A rousing and gratifying sendoff to a consistently engrossing fantasy series.
A fiendish sorceress wages war against a magic-wielding teen in this conclusion to Shaffery’s YA fantasy trilogy.
The sorceress Dinora has been around for more than six centuries, stealing magic and trapping souls in the fantastical realm of Tenebris. She’s long held a thirst for revenge against this land, and she unleashes an army of conjured stone creatures upon it. The various inhabitants of Tenebris, human and otherwise, unite to battle Dinora’s army, including a teenage girl named Nyla. The sorceress had previously targeted Nyla because the girl inherited the magic of a Mage—Dinora’s nemesis from long ago. While Nyla and others battle the seemingly endless waves of stone creatures, Xander, Nyla’s love, watches the action unfold in a crystal ball. His archery skills can’t do much against enemies of solid rock, but he finds a way to help: He turns to Cedric, Dinora’s captive, centuries-old son,who surely knows how to take out his powerful mother. Shaffery kickstarts this tale with action; Tenebris quickly comes under attack, igniting exhilarating scenes of combat. Striking descriptions highlight the formidable series hero Nyla on the battlefield as she makes her way through the monsters: “Writhing and licking, the tongues of her lilac-colored magic leapt at the creatures… Chips of their jagged stone fell to the ground below like teeth.” The narrative has its share of slower moments as the cast comes to terms with past events that are integral to the series. The author has shrewdly maintained a consummate simplicity across all three installments, focusing on a memorable small-scale country and a handful of standout characters. This installment’s later chapters deliver a worthy conclusion while providing series regulars Nyla, Xander, and their catlike, telepathic friend, Shamira, with finales they deserve.
A rousing and gratifying sendoff to a consistently engrossing fantasy series.Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2023
ISBN: 9798986173269
Page Count: 398
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
Crowd-pleasing fun laced with political fire: a winner.
Bestselling author Faizal returns to the universe of We Hunt the Flame (2019) with a stand-alone duology opener.
Orphaned Arthie, brown-skinned with mauve hair, has created a criminal empire out of sheer pluck despite being Ceylani in Ettenia, where laws favor white people. She pulled legendary pistol Calibore from a stone plinth (though the prophecy that doing so would make her the nation’s leader turned out to be a hoax). She’s also built Spindrift, a teahouse-cum-bloodhouse, where she gathers secrets from wealthy humans and vampires, amassing power and security. Now Arthie has her sights set on vengeance—and the Ram, Ettenia’s masked monarch. When she and Jin, her brother-by-choice (who’s cued East Asian), are drawn into a heist, they assemble a diverse crew of immigrants whose roles riff on genre archetypes. The lush prose pulses with feeling as revelations are dropped and the tension ratchets up, keeping the pages turning as the motley gang plans to infiltrate a vampire society, retrieve a stolen ledger, and double-cross one of the Ram’s guards (who might be planning to double-cross them). Their ultimate goal: taking down the colonizing Ettenians and the exploitative East Jeevant Company. It’s all very exciting right up to the action-packed finale, which promises more conspiracy and (hopefully) justice to come. This compelling read offers interesting commentary on our society while feeling entirely real within the context of its own worldbuilding.
Crowd-pleasing fun laced with political fire: a winner. (map) (Fantasy. 13-18)Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2024
ISBN: 9780374389406
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
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