Deeply absorbing and dreamlike.
When a Cuban American teen from Los Angeles spends the summer with her aunt in a rural Oregon cabin, she happens upon a gold watch with paranormal powers in a nearby antique shop.
Eighteen-year-old Sylvie Castellano dreams of leading “a big, big life”—one full of love, adventure, and freedom. She’s elated to spend the summer between high school graduation and starting community college with her beloved tía, the famous artist Vivian Rojas, although she feels abandoned by her absent parents; left out by her best friends, Ana and Grier, who recently coupled up; and uneasy about her own future. In tiny Sacred, Oregon, where Tía Vivian is working, Sylvie purchases a seemingly ordinary wristwatch—and is shocked when it summons the spirit of a teenage boy. Penn, who’s cued white, is handsome, charismatic, and devoid of all memories. Sylvie vows to help him discover why he’s bound to the watch and stuck in limbo. But as they grow closer, she becomes torn between wanting to continue their connection and helping Penn’s spirit move on as she promised. Sylvie’s story is grounded in specifics but contains elements that hold universal resonance for young adult readers. Unexpected twists, slowly unfolding mysteries, and a haunted romance add sparkle to the summer vacation genre. This beautiful, surreal narrative thoughtfully explores transitions—from childhood to adulthood and from this world to the next.
Deeply absorbing and dreamlike. (Speculative romance. 14-18)Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9781547618057
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
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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