A passionate rallying howl for indomitable girls.
Teens at a girls’ Catholic boarding school embrace their wild nature.
After Rue Holloway was caught kissing a girl, her mom enrolled her at Sacred Heart Academy, “in the middle of East Jesus Nowheresville,” where students are instilled with values of purity and deference. Rue, who’s labeled “too much,” has no desire to be a “good girl,” so she’s intrigued by her classmate Charlotte Savage—the rule-breaking, social outcast senator’s daughter, who sneaks off into the forest at night. When Rue befriends Charlotte and learns her secret—she can transform into a wolf—Rue is inspired to rebel and discover the wild wolf within herself. As the girls’ relationship deepens beyond friendship, other classmates who are fighting against societal and parental expectations join their pack. The more they embrace their truest selves, though, the closer danger lurks; there are those who would prefer to keep wild girls caged. The strict, stifling school setting heightens the feeling of confinement, while the power and ferocity of the girls in their wolf form is vivid and awe-inspiring. This boldly feminist story highlights varied experiences and obstacles while resolutely asserting that every woman and girl deserves to thrive and feel free. The themes are timeless; the mid-1990s era is cued through some pop-culture references and an absence of cellphones and social media. Rue and Charlotte are white, and there’s racial diversity among the other students.
A passionate rallying howl for indomitable girls. (Paranormal. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781454960645
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Union Square & Co.
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
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 heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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