(2) YA In this loose retelling of the Greek myth, Icarus Gallagher is a seventeen-year-old art thief. He breaks into Mr. Black's home, steals his art, and replaces it with forgeries by his father, Angus -- largely as revenge for Mr. Black's role in Icarus's mother's death years earlier. This revenge comes at a cost, however. Angus has strict rules that keep Icarus distanced from others, and he isn't the novel's only abusive father. One night, Icarus meets Mr. Black's son, Helios, who is essentially under house arrest. Against Icarus's better judgment, they strike up a friendship, and then a romance -- and then they must face their inner demons as they plot their escape. Written in brief vignettes that hover somewhere between flash fiction and prose poems, the narrative begins as an impressionistic character study of Icarus. Gradually, a plot emerges, many secrets are revealed, suspense builds, and the romantic tension between the characters ratchets up -- all of it enhanced by the vivid prose in this refreshingly succinct novel.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2024

(3) YA Sixteen-year-old Clara has attempted to train as a witch but is unable to control her magic. She is given a choice: have her magic bound, so she can access a fraction of her power with painful consequences for every spell or lose magic entirely. She chooses binding, but then her touch causes toxic flowers to grow from her father’s chest and poison his blood--a curse that only Clara can heal with a complex blessing requiring perfect magical control. She seeks help from her estranged childhood friend Xavier, who agrees to train her--if Clara will give her magic to him once the blessing is completed. The bargain seems an easy choice, until Clara begins to understand her magic and learns more of Xavier’s motives, which involve counteracting an illegal and dangerous potion originally intended to treat melancholy. Bakewell’s standalone YA debut delivers cottagecore aesthetics in a fantasy world where magic and mental health are intertwined. As Clara embraces her magic, its voice which always told her the “worst parts” of herself and “brought [her] low” becomes easier to bear and to control. Completing the blessing is only the beginning of Clara’s journey as she also helps Xavier bear the weight of past choices--and secrets--while exploring how to work within the rigid confines of the council to offer people a potion not to erase melancholy and “change who they are, but something that will give them the power to be themselves again.” Clara and Xavier are cued as white in this inclusive world where LGBTQ+ identities (including bisexual Clara) are embraced and celebrated with transgender and nonbinary secondary characters who are accomplished and conscientious magicians.

Reviewer:

(2) YA A teenage girl's identity crisis coincides with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Girard's (Girl Mans Up, rev. 11/16) latest novel, set on the outskirts of Toronto. Baylee is a thoughtful yet highly self-critical young woman who struggles with body image after years of being bullied about her weight. Her once-strong friend group is filled with tension as romantic pairings emerge or fall apart, while Baylee believes she will never find a significant other. Gradually, she relaxes her defenses and affirms the feelings she has or develops for her best guy friend, a new female friend, and her one-time bully. Her emotional rollercoaster is intensified by caring for her twelve-year-old sister, who has severe cerebral palsy, and by the daily news about people getting sick from COVID-19. She is faced with decisions about exploring newfound romance during lockdown and putting her sister at risk. Baylee and her family, both blood and chosen, model how life's mistakes can be survivable with support from loved ones. Girard's strength as a writer is in giving Baylee voice as an outwardly strong person whose inner thoughts exist in a state of turmoil. The character and story are highly relatable and potentially validating for readers who are figuring out their identities as well as those who could benefit from their own tumultuous teenage experiences--especially during the pandemic--being externally validated.

Reviewer: Nicholas A. Brown | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2023

(2) YA It's 2021 in San Francisco, the "second spring of the pandemic," and twelve-year-old Boomi Gopalan is grieving the loss of her father, a physician who recently died of COVID-19. She's also feeling dejected about a botched ballet audition: although she has had ambitions to be a dancer all her life, she isn't selected to move on to the next level at her snobby ballet academy. When she's given her father's old boombox, Boomi discovers a crumpled note in the battery compartment that reads "you can change your life." The boombox transports her back in time to 1986 to a small English town called Thumpton-on-Soar, where she meets her father as a boy. Boomi experiments with time travel, going back and forth as she tries, indeed, to change her life and somehow prevent her beloved father's death. In the end, Boomi learns about the roots of her family's secrets, finds joy in dancing again with the classical Indian dance of Bharatanyam, and fights against the racist treatment of South Asian immigrants in Thumpton. Boomi learns lessons about staying true to herself and her heritage and that a "big change can start with the smallest action of the very smallest person." Sekaran's well-crafted prose, sharp sense of humor, and knack for building suspense will keep readers interested until the surprising, time-bending conclusion.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Sarah Gonzales. Maribel shares her journey through her first year as a newcomer to the United States. This picture book begins by depicting a stark contrast of differences: the cold, isolating foreignness of her new home versus the warm, familiar, communal life Maribel left behind. Every new experience--making a friend, experiencing the changing seasons, going on her first bike ride--reminds Maribel that her father is still back in the Philippines, eight thousand miles away. As the year progresses and the weather grows warmer, the imagery between former home and new becomes less distinct; the yellow, green, and blue hues of the (U.S.) beach and (Philippine) bamboo forest complement one another. As summer nears its end and Maribel gets ready to start a new school year, she still dreams of reuniting with Papa. October means Maribel's first Halloween, and November, her first Thanksgiving--old traditions are mixed with new, as Maribel and her mom make turkey, gravy, and ube pie. Papa finally arrives for the family's first Christmas back together, and the year ends as it began, in the "snowy, quiet place," but with a new feeling of belonging.

