Somber and disquieting but alight with flickers of hope.
A sorceress without magic navigates lies, treachery and despair in this thoughtful conclusion to the fantasy duology that began with Death Sworn (2014).
Betrayed by her people and honed as a weapon, Ileni has left the Assassins’ Caves to investigate the tyrannical Empire for herself…before she agrees to destroy it. Accepting a double-edged offer from the Imperial Academy, she falls into tentative friendships with her fellow students of magic, but she can no more forget that their power is fueled by cruelty and death than she can resist its seductive allure. Meanwhile, both assassins and sorcerers have their own plans. Readers expecting glorious triumphs and love-conquering-all climaxes will be disappointed, as such tropes of epic fantasy are brutally demolished in spare, restrained prose. If the expanse of a vast Empire is only hinted at and the secondary characters barely sketched, the narrow focus on Ileni’s internal struggles is mesmerizing. While not entirely likable—she can be arrogant, judgmental and self-pitying—Ileni remains painfully sympathetic. She longs for righteous certainty in a noble cause, aches to achieve a heroic destiny through some great good deed, but she’s confronted on every side with ambiguity, complexity and nothing but bad options. Yet rather than being crushed by her shattered ideals, Ileni embraces compromise and learns to reach for the grace of tiny victories.
Somber and disquieting but alight with flickers of hope. (Fantasy. 12 & up)Pub Date: March 3, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-222124-7
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2015
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
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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