A twisty, well-developed story that builds to a dramatic finale.
Seventeen-year-old Vesper Vale wakes up to an unfamiliar world after becoming the Great Queen’s human vessel and ending the Storm that tormented her city in this sequel to The Darkening (2022).
In the three years that passed while she was unconscious, Vesper became a hero, revered by all who previously lived in the shadow of the Storm. A council replaced the Regia as the city’s governing body; the council’s members include Casvian, Vesper’s former ikonomancy teacher, and Izamal, the Storm-cursed Wardana protector who immediately takes charge of Vesper’s safety. Discomfited by the implications of Izamal’s security measures and overwhelmed by the public’s expectations, Vesper decides to see the rest of the city for herself—only to discover that the central rings have been taken over by a blinding light from the Great King who was released after a near-fatal attempt by Prince Dalca to take the Regia’s mark. Those who are exposed to the Great King’s light fall under his control and lure others to join them, though for what purpose no one knows. Picking up where the last volume concluded, this sequel swiftly establishes tension and mystery through Vesper’s limited perspective as she faces a powerful new enemy and her own self-doubt in a world that would prefer her to remain a silent figurehead. Vivid worldbuilding, tense action sequences, and a climactic showdown will keep readers at the edges of their seats.
A twisty, well-developed story that builds to a dramatic finale. (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Aug. 29, 2023
ISBN: 9780358561996
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world.
On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.
A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7242-6
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2016
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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