Reviewer: Gabi K. Huesca | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(2) YA This clever, gender-swapped retelling of My Fair Lady is set in an alternate version of 1830s England ruled by Queen Charlotte (who, a historical note explains, was King George IV's only heir but died before ascending the throne). Gender roles have taken steps, albeit small ones, toward being less restrictive than they actually were at that time, and the profession of Culinarian is reserved for women, with its practitioners revered. Culinarian-in- training Helena Higgins sets her sights on turning street-food vendor Elijah Little into a "gentleman chef" for her final project. Those familiar with the musical can almost imagine the rest, though some intentional plot deviations may keep them on their toes. The mostly jovial novel (full of nods to the source material; song lyrics serve as chapter titles) thoughtfully explores real-world issues: Elijah is hiding his Jewishness; Penelope Pickering, whose ancestry is partly from the Philippine Islands, is passing as white; and Helena's evolving attitude toward both adds depth to her snobbish character. This creative take on a classic musical (itself an adaptation of a play) could stand on its own, but for My Fair Lady fans it's especially delicious.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2022

(2) YA This sensitive novel does an impressive balancing act, examining mental illness and its stigma among Asian Americans while weaving in themes of racism and grief. San Francisco area teen Maybelline Chen's world is shattered when her beloved older brother, Danny, dies by suicide weeks before high-school graduation. Compounding the tragedy, a white classmate's rich venture capitalist father publicly blames Danny's death and other recent teen suicides on academic pressure from Asian "tiger moms and dads." Tension builds when Maybelline, an aspiring writer, pushes back through poetry and by organizing a school-wide protest--activities that jeopardize her mother's job. Ho admirably captures Maybelline's pain and sorrow as she deals with so many conflicting emotions. At the same time, she highlights the protagonist's naiveté and myopia when she doesn't support her Black best friend at a police brutality protest and is forced to evaluate her own biases and limited understanding of anti-Black racism. The novel runs a bit long, and the plot raises several minor logic questions. However, in picture-book author Ho's (Eyes That Kiss in the Corners; Playing at the Border, rev. 9/21) debut young adult novel, the overarching messages--working through issues via conversations, listening with empathy, and seeking help--ring loud and clear.

Reviewer: Michelle Lee | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(2) YA Teenage magicians' assistants Wilhelm and Jack find themselves at odds during the 1909 World's Fair in Seattle when their bosses, Teddy and the Enchantress, become bitter rivals. Earnest bookworm Wilhelm is the victim of terrible abuse at the hands of ambitious and conniving Teddy, who exploits Wilhelm's ability to travel short distances by magic, first involving him in a life of bank-robbing and then using him to gain fame. Orphaned Jack's relationship with the Enchantress takes a different form of mistreatment: she'd rescued him when he was younger and manipulates his emotions to make him feel obligated to her forever, preventing him from living a life of his own. When Jack and Wilhelm fall in love, they must decide what they are willing to risk for a future together. Palpable chemistry between the two main characters drives the plot, and a diverse cast of secondary characters adds humor and zest. Most impressive are the contrasting layers of villainy depicted in Teddy and the Enchantress: one an obvious brute, and the other more nuanced in her cruelty. Fans of historical fiction, fantasy, and slow-burn romance will find Jack and Wilhelm's story truly...magical.

Reviewer: Sarah Berman | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) YA After receiving feedback that her performance lacks spark, seventeen-year-old cellist Jenny Go decides to heed her uncle's advice and "live a little." Jenny, very uncharacteristically, goes on a one-night adventure at and around the L.A. Korean Festival with cute, mysterious Jaewoo, who is visiting from Korea. Soon after, she bargains to accompany her mother on her visit to Seoul to care for Jenny's grandmother, who has colon cancer; while they're there, Jenny will study at the prestigious Seoul Arts Academy. In addition to reconnecting with her roots, she finds that Jaewoo also attends the school--and is the lead singer of the famous K-pop group XOXO. Despite his packed schedule and the school's strict rules, they fall for each other. Oh treats readers to a whirlwind romance with all the hallmarks of a K-drama (forbidden romance, betrayal, illness). The author's obvious love of K-pop is contagious, and the glimpse into idol culture makes for a primarily breezy, enjoyable read. Depictions of ordinary student and family life in Korea, and the natural integration of Korean words and phrases in conversation, invite readers to explore Korean food, language, and culture.

