A departure from the Mean Girls aesthetic of the first book but a sequel still meant for only the most unflinching of readers
Sofia Flores returns, this time to save her own soul, as a relentless demon, Catholic dogma, and a sinfully attractive classmate threaten to tear her apart in Vega’s gruesome sequel to Merciless (2014).
In the aftermath of an attempted exorcism conducted on the charismatic Brooklyn that left her three best friends dead, Latina teen Sofia wants nothing more than a fresh start. Her wish is granted when her mother dies in a freak car accident and Sofia is sent to St. Mary’s, a remote Catholic boarding school where every student has something to confess. Despite quickly befriending her roommates and catching the eye of the impossibly perfect and secretive Jude, Sofia can’t shake the black feelings of jealousy and desire that cling to her every interaction. When some of her darker thoughts (like wishing something awful should befall her chipper, Asian roommate, Leena) come horribly true, Sofia frantically searches for any means of salvation, terrified that Brooklyn and the past she wants so desperately to leave behind will soon reappear to claim her. Turning to a classic Stephen King–style horror plot that relies on an isolated setting as much as bloodied bodies and hellishly inventive violence, Vega’s grisly second installment rips into biblical platitudes to lay bare the notions of deliverance and redemption.
A departure from the Mean Girls aesthetic of the first book but a sequel still meant for only the most unflinching of readers . (Horror. 14 & up)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-59514-726-4
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2016
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
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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