Not a highflyer but fans will flock to it regardless.
The follow-up to the debut duology that began with The Storm Crow (2019).
The titular magical crows, large enough to ride, were once the cornerstone of Rhodaire’s power until they were all killed in the violent attack that launched the war and nearly destroyed Princess Thia. But now Thia has successfully hatched one of the few remaining crow eggs, fled evil queen Razel’s grip, and fought free of her own depression, leaving behind Razel’s son Prince Ericen, the enemy and fiance Thia can’t forget. Uneven pacing with a glacial opening eventually giving way to a rushed climax and some striking tonal shifts (especially scenes with the smirking, bantering Ericen) detract from notable original details, particularly the way mental health is deeply interwoven in the characters of Thia and her crow, Res. Thia must constantly grapple with the cost of violence, trying to choose mercy but finding it backfires on her, which conveniently propels significant plot movement. Overreliance on trite similes and centrally cast side characters, like the vaguely Asian Auma, who dispenses sage advice over steaming tea, are somewhat balanced by the generally diverse world, with named characters of varied skin tones and sexual orientations and gender identities (Thia is brown-skinned and straight).
Not a highflyer but fans will flock to it regardless. (map, guide to characters/setting) (Fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: July 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4926-7296-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: April 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2020
Too slow to ramp up: Only committed series fans may stick with this one.
Readers return to the supernatural town of Hemlock Falls for more mysteries and monsters.
Winnie Wednesday’s story resumes soon after the events of The Luminaries (2022). Now a local celebrity, Winnie has the social approval she’s lacked for so long, but it doesn’t bring her any closer to solving new questions and mysteries. She’s still the only one who knows about the Whisperer, while everyone else is after a werewolf, but she can at least talk to her friend Mario about tracking the elusive nightmare. Winnie’s grief over a death in the prior novel leads to some creatively morbid turns of phrase, while Jay continues to drink and vape through his anguish. Clues and memories from Winnie’s missing father give her more leads to chase. Her renewed social and school lives are heavily dominated by her simmering relationship with Jay and his blindingly gorgeous abs. The familiar rising mist takes its time to appear, but once it does, dangerous magic and monsters are back in the mix. Watching Winnie doubt her status as a Luminary and repeatedly refer to her life as a “clusterfuck” could make readers impatient to see her kick some butt already. Winnie and Jay are cued white.
Too slow to ramp up: Only committed series fans may stick with this one. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781250194145
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Tor Teen
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Strikes a delicate, and ultimately optimistic, balance between action, suspense, and philosophy.
Teenage contestants. Unfamiliar wilderness. A reality show pushing the boundaries of viewership. What could go wrong?
Cut Off is a new survival show with a revolutionary three-dimensional component. Contestants, injected with virtual reality ions that transmit their biological data to viewers’ devices, are trailed 24/7 by drone cameras as they attempt to outlast one another to claim a $10 million prize. Trip Johnson—a clinically anxious gay boy—is a contestant as well as the millionaire inventor of the show’s 3-D immersive tech. Other contestants include defensive, jaded California girl Cam Jaimes; solitary, outdoorsy orphan River Adan; and practical, mysterious Liza Rojas. After the competition is wiped out, these four survivors team up when they discover that their emergency GPS trackers don’t work and they are isolated from the showrunners. As they navigate a remote British Columbia island, hoping to rejoin civilization, they begin to suspect the wilderness has a mind of its own…and that it’s manifesting their worst nightmares, from spiders to earthquakes to abandonment. The stakes rise ever higher as Cam and River’s mutual attraction heats up while Trip considers the broader implications of his 3-D streaming app. The narrative begins a day after the first earthquake and is told from several contestants’ third-person perspectives, interspersed with interview transcripts and official documents. Whiteness is situated as the default for most characters; Liza is cued as Latinx.
Strikes a delicate, and ultimately optimistic, balance between action, suspense, and philosophy. (Thriller. 12-18)Pub Date: Aug. 11, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-358-00645-9
Page Count: 384
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2020
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