Reviewer: Gabi K. Huesca | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) YA Bossy know-it-all perfectionist Meabh and underachieving social outcast Aideen are enemies at their Irish high school (think Derry Girls, but co-ed and with more than one wee lesbian). But when Aideen comes across the overwhelmed Meabh having a meltdown, they hatch an outlandish scheme to get Meabh out of some of her many scheduled activities: Aideen will push Meabh down some stairs, injuring Meabh's ankle; she will thus be excused from yoga, team sports, gym class, etc., while still being able to practice cello, do homework, and, most important, run for student council president. The pushing-down-the-stairs scheme actually works, but it's witnessed by odd-duck though super-sweet classmate Kavi, who then begins bringing Aideen "clients" so she can solve their problems, too. As Aideen's services become more and more sought after, escapades ensue, and her life gets very entangled--but, also, her social orbit begins to expand as "clients" turn into a network of friends, and she and Meabh start to fall for each other. Meanwhile, Aideen's heretofore sole friend, Holly, manipulative and vindictive, decides to run against Meabh in the school election--forcing Aideen to make some hard choices. Aideen's first-person narration is sometimes hilarious, tart, and sarcastic; sometimes heart-tuggingly poignant (especially when she's trying to suss out if her single-parent mam is drinking again; or when finally allowing herself to realize what a false friend Holly is); always compulsively readable.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2021

(1) YA In this sharp and compelling verse novel (a 2020 Boston Globe-Horn Book honoree), sixteen-year-old Camino Rios lives in the Dominican Republic and dreams of medical school. Sixteen-year-old Yahaira Rios is a native New Yorker who plays competitive chess. Although the two girls share a last name, they are strangers. But after flight 1112 from New York City to the Dominican Republic crashes with the man they each called Papi on board, Camino and Yahaira learn of each other's existence. In two distinct voices, ­Acevedo (The Poet X, rev. 3/18; With the Fire on High, rev. 5/19) explores the rich inner lives of the sudden half-sisters as they grapple with their ­complicated feelings about their father and the secrets he kept. Yahaira narrates in stirring non-rhyming couplets; Camino in intense three-line stanzas. Moving toward their inevitable meeting, Yahaira feels like "a spool of thread / that's been dropped to the ground...rolling undone / from the truth of this thing," while Camino wonders, "If I find her / would I find a breathing piece / of myself I had not known / was missing?" An author's note further explains the title of and inspiration for the novel, which was influenced by the tragic crash of flight AA587 out of New York that killed more than 260 people, most of them of Dominican descent, shortly after September 11, 2001.

Reviewer: Jennifer Hubert Swan | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2020

(2) YA Del's forever crush on schoolmate Kiera comes to a head when she finally becomes single in their junior year of high school. Del is poised to do whatever it takes to win her over, even if it means (inadvertently) joining their church's Purity Pledge group. There is hope, however, from Kiera's friend Jameer, who strikes a deal with Del: Jameer will put in a good word with Kiera in exchange for Del providing him with information from the sex ed class Jameer isn't allowed to take. Del accepts the challenge, but soon begins to realize that his journey into Kiera's heart is not going to be as easy as he thought. With realism and humor, Giles paints the complicated, messy reality that many teens face in navigating sexuality, relationships, and the conflicting messages they receive from society. Toxic masculinity is explored, juxtaposed with the sexual double standards that are applied to young women. The church abstinence-group setting, too, effectively highlights the ways religious suppression can exacerbate the very issues it seeks to resolve. Del's learning experiences lead him into enlightening realizations. Though these do not come without many mishaps and misunderstandings, they eventually guide him to unpack his one-way, self-centered focus on Kiera and to consider that his feelings may not be reciprocated.

Reviewer: Monique Harris | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2020

(2) YA In this slow-burn romance novel told from alternating perspectives, McGovern (Say What You Will, rev. 7/14; A Step Toward Falling, rev. 9/15) introduces another pair of disparate teens who forge an unlikely connection, this time over a shared experience with chronic illness. Jamie, homeschooled for most of her life, feels isolated after her father's suicide and her own hospitalization for depression. Then she meets and befriends David, the senior-class president, while she is volunteering at the hospital. At school, David is a celebrity, but at the hospital, he is a cystic fibrosis patient grappling with a dire prognosis. The two divulge their nerdy interests (for Jamie, old movies; for David, ballroom dancing), exchange gently flirtatious emails, and share deep thoughts over origami. Their conversations are notably forthright; they approach difficult topics--such as the stigma of hidden illness, impossible expectations from friends and family, and the intersections of mental and physical health--from sensitive and age-appropriate perspectives. The thrill of intimacy inspires despondent David to seize control of his increasingly limited life, but when he enlists Jamie to sneak him out of the hospital, disaster ensues. The subsequent cascade of consequences veers toward melodrama (for example, David hovers over his body in a coma dream for a few chapters), but the resolution, like the teens' relationship, unfolds carefully, without sugarcoating, and feels genuinely earned.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2020

