A fun supernatural tale with well-developed characters and a touch of romance.
In Smith’s fantasy series starter, a teenage superhero faces the gravest peril of his young life when two near-immortal figures start kidnapping young boys off the streets.
Seventeen-year-old billionaire graphic novelist Will Dreycott’s biggest secret is that when he sleeps, he becomes the Dream Rider—a masked vigilante whose ability to enter the world of other people’s dreams allows him to help solve crimes by feeding the information he collects to journalist Harry Lyle, who passes it on to the police. While awake, Will is a mild-mannered, successful creative artist, effectively trapped inside his tower in Toronto due to agoraphobia that began when his parents went missing eight years ago. After Harry asks for his help to investigate the disappearance of a number of houseless boys, Will meets Case, a 16-year-old girl whose younger brother, Fader, has been kidnapped. Case is desperate for help to save her sibling, and although she doesn’t trust the cops, she feels a connection with Will. As the pair start to fall for each other, they tangle with the fabled witch Morrigan and her lover, Marell, who have dark plans for the boys they’ve abducted and who possess powers that the Dream Rider fears he can’t face. Smith’s introduction to the Dream Rider Saga is a multilayered fantasy that pays homage to familiar superhero tropes—including the Batman-esque orphaned, rich vigilante—while adding a nice dose of magic and mystery to the mix. The story is character-driven and richly developed, highlighting Will’s fears of facing his enemies alone (“He was the only person left to stop a crazed super villain. And he didn’t have the slightest clue what to do”), Case’s ongoing struggle to avoid vulnerability, and the villainous Morrigan’s inner conflict. Other characters display uncanny powers like Will’s, and the mystery surrounding Will’s parents’ disappearance provides tantalizing information for future installments.
A fun supernatural tale with well-developed characters and a touch of romance.Pub Date: Oct. 9, 2022
ISBN: 9781928048329
Page Count: 381
Publisher: Spiral Path Publications
Review Posted Online: Nov. 29, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
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
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