An emotional thriller that explores themes of memory and friendship.
Three Chinese American teens fight for their lives inside a video game.
High school senior O has been a shadow of her former self ever since her friend group, the L.O.V.E. Club, fractured three years ago. First, ringleader Elle mysteriously disappeared, and then Liberty and Vera moved away, leaving O to fend for herself in their Chinese immigrant community in Calendula, a California desert town (Liberty, who’s trans, has a white mom). But when Liberty and Vera suddenly show up at school, something unreal happens. In the secret study room in their old middle school library where they used to hang out, the girls discover a video game called Morning Glory, which seems like a clear reference to Elle’s obsession with flowers. After O impulsively decides to play, they’re transported into the game. They find themselves battling surreal monsters and hostile landscapes formed from their memories. The game, seemingly created by Elle, forces them to confront raw wounds from their time together and apart. Each girl’s story unfolds in turn, painting a heart-wrenching picture of how generational trauma has affected their friendships. Armed with a notebook that can bend the fabric of the game, O must write the story of their journey to healing. Min’s sophomore novel is full of vivid and imaginative action and horror elements, but its true heart lies in the mystery (and gut-punch reveal) of the circumstances behind Elle’s disappearance.
An emotional thriller that explores themes of memory and friendship. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2025
ISBN: 9781250359827
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world.
On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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