The author of, most recently, Happy Endings (1991) begins a trilogy about British schoolgirls whose lives parallel familiar fairy tales. Protagonist Megan (Rapunzel) is an orphan whose schoolmistress guardian, Dorothy, satisfied Megan's mother's craving for asparagus (a stand-in for rampion/rape) before Megan's birth. With intriguing ingenuity, Geras mimics the original tale: the three girls room in a tower conveniently equipped with a workmen's scaffold that Simon, a young science instructor, climbs for trysts with Megan; Dorothy, who also entertains romantic notions about Simon, discovers the guilty pair and exiles them after crushing Simon's glasses. Geras writes with imagination and grace, following the story of ``Rapunzel'' but also having Megan narrate from a London flat where the lovers are confronting the unromantic realities of dead-end jobs—an instructive contrast to the ardent scenes in the tower. Here, too, as in the original story, the characters are schematic—Simon, especially, exists as a one-dimensional object of passion (another sly lesson). But what most holds attention is the fascinating parallel between the credible modern details and the original. Roommates Bella, whose jealous stepmother plies her with apples, and Alice, one of whose 13 aunts caused a fuss at her christening, presage the pleasures in the books to follow. (Fiction. 12+)
Pub Date: April 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-15-289627-9
Page Count: 150
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1992
A poignant and romantic coming-of-age tale.
The boy she believed was the fated love of her life dies; now a 17-year-old girl must find a new future—and a new version of herself.
After the death of her boyfriend, Beck, and her military family’s latest move, Amelia Graham tries for a fresh start. On her first day at her new school, she nearly hits fellow senior Paloma with her car but ultimately finds a new friend in her. After months of being depressed and alone, Lia realizes she’s living again. And then there’s the boy. Although she feels an immediate connection, Lia stays away from him, trying to honor her love for Beck. But Isaiah is there when Lia needs support, and she’s increasingly drawn to him. As the past recedes, Lia realizes that who she was with Beck wasn’t all she’ll ever be. Told through Lia’s first-person point of view and moving between past and present, this story covers heartbreak, healing, and learning to live when the person you lived for is gone. Upperman’s writing is engaging, and although the emotions are heavy, an undercurrent of hope snakes through the narrative, growing brighter as Lia comes back to life and begins to see that the future holds multiple possibilities. Central characters present white; Paloma is cued Latine.
A poignant and romantic coming-of-age tale. (A Geographical History of Amelia Graham) (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781464217784
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Sun-loving Bella meets her demon lover in a vampire tale strongly reminiscent of Robin McKinley’s Sunshine. When Bella moves to rainy Forks, Wash., to live with her father, she just wants to fit in without drawing any attention. Unfortunately, she’s drawn the eye of aloof, gorgeous and wealthy classmate Edward. His behavior toward Bella wavers wildly between apparent distaste and seductive flirtation. Bella learns Edward’s appalling (and appealing) secret: He and his family are vampires. Though Edward nobly warns Bella away, she ignores the human boys who court her and chooses her vampiric suitor. An all-vampire baseball game in a late-night thunderstorm—an amusing gothic take on American family togetherness that balances some of the tale’s romantic excesses—draws Bella and her loved ones into terrible danger. This is far from perfect: Edward’s portrayal as monstrous tragic hero is overly Byronic, and Bella’s appeal is based on magic rather than character. Nonetheless, the portrayal of dangerous lovers hits the spot; fans of dark romance will find it hard to resist. (Fantasy. YA)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-316-16017-2
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2005
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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