A nuanced story with a cast readers will cheer for.
Talon struggles to follow his brother’s goal of bringing peace to Pyrlanum in this duology closer following 2023’s Chaos & Flame.
After Caspian, regent of House Dragon, declared an end to the Dragons’ imperialistic war, he transformed himself and Darling into an empyreal dragon and phoenix, respectively. Talon, Caspian’s brother, is left to keep the unstable peace, while the Dragons refuse to return their captured lands and the newly released magical boons cause chaos across Pyrlanum. When his aunt Aurora and her cursed blood magic threaten the newly awakened empyreal regents, Talon races to stop her. Darling, reeling from both brothers’ betrayal, struggles to keep hold of herself against the powerful pull of the phoenix that forces her on its own unknown quest. The ongoing storyline about ending the war is well developed, and it depicts the difficulties of handling reparations, demilitarization, and establishing diplomatic relations in the wake of bloodshed. The positioning of empyreals as blood heirs and guardians of Chaos is intriguing and creates an original and deep magic system. Likewise, the mystique surrounding the phoenix provides shocking twists. While the side characters are interesting, they lack development; still, Darling’s and Talon’s stories are gripping and inspire empathy, especially with their explorations of self and grief. Darling’s gradual change in emotions is understandable, resulting in a realistic slow-burn romance; readers may feel Talon comes across as too steadfast. The characters are varied in physical appearance.
A nuanced story with a cast readers will cheer for. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: May 14, 2024
ISBN: 9780593353356
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance.
A Connecticut girl and her best friend devise a series of plans in order to achieve their goals: following a dream and winning back an ex.
Eighteen-year-old Audrey Barbour has a Master Plan: attend Blue Ridge Glass School in North Carolina and someday turn her Etsy shop, Golightly Glass, into a thriving business. But her uber-wealthy parents insist that she instead follow in their footsteps and go to business school. So Audrey decides to go find the tuition money she needs with help from her best friend, Henry Chen. Henry needs a favor, too: He hopes that fake dating Audrey will help him win back his ex-girlfriend, and he points out to a reluctant Audrey that this could make her crush, Griffin, notice her. While Audrey’s parents vacation in France for three weeks, the pair rent out the Barbour mansion on the Long Island Sound. Soon romantic chemistry grows alongside their business partnership. Despite the pair’s great preparation and an abundance of secondary characters with connections and talents to help pull off their increasingly ambitious ideas, plans go awry, leaving Audrey and Henry scrambling and second-guessing their choices. The pacing is even, but the characters often take a back seat to the whirlwind of activity that drives the plot, with the emphasis falling on each person’s practical skills and their role in keeping the action moving over their emotional bonds. Audrey is white, and Henry’s surname cues him as Chinese American.
A light and entertaining plot-driven romance. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: March 31, 2026
ISBN: 9780593904794
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Delacorte Romance
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A character-focused entry that will satisfy fans.
Romantic complications between a trained killer and one of her captors drive this sequel to Watch Me (2025).
Appealing to readers who prefer their romantic dramas to be light on action and heavy on long passages of banter, bitter sibling arguments, and tortured reflections, Mafi continues the tale of Rosabelle Wolff, the flaxen-haired assassin from the dystopic Reestablishment, and magnetic, “impossibly stunning” James Anderson, her nemesis-turned-lover who’s still trying to take down the regime. Now desperate to accomplish several secret missions, Rosa easily escapes from one of The New Republic’s prisons, where she was left in the series opener, and, dressed in “a little kid’s cat onesie,” eludes all pursuers except for James, who can seemingly find her at will. Enigmatic Rosa responds unpredictably to many human contacts—including with violence, temporary death (one of her abilities), or a sudden panic attack. Along with the central pair of rivals and lovers, James’ older brother, Aaron, shares the narration. Bestseller Mafi tucks in several subplots, including, notably, a cameo from Juliette Ferrars, the protagonist of the original Shatter Me series, who’s undergoing a scarily difficult pregnancy. Amid the slowly simmering rising action, the author delivers a revelation and a twist that set up a potential series climax. Some ethnic diversity is present in the supporting cast.
A character-focused entry that will satisfy fans. (Dystopian. 14-adult)Pub Date: April 7, 2026
ISBN: 9780063419056
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Storytide/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 7, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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