Relatable high-stakes fun.
Miles Morales contends with a new threat.
Another week begins at Brooklyn Visions Academy, and Miles is in a tough spot. Following the events of Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2017), in which he defeated villain the Warden, Miles assumed things would settle down. But history teacher Mr. Chamberlain appears to be stuck in the past: Miles’ crush, a Black girl named Alicia Carson, leads a protest and is suspended. Mr. Chamberlain unfairly picks on Miles, and he ends up being given in-school suspension too. Miles’ parents, Boricua and Black, are proud of him, but it doesn’t feel like his school understands. As the suspension day crawls along, Miles’ thoughts race. Austin, his cousin, is locked up: How can he help? Alicia is there in ISS too. A few days ago, he gave her a poem he’d written, and she gave him one in return. Classmate and dedicated library assistant Tobin Rogers is being punished for destroying books—but why would he do that? As the answers to these questions slowly come into focus, Miles realizes who the unlikely foe is. Quick thinking and quicker moves may not be enough to take this villain down, but he must try. Reynolds returns with a genre-bending sequel exploring the inner workings of Brooklyn’s latest web-slinger. Told in a fluid combination of prose and verse, the story lays Miles’ emotional truths bare. The antagonist’s origin and incentives are a bit lacking by contrast, but the strong plot will keep pages turning.
Relatable high-stakes fun. (Fantasy. 12-18)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781665918466
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Caitlyn Dlouhy/Atheneum
Review Posted Online: April 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy.
A war between gods plays havoc with mortals and their everyday lives.
In a time of typewriters and steam engines, Iris Winnow awaits word from her older brother, who has enlisted on the side of Enva the Skyward goddess. Alcohol abuse led to her mother’s losing her job, and Iris has dropped out of school and found work utilizing her writing skills at the Oath Gazette. Hiding the stress of her home issues behind a brave face, Iris competes for valuable assignments that may one day earn her the coveted columnist position. Her rival for the job is handsome and wealthy Roman Kitt, whose prose entrances her so much she avoids reading his articles. At home, she writes cathartic letters to her brother, never posting them but instead placing them in her wardrobe, where they vanish overnight. One day Iris receives a reply, which, along with other events, pushes her to make dramatic life decisions. Magic plays a quiet role in this story, and readers may for a time forget there is anything supernatural going on. This is more of a wartime tale of broken families, inspired youths, and higher powers using people as pawns. It flirts with clichéd tropes but also takes some startling turns. Main characters are assumed White; same-sex marriages and gender equality at the warfront appear to be the norm in this world.
Ideal for readers seeking perspectives on war, with a heavy dash of romance and touch of fantasy. (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-85743-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
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
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
