An unapologetically queer story that effectively explores an intriguing mystery.
The appearance of a missing heir triggers a long-buried curse.
Flirting with a handsome photographer who walks into his coffeehouse leads to a big surprise for Eli Jones, when he learns that the powers he’s been hiding for years are actually witchcraft. After that attractive stranger, James Birdwhistle, catches Eli practicing his craft in an abandoned farmhouse in the British countryside, he’s quick to bring Eli for training by the Arcana, an ancient society of witches based in London that’s tasked with investigating and containing supernatural occurrences. But the Majors, the Arcana’s ruling body, are less than pleased with this development; Eli’s arrival coincides with strange happenings. Determined to get to the bottom of the Majors’ caginess and explain the dark energy stalking them, Eli and James band together with levelheaded trans woman Daphne, library-loving researcher Grayson, and tarot reader Koko to uncover the truth. Prentice-Jones’ illustrations employ a muted color palette of cool blues, olive browns, and burgundies that flow organically into one another, accentuating the clean, uncluttered panels and fluid lines. He also plays effectively with proportion and shape in his character drawings. The cast members, who largely seem to be adults rather than teens, are diverse across many dimensions, including race and body type. This first installment in a new series teases satisfying developments to come.
An unapologetically queer story that effectively explores an intriguing mystery. (character chart) (Graphic paranormal. 15-adult)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9781250290229
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
PERSPECTIVES
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
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in.
Black is back with another dark tale of Faerie, this one set in Faerie and launching a new trilogy.
Jude—broken, rebuilt, fueled by anger and a sense of powerlessness—has never recovered from watching her adoptive Faerie father murder her parents. Human Jude (whose brown hair curls and whose skin color is never described) both hates and loves Madoc, whose murderous nature is true to his Faerie self and who in his way loves her. Brought up among the Gentry, Jude has never felt at ease, but after a decade, Faerie has become her home despite the constant peril. Black’s latest looks at nature and nurture and spins a tale of court intrigue, bloodshed, and a truly messed-up relationship that might be the saving of Jude and the titular prince, who, like Jude, has been shaped by the cruelties of others. Fierce and observant Jude is utterly unaware of the currents that swirl around her. She fights, plots, even murders enemies, but she must also navigate her relationship with her complex family (human, Faerie, and mixed). This is a heady blend of Faerie lore, high fantasy, and high school drama, dripping with description that brings the dangerous but tempting world of Faerie to life.
Black is building a complex mythology; now is a great time to tune in. (Fantasy. 14-adult)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-316-31027-7
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2017
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