Stirring and deft curtain raiser to a mayhem-filled, girl-powered YA/SF saga that doesn’t talk down to readers.
A daughter of a galactic peace activist kidnapped by bloodthirsty space pirates finds herself under the protection of interstellar adventurer Kiya.
Mellette hails from a background of script work on Hollywood properties, including Xena: Warrior Princess,and YA material. Both combine as backdrop for this space opera, intended as a series launch. Nadir is the smart, sheltered young daughter of interplanetary ambassador/ardent pacifist Sir Janus Alotus, who’s determined to stop deadly rampages of sadistic space pirates and bandits. His travels have left him terminally ill of the same space-borne plague that killed his wife. He now intends to surrender himself to despicable warlord Adm. Ghan and die in the villain’s lair in martyrdom as an example to enlighten others to the golden rule (Christ-like is not an adjective used here, but readers will get the idea). Kiya Moria, a muscular, fearsome pilot, is hired to deliver Sir Janus to the plunderers’ world and safeguard Nadir, but Ghan’s greedy minions strike first, led by Derek, a dashing scoundrel and Kiya’s estranged quasi-boyfriend. Derek seizes the father, while Nadir winds up under Kiya’s extended protection for episodes of battles and escapes that also manage to deliver a connected backstory: Kiya’s own piratical father supposedly secreted a great treasure before wiping his daughter’s memory. In rooting out clues, Kiya and Nadir will play roles in some sort of apocalyptic denouement. A nice touch by Mellette is yoking the pulpy action to the Tick, the narrative’s faster-than-light spaceship. A method of covering vast distances by deleting time, it subjects unwary spacefarers to all eternity simultaneously, spawning madness, precognition, and its own mystic religion. Another good move—not slathering on too much cuteness. The plot involves rough stuff; there’s death and destruction, and any potential animal sidekicks are quickly slain. Mellette keeps pages flying and nimbly sidesteps most pitfalls of YA fantasy. One quibble: Why name a sharp hero/narrator Nadir? Maybe the astronomical definition applies.
Stirring and deft curtain raiser to a mayhem-filled, girl-powered YA/SF saga that doesn’t talk down to readers.Pub Date: April 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-940180-20-5
Page Count: 260
Publisher: manuscript
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world.
On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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