With an eye-catching jacket cover, this wordy mix of magic, history and romance will appeal to fans of Libba Bray.
Newly arrived in the exciting Jazz Age–era New York City world of mentalists, mediums and séances, can Anna Van Housen hide her gifts from her jealous mother, even as her visions become more frightening? And is she really Harry Houdini’s illegitimate daughter?
Sixteen-year-old Anna, capable of tricks of illusion and escape and aware of her own growing extrasensory powers, is tired of being an assistant to her mother, Marguerite—a fraud who wants to be the world’s most famous medium. Brown ably depicts the tension between Marguerite’s jealous resentment of her daughter and Anna’s attempts at independence, as well as Anna’s confusion over the romantic intentions of two very different suitors. Indeed, characterization is a strength in this first-person narrative, in which the setting, New York City in the 1920s, is so richly drawn as to become a character in itself. Actual people, organizations and locations from the illusionist scene as well as abundant fashion details of the era immerse readers in rich historical context. Anna, able to communicate with the dead and see visions of the future, must figure out how to extricate both herself and her mother from separate kidnappings and finally learn whom she can trust.
With an eye-catching jacket cover, this wordy mix of magic, history and romance will appeal to fans of Libba Bray. (Historical fantasy. 13 & up)Pub Date: June 11, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-218754-3
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 2, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A fiercely hopeful exploration of loyalty, perception, and agency in the face of fear, misinformation, and violence.
As Emberfall and Syhl Shallow prepare a Royal Challenge to promote unity between their countries, the vocally anti-magic Truthbringers conspire to turn public favor against King Grey.
Set four years after Kemmerer’s Cursebreaker trilogy, this timely, nuanced series opener introduces teen narrators Callyn, Jax, and Tycho, whose alternating perspectives navigate moral ambiguities and confront past and present traumas. Baker Callyn and blacksmith Jax have supported one another through many hardships: the accident that claimed one of Jax’s feet, the loss of Callyn’s parents, and the ongoing physical abuse Jax sustains from his father. Pushed to the point of desperation, Jax and Callyn accept a dangerous but well-paid job conveying potentially treasonous messages for the Truthbringers—but after a chance encounter with Tycho, the King’s Courier, the friends realize they’re in way over their heads. Notably, despite widespread distrust of magic, Tycho and others in Grey’s inner circle wear rings of Iishellasan steel that allow them to borrow his power, foreshadowing further revelations about how the magic functions. Tycho also faces scrutiny for his growing friendship with Jax and Callyn, and as the first Royal Challenge approaches, political and romantic intrigue abound. Both primary romances offer a masterclass in organic yet explicit depictions of consent, including a smoldering queer romance that’s profound in its treatment of intimacy with a sexual assault survivor. Major characters default to White.
A fiercely hopeful exploration of loyalty, perception, and agency in the face of fear, misinformation, and violence. (map, character list) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: June 7, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0912-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
An enticing, turbulent, and satisfying final voyage.
Adrian, the youngest of the Montague siblings, sails into tumultuous waters in search of answers about himself, the sudden death of his mother, and her mysterious, cracked spyglass.
On the summer solstice less than a year ago, Caroline Montague fell off a cliff in Aberdeen into the sea. When the Scottish hostel where she was staying sends a box of her left-behind belongings to London, Adrian—an anxious, White nobleman on the cusp of joining Parliament—discovers one of his mother’s most treasured possessions, an antique spyglass. She acquired it when she was the sole survivor of a shipwreck many years earlier. His mother always carried that spyglass with her, but on the day of her death, she had left it behind in her room. Although he never knew its full significance, Adrian is haunted by new questions and is certain the spyglass will lead him to the truth. Once again, Lee crafts an absorbing adventure with dangerous stakes, dynamic character growth, sharp social and political commentary, and a storm of emotion. Inseparable from his external search for answers about his mother, Adrian seeks a solution for himself, an end to his struggle with mental illness—a journey handled with hopeful, gentle honesty that validates the experiences of both good and bad days. Characters from the first two books play significant secondary roles, and the resolution ties up their loose ends. Humorous antics provide a well-measured balance with the heavier themes.
An enticing, turbulent, and satisfying final voyage. (Historical fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-291601-3
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2021
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