An intriguing first installment of a promising fantasy series.
In Cassera’s YA fantasy novel, the first of a trilogy, a girl fights to uncover who she really is while a boy must repress his psychic powers to survive.
Natalie Covington and Henry Thorne are seniors at the elite Lockwood Academy, located on a private island on the Washington state coastline. Natalie hails from a wealthy family while Henry attends the school on a scholarship. Separated by social status and unlikely to connect, the two find their lives entwined following a ceremony in which Natalie’s boyfriend Jack Carter is sworn in as the student body’s president: When Henry appears distressed, Natalie runs to his aid, convinced he’s having a panic attack and appalled that no one steps up to assist him. However, when she approaches, Henry shoves her away, despite his immediate attraction to her. It turns out that he secretly has psychic, precognitive abilities, and his visions predict Natalie’s death: “An electric bolt pulses through my body and then I see… Natalie’s face—eyes wide in horror.She seems to be straining, trying to breathe.” Although precog support groups and family members forbid Henry from informing Natalie of her fate, another student precog named Wes Thompson challenges him to defy the odds, telling Henry a story about his brother, who successfully changed his girlfriend’s destiny. Natalie is drawn to Henry, and she embarks upon a quest to understand her deceased mother, herself, and her capabilities. Written in the first person, this contemporary fantasy novel alternates between Natalie and Henry’s perspectives, which effectively propels the plot forward. The narrative integrates themes of friendship, romance, and identity as it charts a journey to self-discovery characterized by strength, loyalty, and understanding in the face of evil. There are moments when prescribed gender roles impact the story; while Henry’s abilities take center stage, there is little foreshadowing about the fact that Natalie is also more than human. A more equitable presentation of Natalie’s budding superpowers and more extensive worldbuilding outside of Lockwood would enhance the story. Despite these flaws, the story is sure to whisk readers away from reality’s daily grind with its deft balancing of relationship plots and fantasy tropes.
An intriguing first installment of a promising fantasy series.Pub Date: March 28, 2023
ISBN: 9798987387801
Page Count: 318
Publisher: Mogul Scarf Productions, Inc.
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
A delicious winter romance that shimmers with classic fairy-tale magic.
An 18-year-old’s encounter with the pale, mysterious, golden-eyed Starmaker transforms her from hamlet girl to magical apprentice.
Aurora Finch discovers she possesses the rare ability to channel sunlight—magic essential to the survival of snow-covered Reverie, her mountain village, “with peaks so high the Sun [cannot] rise above them.” Now she faces a harsh choice: Leave everything behind to train at the Starmaker’s enchanted castle or die as the untapped magic destroys her from within. Griffin excels at worldbuilding; the story is filled with elements and characters that feel both whimsical and real, from Tilly, a living snow angel who’s searching for herself, to Constance, an immortal rabbit. As the antagonism between Aurora and the cold, centuries-old Starmaker melts, their love story, which forms the heart of this tale, crackles with tension. Aurora emerges as a compelling hero—stubborn and brave—who refuses to be diminished by the overwhelming responsibilities thrust upon her. The romantic storyline proves both strong and emotionally involving as the author brings fresh twists to familiar elements, exploring the power of stories and how they shape our understanding of the world. White-presenting Aurora faces a devastating truth that creates urgency and heightens the emotional stakes that drive the story to its conclusion. This satisfying, sparkling fantasy will capture hearts with its well-developed setting and captivating love story.
A delicious winter romance that shimmers with classic fairy-tale magic. (author’s note) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
ISBN: 9781728256184
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
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