A queer romance that really goes the distance.
In middle school, Mari and Taylor had a plan: The best friends were going to be on the cross-country team at Jefferson High together.
But a lot has changed since then: Mari’s family moved to a different school district, Taylor covered up her dad’s kidney disease, driving a wedge between them—and the two girls started freshman year estranged and on competing teams. Three years later, when Mari’s single mother is forced to move the family, the two girls finally become teammates. Unfortunately, their complicated history means Mari and Taylor, who are both Black, are anything but friends again. Following an embarrassing public fight, their coach orders them to volunteer at a local animal rescue. While spending their Sundays together walking dogs, the girls finally begin communicating honestly with one another. By being vulnerable about their challenges—Mari’s mother leans on her to help with her younger siblings, Taylor feels pressure to live up to her star athlete father’s reputation, and his illness has taken a toll—they rediscover their friendship and build self-confidence. Told in the girls’ alternating voices, this heartfelt friends-to-rivals-to-lovers romance is a quick, entertaining read. It chronicles the girls’ intricate relationship while also addressing important familial and social themes. While at times Taylor’s and Mari’s voices are difficult to distinguish, and the subplot exploring socioeconomic differences doesn’t get as much development as it deserves, the complexities of the overall story more than carry the narrative.
A queer romance that really goes the distance. (Romance. 13-18)Pub Date: May 20, 2025
ISBN: 9780374389154
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 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
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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