A tepid, formulaic fantasy that fails to sufficiently interrogate the issues it raises.
Following duology opener The Great Hunt (2016), Princess Aerity and her people face another brutal threat in the form of angry Lashed citizens, who are tired of being punished for their ability to do magic.
The royal family of Lochlanach is shocked and dismayed when another bloodthirsty beast appears after the first one was killed with so much effort. Before any plans can be made to defeat the monsters and their creator, Princess Aerity flees for one last goodbye to the man she loves but cannot marry. However, the rebellion is larger and more complicated than she ever suspected, and soon she finds herself face to face with the true enemy—Rozaria Rocato. Rozaria is working with Prince Vito of Kalor, who wants the magic-working Lashed to rise up and defeat all who have oppressed them. The suppression of the Lashed by others provides a template for an exploration of the uses and drawbacks of civil unrest, though the story stays very much on the surface of the topic. Instead, a slightly predictable plot and characterizations keep the book at a superficial simmer. Higgins’ world is a mishmash of tropes, the faux British Lochlans juxtaposed against the exotic Zandalee and Kalorians, who are dark-skinned “tribesmen.” Both maidens and those who have chosen to eschew maidenhood are both chivalrously protected and bravely participatory in the battle.
A tepid, formulaic fantasy that fails to sufficiently interrogate the issues it raises. (Fantasy.13-18)Pub Date: March 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-06-238136-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A worthy second-chance romance.
In this follow-up to 2021’s Better Than the Movies, a 20-year-old college freshman gets a second chance at his dreams.
After the death of his father and his mother’s subsequent physical and emotional disappearance, Wes Bennett left behind all of his plans and the girl he made them with to go home and take care of Sarah, his younger sister. But now, Sarah has graduated, his mom is back on her feet, and by some miracle, Wes has an offer to pitch for UCLA’s baseball team. Liz Buxbaum, the girl he’s always loved, works for the university’s athletic department, taking photos and video of the team for social media, which means that maybe he can have a second chance at love, too. But since Wes left, Liz has made every effort to protect herself from ever feeling that broken again; there’s no room for love, because she doesn’t believe in it anymore. Or she doesn’t want to. This second-chance sports romance includes fake dates, quippy and quirky best friends, real heartache, and the sweet ache of first love. The clever dialogue keeps readers from drowning in the main characters’ emotional push-and-pull. Reading the first novel isn’t necessary for appreciating this one, although knowing the full history between Wes and Liz will only add to the ache and longing readers feel from and for them. Main characters are cued white.
A worthy second-chance romance. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781665947138
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
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