Heartbreaking and heartfelt.
A pair of star-crossed lovers find each other against the backdrop of a devastated futuristic world in what was once Chile.
A 16-year-old from one of the advanced, privileged Upper Cities, Rumi Sabzwari, who is of Pakistani descent, has only known life behind the walls of St. Iago. But when his father is deliberately infected with a fatal virus by the rebel faction Las Oscuras, Rumi crosses over to the forbidden Lower City of Paraíso, desperately hoping to find a cure. Fifteen-year-old Paz Valenzuela-Valenzuela is from Paraíso, a city ravaged by climate change, pandemics, and poverty and falling apart at the seams. Like many in her environmentally toxic community, brown-skinned Latine Paz is disabled; she was born with an atrophied right arm. Some say these are marks of humanity’s sins. Possessing a revolutionary soul and drawn to flirting with danger, Paz considers joining the rebels bent on upending the current world order. When Rumi’s and Paz’s paths cross, they are both prisoners: Unexpectedly thrown together, they find themselves momentarily allied when Paz—working undercover for the rebels—agrees to be Rumi’s guide and spy on him. But the more Paz gets to know Rumi, the less she feels she can betray him. Blending a star-crossed romance and a dystopian world of haves and have-nots, this intricate novel explores the topics of power dynamics, inequality, and revolution with nuance. The gorgeous writing and emotionally impactful character arcs fully deliver on the darkness of the premise.
Heartbreaking and heartfelt. (maps, author’s note) (Dystopian. 14-18)Pub Date: July 18, 2023
ISBN: 9781665913799
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: June 10, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 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
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
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
