While some of the previous book’s fans will appreciate knowing what happens next, many will wish they’d left it up to their...
Seventeen-year-old Eureka Boudreaux’s tears have unleashed a flood of biblical proportions, threatening to drown the whole of the Waking World and paving the way for the rise of Atlantis and its evil ruler, Atlas (Teardrop, 2013).
If only it were that simple. Eureka, her close friend Cat, her family, and her magical sweetheart, Ander, leave behind their flooded Louisiana bayou and make their way to dry land in search of a reclusive Seedbearer who holds the secret to defeating Atlas. In Solon’s subterranean grotto, Eureka comes closer to the truth of her identity and to an understanding of how she can undo the darkness she’s unwittingly released on the world. She also continues to wrestle with her conflicting love for Ander and for her best friend, Brooks, who remains possessed by Atlas. Unfortunately, what was once a compelling love triangle feels much less so this time around, partially due to the fact that Eureka’s encounters with Brooks are much fewer and farther between. This sequel as a whole is waterlogged, sodden with new characters and choked with plotlines that dampen the tension, dilute the romance and threaten to leave readers scratching their heads instead of turning the pages.
While some of the previous book’s fans will appreciate knowing what happens next, many will wish they’d left it up to their own imaginations. (Paranormal romance. 14 & up)Pub Date: Oct. 28, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-385-74267-2
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Sept. 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2014
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance.
A Connecticut girl and her best friend devise a series of plans in order to achieve their goals: following a dream and winning back an ex.
Eighteen-year-old Audrey Barbour has a Master Plan: attend Blue Ridge Glass School in North Carolina and someday turn her Etsy shop, Golightly Glass, into a thriving business. But her uber-wealthy parents insist that she instead follow in their footsteps and go to business school. So Audrey decides to go find the tuition money she needs with help from her best friend, Henry Chen. Henry needs a favor, too: He hopes that fake dating Audrey will help him win back his ex-girlfriend, and he points out to a reluctant Audrey that this could make her crush, Griffin, notice her. While Audrey’s parents vacation in France for three weeks, the pair rent out the Barbour mansion on the Long Island Sound. Soon romantic chemistry grows alongside their business partnership. Despite the pair’s great preparation and an abundance of secondary characters with connections and talents to help pull off their increasingly ambitious ideas, plans go awry, leaving Audrey and Henry scrambling and second-guessing their choices. The pacing is even, but the characters often take a back seat to the whirlwind of activity that drives the plot, with the emphasis falling on each person’s practical skills and their role in keeping the action moving over their emotional bonds. Audrey is white, and Henry’s surname cues him as Chinese American.
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: March 31, 2026
ISBN: 9780593904794
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Delacorte Romance
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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