A funny, heartfelt ride with two lovable leads.
Former friends compete with one another for a new student’s affections.
High school seniors Caleb Daniels and Emma Jones were childhood friends, but they stopped talking after eighth grade. Protecting recent transfer Juliet Higgins (who’s queer and coded Black) from a bully lands Caleb in a fight he can’t handle. After Emma jumps in to rescue him, the two, who find Juliet very attractive, enter a competition for her heart: “Whoever she kisses first gets to ask her out.” Vying for Juliet’s attention brings Caleb and Emma (who are both white and bisexual) into frequent contact; as they repeatedly crash the other’s hangouts, their shared history intrudes, and their romantic feelings for each other become impossible to ignore. Caleb’s also struggling to bond with his absentee dad, while Emma is living out of her car after her tense relationship with her mother came to a boiling point. Caleb and Emma are vividly drawn, each with believable quirks, strengths, and weaknesses. The secondary characters, such as Juliet and Caleb’s mom, are also endearing. Because the narration alternates between the leads’ points of view, readers largely get to know Juliet through Caleb’s and Emma’s idealized, somewhat flattening perspectives. The dialogue, which includes a healthy dose of swear words and snark, rings true. While Caleb and Emma’s evolving relationship is the star of the show, friendships and familial relationships also play key roles.
A funny, heartfelt ride with two lovable leads. (content note) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: July 23, 2024
ISBN: 9780593403143
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2024
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 lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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