This exhilarating tale of survival and acceptance hits home even at its most supernatural.
A banshee living among humans evades threats and struggles with her deep connection to a boy in Alvarez’s YA paranormal-romance.
Seventeen-year-old Sadie Anderson’s life with her single mother, Rose, teems with hardships. They’re both banshees who take human form, keeping their identities secret from humans and enduring animosity from other “Paras” (like vampires and witches). When human hunters attack, they flee their Texas home and take refuge in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Sadie, who’s been deathly sick for the entire trip, believes she’ll find her “cure” in this town and, indeed, she gradually recovers. She and Rose let Great Barrington “claim” them and, as banshees do, they secretly take on human charges, delivering warning keens (a “mournful lament” or wail) for those soon to die and helping others manage overwhelming grief. Unfortunately, hunters in the area may have spotted the mother-daughter banshees. But Sadie’s greater concern is warmhearted Nathan, a teen with whom she shares an unquestionable bond. For a banshee who may have to run from hunters, that attachment means danger, though Sadie still hesitates to break it. Alvarez’s novel is jam-packed with curious backstory, from the banshees always ready to hightail it out of town (complete with go-bags) to Rose clocking in at over 300 years of age. The worldbuilding never slows down the impressive pace; it’s not long before Sadie and Rose are battling hunters and on the run. Even in Massachusetts, they’re constantly on guard, handling charges, and eying a Para ally or two. Sadie, who takes the narrative reins, engages in a refreshingly understated romance with winsome Nathan; her tentative friendships with local peers like Christi are just as impactful. The story, which kicks off a series, boasts a superb ending and sequel tease.
This exhilarating tale of survival and acceptance hits home even at its most supernatural.Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9798988687955
Page Count: 398
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance.
A Connecticut girl and her best friend devise a series of plans in order to achieve their goals: following a dream and winning back an ex.
Eighteen-year-old Audrey Barbour has a Master Plan: attend Blue Ridge Glass School in North Carolina and someday turn her Etsy shop, Golightly Glass, into a thriving business. But her uber-wealthy parents insist that she instead follow in their footsteps and go to business school. So Audrey decides to go find the tuition money she needs with help from her best friend, Henry Chen. Henry needs a favor, too: He hopes that fake dating Audrey will help him win back his ex-girlfriend, and he points out to a reluctant Audrey that this could make her crush, Griffin, notice her. While Audrey’s parents vacation in France for three weeks, the pair rent out the Barbour mansion on the Long Island Sound. Soon romantic chemistry grows alongside their business partnership. Despite the pair’s great preparation and an abundance of secondary characters with connections and talents to help pull off their increasingly ambitious ideas, plans go awry, leaving Audrey and Henry scrambling and second-guessing their choices. The pacing is even, but the characters often take a back seat to the whirlwind of activity that drives the plot, with the emphasis falling on each person’s practical skills and their role in keeping the action moving over their emotional bonds. Audrey is white, and Henry’s surname cues him as Chinese American.
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: March 31, 2026
ISBN: 9780593904794
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Delacorte Romance
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
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