A little more challenging than rewarding.
Horror lurks in a small town.
People mind their own business in Bridlington. A crew of 11-year-olds, led by spirited Paz Espino, who’s Latina, bike around the forbidden places in town, and the police chief and his son keep everyone in line. When Asher Gordon, a white trans runaway, comes to town, his presence stirs up tragic memories and even more tragic ghosts. Told in multiple third-person perspectives—from major characters to Asher’s dog, Bird, to the town itself—the story experiments with temporality and moves forward in fits and starts, often stopping just when some interesting action occurs to go back to a different character or different timeline. There’s plenty of on-page oppression; while slurs are never written out, they’re described (for example, as “a break in your armor,” for Vietnamese genderqueer Beetle, or adding “a ‘y’ to a known fact,” which requires readers to mentally run through possible insults). Repetition is used to middling effect: A “rotten” smell pervades the town, slushies indicate the presence of a child, and characters’ experiences of feeling too hot or too cold stand in for other atmospheric descriptions. Supernatural horror and the banality of evil intertwine as the story twists and turns, the bad guys (and gals) get their due, and those who deserve to eventually triumph.
A little more challenging than rewarding. (Horror. 14-18)Pub Date: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781774882306
Page Count: 328
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Disappointingly uneven.
A group of teenagers sets out to find answers surrounding their sleepy town’s haunted past.
When high school golden couple Brad and Shelley are found dead at the abandoned Carrington Manor, the residents of the quiet California town of Sanera are panicked. Quarterback Brad was at the old house hoping to film the Carrington Ghoul for his show, Truly Haunted. Seniors Cam, Jonesy, and Amber, along with new girl Buffy, decide to solve the murders themselves, leading them to a series of terrifying discoveries. After an explosive beginning, the plot tapers off into an overly repetitive narrative that contains more telling than showing. Debut author Wood creates characters with thoughtfully imagined backgrounds, such as Jonesy’s mom’s alcoholism, that unfortunately aren’t integrated into the plot or explored beyond giving the teens reasons to be away from home. Similarly, many characters have traumatic pasts that will intrigue readers, but those backstories remain underdeveloped. Still, the action scenes and detailed descriptions of Carrington Manor are engaging. The story contains positive queer representation: Amber is bisexual, and Cam and Jonesy begin to acknowledge their feelings for one another in a growing relationship containing touching moments. The accessible writing alternates among several points of view. Most characters present white, and a mention of Amber’s braids may be intended to cue that she’s Black.
Disappointingly uneven. (Horror. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9798225006143
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
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