A humorous and endearing look at the throes of predestined teenage love.
An immortal cupid-in-training falls in love with a human after she accidentally sticks herself with an arrow.
Sixteen-year-old Kalixta has been skeptical of her cupid calling since she experienced the Thunderclap, realizing, “in the end, the Fates will decide what happens, no matter what I do.” She questions the marriage of her parents, Eros and Psyche, and the millennia-old patterns the gods are stuck in. However, when she becomes spellbound to Benicio, a bass-playing Mexican-American who was her original target, Kali enrolls in a mortal high school in Arizona while trying to decipher the riddle posed by the Oracle to regain her heart. With the help of her best friend, Deya (daughter of Aphrodite and an Amazonian river god), and Artemis, the goddess of the hunt herself, Kali must find a balance between the arrow’s pull toward Ben and her friendship with her ex-boyfriend Hector (son of Apollo and Calliope). Watson (Shoot the Moon, 2018, etc.) creates a world where Greek mythological characters have Bond-worthy gadgets, can change their appearances at will, and are all-knowing when it comes to both Hellenic and contemporary pop culture. While acknowledging the existence of non-Greek gods, Watson gives the Greeks control of “most everything in the Western World” yet achieves diversity by incorporating people (and gods) of color into the story.
A humorous and endearing look at the throes of predestined teenage love. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-63583-030-9
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Flux
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
A thrilling, beautifully written page-turner.
A young woman pursues a dangerous quest in late-1800s Egypt in this sequel to What the River Knows (2023).
After Inez Olivera was nearly murdered while assisting with her uncle’s archaeological expedition in Egypt, Tío Ricardo is eager to ship her home to safety in Argentina. But Inez burns with the need to stay and make sure that those who committed crimes against her family are held responsible. Unfortunately, the law precludes Inez, as a young unmarried woman, from accessing her inheritance (needed to fund her quest for justice) without her guardian uncle’s permission. Whitford Hayes, a former British soldier and her tío’s aide-de-camp, proposes marriage, which could solve her problems. But can Inez trust the secretive Whit? More danger and intrigue lurk at every turn in this exciting duology closer, which fully addresses the first entry’s jaw-dropping cliffhanger. The well-paced plot encompasses many fresh, new adventures and betrayals in this reimagined historical setting in which ancient magic abounds and not everyone or everything is what it seems. Even more captivating, however, is the complicated, nuanced love story between Whit and Inez. Their chemistry sizzles, but their relationship is achingly layered with both profound loyalty and deep deception. As their journey unearths new enemies and priceless archaeological finds, the duo must try to trust each other enough to survive.
A thrilling, beautifully written page-turner. (cast of characters, map, timeline) (Historical fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781250822994
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2024
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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