A well-paced gay teen romance, set in a post-apocalyptic future.
In Winters’ speculative novel, a teenager on a mission that could end an apocalyptic epidemic unexpectedly forms a bond with a rescuer along the way.
The story opens in Elk Springs, Montana, after society has fallen into ruin, due to a disease known as the Infection that either kills people outright or turns them violent. Seventeen-year-old Zach first sees 18-year-old Aiden passing through town, and after they form a relationship, Zach shares some of his supplies with the newcomer. Aiden aims to continue his trek to the University of Washington to deliver vials of the original version of the Infection to researchers looking for a cure. He attempts to leave but returns after he realizes that he’s endangered Zach by leading his own pursuers to him. Aiden reveals then that he’s part of an underground organization called the Scientific Collective, and he has history with his lead pursuer, Connor Bishop, who he thought was dead until recently. Aiden and Zach continue west, avoiding enemies, finding new allies, and growing closer. Eventually, at the well-guarded Columbia River, they’re forced to part ways, but dangerous circumstances soon bring them back together. Throughout, Winters’ plot effectively focuses on repeatedly separating and reuniting Aiden and Zach while also alternating between their first-person perspectives; the narrative touches upon their romantic moments together and their longing when they’re apart, as well as their respective backstories. The content includes some sex talk, graphic violence, and other intense elements, but they’re all helpfully noted in a warning at the start so readers may gauge the book’s appropriateness for themselves. Overall, the novel features plenty of action scenes to keep things lively, as when Aiden fights an Infected early on: “His fingers get trapped in the doorjamb, and he lets out a howl that sounds more like a beast than a man.” The dialogue between the protagonists is fluid and easygoing, and the romantic scenes are deftly handled.
A well-paced gay teen romance, set in a post-apocalyptic future.Pub Date: May 21, 2024
ISBN: 9781648907371
Page Count: 382
Publisher: NineStar Press
Review Posted Online: March 12, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations.
Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the “enchanted circus” trope.
Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome “golden-brown” sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarlett’s arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets.
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-09525-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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