A dense, gripping mystery built on real-world history and enticing characters.
A Chicago teenager runs afoul of a secret organization while touring world landmarks in Person’s debut thriller.
High school student Dante Rivera’s extensive knowledge impresses tour guide and substitute teacher Alison Fine. She invites him on a cruise over the summer—a tour not yet open to the public that will visit each site of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Dante and Alison begin in Giza, Egypt. As it happens, Dante sees premonitory “pictures” in his head (“They were vivid and did not evaporate, and they presented themselves without any thought on his part, at any time of day, even if he was in midsentence. Sometimes they were troubling, but mostly they were benign. Always, they came true”). One picture is on the bottom of an ancient brick he couldn’t possibly have glimpsed. That’s how he knows it’s stamped with an I, possibly for Ibis, a shadowy group that collects artifacts. Ibis is likely the same organization that’s interested in the statuette that Dante convinces Alison to buy, which another picture identifies as a bona fide treasure. It becomes abundantly clear how determined the mysterious organization is when someone turns up dead. Person loads this tale with mysteries, from Dante seeking information about his long-absent father to the surprisingly helpful hieroglyphs that appear in the sky. Dante and Alison are immersed in a cast of shifty people, so finding an ally or two isn’t easy. These prickly characters give the story welcome energy; tour organizer Monica Deuss constantly criticizes the ongoing cruise, even cutting guest lectures short, and Dante impatiently seeks answers by deliberately provoking the clandestine organization with revealing blog posts. The exposition-heavy final act offers a resolution and a few genuine surprises. This all unfolds against a backdrop of richly detailed histories and descriptions of landmarks in Egypt, Greece, Iraq, and Turkey. Stovka’s black-and-white illustrations are simple and bold, particularly those of the memorable hieroglyphs.
A dense, gripping mystery built on real-world history and enticing characters.Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Wise Ink Creative Publishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 30, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
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
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