Detweiler’s ambitious debut takes an intriguing premise and executes it well.
There’s nothing like being a pregnant virgin to ruin your senior year of high school.
After a typical shift at the pizza parlor, “nerdy, chronic overachiever” Mina, trying to get free of Iris, a strange, old customer who seems to know a lot about her, answers a vague proposal with a frustrated “yes”—and now Mina’s pregnant. And still a virgin. Her father doesn’t believe her; “calm and predictable” boyfriend Nate is hurt and knows it’s not his child; best friend Izzy is certain she’s being lied to. But along with her mother and friend Hannah, busboy Jesse (who also met Iris) joins Mina’s supportive posse—Mina/Jesse, Mary/Joseph, get it? In addition to the obvious Biblical parallels, Mina’s story is also that of every misunderstood teen—bullies harass, an embarrassing website pops up. But calls to “Virgin Mina” to denounce her claim grow stronger, and Mina becomes the focus of adult anger and passion. Eventually forced to take protective action for herself and her unborn child, Mina depends on family and friends. The pace occasionally slows as Mina explores religion, spirituality, and impending motherhood, but overall, Detweiler’s smart writing moves quickly and entertains, particularly with Mina’s appealingly bright voice. Even as the story probes its mystical underpinnings, the focus remains firmly on Mina right through to the end.
Detweiler’s ambitious debut takes an intriguing premise and executes it well. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 26, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-4514-6962-5
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
A chilling, feminist debut in which friendship, love, and truth become weapons against the darkness.
“Keep to the light. Avoid the shadows.”
The Delphi School for Girls hides its darkest secrets behind towering bookshelves. When Gwen Donovan’s sister, Izzy, returns from the finishing school as a hollowed-out version of herself, Gwen arranges to leave New York City for Delphi, which is located on a remote island off the coast of Nova Scotia, to discover what happened. The headmistress informs her that they have a regimen that works to “pull the evil” out of “troubled girls.” The walls are lined with books, each bearing a girl’s name, there are few windows, and the dimly lit halls teem with shadows that seem to move on their own. Girls who break the rules are sent to the ominous Writing Room, returning weak and unable to remember what transpired. Guided by Izzy’s hidden letters, Gwen bands together with classmates to investigate. Armed with lanterns and candlesticks, they navigate the halls by night, dodging the shadows that whisper and reach for them. What they uncover is a chilling conspiracy, one far more sinister than they ever imagined. Astute readers may unravel the mystery early on, but the gothic atmosphere and slow-building romance between Gwen and another student sustain the tension. This is a tale of girls’ power, exploited by those who seek to control it, and of the resistance that rises in response. Main characters are cued white.
A chilling, feminist debut in which friendship, love, and truth become weapons against the darkness. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9780593900475
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
Brings much-needed inclusivity and contemporary flavor to the teen fantasy genre.
A teenager explores her magical connections to greenery and gods.
Briseis Greene is a Black high schooler with magical powers that she hides from most people save her adoptive mothers, Thandie and Angie. She has an innate connection to plants and is even able to grow them from seeds using just her mind and hands. Bri is curious about the source and extent of her powers, but after some mishaps, she is more fearful of the potential harm she could bring by tapping into them, so she refrains from exploring further. When she is surprised by news of an extensive estate near Rhinebeck that she has inherited from the recently deceased Circe Colchis, her late birth mother’s sister and someone whose existence she was previously unaware of, the three of them move from Brooklyn to upstate New York. Bri quickly grasps that her new home and the biological family she never knew have many more secrets in store for her—and in those secrets may lie answers to questions that she has had all her life. In this intriguing and well-paced novel, Bayron conjures a world filled with magic and mystery. Readers will share the protagonist’s curiosity about her powers and eagerness to uncover her history. Fans of retellings will enjoy this modern tale that reimagines stories of Greek gods and goddesses. Major characters are Black.
Brings much-needed inclusivity and contemporary flavor to the teen fantasy genre. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: June 29, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0390-9
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2021
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