A fresh and substantive story about family, love, and deciding who you want to be in the world.
A teenage boy learns that the power to steal people’s innermost feelings is both a blessing and curse.
For generations, 17-year-old Aspen Quick’s family has conducted a secret ritual to keep the cliff hanging over their small town from falling: they use a special power to “reach” inside people, steal their memories, desires, fears, talents, and physical attributes, and feed them to the cliff. Smart, cocky, and confident, Aspen doesn’t think twice about also using this power to influence strangers and friends for his personal gain. But no amount of magic can bring Aspen’s Chinese-American mom back after his parents split up. And when Aspen’s friends Brandy and Theo join him at his grandmother’s house for the summer, the biracial teen learns that “reaching” isn’t the only secret his family has been keeping. Ultimately, Aspen must decide how far he’s willing to go to get what he wants. The novel’s complex characters and family drama pull readers in from the first page. Ribar balances weighty moral dilemmas with the unusual adventures of a teen who has the power to manipulate those around him. Flashback chapters chronicling Aspen’s younger years are interspersed throughout the story, to good effect. Fast-paced and unpredictable, the plot seamlessly balances a summer romance with well-crafted paranormal suspense.
A fresh and substantive story about family, love, and deciding who you want to be in the world. (Paranormal suspense. 12-18)Pub Date: June 7, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-5254-2868-8
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Kathy Dawson/Penguin
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2016
PROFILES
A sweet if muddled tale of the magic of Appalachia.
A teenage witch goes up against the evil king of the mountain to save a cursed village.
Witch-in-training Verity Vox has spent a year apiece in different villages, helping in any way she can as she learns her art. When it’s time to move on, she receives a sign that shows her where to go next. When the latest sign appears in the form of a note begging for help that floats down on a leaf, she’s eager for the challenge. Verity winds up in Foxfire, a village in the Appalachian mountains that’s been magically cut off from the rest of the world for years, leaving its people close to starvation. The root of their suffering is a man they know as Earl, who lives in the hills and strikes deals with the townspeople that ultimately cause crops to wither, folks to disappear, and the only bridge out of the valley to crumble. Verity is determined to change the villagers’ fortunes, but to do so she’ll have to face off against not just Earl but the ancient power of the mountains itself. Loosely based on the Germanic Erlking legend and told in a voice reminiscent of folktales, the story features a queer romance and a cast that presents white. The convoluted magic system undercuts the strong themes of reciprocity, poverty, and privilege, but Appalachian readers will instantly recognize home.
A sweet if muddled tale of the magic of Appalachia. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2025
ISBN: 9798890032706
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
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
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
