A solid addition to the list of rivals-to-lovers romances.
After an injury derails her track career, a high school senior in Kuala Lumpur enters a stand-up comedy contest and finds an unexpected source of friendship and romance.
Chinese Malaysian Agnes Chan is a winner. A nationally ranked junior sprinter, Agnes plans to spend her senior year breaking records and closing in on her life goal: to win Malaysia’s first Olympic gold medal. First, though, she must beat out her track team co-captain, Royce Taslim, for their school’s Athlete of the Year award (and the accompanying prize money). Competition is one thing, but when the competition is rich, handsome, and polished Royce, who’s never wanted for anything? It’s infuriating. Then, Agnes is struck in a hit-and-run accident that leaves her with a fractured fibula, a rescinded college athletic scholarship, and nothing to show for years of hard work. As she recalibrates, Agnes falls into the city’s stand-up comedy scene, where Royce has long been performing. When she and Royce, who’s Indonesian, both decide to enter a contest for teen comedians, their rivalry finds a new battlefront. Still, as they follow each other from one open mic event to another, combative, defensive Agnes finds it increasingly difficult to deny the sizzling tension drawing them together. Conflicts around class and gender are introduced but not fully resolved, although a strong central romance and a relatable coming-of-age story redeem the narrative.
A solid addition to the list of rivals-to-lovers romances. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781368095358
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
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