It’s far from a must-read, but it's not without some appeal for readers looking for a romance with slightly higher stakes...
When friendship turns into love, the path is rarely smooth—especially when there's a third party involved.
Best friends Jake and Elena are facing big changes. Thanks to the remarriage of Jake's mom, he's moving into the mansion of his stepfather, Cameron. He's also realized he's fallen in love with Elena. Using advice offered by his stepbrother, the reckless Nathaniel, Jake confesses how he feels to Elena. But Elena doesn't want to ruin their friendship—and she thinks of Jake like a brother. On the anime Web forum she visits, Elena meets Harlow, a bad boy who sweeps her off her feet. Jake has a bad feeling about this guy, but Elena refuses to listen. Even when Harlow convinces Elena to help him strike against his enemies, she doesn't realize the consequences of her action. And Jake, who knows the truth about Harlow, will get everything he wants but potentially could lose it all. While Jake and Elena are well-rounded characters, Nathaniel is all mustache-twirling evil. Too much time is spent setting the stage, which leads to a rushed plot resolution and an open ending that feels unnecessary. Olin’s prose style is flat, which doesn’t help matters.
It’s far from a must-read, but it's not without some appeal for readers looking for a romance with slightly higher stakes than the usual. (Romantic thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-219241-7
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 25, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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 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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