Rejoice! Reeve returns to the vivid, violent, steampunky world of his Hungry Cities Chronicles. In a still-stationary London, signs of the genocide that killed the mutant Scriven overlords are fading. Teenage Fever Crumb, orphaned in the Skinners’ Riots and the only female raised by the eminently rational Order of Engineers, is recruited by an archaeologist who has found a hidden Scriven workshop. But nomads are moving in, Fever is beset by unfamiliar memories and civil unrest is once again taking over. Filled with humor (“blog,” as in who gives a, is a swearword) and tackling issues of love, family and power, the author balances the occasional cheap laugh (the Hari Potter cult) or violent death with a finely wrought coming-of-age story starring an unlikely and occasionally unlikable heroine who (like Hester Shaw) becomes a figure of pathos and dignity. Bonuses: the start of Municipal Darwinism, Grike’s origins and a glimpse of the real Great Quirke. An essential read for fans and a great entry point for newcomers to the world; here’s hoping there’s more to come. (Science fiction. 13 & up)
Pub Date: April 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-20719-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2010
Atmospheric but ultimately unfulfilling.
Reflections from a mirror world hold secrets long ago forgotten.
Ying Yue’s betrothal to the crown prince has not gone the way she had hoped. Instead of finding a man interested in getting to know her, she’s been locked away, seeing no one except her handmaiden. As her wedding draws nearer, Ying begins to see strange things in the mirror, until she’s suddenly pulled into a mirror world that’s much like her own but with its own dangers as well. There’s a Mirror Prince, too, and he’s different from the one she knows—more attentive and interested in her well-being. But not everyone from the mirror world is so friendly, and, like it or not, Ying discovers she’s at the center of an ancient prophecy that affects both this reflected world and her own. Unfortunately, Ying repeatedly falls for deceptions that come her way, all the while distracted by her feelings for two different princes, both of whom she barely knows. While the mirror world’s trappings are chilling and possess an alluring aesthetic, and the doubles are eerie, these elements unfortunately aren’t enough to elevate the novel, which gets bogged down in the plot contrivances that Ying encounters and ever-so-luckily survives. This quick read delivers a strong Chinese-based fantasy setting but leaves something to be desired in terms of character and plot development.
Atmospheric but ultimately unfulfilling. (author’s note) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9780593707500
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2024
Deeply romantic and utterly magical.
An aspiring alchemist and a talented sharpshooter team up to hunt an ancient beast.
When the hala appears each autumn, New Albion’s Halfmoon Hunt soon follows. Teams consisting of a marksman and an alchemist hunt the creature in pursuit of fame and fortune. Though the Katharist church condemns the hala as a demon, 17-year-old Margaret Welty has been taught by her Yu’adir father that it is a sacred creation of God. Legend even has it that the hala’s alchemized carcass could be forged into the philosopher’s stone. If Maggie wins the hunt and kills the hala, her alchemist mother, gone for months, may finally return home to stay. Weston Winters, son of Banvish-Sumic immigrants, has been fired from every apprenticeship he’s charmed his way into. Being taken on as Evelyn Welty’s student is his best chance at becoming an alchemist, but when he arrives at Welty Manor, Maggie immediately dislikes him. However, after they ultimately come to understand each other’s personal motives, they rely on one another to achieve their dreams. This atmospheric, emotionally driven story focuses on the slow-burn romance between two outcasts who yearn to belong and who face discrimination for their cultural and religious backgrounds. Characters are cued as White, and New Albion is reminiscent of early-20th-century America: the Banvish-Sumic, Katharist, and Yu’adir people read as fantasy-world corollaries of Irish Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish immigrants, respectively.
Deeply romantic and utterly magical. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: March 8, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-62365-2
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2022
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