In the second installment of the Magnolia League series, the stakes are higher, the drama more palpable and the hoodoo even hairier.
In 1957, on an island off Savannah, a few daring women struck a bargain with the formidable Doc Buzzard, a bargain that would keep them and their descendants beautiful, prosperous and powerful. Now, two of these descendants are ready to formally join the League as its newest members: Hayes, a natural Magnolia in the making who was born and raised in Savannah, and the outsider Alexandria, who grew up on a commune and has only recently morphed into a true socialite. Hippie-at-heart Alex has an ulterior motive for this seeming transformation—to save her mother’s soul from her grandmother’s clutches. On this quest, Alex discovers that her grandmother is not the only Magnolia to have ventured into darker dealings with the Buzzards, and that she just might have more of a friend in would-be rival Hayes than she had ever dreamed. The harrowing story is told by Hayes and Alex, their alternating perspectives keeping the tale fresh and transforming the previously one-dimensional Hayes into a complex character with her own goals and convictions.
Though lighter on the romance, this creepy, cliffhanging thrill ride will still delight Magnolia League fans and leave them desperate for the next episode. (Supernatural thriller. 12 & up)Pub Date: July 3, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-316-18750-3
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Poppy/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2012
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This hefty sequel to Six of Crows (2015) brings high-tension conclusions to the many intertwined intrigues of Ketterdam.
It's time for revenge—has been ever since old-before-his-time crook Kaz and his friends were double-crossed by the merchant princes of Ketterdam, an early-industrial Amsterdam-like fantasy city filled to the brim with crime and corruption. Disabled, infuriated, and perpetually scheming Kaz, the light-skinned teen mastermind, coordinates the efforts to rescue Inej. Though Kaz is loath to admit weakness, Inej is his, for he can't bear any harm come to the knife-wielding, brown-skinned Suli acrobat. Their team is rounded out by Wylan, a light-skinned chemist and musician whose merchant father tried to have him murdered and who can't read due to a print disability; Wylan's brown-skinned biracial boyfriend, Jesper, a flirtatious gambler with ADHD; Nina, the pale brunette Grisha witch and recovering addict from Russia-like Ravka; Matthias, Nina's national enemy and great love, a big, white, blond drüskelle warrior from the cold northern lands; and Kuwei, the rescued Shu boy everyone wants to kidnap. Can these kids rescue everyone who needs rescuing in Ketterdam's vile political swamp? This is dark and violent—one notable scene features a parade of teens armed with revolvers, rifles, pistols, explosives, and flash bombs—but gut-wrenchingly genuine. Astonishingly, Bardugo keeps all these balls in the air over the 500-plus pages of narrative.
How can such a hefty tome be un-put-down-able excitement from beginning to end? (glossary) (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62779-213-4
Page Count: 560
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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When the realm is in danger, only a small band of misfits can save Allward.
An in medias res prologue, told from the point of view of the lone squire accompanying the 12 Companions of the Realm, tosses readers into the thick of a quest. Half the Companions are human heroes and half are immortal Elders; they seek to stop a rogue thief and his wizard accomplice from using a magical Spindle to tear a passage between worlds for nefarious ends. A disastrous battle sends squire Andry fleeing with Cortael’s sword so villain Taristan can’t get his hands on it. Grieving Elder Dom requires both a person of Corblood (a descendant of human travelers from another realm) and the Spindleblade Andry protects to stop Taristan from bringing ruin to the realm. Dom seeks Cortael’s secret daughter, Corayne, a bright but sheltered teenager with a pirate mother. At times the narrative tension is undermined by flashbacks that readers already know the conclusions to and by occasional repetition caused by the multiple point-of-view jumps, but there’s a wide variety of action scenes, daring escapes, and betrayals. Many tropes and character types are familiar, but exquisite descriptions and clashing motivations result in a nuanced, sprawling realm with a sense of complicated history. This world is highly diverse in terms of both skin tone and in the refreshing range of roles female characters inhabit.
An epic series opener of old-school high fantasy catering to modern audiences. (map) (Fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-287262-3
Page Count: 576
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Feb. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
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