A cursed prince and a girl whose presence stops magic join forces to regain the kingdom of Avalon from the Snow Queen.
Prince Alexei of Avalon has lived incognito since the Snow Queen ensnared his home kingdom in ice. He is now in hiding with Tala’s family in Arizona, keeping his identity and Tala’s spell-breaking a secret given the illegality of magic in the Royal States of America. When the fabled firebird, Avalon’s protector, arrives in Arizona, Alex, Tala, and a group sent by the mysterious leader Cheshire return to Avalon in an attempt to defeat the Snow Queen once and for all. Mythology and folklore from around the world, including King Arthur, Yamato Takeru, and El Cid, meet in a single world. This mishmash does not overwhelm but instead makes for an intriguing read. Fantastical events such as the fall of Wonderland are woven seamlessly with emotionally charged real-world elements such as racist Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Tala is Scottish and Filipina, allowing for exploration of immigration and diasporic communities. Alex is gay, and other characters are nonbinary, disabled, adopted, and of various ethnicities. Incorporating modern sensibilities and a sprawling world drawn from fairy tales, Chupeco (The Never Tilting World, 2019, etc.) has brought readers a truly original novel.
A deftly executed melding of folklore and reality grounded in contemporary issues. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: March 3, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4926-7266-1
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Dec. 8, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2020
Categories: TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
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Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
24
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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. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This hefty sequel to Six of Crows (2015) brings high-tension conclusions to the many intertwined intrigues of Ketterdam.
It's time for revenge—has been ever since old-before-his-time crook Kaz and his friends were double-crossed by the merchant princes of Ketterdam, an early-industrial Amsterdam-like fantasy city filled to the brim with crime and corruption. Disabled, infuriated, and perpetually scheming Kaz, the light-skinned teen mastermind, coordinates the efforts to rescue Inej. Though Kaz is loath to admit weakness, Inej is his, for he can't bear any harm come to the knife-wielding, brown-skinned Suli acrobat. Their team is rounded out by Wylan, a light-skinned chemist and musician whose merchant father tried to have him murdered and who can't read due to a print disability; Wylan's brown-skinned biracial boyfriend, Jesper, a flirtatious gambler with ADHD; Nina, the pale brunette Grisha witch and recovering addict from Russia-like Ravka; Matthias, Nina's national enemy and great love, a big, white, blond drüskelle warrior from the cold northern lands; and Kuwei, the rescued Shu boy everyone wants to kidnap. Can these kids rescue everyone who needs rescuing in Ketterdam's vile political swamp? This is dark and violent—one notable scene features a parade of teens armed with revolvers, rifles, pistols, explosives, and flash bombs—but gut-wrenchingly genuine. Astonishingly, Bardugo keeps all these balls in the air over the 500-plus pages of narrative.
How can such a hefty tome be un-put-down-able excitement from beginning to end? (glossary) (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62779-213-4
Page Count: 560
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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