An off-kilter and delightful tale about unearthing strange secrets.
Zubairi presents a YA novel about a teenager who doesn’t fit in and a conspiracy that turns out to be true.
In upstate New York, 16-year-old Orville Hatch just been admitted to Fox Meadow General Hospital once again. This time, it’s because he was screaming at a mouse in his school. That was, he says,because the mouse seemed to hate him—an opinion it made clear through telepathy. Despite this apparent delusion, Orville is sent back to school among his friends, who include Phoebe Kim, who’s in the marching band with him. Unlike Orville, she doesn’t hate it; indeed, she takes it very seriously, and that’s his problem, because she needs him for rides to practice. Orville may be far from popular at school, but it turns out that people than Phoebe paying attention to him—including a boy who watches Orville closely and reports on him to Orville’s father, who’s obsessed with investigating conspiracies on “a massive flowchart, where crisscrossing arrows connected them to the Illuminati, the CIA, and a chain of mattress stores.” It leaves Orville feeling more than a little lonely, but at least he’s got friends with more affectionate families. When armed men storm Orville’s high school and single him out as “one of them,” chaos ensues that has his questioning everything. Over the course of this YA thriller, the portrayals of the main characters are the greatest treat: Each is odd in their own ways, and they stand out individually but have great chemistry together and provide amusing banter, often about pop culture. Orville is a delightful and relatable main character, but what shines even more brightly is the prose, which flows effortlessly, short chapter after short chapter, and allows for an immersive experience. Its offbeat presentation results in a book that’s hard to put down.
An off-kilter and delightful tale about unearthing strange secrets.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 9798986409610
Page Count: 434
Publisher: Pygmalion Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 24, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations.
Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the “enchanted circus” trope.
Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome “golden-brown” sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarlett’s arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets.
Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-250-09525-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
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