Overly ambitious.
Alif Scholl and five of her friends leave Melbourne for the deserts of Dubai, where her archaeologist dad is leading an excavation.
Recent high school graduate Alif looks forward to getting closer to her crush, Tommy Ortiz, her dad’s research assistant. But things at the site seem to be off. A mysterious, sunburned Frenchman appears out of nowhere, mumbling about a powerful force from Mesopotamian folklore called Dup Shimati. Rumors of a fantastical desert world suddenly seem possible. Following a sandstorm, Alif is stranded with Tommy and her friends. They come upon a lush oasis teeming with fruit—pears, apples, and strawberries—that shouldn’t grow there. The famished, dehydrated group consumes the fruit and fresh spring water. That night, disturbing dreams haunt Alif, making her sleepwalk and attempt to poison her friends. The others begin acting strangely too. The line between dream and reality begins to blur, especially after they find a tablet with sinister powers. The book explores the very real tensions teenagers face in grappling with their desires and learning to understand the importance of trust. While the narrative is engaging overall, with a spirited and ethnically diverse cast (Alif has a Jordanian British mother and German American father), the characters feel underdeveloped and the attempt to play with multiple realities falls short, leaving readers confused by sweeping transitions and sudden, jarring events. Some descriptions border on Orientalism.
Overly ambitious. (Science fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-12426-5
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Imprint
Review Posted Online: Nov. 9, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Breathtakingly complex and intriguing.
When someone murders the renowned founder of an oppressively rigorous Washington, D.C., school, three students—all boys of color—emerge as prime suspects.
The police haul in a trio of Urban Promise Prep students, two Black and one Salvadoran, for questioning following the murder of Principal Kenneth Moore. For J.B. Williamson, Urban Promise’s strict rules and regulations are suffocating, but his luck seems to turn when he finally makes a tentative move forward with his crush. Jokester Trey Jackson, meanwhile, does his best to ensure his place in the big basketball game, and no one—not even his tough-as-nails Uncle T—can stop him. Ramón Zambrano dreams of one day owning a restaurant. In the meantime, he gets by hustling pupusas at school and refusing to succumb to pressure from his beloved cousin César, the feared leader of the Dioses del Humo gang. At Urban Promise, one false move can cost a college-bound future. Unfortunately, all three boys engaged in public spats with Principal Moore before his death; to clear their names, they must investigate and uncover the killer’s identity. In a masterful use of multiple points of view from both the main protagonists and secondary characters, Brooks weaves a tale of intrigue, doubt, and hearsay with ease, doling out crucial tidbits and clues. Each gradual reveal prods readers to reconsider and reassess. Featuring a sharp examination of systemic inequality in urban schools and Black and Latine boyhood, this novel delivers in spades.
Breathtakingly complex and intriguing. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-86697-4
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Another engaging entry in this world of spies and international intrigue.
Pop superstar Winter Young is again drawn into the world of secret agent Sydney Cossette in this follow-up to Stars and Smoke (2023).
Though constantly on one another’s minds, Winter and Sydney have resisted making any contact with each other since narrowly surviving a mission in which Panacea, the secret organization Sydney works for, tapped Winter to use his megastar status to infiltrate a wealthy and powerful criminal underworld. Ratcheting up the tension in this enemies-to-lovers romantic thriller is the fact that Sydney is being sent to Singapore to extract Tems, a fellow agent who also happens to be her ex. Winter, who needs a plus-one for a Warcross Championship gala in order to better maintain his cover, invites his former girlfriend. Witty insults and crossed signals abound in the pair’s smoldering relationship, but this second installment is a bit darker than the first. If some of the betrayals and losses involved are easy enough to spot coming, they still pack an emotional punch due to the strong development of Winter’s and Sydney’s respective backstories, told in alternating third-person narratives, both involving abuse and psychological pain. Winter is Chinese American; Sydney is white, and there’s a diverse cast of supporting characters whom readers will likely see again—Lu has left the ending tantalizingly open for another installment.
Another engaging entry in this world of spies and international intrigue. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: June 11, 2024
ISBN: 9781250852915
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024
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