A thrilling and inventive take on familiar vampire lore, enhanced by the plight of star-crossed lovers.
A prophet and a vampire princess embark on a treacherous journey.
Thousands of years ago, the daughter of a human woman and a mighty god married a princess from the Heavenly Realms. To steal the crown, the princess killed her father, but as he lay dying, the king, who was the God of the Sun and Creation, cursed his daughter, turning her into a vampire. The vampire queen is now long dead but not forgotten—her tyranny has shaped history. For Najja, a 19-year-old yamaja who can see a person’s death, vampires are far removed from her life in a tower surrounded by the Kutmenian Sea. But when she learns about a vision involving Leyla, princess of the vampire Nation of Mnara, Najja leaves home to save her. Together, they travel to the island of the dead, hoping to uncover the truth about their shared fates. The young women didn’t count on their growing attraction—or an enemy waiting in the shadows. Caldwell’s YA debut blends lush fantasy and high-stakes romance and features dynamic Black leads fighting against the stifling constraints of duty and honor. Although the historical backstory takes up too much of the work, the layered worldbuilding is intriguing and enticingly crafted, weaving original mythology and first-person action. The ending successfully teases the next installment of this duology.
A thrilling and inventive take on familiar vampire lore, enhanced by the plight of star-crossed lovers. (author’s note with content warning, family tree, the bloodlines of Mnara) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 1, 2025
ISBN: 9781250815347
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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