This SF saga kickoff is hampered by cardboard characters and a surfeit of unnecessary tangents.
Sandrock’s debut YA novel—the first installment of his Mars High School saga—features a group of high schoolers on the red planet who are faced with solving an ancient mystery.
Set in the year 2354, the narrative largely revolves around Andie Ellis, a high school junior who lives with her father under Mars’ Olympus Mons, the “tallest volcano in the entire solar system.” When a major seismic event—a “Marsquake”—rocks the sprawling underground city and its inhabitants, Andie and her small group of friends believe that a mystery involving an ancient portal they discovered deep in the mountain could help them understand how to aid humanity. As crowds of people race to evacuate the city, Andie—accompanied by her friend Aiyana and a cat named Ares who somehow has abnormal intelligence (which is never explicitly explained)—explores subterranean labyrinths filled with wonders, racing against time and a massive volcano that could erupt at any second. Issues abound with this inaugural series entry, namely the paper-thinness of the characters’ depth—Andie is the only character with any kind of complexity. Aiyana is the stereotypical neglected kid from a bad family, and other friends (Ric and Reillee) are so poorly developed they’re essentially NPCs. Additionally, the narrative has a directionless feel to it. The intensity and energy of the primary arc (a looming disaster) is diluted by a myriad of tangents, like a Knowledge Bowl between high schools and a trip to a haunted house, that add very little to the overall reading experience. The humor is a positive, though, giving the narrative a decided levity. References to Andy Weir’s iconic red planet hero Mark Watney will bring smiles to SF fans.
This SF saga kickoff is hampered by cardboard characters and a surfeit of unnecessary tangents.Pub Date: June 21, 2024
ISBN: 9781963019018
Page Count: 409
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: April 17, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring.
When Death-Cast doesn’t call, fate intertwines the lives of two boys, both haunted by their pasts and with futures they can’t escape.
In this third installment of the series that opened with 2017’s They Both Die at the End, Paz Dario waits every night for Death-Cast to call—as it should have for his father nearly 10 years ago, when Paz shot him to save his mother’s life. But the call never comes. Death-Cast killed Paz’s dreams of an acting career: No one will hire him now because the world sees him as a villain. When Paz tries (not for the first time) to put an end to his suffering, an unexpected encounter with Alano Rosa, the heir of Death-Cast, stops him. Both in a place of desperation, Alano and Paz sign a contract to live for Begin Days instead of waiting for their End Days. As suspenseful and emotionally wrenching as the previous titles in the series, this new installment explores heavy themes of abuse, mental health, self-harm, and suicide. Paz grapples with a recent diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. Silvera surrounds Alano and Paz with a web of complex relationships. Although the protagonists fall fast for one another and form a deep connection over Alano’s desire to support Paz, Silvera emphasizes the importance of professional help. Both Alano and Paz have Puerto Rican heritage. The cliffhanger ending promises more to come.
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring. (content warning, resources) (Speculative fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780063240858
Page Count: 720
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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