No big surprises but the familiar still elicits investment in these fun and caring characters.
A New Orleans love story for these ages.
When 17-year-old Tennessee Rebel Williams moved to New Orleans from Oxford, Mississippi, he thought he was leaving behind the explosive fights between his often absent mom and his bigot of a father and that he might even be able to reinvent himself. His parents’ separation doesn’t stick, and his mom fails to put in any effort to care for him, but Tennessee quickly falls for Jessamine Grace Monet, a high school senior and NOLA native with her guard up and a lot to work through. Jess and her twin brother, Joel, were 5 when they lost their father and home in the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, which was followed by a series of violently traumatic events. Getting close to either sibling is understandably difficult. Tenn and Saint Olivier Baptiste, his new bestie at Magnolia Prep, stubbornly give it a shot anyway despite predictable star-crossed obstacles. Saint is flamboyant and confident, while Joel is closeted and cautious; Jess, who is Black, is reluctant to even fall in like with anyone but especially with a small-town White boy like Tenn. Socio-economic differences likewise separate them from the twins, who are far from wealthy. In this slightly overlong dual first-person narrative where the queer characters sometimes fade into the background, Tenn’s and Jess’ respective journeys are refreshingly heartfelt.
No big surprises but the familiar still elicits investment in these fun and caring characters. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: June 13, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-64379-501-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Tu Books
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring.
When Death-Cast doesn’t call, fate intertwines the lives of two boys, both haunted by their pasts and with futures they can’t escape.
In this third installment of the series that opened with 2017’s They Both Die at the End, Paz Dario waits every night for Death-Cast to call—as it should have for his father nearly 10 years ago, when Paz shot him to save his mother’s life. But the call never comes. Death-Cast killed Paz’s dreams of an acting career: No one will hire him now because the world sees him as a villain. When Paz tries (not for the first time) to put an end to his suffering, an unexpected encounter with Alano Rosa, the heir of Death-Cast, stops him. Both in a place of desperation, Alano and Paz sign a contract to live for Begin Days instead of waiting for their End Days. As suspenseful and emotionally wrenching as the previous titles in the series, this new installment explores heavy themes of abuse, mental health, self-harm, and suicide. Paz grapples with a recent diagnosis of borderline personality disorder. Silvera surrounds Alano and Paz with a web of complex relationships. Although the protagonists fall fast for one another and form a deep connection over Alano’s desire to support Paz, Silvera emphasizes the importance of professional help. Both Alano and Paz have Puerto Rican heritage. The cliffhanger ending promises more to come.
Raw, delicate, and deeply caring. (content warning, resources) (Speculative fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780063240858
Page Count: 720
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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
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