A passionate story with serious pacing problems.
A Texas teenager is transported to the Otherworld, where she discovers that she’s engaged to its crown prince.
When Dori met Charlotte, a new student at her high school, she was shocked to hear that she was desperate to escape an arranged marriage, not to mention surprised that Charlotte had a magical gift—and insisted that Dori had one, too. After Charlotte runs away, 18-year-old Dori is kidnapped to become the prince’s betrothed in her stead. Although Dori knew nothing of the Four Worlds—of which the Otherworld and the Mortalworld, or Earth, are only two—she soon finds herself entrenched in the life of the royal palace: going to balls, having adventures, and accidentally falling in love with Prince Garret. Dori desperately wants to go home, but she discovers her own magical gift—a powerful one, at that—which might allow her to enact much-needed change in the Otherworld. Dori must choose whether to stay and accept her fate or return to the life she always thought was her destiny. The novel unfortunately gets bogged down in dull, complicated explanations detailing the politics of the Otherworld, and the narrative pacing isn’t helped by writing that focuses on describing clothing over advancing the plot. The main characters’ slow-burn love affair is both steamy and chaste and will appeal to romance fans. Dori is cued white; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast.
A passionate story with serious pacing problems. (Fantasy romance. 12-18)Pub Date: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781998839148
Page Count: 304
Publisher: 5310 Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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