Atmospheric, well-realized, and terrifying.
Home is where the trauma is when a magical crash course meets dark family history.
Recent Irvine, California, high school graduate Edelweiss “Edie” Birch seeks her inheritance: the Hart Creek, Maine, home of her estranged late maternal grandmother, Ludmilla Vovk. The pointy red-and-white structure out in the woods is a character unto itself, not least because it can grow chicken legs and move around like Baba Yaga’s house. Pale, red-haired Edie meets up with her aunt Darya and Darya’s student, Leander. The Vovk family came to America from Ukraine in the 1800s, bringing their “nature worship” traditions with them. They practice magic, including casting an annual spell that protects Hart Creek from menacing goblins. This task now falls on Edie’s shoulders, and she’d much rather offload the responsibility onto someone else. Edie and Leander, who has brown skin and Afro-textured hair, are young adults struggling with the weight of others’ expectations, although Edie’s are rooted in horrifying family secrets. Edie’s growth from passive avoidance to engaged action forms a satisfying character arc. The goblins, often depicted as silhouettes or bright, glaring eyes, turn out to be more than they seem. The color palette’s shifts—green and black during moments of menace and an intense flashback sequence in greens and reds against a black background—provide thrills amid the angst. References to Nathaniel Hawthorne and Stephen King are earned touchstones in Hender’s YA debut.
Atmospheric, well-realized, and terrifying. (content warning, sketchbook) (Graphic horror. 14-18)Pub Date: July 7, 2026
ISBN: 9781250882615
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2026
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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