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TWO INFINITE THINGS

An off-kilter and delightful tale about unearthing strange secrets.

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Zubairi presents a YA novel about a teenager who doesn’t fit in and a conspiracy that turns out to be true.

In upstate New York, 16-year-old Orville Hatch just been admitted to Fox Meadow General Hospital once again. This time, it’s because he was screaming at a mouse in his school. That was, he says,because the mouse seemed to hate him—an opinion it made clear through telepathy. Despite this apparent delusion, Orville is sent back to school among his friends, who include Phoebe Kim, who’s in the marching band with him. Unlike Orville, she doesn’t hate it; indeed, she takes it very seriously, and that’s his problem, because she needs him for rides to practice. Orville may be far from popular at school, but it turns out that people than Phoebe paying attention to him—including a boy who watches Orville closely and reports on him to Orville’s father, who’s obsessed with investigating conspiracies on “a massive flowchart, where crisscrossing arrows connected them to the Illuminati, the CIA, and a chain of mattress stores.” It leaves Orville feeling more than a little lonely, but at least he’s got friends with more affectionate families. When armed men storm Orville’s high school and single him out as “one of them,” chaos ensues that has his questioning everything. Over the course of this YA thriller, the portrayals of the main characters are the greatest treat: Each is odd in their own ways, and they stand out individually but have great chemistry together and provide amusing banter, often about pop culture. Orville is a delightful and relatable main character, but what shines even more brightly is the prose, which flows effortlessly, short chapter after short chapter, and allows for an immersive experience. Its offbeat presentation results in a book that’s hard to put down.

An off-kilter and delightful tale about unearthing strange secrets.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: 9798986409610

Page Count: 434

Publisher: Pygmalion Books

Review Posted Online: Aug. 24, 2023

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POWERLESS

From the Powerless Trilogy series , Vol. 1

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

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THE CRUEL PRINCE

From the Folk of the Air series , Vol. 1

Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.

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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. 25, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017

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