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SHALLCROSS

THE UNDERWATER PANTHERS

From the Hearing Voices Series series

An undeniably unique metaphysical adventure.

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The latest installment in Porter’s series continues the adventures of a schizophrenic man who, along with a group of misfit friends, embarks on missions of environmental activism.

In Florida, 2002, Aubrey Shallcross and company have scuttled an old tugboat in front of the St. Lucie Locks, making the lock system temporarily inoperable to prevent the “dirty water” from Lake Okeechobee from contaminating pristine estuaries. Fearing capture after their daring deed, the 58-year-old Shallcross takes his family and friends—some of whom are “voice hearers” like himself—to the coast of Massachusetts for the summer to stay at an old friend’s farm. The eclectic group includes a wild array of characters: Yuchee, a teenage Seminole boy whose mother has recently died; two giant alligators and their “slippers” (spirits of the dead that can inhabit the brains of animals and humans); Aubrey’s 14-year-old son, Drayton; Half Track, an autistic man; Speedy, a motorcycle stuntman, and his wife, Roberta, “the Woman With No Legs,” who charms snakes; and A. M. Sermon, a former land developer turned eco-warrior, who travels with his best friend, a giant chimpanzee named Kong. Once there, the group becomes entangled in another looming environmental crisis: Criminals plan to steal a recently orphaned baby humpback whale with albinism in an attempt to sell it on the black market. This fast-paced and intricately plotted storyline, involving the crooked captain of a Russian fishing fleet named Sean Iponovitch, is where the author really shows his storytelling chops. As Iponovitch schemes between alcoholic binges, Porter weaves Moby Dick references throughout to add a literary thread to the narrative tapestry. This literary aspect is strengthened by the almost Kerouacian travelogue passages following the characters’ travels up and down the East Coast: “They crossed the southeast Georgia tidal rivers with green-brown wire grass islands out in the middle, until it was over the Savannah River into the state of South Carolina.”

Themes from Kerouac’s On the Road are evident throughout, including the search for meaning in life, the glorious pursuit of freedom, and finding profound significance in the connections between people and places. The author leavens the road novel experience with humor in places; Aubrey calls food purchased from gas stations and roadside convenience stores “shit cakes” (but after his son buys an assortment of junk food, Aubrey says, “Give me one a those Moon Pies, Drayton.” While the cast of over-the-top characters is well-developed and the storyline involving the white whale is certainly entertaining (especially the stand-up-and-applaud plot twist at novel’s end), it’s the way in which the author explores living with schizophrenia (specifically hearing voices) that makes this story unique. The perception of schizophrenia as an affliction is turned on its head: “…that’s what makes you different than a lot of other people, Aubrey. You can look at and hear your subconscious, you are a bloody schizophrenic; a beautifully perfected schizophrenic.” The narrative is complemented by dozens of illustrations throughout that exemplify the strange and wondrous tone of the story perfectly.

An undeniably unique metaphysical adventure.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Self

Review Posted Online: Oct. 2, 2023

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THE ACADEMY

A boarding-school fantasia, with Hilderbrand’s signature upgrades to the cuisine and decor. Sign us up for next term.

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A year in the life of the No. 2 boarding school in America—up from No. 19 last year!

Rumors of Hilderbrand’s retirement were greatly exaggerated, it turns out, since not only has she not gone out to pasture, she’s started over in high school, with her daughter Shelby Cunningham as co-author. As their delicious new book opens, it’s Move-In Day at Tiffin Academy, and Head of School Audre Robinson is warmly welcoming the returning and new students to the New England campus, the latter group including a rare midstream addition to the junior class. Brainiac Charley Hicks is transferring from public school in Maryland to a spot that opened up when one of the school’s most beloved students died by suicide the preceding year. She will be joining a large, diverse cast of adult and teenage characters—queen bees, jealous second-stringers, boozehounds young and old, secret lesbians, people chasing the wrong people chasing other wrong people—all of them royally screwed when an app called Zip Zap appears and starts blasting everyone’s secrets all over campus. How the heck…? Meanwhile, it seems so unlikely that Tiffin has jumped up to the No. 2 spot in the boarding-school rankings that a high-profile magazine launches an investigation, and even the head is worried that there may have been payola involved. The school has a reputation for being more social than academic, and this quality gets an exciting new exclamation point when the resident millionaire bad boy opens a high-style secret speakeasy for select juniors in a forgotten basement. It’s called Priorities. Exactly. One problem: Cinnamon Peters’ mysterious suicide hangs over the book in an odd way, especially since the note she left for her closest male friend is not to be opened for another year—and isn’t. This is surely a setup for a sequel, but it’s a bit frustrating here, and bobs sort of shallowly along amid the general high spirits.

A boarding-school fantasia, with Hilderbrand’s signature upgrades to the cuisine and decor. Sign us up for next term.

Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025

ISBN: 9780316567855

Page Count: 432

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025

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CIRCLE OF DAYS

Vintage Follett. His fans will be pleased.

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A dramatic, complex imagining of the origins of Stonehenge.

In about 2500 B.C.E. on the Great Plain, Seft and his family collect flints in a mine. He dislikes the work, and the motherless lad hates the abuse he gets from his father and brothers. He leaves them and arrives at a wooden monument where sacred events such as the Midsummer Rite take place. There are also circles of stones that help predict equinoxes, solstices, even eclipses. This is a world where the customary greeting is “May the Sun God smile on you,” and everyone is a year older on Midsummer Day. Except for a priestess or two, no one can count beyond fingers and toes—to indicate 30, they show both hands, point to both feet, then show both hands again. Casual sex is common, and sex between women is less common but not taboo. Joia, a young woman who becomes a priestess, wonders about her sexuality. After a fire destroys the Monument, she leads a bold effort to rebuild it in stone. To please the gods, they must haul 10 giant stones from distant Stony Valley. Of course neither machinery nor roads exist, so the difficulties are extraordinary. Although the project has its detractors, hundreds of able-bodied people are willing to help. Craftspeople known as cleverhands construct a sled and a road, and they make the rope to wrap around the stones. Many, many others pull. And pull. Meanwhile, the three principal groups—farmers, woodlanders, and herders—all have their separate interests. There is talk of war, which Joia has never seen in her lifetime. Soon it seems inevitable that the powerful farmers will not only start one but win it, unless heroes like Seft and Joia can come up with a creative plan. But there is also the matter of love for Joia in this well-plotted and well-told yarn. The story has a lot of characters from multiple tribes, and they can be hard to keep track of. A page in the front of the book listing who’s who would be helpful.

Vintage Follett. His fans will be pleased.

Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025

ISBN: 9781538772775

Page Count: 704

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Review Posted Online: July 4, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025

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