Thin on enchantment, long on angst, an atmospheric but amorphous coming-of-age.
Turbulent teens flirt and fight in a Midwest town.
Sixteen-year-old Jonas Lake reluctantly relocates from his mom’s house in the Twin Cities to small-town Shivery, Minnesota, to live with his dad, his dad’s girlfriend, and her daughter, the oh-so-artistic, often angry Noemi. Jonas first fights with, then falls for Manic Pixie Dream Girl Noemi; florid, fevered, forbidden romance, not always reciprocated, ensues. Noemi’s aloofness and self-alienation read as being in part due to grief as she mourns the death of friend-but-not-boyfriend Link, whose drowning death on dry forest land mystified everyone but her. Meanwhile, another romance blooms between Noemi’s female friends Lyle and Amberlyn. An abused and abusive bully and mysterious, ghostly texts complicate the quartet’s relationships, but despite their self-absorption and overly articulate narration, Jonas and Noemi remain frustratingly opaque. Noemi is a melancholic, moody artiste, often aloof and alienated, as is the broody Jonas. Identifying as asexual and working through the entanglement of romance with sexuality, Noemi offers one perspective for a population often underrepresented in literature. Debut author Nagamatsu’s fantasy elements of a spooky forest and its disappearing lake are tantalizing but underdeveloped while the meandering, sluggish pacing pairs with an insubstantial plot to deliver an overlong yet flimsy tale of teenage self-exploration. Clunky analogies and Bulwer-Lytton–worthy phrasing also abound. All main characters read as white.
Thin on enchantment, long on angst, an atmospheric but amorphous coming-of-age. (Romance. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-72821-659-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
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
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
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