Romance, issue book and spy novel—as varied an offering as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
Burdened by guilt over her father’s accident and seeking adventure, Belle Bellfounder joins a band of medieval pilgrims on a journey to Canterbury Cathedral, finding romance and danger along the way.
After her mother’s death and father’s crippling injury, Belle takes refuge in fairy tales, compulsive counting and self-harm. With little fanfare or preparation, she decides to travel to Canterbury and pray for her father’s recovery, a move that embroils her in romantic triangles, espionage and cross-class flirting. On the road, Belle garners the courteous attentions of Squire Walter de Pleasance, a charming young man with a dark secret, and Luke, a bespectacled scribe (to Chaucer) and a future monk with a most unholy temper. When Belle runs afoul of the truly vile Summoner Seekum—whose nauseatingly described exterior matches his lecherous, kleptomaniac and blackmailing personality—she finds herself entangled in political plots surrounding King Richard II. Grant (Blue Flame, 2008, etc.) demonstrates an affectionate and thorough knowledge of the source material (as seen in an author’s note and timeline), but Belle’s good fortune, self-absorption and inexplicable attractiveness cannot fully compensate for plot holes and underdeveloped characters; she is neither the most reliable nor sympathetic of narrators.
Romance, issue book and spy novel—as varied an offering as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. (Historical fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 22, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8027-2275-1
Page Count: 300
Publisher: Walker
Review Posted Online: Sept. 6, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2011
A sparse, beautifully drawn story about a teen discovering her heritage.
In this YA graphic novel, an alienated Métis girl learns about her people’s Canadian history.
Métis teenager Echo Desjardins finds herself living in a home away from her mother, attending a new school, and feeling completely lonely as a result. She daydreams in class and wanders the halls listening to a playlist of her mother’s old CDs. At home, she shuts herself up in her room. But when her history teacher begins to lecture about the Pemmican Wars of early 1800s Saskatchewan, Echo finds herself swept back to that time. She sees the Métis people following the bison with their mobile hunting camp, turning the animals’ meat into pemmican, which they sell to the Northwest Company in order to buy supplies for the winter. Echo meets a young girl named Marie, who introduces Echo to the rhythms of Métis life. She finally understands what her Métis heritage actually means. But the joys are short-lived, as conflicts between the Métis and their rivals in the Hudson Bay Company come to a bloody head. The tragic history of her people will help explain the difficulties of the Métis in Echo’s own time, including those of her mother and the teen herself. Accompanied by dazzling art by Henderson (A Blanket of Butterflies, 2017, etc.) and colorist Yaciuk (Fire Starters, 2016, etc.), this tale is a brilliant bit of time travel. Readers are swept back to 19th-century Saskatchewan as fully as Echo herself. Vermette’s (The Break, 2017, etc.) dialogue is sparse, offering a mostly visual, deeply contemplative juxtaposition of the present and the past. Echo’s eventual encounter with her mother (whose fate has been kept from readers up to that point) offers a powerful moment of connection that is both unexpected and affecting. “Are you…proud to be Métis?” Echo asks her, forcing her mother to admit, sheepishly: “I don’t really know much about it.” With this series opener, the author provides a bit more insight into what that means.
A sparse, beautifully drawn story about a teen discovering her heritage.Pub Date: March 15, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-55379-678-7
Page Count: 48
Publisher: HighWater Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 28, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A lighthearted romance in which love comes to those who speak their minds and stick to their truths.
A strong young woman discovers love where she least expects it.
At 17, Madeline Fisher-Michaels’ only love has been field hockey. With her focus on playing in college, boys have never been a priority. But after she agrees to be a bridesmaid in her brother Austin’s wedding to his fiancée, Katie, everything changes. She allows Katie—whom she doesn’t like but hopes to bond with—and the other bridesmaids to be her matchmakers. Mads navigates complicated, changing feelings toward longtime best friend Connor McCallister and classmate Marco Álvarez, whom she banters and bickers with. With the support of her dads, Mads must work through shifting relationships with family, boys, and even herself. Mads proves to be a strong protagonist: She often speaks her mind and maintains clear boundaries throughout the novel, which is refreshing. She communicates well with her family and serves as an inspirational role model for young women navigating relationships. The complexity of Katie’s characterization is another highlight; her depth and growth balance the lack of substance in the portrayals of other supporting characters. Readers looking for drama and intrigue may be disappointed, but Walther’s strong young women characters truly shine in this quietly entertaining, character-driven tale. Marco is cued Latine in the otherwise largely white cast.
A lighthearted romance in which love comes to those who speak their minds and stick to their truths. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: June 3, 2025
ISBN: 9781728263144
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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