Implausible plotlines rely on flat characterization.
Puma shapeshifter Carag’s best friend faces guardianship issues that threaten her presence at the school in this fantasy set in Wyoming and translated from German.
Following the events of A Dangerous Friendship (2023), Carag is still dwelling on the nonspecific threats from the human-hating chief villain, Andrew Milling. Carag quickly (and too conveniently) learns that after his refusal to help Milling, the villain has found a new spy in the school. One-dimensional wolf bully Jeff starts making cryptic comments that undercut any mystery as to who the villain’s helper is this time. At one point, the book even acknowledges that a situation is a repeat from a previous installment. Meanwhile, in the ostensible main plot, the arrival of a mean human at the school—a man claiming he’s orphan Holly’s new guardian—throws the kids into turmoil, as he wants to pull Holly out of the boarding school. His motives, like those of most characters in the book, are never justified. With Principal Clearwater conveniently out of town, leaving nasty teacher Mr. Ellwood in charge, Holly feels vulnerable enough to run away and hide, with help from Carag and friends. (The bullying culture in the book also includes a played-for-laughs subplot about vandalizing a teacher’s art.) A final storyline—aside from Milling’s still-nebulous plots—involves a bank robbery that the kids decide to try to solve. The ending restores the status quo. Carls’ black-and-white spot art showing expressive, naturalistic animals are a highlight. Most characters are cued white; there is some racial diversity in the supporting cast.
Implausible plotlines rely on flat characterization. (Fantasy. 8-13)Pub Date: Nov. 14, 2023
ISBN: 9781646900220
Page Count: 280
Publisher: Arctis Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Unforgettably quirky, fast-paced fun.
In a race against their enemies, the Porch girls must find a peculiar pearl in order to foil a fiendish plot.
After defeating a monstrous Kyrgalops in The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science (2024), Gertrude, Eugenia, and Dee-Dee Porch find themselves (after a series of madcap events) at Lake Kagloopy’s Purple Pearl Hotel with their mentor, Millicent Quibb. Quibb informs the trio that they must find the titular pearl before the members of their evil mad-scientist rivals, the KRA, do. If they fail, the KRA (whose members include the malevolent mayor, Majestina DeWeen, and her slimy sycophantic lawyer, Ashley Cookie) plans to use the gem to bestow the Gift of Endless Vibrancy on the villainous Talon Sharktūth. Hilarity ensues as the Porches attend the annual Shrimp Ball, encounter Umbrella Turkeys, search for Cloudite (floating cloud rocks), and don invisible but smelly woolen coats. Jokes aside, the girls’ story is intriguing, offering more clues to their mysterious backgrounds and tantalizing tidbits promising later adventures. McKinnon offers bountiful backstory (alongside a running joke to encourage readers to pick up the preceding volume) and enough guffaw-inducing jokes, zany footnotes, and creative jargon to enthrall readers both new and old with her delightful sophomore effort. Mixing humor, found family, and well-wrought worldbuilding, this sequel is a certain crowd pleaser. Final art not seen; in the previous book, the grayscale illustrations showed the girls with varying skin tones.
Unforgettably quirky, fast-paced fun. (appendices) (Adventure. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9780316555296
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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