A glittery, holiday-themed, girl-meets-boy-under-less-than-usual-circumstances romance.
A Mississippi teen finds herself in a Scottish manor for the holidays under unexpected circumstances.
Dylan Leigh’s sister, Dusty, found love as a contestant on the reality show Prince in Disguise, and now Dusty is going to marry the prince! Actually, Ronan is really only a lord, as Dylan reminds everyone, but no one seems to care. Now, Dylan, Dusty, and their mother—all white—are on their way from Tupelo, Mississippi, to Ronan’s family home in the Scottish Highlands for the Christmas wedding TV special. Lucky for 16-year-old Dylan, who has spent months dodging the cameras (not so easy to do when you’re 6 feet tall), she gets to be Pippa to Dusty’s Kate, and all events leading up to the big event will be filmed for the pre-special special. Christmas vacation is ruined…until Dylan meets white, blue-eyed Eton boy Jamie, one of the groomsmen. It’s refreshing that they don’t hate-like each other, but rather sparks fly from the start: lightly at first and subsequently heavier as the story unfolds. Then the thought occurs to Dylan: what if the show’s producers are setting her up to be the star of a sequel? Dylan’s best friend, Heaven, is black; the show’s producers bring her over because everyone else is “too white,” a ploy Heaven refers to with a great deal of sarcasm.
A glittery, holiday-themed, girl-meets-boy-under-less-than-usual-circumstances romance. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Dec. 19, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4847-6817-4
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2017
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play.
Garber returns to the world of bestseller Caraval (2017), this time with the focus on younger, more daring sister Donatella.
Valenda, capital of the empire, is host to the second of Legend’s magical games in a single year, and while Scarlett doesn’t want to play again, blonde Tella is eager for a chance to prove herself. She is haunted by the memory of her death in the last game and by the cursed Deck of Destiny she used as a child which foretold her loveless future. Garber has changed many of the rules of her expanding world, which now appears to be infused with magic and evil Fates. Despite a weak plot and ultraviolet prose (“He tasted like exquisite nightmares and stolen dreams, like the wings of fallen angels, and bottles of fresh moonlight.”), this is a tour de force of imagination. Themes of love, betrayal, and the price of magic (and desire) swirl like Caraval’s enchantments, and Dante’s sensuous kisses will thrill readers as much as they do Tella. The convoluted machinations of the Prince of Hearts (one of the Fates), Legend, and even the empress serve as the impetus for Tella’s story and set up future volumes which promise to go bigger. With descriptions focusing primarily on clothing, characters’ ethnicities are often indeterminate.
Dark, seductive, but over-the-top: Characters and book alike will enthrall those who choose to play. (glossary) (Fantasy. 12-16)Pub Date: May 29, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-09531-2
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Review Posted Online: March 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice.
A teenage, not-so-lonely loner endures the wilds of high school in Austin, Texas.
Norris Kaplan, the protagonist of Philippe’s debut novel, is a hypersweaty, uber-snarky black, Haitian, French-Canadian pushing to survive life in his new school. His professor mom’s new tenure-track job transplants Norris mid–school year, and his biting wit and sarcasm are exposed through his cataloging of his new world in a field guide–style burn book. He’s greeted in his new life by an assortment of acquaintances, Liam, who is white and struggling with depression; Maddie, a self-sacrificing white cheerleader with a heart of gold; and Aarti, his Indian-American love interest who offers connection. Norris’ ego, fueled by his insecurities, often gets in the way of meaningful character development. The scenes showcasing his emotional growth are too brief and, despite foreshadowing, the climax falls flat because he still gets incredible personal access to people he’s hurt. A scene where Norris is confronted by his mother for getting drunk and belligerent with a white cop is diluted by his refusal or inability to grasp the severity of the situation and the resultant minor consequences. The humor is spot-on, as is the representation of the black diaspora; the opportunity for broader conversations about other topics is there, however, the uneven buildup of detailed, meaningful exchanges and the glibness of Norris’ voice detract.
Despite some missteps, this will appeal to readers who enjoy a fresh and realistic teen voice. (Fiction. 13-16)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-282411-0
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
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