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
Perhaps a more genuinely enlightened protagonist would have made this debut more engaging
Audrey Rose Wadsworth, 17, would rather perform autopsies in her uncle’s dark laboratory than find a suitable husband, as is the socially acceptable rite of passage for a young, white British lady in the late 1800s.
The story immediately brings Audrey into a fractious pairing with her uncle’s young assistant, Thomas Cresswell. The two engage in predictable rounds of “I’m smarter than you are” banter, while Audrey’s older brother, Nathaniel, taunts her for being a girl out of her place. Horrific murders of prostitutes whose identities point to associations with the Wadsworth estate prompt Audrey to start her own investigation, with Thomas as her sidekick. Audrey’s narration is both ponderous and polemical, as she sees her pursuit of her goals and this investigation as part of a crusade for women. She declares that the slain aren’t merely prostitutes but “daughters and wives and mothers,” but she’s also made it a point to deny any alignment with the profiled victims: “I am not going as a prostitute. I am simply blending in.” Audrey also expresses a narrow view of her desired gender role, asserting that “I was determined to be both pretty and fierce,” as if to say that physical beauty and liking “girly” things are integral to feminism. The graphic descriptions of mutilated women don’t do much to speed the pace.
Perhaps a more genuinely enlightened protagonist would have made this debut more engaging . (Historical thriller. 15-18)Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-316-27349-7
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Jimmy Patterson/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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