Laudable characters fuel this corporate thriller that runs full tilt.
An auditor’s investigation of a dubious mining company stirs up her complicated past in Kyngdon-McKay’s novel.
Elliott Fox has a few questions regarding Astrapia Mines, the company she’s auditing in Dubalenge in Southern Africa. Why, for instance, does it seem that this profitable ruby mine hasn’t mined any materials for some time? Her boss back in the U.S. would prefer she simply turn in a positive report to guarantee future business with Astrapia. But Elliott is itching to know what the company is up to; the fact that its CEO, Otto Kaspin, is her ex-boyfriend perhaps stokes her curiosity. He unceremoniously dumped her years ago, after Elliott’s father was tried and convicted for running a Ponzi scheme (his misdeeds were brought to light thanks largely to a secret whistleblower—a then-17-year-old Elliott). Tuya Terbish is a reluctant confidential informant for the FBI. She’s been arrested for insider trading, which she did on behalf of her Manhattan hedge-fund boss, Quinton Zines, who’s ostensibly the person the feds really want. As Quinton’s latest shady deal involves possibly shorting Astrapia, he sends consultant Peter Mackham to Dubalenge to look into the company. Peter is a potential ally for Elliott, who is unable to unearth evidence against Astrapia on her own. But their motives don’t mesh: Elliott may be hung up on some kind of vengeance against Otto while Peter, who’s a former CIA agent, needs to get a loan shark off his back. The question remains: If the mining company isn’t digging for pigeon blood rubies, then how are they bringing in money—and how many laws are being broken?
Kyngdon-McKay deftly develops a well-rounded, spirited cast. The teenage Elliott turns her father in, knowing it will upend her family’s life; she also undoubtedly cares deeply for her younger twin brothers. At the same time, Peter seemingly wants to do the right thing, but this self-serving borderline alcoholic is not an easy guy to trust. The author finds time to develop these characters without ever slowing down the story, which teems with suspense-riddled scenes. Elliott spends much of her time rubbing elbows with a number of dangerous individuals like Dominic Van Tonder, Astrapia’s head of security, who’s frighteningly unpredictable. As Elliott’s investigation entails snooping around and snapping photos, there’s no telling what Dominic or others will do if they suspect her intentions. As the tension rarely lets up, Elliott’s obsession with chocolate offers a pleasant reprieve; she clearly savors every bite she gets, and even ranks her favorites (spoiler: Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups are No. 2). The dialogue throughout the novel pops, and the narrative details are even richer: “Elliott stared out the window of the train, her eyes fixed on the sole rift of blue in the cloudy sky…Extraneous thoughts could spill over, when the world outside, rushing by, was let in.” The superb buildup leads to a final act that’s unfortunately somewhat muddled, with another villain joining an already full roster of baddies who don’t necessarily want the same thing. The ending, which implies a new goal for Elliott, makes a sequel a distinct possibility. Laudable characters fuel this corporate thriller that runs full tilt.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 310
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
A debut novel with bright spots, but unbalanced and lacking in finesse.
A high school senior pursues an affair with her teacher.
Seventeen-year-old Waldo, the narrator of McCurdy’s fiction debut, lives in Anchorage, Alaska, with her mother, though she’s long been the parent in their relationship. She heats her own frozen meals and pays the bills on time while her mom chases man after man and makes well-meaning promises she never keeps. Waldo blows her Victoria’s Secret wages on online shopping sprees and binges on junk food, inevitably crashing after the fleeting highs of her indulgences. Mr. Korgy, her creative writing teacher, has “thinning hair and nose pores”; he’s 40 years old and married with a child. Nevertheless—or possibly as a result?—Waldo’s attraction to him is “instant. So sudden it’s alarming. So palpable it’s confusing.” Mr. Korgy professes to want to keep their friendship aboveboard, but after a sexual encounter at the school’s winter formal that she initiates, an affair begins. Will this reckless pursuit be the one that actually satisfies Waldo, and is she as mature as she thinks she is? Waldo is a keen observer of people and provides sharp commentary on the punishing work of female beauty. Readers of McCurdy’s bestselling memoir, I’m Glad My Mom Died (2022), will surely be curious about the tumultuous mother-daughter relationship, and it is one of the novel’s highlights, full of realistic pity and anger and need. (“I want to scream at her. I want her to hug me.”) Unfortunately, the prose is often unwieldy and sometimes downright cringeworthy: When Waldo tells Mr. Korgy she loves him, “The words hang in the air in that constipated way they do when you know that you shouldn’t have said them.” Waldo frequently lists emotions and adjectives in triplicate, and events that could be significant aren’t sufficiently explored or given enough space to breathe before the novel races on to the next thing.
A debut novel with bright spots, but unbalanced and lacking in finesse.Pub Date: Jan. 20, 2026
ISBN: 9780593723739
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
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