A supernatural mystery with a well-developed protagonist, hit-or-miss humor, and a swoon-worthy love interest.
In this contemporary fantasy series starter, Kelly offers a humorous portrait of a lonely witch (or “wicche”) facing pressures from her family, romantic tension with a werewolf, and unsettling visions.
Twenty-eight-year-old Arwyn Cassandra Corey, the owner of an art gallery/tea bar in Monterey, California, called The Sea Wicche, is a wicche herself. Her relationship with her family is fraught: Her mother, Sybil Corey, and grandmother, Gran, want her to join the Corey Council, a governing triad that “oversaw all disputes, heard pleas for help, and granted magical aid” to family members. But Arwyn’s goal is simpler: to spend time with creatures she considers her friends, including a starfish she calls Charlie and Wilbur, a seal who plays fetch. She’s always experienced upsetting visions—a normal part of being a wicche—but lately, their intensity has increased. She meets Declan Quinn, a steadfast and dreamy werewolf who’s affectionate toward her, but she’s sworn off sex and dating; wicches have sensory issues, and “dating sucked when touch meant picking up every stray thought and emotion.” Her painful psychic visions could help the Corey Council, but they take a serious toll on Arwyn’s health and well-being. Sybil’s and Gran’s repeated attempts to get Arwyn to join it make her believe that, although they love her, they “love what I can do more.” Although the protagonist narrator’s often humorous tone sets a light mood for the story, Kelly sets serious stakes; Arwyn sees a vision of a woman’s death early on, who turns out to be her 21-year-old cousin, Pearl. This launches a mystery investigation involving another Quinn werewolf, that werewolf’s angry vampire husband, several other supernatural beings, and Corey wicches. The book’s humor is quick-witted and punchy, although readers may find some jokes a bit corny, as when Arwyn scolds her mother about werewolf etiquette: “Don’t use the word fetch. It’s rude. He’s not a dog.” Overall, Arwyn’s conversational voice creates the charming effect of hearing a story from an eccentric—and unlucky—friend.
A supernatural mystery with a well-developed protagonist, hit-or-miss humor, and a swoon-worthy love interest.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781641972345
Page Count: 339
Publisher: NYLA
Review Posted Online: April 21, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.
A young Navarrian woman faces even greater challenges in her second year at dragon-riding school.
Violet Sorrengail did all the normal things one would do as a first-year student at Basgiath War College: made new friends, fell in love, and survived multiple assassination attempts. She was also the first rider to ever bond with two dragons: Tairn, a powerful black dragon with a distinguished battle history, and Andarna, a baby dragon too young to carry a rider. At the end of Fourth Wing (2023), Violet and her lover, Xaden Riorson, discovered that Navarre is under attack from wyvern, evil two-legged dragons, and venin, soulless monsters that harvest energy from the ground. Navarrians had always been told that these were monsters of legend and myth, not real creatures dangerously close to breaking through Navarre’s wards and attacking civilian populations. In this overly long sequel, Violet, Xaden, and their dragons are determined to find a way to protect Navarre, despite the fact that the army and government hid the truth about these creatures. Due to the machinations of several traitorous instructors at Basgiath, Xaden and Violet are separated for most of the book—he’s stationed at a distant outpost, leaving her to handle the treacherous, cutthroat world of the war college on her own. Violet is repeatedly threatened by her new vice commandant, a brutal man who wants to silence her. Although Violet and her dragons continue to model extreme bravery, the novel feels repetitive and more than a little sloppy, leaving obvious questions about the world unanswered. The book is full of action and just as full of plot holes, including scenes that are illogical or disconnected from the main narrative. Secondary characters are ignored until a scene requires them to assist Violet or to be killed in the endless violence that plagues their school.
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374172
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A surprisingly sensual sports romance.
A collegiate diver and swimmer secretly pursue kink together, and risk falling in love along the way.
Scarlett Vandermeer is struggling. Despite a successful recovery from the injury that almost ended her Stanford diving career, she hasn’t been able to get her head together, and it’s affecting her performance. Plus, she’s trying to stay focused on getting into medical school. A relationship would be out of the question. By comparison, Lukas Blomqvist is a swimming idol, a record-breaker who wins medals as easily as breathing, and Scarlett has long been convinced he would never look in her direction—until one fateful night when a mutual friend lets slip that they have something unexpected in common: Scarlett likes to be submissive in the bedroom, while Lukas prefers to take a dominant approach. Now, they both know a big secret about each other, and it’s something neither of them can stop thinking about. It’s Lukas who suggests they have a fling—purely physical, just to take the edge off, so Scarlett can get out of her own head and stop overthinking her dives. Initially, their arrangement is easy to stick to, but the more time they spend together, the more Scarlett starts to realize that what she feels for Lukas is more than physical attraction. Complicating the situation is the fact that Scarlett’s friend Penelope Ross used to go out with Lukas, and the longer Scarlett keeps mum about her true feelings for him, the more difficult it is to keep the situation hidden from another person she really cares about. While Scarlett and Lukas’ relationship does begin as a physical one, their deeper psychological connection takes a little too long to emerge amid all the other storylines, resulting in a somewhat rushed resolution. However, Hazelwood’s latest is proof of the depth and maturity that has emerged in her writing over the years, and it highlights her embrace of sexier, more emotional elements than were present in her original STEMinist rom-coms.
A surprisingly sensual sports romance.Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780593641057
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Berkley
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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