A tedious and predictable snooze.
A dying teen leaves her best friend a to-do list.
Raquel’s best friend, Sasha, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. After the adopted, mixed-race (white, black, and Brazilian) teen expires, Raquel receives a letter from beyond the grave: Sasha has planned an elaborate scavenger hunt for her white pal and enlisted a mysterious stranger to accompany her, Sasha’s long-lost birth brother, Elijah. As Elijah and Sasha complete the hunt, the pair grow closer, uncovering secrets from Sasha’s past and becoming romantically involved. The quirky premise does its best to elevate this by-the-numbers teen romance but never quite succeeds. Sasha is an excruciatingly insipid character, devoid of depth or development. A chunk of the novel is dedicated to Raquel and Elijah watching Sasha’s favorite movies together to learn about who she really was. These films include Mean Girls and The Princess Bride, movies so laughably basic one would be forgiven for entertaining the idea that the novel’s big reveal is that Sasha is not as clever and exciting as she thinks she is. The uninspired love story prattles on, encountering obvious speed bumps along the way. Raquel is a bland protagonist, absent of interior life or agency. Elijah is a typical brooding romantic hero, with just enough of a troubled past to be interesting but wishy-washy enough to not have any harsh edges.
A tedious and predictable snooze. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Oct. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0004-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 23, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2018
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play.
Garber returns to the world of bestseller Caraval (2017), this time with the focus on younger, more daring sister Donatella.
Valenda, capital of the empire, is host to the second of Legend’s magical games in a single year, and while Scarlett doesn’t want to play again, blonde Tella is eager for a chance to prove herself. She is haunted by the memory of her death in the last game and by the cursed Deck of Destiny she used as a child which foretold her loveless future. Garber has changed many of the rules of her expanding world, which now appears to be infused with magic and evil Fates. Despite a weak plot and ultraviolet prose (“He tasted like exquisite nightmares and stolen dreams, like the wings of fallen angels, and bottles of fresh moonlight.”), this is a tour de force of imagination. Themes of love, betrayal, and the price of magic (and desire) swirl like Caraval’s enchantments, and Dante’s sensuous kisses will thrill readers as much as they do Tella. The convoluted machinations of the Prince of Hearts (one of the Fates), Legend, and even the empress serve as the impetus for Tella’s story and set up future volumes which promise to go bigger. With descriptions focusing primarily on clothing, characters’ ethnicities are often indeterminate.
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play. (glossary) (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: May 29, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-09531-2
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: March 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice.
A teenage, not-so-lonely loner endures the wilds of high school in Austin, Texas.
Norris Kaplan, the protagonist of Philippe’s debut novel, is a hypersweaty, uber-snarky black, Haitian, French-Canadian pushing to survive life in his new school. His professor mom’s new tenure-track job transplants Norris mid–school year, and his biting wit and sarcasm are exposed through his cataloging of his new world in a field guide–style burn book. He’s greeted in his new life by an assortment of acquaintances, Liam, who is white and struggling with depression; Maddie, a self-sacrificing white cheerleader with a heart of gold; and Aarti, his Indian-American love interest who offers connection. Norris’ ego, fueled by his insecurities, often gets in the way of meaningful character development. The scenes showcasing his emotional growth are too brief and, despite foreshadowing, the climax falls flat because he still gets incredible personal access to people he’s hurt. A scene where Norris is confronted by his mother for getting drunk and belligerent with a white cop is diluted by his refusal or inability to grasp the severity of the situation and the resultant minor consequences. The humor is spot-on, as is the representation of the black diaspora; the opportunity for broader conversations about other topics is there, however, the uneven buildup of detailed, meaningful exchanges and the glibness of Norris’ voice detract.
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-282411-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
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