A tribute to lovable losers, unlikely adventures, uncomfortable truths, and the will to move forward.
A 16-year-old underdog wanders a highway through Hell on a not-quite-hero’s journey.
A few pages into this first-person worldbuilding fantasy, Sam Sullinger is mortified by a candid photo album of humiliating photos shared online. Worse still: This isn’t unusual, as Sam’s life is defined by bullying. At school, ringleader Kyle McGee has tormented him since sixth grade; at home, his own father regularly belittles him. Two people have kept Sam afloat amid the anguish. Uncle Bear, his mother’s gay, worldly, wheelchair-using brother, captivated him with legends chronicled in The Books of Hell. Then there’s Harper James: smart, tough, and pretty, his lifelong defender and crush, and, in two weeks, off to Paris for a yearlong exchange program. Worried he’ll lose Harper forever, Sam develops a plan to tell her how he feels. It backfires spectacularly. When Harper disappears into an all-too-real Hell, Sam realizes help isn’t coming and follows, hoping to petition Stolas, a slave-turned–liberating king, for aid. While Hell is indeed hell, it also subverts his expectations. Sam forms a romantically tinged alliance with teen badass Hollinshead; comes to see demons as people rather than deities; and, most importantly, realizes The Books of Hell sold him falsehoods, especially about Stolas. Can Sam locate Harper, defeat Stolas, and find a way home—or has he exchanged one hell for another? Excluding demons, characters are Canadian and coded as white.
A tribute to lovable losers, unlikely adventures, uncomfortable truths, and the will to move forward. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4597-4675-6
Page Count: 280
Publisher: Dundurn
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
A compelling romance inhabited by complex and appealing characters.
When star hockey player Alec Barczewski’s estranged childhood friend, Dani Collins, moves to town, they end up in a mutually beneficial fake-dating relationship that reignites old feelings.
Following her parents’ divorce, Dani and her mom move in with Dani’s hockey legend grandfather in Southview, Minnesota, where she spent a month every summer as a child and where her friendship with Alec grew. Between visits, the two were pen pals, but they eventually fell out of touch. Despite some tensions over their loss of friendship, the high school seniors reconnect. Desperate to get off Harvard’s waitlist, Dani needs another extracurricular activity, while Alec—whose reputation took a hit when a photo of him holding a bong appeared on social media—is eager to improve his tarnished image for NHL scouts. The pair strike a deal: They’ll fake date, making Alec look like a stable guy whose academically gifted girlfriend is related to hockey royalty, and in exchange, he’ll get Dani a team manager position that will catch the eye of Harvard’s admissions officers. Eventually, complicated feelings about their past, stressful family relationships, and their brewing romance boil over. Romance fans will love the deliciously tension-filled scenes between Alec and Dani, who are believable friends with heavy demands weighing on them. They feel like real teenagers, and readers will enjoy rooting for them as the well-paced story unfolds. Main characters present white.
A compelling romance inhabited by complex and appealing characters. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9781665921268
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 2, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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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