A flashy start dragged down by unrealistic villainy and uneconomical writing.
After killing his abusive stepfather, a teenager goes on the lam, only to find a hideous fate awaiting him.
Shaun, who has red hair that he plans to dye to avoid detection, couldn’t let his stepfather hurt his mother anymore. While fleeing to his maternal grandfather’s cabin, he meets Cass, a girl with her own familial horrors, on the grounds of a “lunatic asylum.” Despite Cass’ warnings, Shaun keeps returning, eventually getting caught up in the asylum’s heinous objectives, which will determine whether he is Redeemable. An intriguing mix of urgency and gray morality kickstarts this tale, engaging readers with questions about what lurks in the asylum and how trustworthy Shaun is as a narrator and a person. But once inside the asylum, the attempts to justify the goals and methods of its borderline-eugenicist workers and funders strip away the haunting atmosphere and expose the underdeveloped bones of the story. Persistent fatphobia, casual molestation, and an overreliance on uninformed fears of those with mental illness and developmental differences undermine any attempts to sympathize with the troubled teens. Repetition, exposition, and stop-and-start plot developments interrupt any remaining flow, causing the story to end with a thud rather than a bang. Shaun and Cass are cued white.
A flashy start dragged down by unrealistic villainy and uneconomical writing. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Oct. 10, 2023
ISBN: 9781643973555
Page Count: 288
Publisher: BHC Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
A thrilling, beautifully written page-turner.
A young woman pursues a dangerous quest in late-1800s Egypt in this sequel to What the River Knows (2023).
After Inez Olivera was nearly murdered while assisting with her uncle’s archaeological expedition in Egypt, Tío Ricardo is eager to ship her home to safety in Argentina. But Inez burns with the need to stay and make sure that those who committed crimes against her family are held responsible. Unfortunately, the law precludes Inez, as a young unmarried woman, from accessing her inheritance (needed to fund her quest for justice) without her guardian uncle’s permission. Whitford Hayes, a former British soldier and her tío’s aide-de-camp, proposes marriage, which could solve her problems. But can Inez trust the secretive Whit? More danger and intrigue lurk at every turn in this exciting duology closer, which fully addresses the first entry’s jaw-dropping cliffhanger. The well-paced plot encompasses many fresh, new adventures and betrayals in this reimagined historical setting in which ancient magic abounds and not everyone or everything is what it seems. Even more captivating, however, is the complicated, nuanced love story between Whit and Inez. Their chemistry sizzles, but their relationship is achingly layered with both profound loyalty and deep deception. As their journey unearths new enemies and priceless archaeological finds, the duo must try to trust each other enough to survive.
A thrilling, beautifully written page-turner. (cast of characters, map, timeline) (Historical fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781250822994
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2024
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
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