. The biggest competition of them all is called the Fraye—a national tournament with players from all 50 states—and Daylark is the group, called a Guilde, tasked with creating Hawaii’s Combatant. Luka Lan is a recent high school graduate and merely a fan of esports when he learns that he’s won a place as the fifth member of Daylark. He becomes a local celebrity almost overnight. The creators in the most prestigious Guildes receive “scholarships to universities and job opportunities with companies like Disney and Nintendo.” But being a member of Daylark isn’t a walk in the park, especially for someone like Luka, who suffers from symptoms of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Almost immediately after he joins the Guilde, he begins suffering from delusions, which make it difficult for him to know what’s real and what isn’t. Luka struggles to keep his condition from affecting the Guilde’s work—but then he learns that his condition might be the reason he was chosen in the first place. Ho’s prose is tense and often dreamy, painting surreal images from both the gaming world and from Luka’s own psyche: “The games surrounding me are no longer comforting. They turn into pictures that speak of violence and blood, changing the comforts of my childhood into strange images drawn by a demon.” There’s a sword-and-sorcery element to the gaming, but the book explores issues of content creation and workplace dynamics in a way that one might not expect from the story’s outset. It’s an intense psychological thriller that also presents a sympathetic treatment of mental illness. In addition, it’s an inspired choice to set the story in a world where so much is imagined or generated, which feels, in some ways, like a reflection of our increasingly digital world.
A cerebral and engrossing work of speculative fiction.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 312
Publisher: Manuscript
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
A suspenseful story that starts off with great promise but fails to deliver.
A teenage girl struggles with the question of whom to trust in the age of social media exposure.
Thanks to Connie’s mom’s family vlog, her life is anything but private. She enjoyed it at first, but now, between the mean comments online and the cruel mockery from peers in real life, Connie feels like she’s in a prison. Her sister, Isla, says it’s worth it for the money, but Connie isn’t sure if that’s really true. Connie’s anger over Mom’s refusal to heed warnings that revealing so much puts them in danger continues to build. When she’s left alone for two weeks while Mom and Isla go on a college road trip, local girls start dying, and a fan reaches out on social media in an unsettling way, leaving Connie worried about her safety. White-presenting Connie’s sense of humor is charming, and her insights will earn readers’ sympathy as the tension builds. As emotions rise, Preston’s poetic language beautifully captures Connie’s feelings about her mom’s obsession with social media and her confusion about who is worthy of her trust. The topics of safety and the uncharted waters of social media are skillfully woven into the plot. However, some inconsistencies weaken the overall story: Apart from Connie, the characters are too lightly developed, and some plot points don’t align with earlier events and motivations, making the ultimate revelation a disappointment.
A suspenseful story that starts off with great promise but fails to deliver. (Thriller. 12-18)Pub Date: Dec. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9798217028009
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
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