A beautifully realized evergreen story about finding love and community.
Seventeen-year-old Small Sade seeks belonging after aging out of the orphan house in this stand-alone work that returns readers to the West African–inspired world of the Raybearer duology.
Sade begins her tale by stating: “You are powerful and important, and I am only me.” It soon becomes clear, however, that Small Sade has greater power and importance than she understands. She has vitiligo and is disabled, using a cane following an accident that injured her foot at the sweatmill where she worked as a child. But her cane proves to be a useful weapon against those who assume she’s vulnerable, like Oga Snatch-Purse. Sade is also a Curse-Eater: When she sings, she sees spirit silt and can cleanse the spaces where it gathers, renewing their energy. Because of her gift, she’s not surprised when a gecko messenger leads her to the elusive and handsome Crocodile God, who’s suffering under a curse that no one can break. A prophecy foretold that Sade would be the one to deliver him, but she has no idea how. Sade’s journey shows how helping others often means learning to help yourself first, finding your anger and your capacity to love and create. The book contains thoughtful conversations around domestic abuse and labor inequities, the queer characters are well rounded and self-determined, and the romance, intimacy, and understanding of explicit consent are truly swoonworthy.
A beautifully realized evergreen story about finding love and community. (map, pronunciation guide, how to spirit-clean your bedroom, author’s note) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9781419764356
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
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
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
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