An uneven collection worthwhile for its strong queer-affirming stance and thought-provoking depictions of monsters.
Fifteen tales ranging in genre, tone, and setting are united through their inclusion of monsters and explorations of queerness.
Featuring a mix of new voices and well-known published YA authors (including Kalynn Bayron, David Bowles, and Sam J. Miller), this short story collection includes fantastic creatures varying from spooky to tenderhearted and from familiar to unique. Readers will encounter beasts, witches, shape-shifters, angels, trolls, and more. The human and humanoid characters are racially diverse, and a range of queer and trans identities are represented and affirmed. Sometimes the main character interacts with a monster, while in other tales the protagonist is the monster. Regardless, the characters often find that embracing what makes them different gives them power and peace. In most tales, the awareness, acknowledgment, and acceptance of queer identities is paramount. An editor’s note warns of content involving pain and trauma (the stories contain elements of homophobia and transphobia), but ultimately there’s hope in every story. Each tale opens with a striking illustration and ends with a short reflection from the author about monsters, some poignant and some inconsequential. The stand-out stories are emotionally gripping with fully realized characters and distinct settings, while a few feel underbaked and forgettable. Still, the collection as a whole is compelling and rich with fascinating beasties that provide new twists on monster lore.
An uneven collection worthwhile for its strong queer-affirming stance and thought-provoking depictions of monsters. (Anthology. 14-18)Pub Date: May 21, 2024
ISBN: 9780762483198
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Running Press Kids
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
An entertaining and atmospheric, though sometimes clumsy, exploration of the true cost of beauty.
In this retelling of a classic, a drama student’s obsession with beauty leads her down a dark—and possibly deadly—path.
Eighteen-year-old Penny Paxton is beginning her first year at Dorian Drama Academy in Edinburgh, Scotland, where she hopes to follow in her starlet mother’s footsteps—and earn the love that her mother has never seemed to offer. At Dorian, Penny is mentored by Royal Shakespeare Company legend Orlagh Camran, who makes her the compelling offer of a portrait by the Masked Painter, a mysterious artist with the ability to gift his subjects everlasting youth and beauty. But shortly after Penny’s portrait is complete, several of the Masked Painter’s subjects are found murdered. Fearing that she’s made a terrible mistake and may become the next victim, Penny, who’s gay, begins to investigate the murders with the help of an unlikely ally. As she attempts to uncover the truth surrounding the Masked Painter and the murders, she’s forced to reckon with her own toxic obsession with beauty. This chilling, atmospheric novel, inspired by The Picture of Dorian Gray, is entertaining and full of twists, though some of the reveals feel contrived and some questions are left unanswered. The plot unravels at a leisurely pace but eventually builds to an action-packed (if somewhat convoluted) conclusion. Most characters are cued white.
An entertaining and atmospheric, though sometimes clumsy, exploration of the true cost of beauty. (content note, author’s note, bonus scene) (Fantasy thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: May 26, 2026
ISBN: 9781250346797
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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