A bittersweet tale that imaginatively explores themes of grief, loss, and first love.
In Harmon’s paranormal YA romance, a teenage girl navigates love and heartbreak while uncovering family secrets with the help of her ghostly boyfriend.
In the small town of Palm Row, California, high school senior Claire Goodnight is excited that her lifelong crush, Finn Peterson, has finally noticed her. After a magical Saturday night date (including a passionate kiss), she shows up to school on Monday and gets shocking news: Finn died in his sleep of a brain hemorrhage. Her grief turns to shock when, during a schoolwide memorial service, she realizes that she can still see and talk to Finn, who appears to her as a floating, shimmery spirit: “Other than his white-socked feet, he wore a black hoodie and jeans. His brown hair was bed-head messy. My mouth dropped open as our eyes met.” Finn explains to her that, after he died, he followed a “bright light” until an old woman told him that his business on Earth wasn’t quite finished. Because Claire is the only living person who can see him, he concludes that it must be Claire who needs his help. She’s elated by their strange reunion and is determined to adjust to her new life with ghostly Finn by her side. But events quickly spiral out of control as Finn’s mom descends into all-consuming grief; Claire’s alcoholic mother unexpectedly checks in to rehab; Finn’s younger sister, Violet, falls in with a sketchy crowd; and Claire’s longtime friend, Tyler, declares his romantic feelings for her. Claire and Finn, as they attempt to help his distraught loved ones, uncover a connection between their respective families, as well as a shocking secret from Claire’s past that changes everything.
Claire is an immediately likable narrator and protagonist who earnestly, if imperfectly, tries to navigate great difficulties, which also include adult responsibilities, such as paying her family’s bills. Finn, while sweet, seems a bit too perfect at first, while he’s still alive; he becomes far more interesting after he becomes a ghost. The fact that he’s able to witness life without participating in it generates intriguing conflicts; for example, at one point, Finn forcibly (and briefly) possesses Tyler in a fit of jealousy—a violation that rightly infuriates Claire and injects a sense of dread into the situation. When Finn asks Claire to tell Violet about his ghostly nature, the teens have an exchange that paints an interesting picture of what reality looks like after a miracle occurs: “‘How can she move on when she knows you’re still here?’ My words came out harder than I’d intended. Finn reacted as if I’d slapped him.” Although the love story and the twists and turns of Claire’s family secret are the main focus of the narrative, there are quiet moments that raise engaging questions about how different types of people deal with grief and moving on. Throughout, Harmon’s pacing remains brisk without feeling rushed, which allows her to pack a lot of drama into the story; she also ties up all the narrative strands in a neatly satisfactory way.
A bittersweet tale that imaginatively explores themes of grief, loss, and first love.Pub Date: March 24, 2024
ISBN: 9798990052888
Page Count: 251
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
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
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