A rousing tale about a young woman coming to terms with an unresolved past.
A young woman finds herself between two worlds in Fox’s YA SF coming-of-age story.
Leeta Simtar, who’s well above 6 feet tall, is like many other teenage girls in that she yearns for greater freedom than her life on the planet Fure will allow—a feeling that’s only underscored by her status as a “Brid,” or interspecies hybrid. This is a world anchored by rote order, as its motto (“One mind. One goal. One family”) suggests, and Leeta’s impetuous brashness proves to be a naturally poor fit. Inevitably, Leeta is sent for a sit-down with Fure’s stern, omnipresent overlord, the Daht, but not for punishment. Leeta and her friend, Zertee, are being sent to Ganymede on a field expedition to survey its biological life, under strict supervision, as the Daht reminds them (“I will be tracking your APEDs [All-Purpose Electronic Devices]at all times”)—although later, they go to Earth without authorization. A mystery gift from the Daht dramatically upends Leeta’s life by helping to unlock crucial secrets about her past, and she feels compelled to break from the mission to explore them further. It places her on a collision course with UFO conspiracist Rick Rodriguez, whose paranoid actions may yield essential clues. Putting the pieces together will also require the cooperation of Richard Rutherford, who’s still reeling from his son’s unsolved disappearance, which occurred 18 years before Leeta’s arrival. Over the course of Fox’s novel, the way in which the adventurous young Leeta sets about her task will naturally thrill any reader who’s ever had to deal with Daht-style moralism from people in their orbit; some of these dictates are sure to be uncomfortably familiar to any young rebel, such as “You must try harder to be one with us.” Boldly presented in a third-person, present-tense narrative style from Leeta’s perspective, Fox’s novel tells a richly told story of going rogue, on a grand scale, for the greater good—even as she’s pushed to her breaking point.
A rousing tale about a young woman coming to terms with an unresolved past.Pub Date: March 11, 2025
ISBN: 9781943649129
Page Count: 314
Publisher: Electric Eggplant
Review Posted Online: Feb. 13, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A spectacular return to a magical world.
Following the events of Impossible Creatures (2024), a devoted Guardian teams up with a brave princess to fight her power-hungry uncle and save the Archipelago’s dragons from a strange new threat.
Jacques the dragon summons Christopher Forrester back to the Archipelago from the human world: Dragons are dying, and no one knows why. Meanwhile, on the island of Dousha, Princess Anya’s grandfather, King Halam, has been murdered, and her father accused—though she knows he’s innocent. When Christopher and Anya take refuge on the islet of Glimt, the Berserker Nighthand helps them see how their twin missions to save the dragons and free Anya’s father are connected. They work together to create an antidote for the poison that’s killing the dragons and to keep Anya and her father safe from her murderous uncle. Meanwhile, Nighthand and Irian, the part-nereid ocean scholar, pursue their own important secret mission. Divided into three parts—“Castle,” “Dragons,” and “Revenge”—and containing elements of fairy tales, fantasy, and Shakespeare, this story continues the storyline established in the series opener, yet because it introduces new characters and obstacles, it could also stand alone. Dark-blond Anya (“five feet tall and all of it claws”) is a match for white-presenting Christopher, who, though he still misses Mal, finds that “it made a difference to have someone to move through the world with again. A friend changed the feel of the universe.” Mackenzie’s delicate, otherworldly art adorns the text.
A spectacular return to a magical world. (map, bestiary) (Fantasy. 10-15)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2025
ISBN: 9780593809907
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
PROFILES
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
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