A taut, fast-paced, romantic close to a satisfying duology.
Josslyn Drake and Jericho Nox unravel the Empire’s web of lies in this follow-up to Echoes and Empires (2022).
Soon after finding out she is the biological daughter of Lord Banyon, the Empire of Regara’s greatest enemy, Joss finds herself on the run from Queen Isadora along with her newly found half brother, Prince Elian, and dangerous thief and assassin Jericho, the boy she is falling in love with. The trio hope to turn to Jericho’s powerful boss to learn how to control the wayward magic that plagues each of them in different ways, but when they do find the answers—in the most unexpected of places—it may well lead to cataclysmic changes to the very foundation of the Empire as they start to question everything they thought they knew about magic and how far the queen is willing to go to keep its secrets. Starting shortly after the events of the first book, this sequel ups the ante with nonstop action, further twists, huge revelations about the magic system, and a dynamic romance between Joss and Jericho. While some of the flair and snarky humor from the first book are sadly missing from this sequel, the skillful plotting and strong character development help make up for that. The majority of characters are assumed White.
A taut, fast-paced, romantic close to a satisfying duology. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: June 13, 2023
ISBN: 9780593351734
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A deftly balanced mix of history, intrigue, and romance.
Against the backdrop of World War II, four young women codebreakers put their minds together to find a serial killer.
It’s early 1943, and Arlington Hall, a one-time girls’ school in Virginia, is now the site of a covert intelligence facility where an 18-year-old former maid secretly assumes the new identity Kit Sutherland and becomes a codebreaker. A night out turns deadly when one of their own is murdered, and Kit stumbles across her body in the bathroom. Kit, roommate Dottie, and Moya, the supervisor of their floor, work alongside Violet, one of the Black girls from the segregated codebreaking unit, to bring the culprit to justice. As the budding friends turn their sharp minds and analytical abilities to covertly investigating what turns out to be a series of murders, Kit struggles to keep her own dangerous secret—and her attraction to Moya—under wraps. Meanwhile, Moya will do everything in her power to help her girls while trying not to fall in love with Kit. The novel deftly addresses questions of inequality across class, race, and sexuality in a story that combines well-researched historical background with a nifty whodunit, a strong focus on friendship, and an empowering queer romance. The narrative follows Kit and Moya, making them the better developed characters in the largely White cast. An author’s note includes many resources about the real women whose behind-the-scenes espionage work informed this story.
A deftly balanced mix of history, intrigue, and romance. (Historical thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-33958-2
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2022
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