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THE LOST PRINCE

From the Iron Fey—Call of the Forgotten series , Vol. 1

Kagawa’s fans will enjoy this expansion of her world.

Iron Queen Meghan Chase’s baby brother Ethan has grown into a broody bad boy.

Ethan Chase wants nothing more than to keep his head down and avoid notice. He hates the fey, as they torment him and interfere with his life on a regular basis because he can see them. He ably fills the teen-literature trope of the bad boy with a heart of gold who pushes people away for their own protection by behaving like a jerk. But fresh from a fey-caused school expulsion, Ethan finds two new classmates who refuse to leave him alone—half-fey Todd, desperate for Ethan’s help with a magical threat, and the rich, popular, attractive and above all, persistent school reporter, Kenzie. When Todd goes missing, Ethan surprises himself by plunging into Faery to try to save him from shadowy glamour-eating fey, a threat that may ring familiar to those who have read The Iron Knight (2011). Kenzie is caught in the crossfire. While unraveling the truth about this shadowy threat to Todd and other missing half-breeds and exiles, Ethan encounters various beloved Iron Fey characters in guest appearances and is joined by a simultaneously mysterious and familiar fey named Keirran. The danger accompanies multiple romantic plots.

Kagawa’s fans will enjoy this expansion of her world. (Fantasy. 12-15)

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2012

ISBN: 978-0-373-21057-2

Page Count: 384

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2012

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THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS

From the Girl of Fire and Thorns series , Vol. 1

Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...

Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.

Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.

Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011

ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4

Page Count: 432

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011

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LEGEND

From the Legend series , Vol. 1

This is no didactic near-future warning of present evils, but a cinematic adventure featuring endearing, compelling heroes

A gripping thriller in dystopic future Los Angeles.

Fifteen-year-olds June and Day live completely different lives in the glorious Republic. June is rich and brilliant, the only candidate ever to get a perfect score in the Trials, and is destined for a glowing career in the military. She looks forward to the day when she can join up and fight the Republic’s treacherous enemies east of the Dakotas. Day, on the other hand, is an anonymous street rat, a slum child who failed his own Trial. He's also the Republic's most wanted criminal, prone to stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. When tragedies strike both their families, the two brilliant teens are thrown into direct opposition. In alternating first-person narratives, Day and June experience coming-of-age adventures in the midst of spying, theft and daredevil combat. Their voices are distinct and richly drawn, from Day’s self-deprecating affection for others to June's Holmesian attention to detail. All the flavor of a post-apocalyptic setting—plagues, class warfare, maniacal soldiers—escalates to greater complexity while leaving space for further worldbuilding in the sequel.

This is no didactic near-future warning of present evils, but a cinematic adventure featuring endearing, compelling heroes . (Science fiction. 12-14)

Pub Date: Nov. 29, 2011

ISBN: 978-0-399-25675-2

Page Count: 336

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: April 8, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2011

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