Cerebral, atmospheric, and genuinely unsettling—science thriller gold.
A Eugene, Oregon, teen’s dream spot at a prestigious San Francisco research organization turns into a nightmare.
Ambitious, driven Aarya has worked hard for years—and being accepted into the Elizabethan Institute’s yearlong high school intensive feels like the gateway to a career in biology. But from her arrival, something feels off. The city is buzzing with stories of mutated wildlife and trees blooming off-season, rumored to be connected to the Institute’s mysterious work. Surrounded by cutthroat peers, Aarya expects academic pressure but not an anonymous note reading, “You sense it already, all that is wrong. / Get out.” When she meets Sofia Castillo, who claims to be the subject of secret experiments, Aarya’s curiosity pulls her into an investigation that grows deadly as her memory fails and a classmate is murdered. The narrative folds scientific authenticity into a gothic ambience, creating a fog-shrouded pressure cooker where academic ambition collides with moral catastrophes. Technical details ground the increasingly surreal mystery without sacrificing accessibility. Hati’s examination of institutional corruption and exploitation resonates powerfully. Aarya makes a compelling protagonist: brilliant, driven, and refreshingly nerdy, navigating both scientific challenges and a chronic respiratory condition with determination. Sofia’s role adds chilling depth, while teammates Jaden Abrahms and Tassinee Yang anchor Aarya through her spiraling paranoia. When the pieces snap together, the revelations land with devastating force. Aarya’s given name suggests South Asian heritage; her surname isn’t provided, and any cultural markers are ambiguous.
Cerebral, atmospheric, and genuinely unsettling—science thriller gold. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: April 21, 2026
ISBN: 9781250392855
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2026
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
A powerful story of family, belonging, and identity interlaced with thriller elements.
A wary teen wonders if she should run when people come looking for her.
Lucy Smith was raised by her white father, who said little about her mother. Following his death and her stepmother’s abandonment, Lucy entered the foster care system at 14. Her stepmother revealed that Lucy’s birth mom was Native American, but her social worker urged her to keep that quiet. Battered by her time in the foster care system, it’s no wonder that 18-year-old Lucy is cautious when she’s approached by a man who says he’s an attorney who helps Native American foster kids connect with their families and communities. He introduces her to a friend who reveals to Lucy that she knows her Ojibwe maternal relatives—but a wary Lucy refuses her offer to learn more. Someone is stalking her, after all, and the FBI is investigating the bomb that went off in the diner where she worked—an event she’s sure targeted her. This stand-alone from bestseller Boulley, who’s an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, includes characters her fans will recognize from previous works. The action scenes are mediated by ruminations on the failings of the foster care system and strong portrayals of Lucy’s relationship with her father and her complicated identity. Ardent book lover Lucy is a sympathetic narrator whose strong sense of justice is coupled with a deep acceptance of others.
A powerful story of family, belonging, and identity interlaced with thriller elements. (content warning, author’s note) (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9781250328533
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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