A satisfyingly complex story encompassing both romance and family healing.
Back home in Florida for winter break, a Latino college freshman faces emotional upheaval.
Struggling after his first semester at CalArts, an art school in Los Angeles, Devin Báez feels like a fraud. He’s also feeling distant from his family—twin sister Maya, dad, stepmom, and stepbrother. Returning to their old cabin near a lake for the first time since Mami died is bittersweet, especially with the small town’s decline and the neglected cabin’s deterioration. Adding to the stress, Dev is trying to finish his application for a prestigious animation mentorship, money is tight, and they might have to sell the cabin. When Dev bumps into Julian Seo-Cooke, the Korean and Cuban son of neighbors who are “loaded, obnoxious, and annoying as hell,” everything becomes even more complicated. Julian has become distractingly handsome, and he asks Dev to pretend to be his boyfriend in order to get a persistent ex to leave him alone. Everything culminates at the town’s annual Winter Games, historically the scene of a bitter rivalry between the Báezes and the (likely cheating) Seo-Cookes—and this year, the stakes are higher than ever. The sweet enemies-to-lovers romance develops slowly and believably. This debut also explores changing familial relationships, particularly between Dev and Maya, whose life paths diverge amid their financial troubles. The treatment of grief is layered, reflected throughout the family’s shared memories as they figure out how to move forward.
A satisfyingly complex story encompassing both romance and family healing. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Dec. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9780593645796
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Joy Revolution
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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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