Implausible? Maybe, but also smart and infused with enough heart to make suspending disbelief a pleasure.
Two teens navigating recent tragedies feel an instant connection when they meet on their first day of senior year, but the guilt they each carry threatens their burgeoning relationship.
Hattie’s mother took off 11 years ago. Since then, Hattie and her dad have fantasized about how the three will be reunited when Hattie swims on the U.S. team at the Olympics. But since 7-year-old Elijah drowned while Hattie was lifeguarding, Hattie has been unable to fathom a future that involves swimming. Presley has relocated from Victoria, British Columbia, to Southern California with his mum and her wife. He and his twin brother, Mac, were ice-skating phenoms until Mac was killed in an auto accident that left Presley with injuries that ended his competitive figure skating dreams. Both feel responsible for the people they have lost, and both deal with physical manifestations of their grief; it is mutual recognition of loss that draws the two together. Their relationship quickly deepens in ways that uncannily parallel the romance novel that has been Hattie’s lifeline since Elijah’s death. Caring friends, an evacuation spurred by wildfires, and an impromptu road trip all play parts in helping the teens move toward healing. Rivers explores trauma with sensitivity: Readers see the wide range of emotions and coping mechanisms that can come into play. Hattie and Presley are cued white; there is some diversity in race and sexual orientation among their friends.
Implausible? Maybe, but also smart and infused with enough heart to make suspending disbelief a pleasure. (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781616208165
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Algonquin
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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