An origin story that will leave readers with more questions than answers.
This entry in Disney’s freshly reimagined backstories for signature villains follows Robin Benway’s The Wicked Ones (2023) with a look at Peter Pan’s archnemesis.
James and Marlene, English twins from a town on the North Sea, are close despite their differences in temperament. Shy, timid, methodical James dreams of higher education and life in London—not inheriting their father’s struggling fishing business. Outgoing, fearless, impulsive Marlene rejects the demure role their mother, nanny to a wealthy London family, cherishes for her. Swept out to sea on their 15th birthday, the twins surface on the beach of a tropical island, where Peter Pan rules a loyal band of fairies and the Lost Boys. Marlene’s thrilled with Never Land and fascinated by Peter, while James is increasingly anxious to leave before Never Land erases their memories of home. They clash over their next steps after discovering a rival band of Lost Boys, exiled by Peter following a failed coup, and the twins’ sibling bond continues to be tested. This intermittently entertaining tale suffers from jarring inconsistencies in James, its linchpin character, whose motivations and actions shift abruptly; lively Marlene is engaging, if underdeveloped. The generic historical English setting is vaguely fleshed out. While many of the Lost Boys seem to be younger than the twins, some sparse but pivotal violence that is not foreshadowed makes the book skew older. Most characters are cued white.
An origin story that will leave readers with more questions than answers. (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: Jan. 9, 2024
ISBN: 9781368067157
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Disney Press
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2023
A lushly written story with an intriguing heart.
After praying to a Fate for help, Evangeline discovers the dangerous world of magic.
When her father passes away, Evangeline is left with her cold stepmother and kind but distant stepsister, Marisol. Despite inheriting a steady trust in magic, belief in her late mother’s homeland of the mystical North (where fantastical creatures live), and philosophy of hope for the future, her dreams are dashed when Luc, her love, pledges to marry Marisol instead. Evangeline desperately prays to the Prince of Hearts, a dangerous and fickle Fate famed for his heart that is waiting to be revived by his one true love—and his potentially lethal kisses. The bargain they strike sends her on a dark and magical journey throughout the land. The writing style fluctuates from clever and original to overly verbose and often confusing in its jumble of senses. While the pervasive magic and concept of the Fates as a religious system add interest, other fantasy elements are haphazardly incorporated without enough time devoted to building a cohesive world. However, the themes of love, the power of story, family influence, and holding onto belief are well rounded and add depth. The plot contains welcome surprises, and the large cast piques curiosity; readers will wish more time was spent getting to know them. Evangeline has rose-gold hair and, like other main characters, reads as White; there is diversity among the fantasy races in this world.
A lushly written story with an intriguing heart. (map) (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: Sept. 28, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-26839-6
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play.
Garber returns to the world of bestseller Caraval (2017), this time with the focus on younger, more daring sister Donatella.
Valenda, capital of the empire, is host to the second of Legend’s magical games in a single year, and while Scarlett doesn’t want to play again, blonde Tella is eager for a chance to prove herself. She is haunted by the memory of her death in the last game and by the cursed Deck of Destiny she used as a child which foretold her loveless future. Garber has changed many of the rules of her expanding world, which now appears to be infused with magic and evil Fates. Despite a weak plot and ultraviolet prose (“He tasted like exquisite nightmares and stolen dreams, like the wings of fallen angels, and bottles of fresh moonlight.”), this is a tour de force of imagination. Themes of love, betrayal, and the price of magic (and desire) swirl like Caraval’s enchantments, and Dante’s sensuous kisses will thrill readers as much as they do Tella. The convoluted machinations of the Prince of Hearts (one of the Fates), Legend, and even the empress serve as the impetus for Tella’s story and set up future volumes which promise to go bigger. With descriptions focusing primarily on clothing, characters’ ethnicities are often indeterminate.
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play. (glossary) (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: May 29, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-09531-2
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: March 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2018
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