A compellingly dark and wild ride.
In Stewart’s YA SF novel, a teenager and her father spend their days fighting an alien invasion.
Seventeen‑year‑old Nike leads a strange and dangerous life in Toronto. She is a “source,” a living conduit of power that can be weaponized against the alien invasion of raitgurs, creatures whom most people, including Nike herself, can’t see. These raitgurs infect humans, leaving their victims trapped in a catatonic depressive state. Nike’s father, Trayling, is a “burner,” one of the few who can see and fight the raitgurs by drawing energy from a source like Nike whenever she burns herself. The process has never been painless, but lately the damage has become permanent—the burns are eating away at Nike’s body. Resentful of the role she’s forced to play and the suffering she endures, Nike longs desperately for a different life. Trayling works as a “busker,” earning money for every raitgur he kills while simultaneously caring for his wife and other daughter, both of whom are infected and kept in comas within a long‑term care facility. The city has been divided into districts to minimize conflict among burners vying for territory and payouts. Trayling’s suspicions are aroused when he notices a disturbing pattern: Another district, run by a group known as the Italians, is suddenly responsible for killing far more raitgurs than anywhere else. As his already‑strained relationship with Nike begins to fracture, he launches an investigation that uncovers a web of betrayals involving multiple parties. What he discovers threatens to upend everything they thought they knew about the invasion, the burners, and the people they trust. Plunging into the action from the very beginning (“Her father’s hand glowed. Then he sucked up more power until her finger blazed like a road flare and his hand filled with a fireball”), the story quickly immerses readers in Nike’s and Trayling’s gritty, perilous world. The unique and fully realized premise delivers both a high‑stakes plot and emotional depth. With its myriad twists and escalating revelations, the narrative becomes a breathless, gripping journey that will keep readers on the edges of their seats.
A compellingly dark and wild ride.Pub Date: Nov. 25, 2025
ISBN: 9781990086939
Page Count: 246
Publisher: Renaissance
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet if muddled tale of the magic of Appalachia.
A teenage witch goes up against the evil king of the mountain to save a cursed village.
Witch-in-training Verity Vox has spent a year apiece in different villages, helping in any way she can as she learns her art. When it’s time to move on, she receives a sign that shows her where to go next. When the latest sign appears in the form of a note begging for help that floats down on a leaf, she’s eager for the challenge. Verity winds up in Foxfire, a village in the Appalachian mountains that’s been magically cut off from the rest of the world for years, leaving its people close to starvation. The root of their suffering is a man they know as Earl, who lives in the hills and strikes deals with the townspeople that ultimately cause crops to wither, folks to disappear, and the only bridge out of the valley to crumble. Verity is determined to change the villagers’ fortunes, but to do so she’ll have to face off against not just Earl but the ancient power of the mountains itself. Loosely based on the Germanic Erlking legend and told in a voice reminiscent of folktales, the story features a queer romance and a cast that presents white. The convoluted magic system undercuts the strong themes of reciprocity, poverty, and privilege, but Appalachian readers will instantly recognize home.
A sweet if muddled tale of the magic of Appalachia. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2025
ISBN: 9798890032706
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
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