The book stands out in its nicely realistic portraits of the teens.
The second book in the author’s examination of relationships between the white community and Native Americans on a Phoenix-area reservation.
Hooked (2013) got down and dirty into the racism engendered by a romance between Fred, a great girl golfer from the Rez, and Ryan, an upper-middle-class white boy. Here, the focus shifts to Ryan’s younger sister, Riley, and Sam, a Gila-Havasupai boy who’s been in unrequited love with Fred for years. Sophomore Riley and junior Sam, never friends, find themselves thrown together at a leadership camp when Riley falls over a ridge and Sam clambers down to rescue her. As they wait to be retrieved, Sam confesses his love for Fred to Riley, and Riley decides to break up the girl’s romance with her brother and give Sam a makeover so he’ll have a chance with her. Meanwhile, Riley goes to a party given by her longtime secret heartthrob—who simply plays Riley for a fool. Once again, Fichera concentrates on the conflict between personalities, although here she places less emphasis on the conditions on the reservation. While readers will predict the eventual romantic outcome, getting to that point takes the characters through major difficulties, providing most of the fodder for the story. As Riley and Sam begin to realize their mutual attraction, plenty of suspense arises from Riley’s bad choices.
The book stands out in its nicely realistic portraits of the teens. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-373-21094-7
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
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
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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