(2) YA In the small town of Meteor, New Mexico, a social highlight of the year is the Miss Meteor pageant. Latinx sophomore Lita, who's being raised by a healer known as Bruja Lupe, feels out of place and believes she fell to Earth over fifty years ago with the meteor for which the town is named ("I don't remember the moment I turned from star-stuff thrown off a meteor into a girl...No one really remembers being born"). When Lita decides to enter the pageant to break the streak of tall, blonde, white winners, she knows she is a long shot to win the title, and she knows she will need her more practical former friend Chicky's help to get ready for the elaborate talent, swimsuit, and evening gown contests. Chicky hopes to help her family's diner by bringing home a cut of the prize money, so she agrees to participate, despite her estrangement from Lita. An underdog crew is born--Chicky and her sisters, Chicky's best friend Junior, and Cole, the trans brother of the odds-on favorite to win the pageant--and all grow to be themselves more comfortably as Lita learns pageant skills. The novel's chapters alternate between Chicky's realistic tale of struggling with openness about her sexuality and Lita's magical realism–tinged story about feeling as though she is made of stardust and will soon disappear. Occasionally, the chapters feel disjointed, as the two narrators' voices are so different. But readers will be drawn into this story of an unlikely beauty queen and an unusual town.

Reviewer: Christina L. Dobbs | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(2) YA It's 1957, and Sarah Dewhurst's father has hired a dragon to work on their farm despite his prejudices against them. That's not really big news; in this alternate universe, humankind has maintained an uneasy peace with dragons for centuries. But, as Sarah learns, dragons are more complex than she'd imagined--and the situation is more perilous: a cult of Believers, who worship the magical creatures, has sent a teenage assassin to the United States in an attempt to start a prophesied war (though he's been told his mission is to stop one), a war that will directly affect Sarah and everyone she loves. Nothing is quite as it seems in this imaginative novel. Timelines fluctuate, characters change species, and genres tangle together. However, the plot is solid enough to ensure that, with a healthy suspension of disbelief, readers will follow the story with ease as the stakes get ever higher. Ness's (The Knife of Never Letting Go, rev. 11/08; Release, rev. 9/17) engrossing historical-­fantasy adventure is at once accessible and complex, tackling both human issues--racism (Sarah is biracial; her love interest is Japanese American), war, religion--and grand fantasy action with skill.

Reviewer: Sarah Berman | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(1) YA High school senior Emoni Santiago (an aspiring chef) and her two-year-old daughter live with Emoni's abuela. Emoni signs up for a culinary arts class that culminates in a trip to Spain--and she begins to see a path forward, if only she dares follow it. Acevedo creates beautifully realized characters with complex lives. A few recipes (such as "When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemon Verbena Tembleque") are interspersed.

Reviewer: Christina L. Dobbs | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2019

(2) YA Narrator Arrah was born into a family of powerful witchdoctors, though magic has always evaded her. But when children are abducted and omens of death appear in the market streets, Arrah trades years of her life in order to possess magic that will liberate the kingdom from the threat. Barron includes high-stakes reveals, breathtaking world-building, complicated female characters, and an ill-fated romance in an intricate fantasy novel based in African traditions.

Reviewer: S. R. Toliver | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2019

(3) YA Four very different teenage girls go from strangers to unlikely friends while sharing a summer home in the Adirondacks. In chapters that alternate between their perspectives, each girl also faces an individual challenge, such as dealing with a chronic illness or a public family drama. A vivid setting, light tone, and distinct characterization will appeal to fans of Ann Brashares.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(2) YA Sixteen-year-old Pup Flanagan struggles with schoolwork and feels haunted by what his sprawling, high-achieving Chicago family won't speak of: one brother who died of meningitis and another whose drinking is spiraling out of control. When Pup takes up photography to boost his art-class grade, photos of his family's unguarded moments propel him to a statewide competition. Endearingly vulnerable Pup is easy to root for in this affirming, delicately told coming-of-age story.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2019

(3) YA Sixteen-year-old Marcelle receives a text from her friend Hannah asking Marcelle to cover for her--and then Hannah disappears. Was her disappearance drug-related? Were her shady friends involved? Marcelle asks these questions while struggling with alcohol dependency and attending vicious support group meetings designed for "bullying each other into sobriety." A gritty, tense novel about addiction and its consequences.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith