Clever concepts smoothly combine to create an enjoyable fantasy yarn.
Necessary alliances form against unseen evil forces as new rulers emerge in Golden’s YA fantasy novel.
In Sword of Fate(2023), the first volume of the author’s Dynamis fantasy series, the young protagonist Rugal overcame his tendency to run away and defeated the tyrant Oldag, becoming king of Elayas. In this second installment, there’s no rest for the weary Rugal, whose supernatural “dynamis” power is the ability to shift from human to animal form. The Ring of Rosin is missing, and not even Rugal himself knows why that’s so important. The Kargoliths, a nomadic people seeking to create their own kingdom on unsettled land adjacent to Elayas, are soon fingered as the thieves. This accusation is made by Johan, a messenger from the nearby kingdom of Tolan. The Kargoliths plan to abduct Rugal, as he’s the only person who can tap the ring’s power. Johan offers to guide Rugal, accompanied by his friend Tonar, to safety in Tolan before they confront the Kargoliths. The Kargoliths abduct Tonar, mistaking him for Rugal. Rugal wants to mount a rescue immediately, but Johan convinces him to develop a better plan while the Kargoliths think they have succeeded. After their first rescue attempt, Rugal discovers that Johan is keeping a secret of his own. Golden’s novel works effectively as both a continuation of her series and as a standalone story. While readers might find familiarity with the events in Sword of Fatehelpful, it’s hardly essential, as Golden does a skillful job of using flashbacks to reveal the necessary history of this land and its people. Between the deft exposition and the back-of-the-book supplemental sections detailing the “Characters of Elayas,” the “Terminology of Elayas,” and the “Kargolith Tribal Ancestry,” no readers should be left adrift (the titular piece of jewelry is described here as “a red diamond set in a ring of gold. It glows and hums musically when worn by the true king”). Much like the novel’s YA target audience, the narrative’s main characters are relatably finding their way in a world that’s changing around them. All told, this well-constructed fantasy is filled with likable characters in an engaging magical world.
Clever concepts smoothly combine to create an enjoyable fantasy yarn.Pub Date: Aug. 8, 2024
ISBN: 9781956891157
Page Count: 222
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Jan. 30, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression.
After surviving a suicide attempt, a fragile teen isn't sure she can endure without cutting herself.
Seventeen-year-old Charlie Davis, a white girl living on the margins, thinks she has little reason to live: her father drowned himself; her bereft and abusive mother kicked her out; her best friend, Ellis, is nearly brain dead after cutting too deeply; and she's gone through unspeakable experiences living on the street. After spending time in treatment with other young women like her—who cut, burn, poke, and otherwise hurt themselves—Charlie is released and takes a bus from the Twin Cities to Tucson to be closer to Mikey, a boy she "like-likes" but who had pined for Ellis instead. But things don't go as planned in the Arizona desert, because sweet Mikey just wants to be friends. Feeling rejected, Charlie, an artist, is drawn into a destructive new relationship with her sexy older co-worker, a "semifamous" local musician who's obviously a junkie alcoholic. Through intense, diarylike chapters chronicling Charlie's journey, the author captures the brutal and heartbreaking way "girls who write their pain on their bodies" scar and mar themselves, either succumbing or surviving. Like most issue books, this is not an easy read, but it's poignant and transcendent as Charlie breaks more and more before piecing herself back together.
This grittily provocative debut explores the horrors of self-harm and the healing power of artistic expression. (author’s note) (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-101-93471-5
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2016
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