A Sapphic fantasy romance series-opener brimming with blood and longing.
In Adams’ YA fantasy novel, a teenage queen and a princess on opposite sides of a war collide in a fatal quest for revenge.
Princess Kalei Maristela of the island nation Marama has the power that will win the war her parents are hiding from her. Kalei is known as the “Princess of Death”; during the full moon, she has the ability to bring the dead back to life. Additionally, she can use her long, moon-white hair as an extra limb, among other powers she discovers on her eventual journey. Queen Evhen Lockes of Vodaeard, the other point-of-view character, became queen when immediately before the start of the novel’s action, Chief Mikala, Kalei’s father, murdered her parents, Vodaeard’s sitting king and queen. Evhen and her brother, Alekey, sail to Marama for revenge, along with the king’s advisor, Talen, and Evhen’s trainer, Icana. When Evhen appears to exact her revenge on Mikala by murdering Kalei, the princess convinces her to instead kidnap her to use as collateral, allowing her to discover the truth behind her parents’ schemes. Evhen, Kalei, Talen, Icana, and Alekey travel across the continent, racing back to Vodaeard in hopes of stopping the war. Along the way, romance blossoms between the leads, despite the mistrust they share. The point of view alternates each chapter between Kalei and Evhen. Oddly, the alternating points of view continue until the final chapter, which is a flashback from Alekey’s point of view. Despite this abrupt transition, and some editorial issues, the narrative is fully engrossing. Throughout the novel, the sensual descriptors lend realism to the fantasy plot (“Moon dust sparkled in the marble beneath my bare feet. Gold veins ran in rivulets through the floor, streaming up the walls to the vaulted ceiling, spilling into the hundred-candle chandelier dangling from a glass dome”). The gore is heavy throughout, especially when Kalei raises the dead—Kalei’s resurrections are not healing, leaving the resurrected with the wounds that caused their deaths, adding a level of body horror to this fantasy.
A Sapphic fantasy romance series-opener brimming with blood and longing.Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781958607091
Page Count: 312
Publisher: Emerge Publishing
Review Posted Online: Nov. 20, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
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
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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