Cinematic, CGI–ready action—but also a moving exploration of memory and identity.
Can an origin story for Bucky Barnes as he becomes the Winter Soldier be anything but painful?
In this volume, Lee continues exploring Marvel’s misunderstood antagonists. It’s 1954, smack in the middle of Bucky’s journey from hero to villain and back again. Instead of Bucky, there’s only the Winter Soldier, a brainwashed torturer and assassin for the (slightly Cold War–caricatured) Soviet Union. The Soldier—confused by his lack of memory, wishing he knew his own name—is nonetheless an obedient asset and a loyal partner to his handler. As the Winter Soldier performs his mission, in a storyline interspersed with movie-style action scenes, some chapters flash back to 1941: The U.S. hasn’t yet entered the war, and 16-year-old Bucky pesters his snarky, affectionate guardian to let him enlist (roughly following comics canon, not the movie). Teen Bucky’s an incorrigible flirt and smuggler (or entrepreneur!), but he wants to serve his country. Knowledgeable readers and new fans alike will see the forthcoming disaster in young Bucky’s eagerness to fight for people who he’s beginning to realize are morally compromised. He starts up a doomed but profound romance with a girl he meets on his first mission. Meanwhile, in 1954, the Soldier’s resurfacing memories of Captain America reveal an extremely close affection between the two. All characters appear to be White.
Cinematic, CGI–ready action—but also a moving exploration of memory and identity. (Science fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Feb. 7, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-368-02227-9
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Marvel Press
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
Readers will be captivated by this twisty thriller and its uncompromising protagonist.
The mother Annabel Price thought was dead returns with a story about where she’s been—but 18-year-old Bel knows she’s lying.
Ever since Rachel Price’s unexplained disappearance 16 years ago, true-crime fans have come up with plentiful theories about what happened. Bel and her family members, who are white, cobbled together lives for themselves after a jury found Bel’s father, Charlie, not guilty of murdering his wife. Beset with medical bills for his elderly father, Charlie recently agreed to participate in a documentary about the unsolved mystery. Black British filmmaker Ramsey Lee is well into the process of interviewing the Prices when his project gets an unanticipated boost after an exhausted, disheveled Rachel staggers back into town. Rachel is eager to resume her role in the family, but the inconsistencies in her accounts raise alarms for Bel. With the help of the youngest member of the filmmaking team, Bel sets out to learn what really happened. Along the way, someone else disappears, and Bel uncovers a tangle of lies that make it impossible for her to trust people she thought she knew. When things come to a head the night of her grandfather’s 85th birthday party, Bel ends up in a race for her life. The last quarter of the novel tears along at a breakneck pace before arriving at a satisfying and unexpected conclusion.
Readers will be captivated by this twisty thriller and its uncompromising protagonist. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: April 2, 2024
ISBN: 9780593374207
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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