Plenty of thrills and some kissing too.
This wannabe romance remains a thriller at heart.
Britt wants to go hiking in the Tetons as she tries to recover from the end of her romance with Calvin Versteeg. She and Calvin’s sister, her best friend, Korbie, set out for the Versteegs’ palatial cabin but break down in the middle of an unexpected blizzard. They trudge through the snow and find a cabin occupied by Mason and Shaun, who reluctantly take them in. Soon, however, the girls learn that the young men are on the run from the police and intend either to kill them or take them hostage. Britt talks them into leaving Korbie behind while she accompanies them as their guide in a hike toward the highway, where Mason and Shaun plan to steal a car and escape. While in the cabin, however, Britt discovered a long-dead body that she believes is a missing girl. Events spiral out of control when Calvin shows up. It’s clear that someone is a murderer, perhaps even a serial killer, but which one? Fitzpatrick keeps the focus more on suspense than on the underlying romance, pitching the book to two complementary audiences. Although some of Britt’s reasoning comes across as rather tortured, the story still works as a good thriller. Except for Korbie, effectively drawn as a self-centered, spoiled brat, the characterizations are fairly shallow.
Plenty of thrills and some kissing too. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7426-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
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
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
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