High-octane drama that thrills but lacks much-needed emotional resolution.
Twin sisters struggle to find themselves in the wake of the death of the boy who nearly destroyed them.
The summer before their junior year, sisters Joy and Grace agree to a summer of misdeeds. They’ll get drunk and high for the first time, and Grace will come out of the shell Joy’s always trying to pry her from. But when Grace develops a crush on Adam Gordon, things begin to spiral. Joy brings them together only for Adam to assault Grace and send her into a fugue; she won’t leave her room, let alone return to school. Then, in November, Adam falls to his death. It seems the monster haunting them may be gone for good, except Joy can’t shake the feeling that maybe she pushed him while drunk, that it wasn’t an accident. And then the blackmail letters claiming someone saw Joy murder Adam begin to arrive. As Grace retreats further into herself, Joy’s forced to follow the letters’ directions to keep the blackmailer from turning her in. When the truth comes out, it’ll either bring the sisters back together or tear them apart for good. The twins’ drama accelerates quickly, taking readers down shocking rabbit holes. However, the twist that ties it all together may be too far-fetched for readers seeking answers to questions about sexual assault rather than pulp fiction.
High-octane drama that thrills but lacks much-needed emotional resolution. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: May 24, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-231732-2
Page Count: 368
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
Somberly beautiful.
A girl goes in search of her missing sister and discovers a strange hidden world of dreams.
Corin, who’s 18 and dark-skinned, strives to protect her 12-year-old sister, Elly. But life as a thief is full of struggle, poverty, and loss, even without Corin’s avoidance of other relationships. Elly clings to the promise of fairy tales, like the one that says a princess lies sleeping in an underground castle after pricking her finger on a spindle. After the sisters fight and Elly runs off, Corin searches for her in Gyldan’s old network of tunnels—and finds the tale is true: Cursed Princess Amelia, golden-haired, with eyes like “sea glass” and porcelain skin, lies asleep, surrounded by flowers. Corin enters the princess’ dreamworld—the place “where your subconscious desires come to life.” She meets Briar Rose, Amelia’s alter ego, who experienced her share of sadness and wanted to fall asleep. Also in the dreamworld is green-skinned Malicine, the nonbinary demon who, despite having placed the curse of eternal slumber on Amelia, is mostly friendly. All three are running from things they can’t face, though the dreamworld may not give them a choice. Pham’s debut, a Sapphic reimagining of “Sleeping Beauty,” explores mental health and asks a lot of readers as it seesaws between emotional confrontations, time jumps, and scenes where one character inhabits the memories of another, all of which demand intense engagement. Still, the ending is earned as well as positive.
Somberly beautiful. (content note) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2026
ISBN: 9798217113026
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Kokila
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2026
SEEN & HEARD
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
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