An emotional, lyrical read.
A music-filled offering that tackles mental illness and parental loss with heart and hope.
Bangladeshi American Liana Sarkar, a brand-new high school graduate, has a lot to grapple with over the summer before she starts studying music management and marketing at UCLA. She’s waiting to get help for her anxiety and depression until she’s at college, so that her dad—who’s mostly been absent since her mom died—won’t see the treatment on his health insurance and find out. Adding to her stress, Liana’s best friend has left Los Angeles for a summer program at Columbia, and in an attempt to help a cute boy in a local band, Liana majorly messes up. She not only accidentally sabotages the band’s chances for success, but the complications spill over into her working relationship with her music exec dad and her internship at the record company where he recruits new acts. As Liana tries to fix the mess, she gets closer to the band members, including handsome Korean American Skyler Moon. Bhuiyan’s multidimensional characters express heartfelt intensity, and Liana’s struggles to deal with her grief and mental illness are well drawn and sympathetic. The supporting cast of characters and their relationships—particularly those among the lovable boy band members—provide the story with depth and feeling, making it sing. Song titles open each chapter, and, along with the exploration of Liana’s love of the industry, they provide music lovers with much to enjoy.
An emotional, lyrical read. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2024
ISBN: 9781335010032
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
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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