A magical and romantic tale of identity.
An elf-hating goth girl is blackmailed into taking part in a magic exchange on the elves’ private island of Eterna, off the eastern coast of Puerto Rico.
Seventeen-year-old Puerto Rican Sevim Burgos steals elf corpses and sells them to a university professor for his studies—partly for the money her family needs, partly to get back at the elves that caused her father’s death. When Aro Herrera, the youngest elven prince, catches Sevim red-handed, he kidnaps Sevim’s mother in order to blackmail her into taking part in the Exchange. The annual weeklong event takes place on Eterna, where most elves have lived since leaving their home on Vieques after the U.S. Navy arrived. Three teenagers are allowed onto Eterna, where they can earn magical powers in exchange for their dreams, which feed the elves’ own powers of illusion. Alongside her two other human companions, Jason Baxter, a Black trans boy from Atlanta, and Kang Ryujin, a South Korean gymnast, Sevim undergoes the elves’ challenges. But the more time Sevim spends on Eterna, the more she realizes that Aro is keeping dangerous secrets—secrets that may well determine her own fate. Featuring plenty of adventure, puzzles, twists, and a dash of romance, this novel has original, if slightly convoluted, worldbuilding that forms the basis of an imaginative story about friendship, family, and, ultimately, carving out your own identity.
A magical and romantic tale of identity. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: March 28, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-64567-614-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2023
PERSPECTIVES
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
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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