A sometimes-riveting sci-fi series opener featuring multidimensional characters and an exciting, if violent, climax.
A dystopian YA novel in which sheltered twins realize that their world’s problems are more personal than they ever imagined.
Lucinda “Lu” Fox and her twin, Margot, daughters of the “Chief Diplomat of the continent-state of Nor-Am,” live in a gated mansion, ride to school in a limo, and may be Splicers—candidates for DNA alterations to protect them from dying of the Plague that’s wiped out half the planet. Graffiti scrawled throughout the city demands “Evolve or die,” causing Lu to wonder about Lasters, desperate people who are unable to afford Splicing in a society where even “hospitals…can’t keep people alive, not anymore.” Could she be a Laster, too? Why else is she undergoing the multiple rounds of tests called Protocols? Sterling (Pluto’s Gate, 2016, etc.) creates a complex world in which such tests “can pretty much pinpoint when your genes will blow,” and wealthy teens discover whether Splicing will work for them at lavish 18th birthday parties. However, a month before the twins’ “Reveal,” Margot is kidnapped. To rescue her, Lu must rely on their psychic connection, as well as her father’s strange new bodyguards. Could they be True Born—genetic mutants untouched by the Plague and shunned by the rest of society? Lu’s intense attraction to young bodyguard Jared interferes with her ability to protect Margot and her family’s interests. Yet when the city erupts into civil war, her loyalties—as well as her identity—come into question. This novel offers absorbing romance and rising intrigue. Sterling’s overall premise borrows liberally from The X-Men, as mutants are depicted as protectors, playthings, and predators of regular humans, yet the fate of the world depends on their abilities. A few scenarios, though, will likely stretch readers’ suspension of disbelief: after a man transforms into a panther, how many attacks must occur on school grounds before parents stop sending their kids? In the end, Sterling leaves some loose ends dangling, promising two more books in the trilogy.
A sometimes-riveting sci-fi series opener featuring multidimensional characters and an exciting, if violent, climax.Pub Date: May 3, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-63375-319-8
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Review Posted Online: April 27, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A troubling depiction of an unhealthy relationship.
A battered girl and an injured rugby star spark up an ill-advised romance at an Irish secondary school.
Beautiful, waiflike, 15-year-old Shannon has lived her entire life in Ballylaggin. Alternately bullied at school and beaten by her ne’er-do-well father, she’s hopeful for a fresh start at Tommen, a private school. Seventeen-year-old Johnny, who has a hair-trigger temper and a severe groin injury, is used to Dublin’s elite-level rugby but, since his family’s move to County Cork, is now stuck captaining Tommen’s middling team. When Johnny angrily kicks a ball and knocks Shannon unconscious (“a soft female groan came from her lips”), a tentative relationship is born. As the two grow closer, Johnny’s past and Shannon’s present become serious obstacles to their budding love, threatening Shannon’s safety. Shannon’s portrayal feels infantilized (“I looked down at the tiny little female under my arm”), while Johnny comes across as borderline obsessive (“I knew I shouldn’t be touching her, but how the hell could I not?”). Uneven pacing and choppy sentences lead to a sudden climax and an unsatisfyingly abrupt ending. Repetitive descriptions, abundant and misogynistic dialogue (Johnny, to his best friend: “who’s the bitch with a vagina now?”), and graphic violence also weigh down this lengthy tome (considerably trimmed down from its original, self-published length). The cast of lively, well-developed supporting characters, especially Johnny’s best friend and Shannon’s protective older brother, is a bright spot. Major characters read white.
A troubling depiction of an unhealthy relationship. (author’s note, pronunciations, glossary, song moments, playlists) (Romance. 16-18)Pub Date: Nov. 28, 2023
ISBN: 9781728299945
Page Count: 626
Publisher: Bloom Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
A thrilling romance that could use more even pacing.
For the second time in her life, Leo must choose between her family and true love.
Nineteen-year-old Princess Leonie Kolburg’s royal family is bankrupt. In order to salvage the fortune they accrued before humans fled the frozen Earth 170 years ago, Leonie’s father is forcing her to participate in the Valg Season, an elaborate set of matchmaking events held to facilitate the marriages of rich and royal teens. Leo grudgingly joins in even though she has other ideas: She’s invented a water filtration system that, if patented, could provide a steady income—that is if Leo’s calculating Aunt Freja, the Captain of the ship hosting the festivities, stops blocking her at every turn. Just as Leo is about to give up hope, her long-lost love, Elliot, suddenly appears onboard three years after Leo’s family forced her to break off their engagement. Donne (Brightly Burning, 2018) returns to space, this time examining the fascinatingly twisted world of the rich and famous. Leo and her peers are nuanced, deeply felt, and diverse in terms of sexuality but not race, which may be a function of the realities of wealth and power. The plot is fast paced although somewhat uneven: Most of the action resolves in the last quarter of the book, which makes the resolutions to drawn-out conflicts feel rushed.
A thrilling romance that could use more even pacing. (Science fiction. 16-adult)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-328-94894-6
Page Count: 400
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 9, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
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