An engaging work of fantasy fiction with plenty of heart and heroism.
A young royal heir embarks on a quest to defeat an evil queen and unite a fractured kingdom in this fourth YA fantasy series installment.
Gravely injured, 18-year-old Ivy Lovely lies hidden in the halls of her former school. She was saved thanks to the brave sacrifice of her friend Rimbrick and the protection of a dragon that was believed to be long extinct. However, Ivy is still marked for death by the Dark Queen—a malignant creature who has terrorized Croswald for 200 years. With every passing day, the Queen’s power grows, and the corrupted Bitter Forest where her castle stands (known to most as Norchburry Wood) threatens to envelop all who call Croswald home. Ivy, as the true heir to the Crown of Croswald, is the only one who can stop the Queen’s onslaught, but she can’t overcome her evil alone. Armed with a map and a set of clues that Rimbrick left her and supported by her handsome companion, Fyn, Ivy’s journey will bring her face to face with fear itself. But with the help of her friends, she hopes to find the courage to take a stand and offer healing instead of vengeance. This is a work that’s replete with beautiful imagery and pulse-pounding adventure. However, it’s more than just a fun work of fantasy, as Night also offers a story that will hold special resonance for young audiences as they watch Ivy, an unassuming and often frightened hero, grow into a strong woman. The story makes clear that the character’s ultimate triumph stems not from her denial of her fear but from her willingness to embrace and manage it. Ivy is appealing in her determination to make her own path and defy social expectations, and the novel highlights the positive outcomes that can happen when pursuing one’s dreams.
An engaging work of fantasy fiction with plenty of heart and heroism.Pub Date: May 13, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-73385-907-3
Page Count: 336
Publisher: BCH Fulfillment & Distribution
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
A dark and gripping feminist tale.
A young woman faces her past to discover the truth about one of her nation’s heroes.
When Effy Sayre, the only female architecture student at her university in Llyr, wins the competition to design Hiraeth Manor for the estate of the late Emrys Myrddin, national literary figure and her favorite author, it is the perfect opportunity to leave behind a recent trauma. She arrives to find the cliffside estate is literally crumbling into the ocean, and she quickly realizes things may not be as they seem. Preston, an arrogant literature student, is also working at the estate, gathering materials for the university’s archives and questioning everything Effy knows about Myrddin. When Preston offers to include her name on his thesis—which may allow her to pursue the dream of studying literature that was frustrated by the university’s refusal to admit women literature students—Effy agrees to help him. He’s on a quest for answers about the source of Myrddin’s most famous work, Angharad, a romance about a cruel Fairy King who marries a mortal woman. Meanwhile, Myrddin’s son has secrets of his own. Preston and Effy start to suspect that Myrddin’s fairy tales may hold more truth than they realize. The Welsh-inspired setting is impressively atmospheric, and while some of the mythology ends up feeling extraneous, the worldbuilding is immersive and thoughtfully addresses misogyny and its effects on how history is written. Main characters are cued white.
A dark and gripping feminist tale. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 19, 2023
ISBN: 9780063211506
Page Count: 384
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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