Exceptional.
Dreams are reality and the apocalypse is nigh in this spinoff from the Raven Cycle series.
Ronan Lynch can pull objects from his dreams; but as blowback from his powers complicates his life (including his relationship with Adam), Ronan follows cryptic clues from a voice in his dreams to learn the scope of his abilities. Simultaneously, art forger and dreamer Hennessy seeks a solution to a life-threatening hitch in her powers. Ronan’s older brother, Declan, works to keep his siblings safe at the expense of pursuing any passions of his own. Plus, government recruit Carmen Farooq-Lane aims to prevent the apocalypse by hunting down dreamers. This cast of characters, each with their own palpable desires, orbit one another until their paths come crashing together. Mysterious magic and secrets abound. The exquisitely painted characters and artful prose propel the plot, which is filled with satisfying twists and turns. Despite the scope, the narrative stays focused, drawing to a dramatic conclusion. While most rewarding to readers of the original series (though they should prepare for brief-but-necessary pockets of summary throughout), the novel is accessible to new readers, too. Ronan and Declan are white and of Irish descent; Hennessy is dark-skinned and English.
Exceptional. (Fantasy. 13-adult)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-18832-5
Page Count: 480
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2019
A page-turner of a fantasy-horror debut from a promising new voice.
Something’s rotten in the province of Sussex.
Twelve families rule over the Smoke, a U.K.-inspired nation, where the citizens battle to maintain control against an encroaching fog that brings death and destruction in the form of monstrous Phantoms. When Silas Darling, Merrick’s father and Sussex’s Manor Lord, dies unexpectedly, Merrick must abandon her New London social season and return to her ancestral home, Norland House. Surrounded by her older sister, Essie (who’s set to inherit the title Merrick desires for herself), and cousins (who are concerned mostly with propriety), she struggles to find answers. When Sussex and the family’s seat are threatened by mysterious border breaches and attacks, Merrick enters into a tenuous alliance with sentry Killian Brandon to unravel a Gordian knot of family secrets. The measured pacing, combined with Merrick’s emotional arc, together create magnificent tension. The worldbuilding skews gothic, thanks to the creepy manor house and mist-infected landscapes that are befitting of a Brontë sisters novel—albeit with the addition of possessed corpses that consume human flesh. The gender politics of this world allow women to inherit titles and fight Phantoms, yet they have little agency to act on their own behalf without entering into advantageous, heteronormative marriages, an aspect of the fantasy world that readers may find confusing. Primary characters read white.
A page-turner of a fantasy-horror debut from a promising new voice. (guide to manors and ruling families) (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780593572375
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2024
Readable but not remarkable, yet another grimdark political fantasy.
Prison life gets even more punishing in this fantasy series opener.
Seventeen-year-old Kiva Meridan is 10 years into a life sentence at “death prison” Zalindov. She’s succeeded her late father as the titular prison healer, dosing patients with herbs and possessing extensive, modern medical knowledge of bacteria, viruses, and immune systems. Aside from cheerful innocent/MacGuffin Tipp, Kiva befriends few fellow prisoners and even fewer guards, most of whom are harshly abusive. While Naari, a new female guard, and Jaren, a handsome new prisoner, chip away at her frozen facade, Kiva volunteers to undertake an epic Trial by Ordeal on behalf of the Rebel Queen, the newest political prisoner. Under pressure to save her friends, the Rebel Queen, and herself—and losing hope of rescue or release—Kiva faces four elemental magic Trials sans innate talent. In between grueling, gruesome spectacles, Kiva also acts as an epidemiologist, tracking down an illness plaguing the prisoners. The claustrophobic setting—evoking the horrors of a Siberian gulag or Nazi concentration camp—exudes dread and brutality; levity and lightness are minimal. A predictable romance ensues, and generic fantasy clichés abound—royals and rebels, lost heirs, vague magic—hastily concluded with a trite plot twist and setup for a sequel. Most main characters read as White; there is a diversity of skin tones in this fantasy world.
Readable but not remarkable, yet another grimdark political fantasy. (map) (Fantasy. 15-adult)Pub Date: April 13, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-358-43455-9
Page Count: 416
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
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