An intriguing premise let down by flawed execution.
Josie Black has been working as a secret agent: If only she could remember any of it.
J.B. is a shy, underperforming teen who one day discovers that her entire life is a lie. After she notices gaps in her memory and her mother’s continuous gaslighting attempts, J.B. learns that not only is she a programmed special operative for a mysterious organization called the Company, but she also possesses skills including speaking multiple languages and expert fighting moves. But she can access those only when her mother—another operative—speaks a series of imprinted commands that subsequently pause her memory. It is imperative for J.B. to gain control of her life, but thankfully she has her best friend, Zoe, on her side as well as a little help from the CIA. This graphic novel is filled with potential but is unevenly told with its whiplash-inducing shifts, from fun agent antics and the silliness of the truth behind the Company to the utter horror of J.B.’s mom’s abusive behavior. The novel’s lack of an emotional core leads to an unearned climax, but J.B. and Zoe’s friendship and their adventures are fun. Illustrator Meola’s original style effectively supports the story with cartoonlike, minimalist panels and a terra-cotta palette that both captures J.B.’s horrifying powerlessness and her eventual freedom. Redheaded J.B. appears White; Zoe has darker skin.
An intriguing premise let down by flawed execution. (Graphic thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: April 6, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-72841-291-7
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Graphic Universe
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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
BOOK REVIEW
A powerful story of family, belonging, and identity interlaced with thriller elements.
A wary teen wonders if she should run when people come looking for her.
Lucy Smith was raised by her white father, who said little about her mother. Following his death and her stepmother’s abandonment, Lucy entered the foster care system at 14. Her stepmother revealed that Lucy’s birth mom was Native American, but her social worker urged her to keep that quiet. Battered by her time in the foster care system, it’s no wonder that 18-year-old Lucy is cautious when she’s approached by a man who says he’s an attorney who helps Native American foster kids connect with their families and communities. He introduces her to a friend who reveals to Lucy that she knows her Ojibwe maternal relatives—but a wary Lucy refuses her offer to learn more. Someone is stalking her, after all, and the FBI is investigating the bomb that went off in the diner where she worked—an event she’s sure targeted her. This stand-alone from bestseller Boulley, who’s an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, includes characters her fans will recognize from previous works. The action scenes are mediated by ruminations on the failings of the foster care system and strong portrayals of Lucy’s relationship with her father and her complicated identity. Ardent book lover Lucy is a sympathetic narrator whose strong sense of justice is coupled with a deep acceptance of others.
A powerful story of family, belonging, and identity interlaced with thriller elements. (content warning, author’s note) (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9781250328533
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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