Publishers Weekly: Seventeen young adult writers including Steve Brezenoff, Beth Revis, Cynthia Leitich Smith, and Courtney Summers contribute to this powerful project—a single story told through multiple perspectives—to provide insight into what drove Kirby Matheson, an imagined school shooter, to kill five classmates, a teacher, and himself. The voices include those of Kirby’s girlfriend, childhood neighbor, and even the gun he used, creating an external portrait of a complex character who “did some good things and some monstrous things in life.” There are hints at Kirby’s motivation—he saves a suicidal student, kills helpless bugs, gets bullied, is preyed on by a teacher—but, as is often the case in real life, the killer never explains himself. In the aftermath, Kirby’s younger sister realizes that the shooting “doesn’t define her” or even tell Kirby’s whole story, while a school bully wonders why when Kirby “had a shot at me… he didn’t take it.” These stories humanize a troubled teenager, as well as the people who hurt him along the way, but the authors don’t let anyone off the hook, Kirby least of all.
Aug 212015
August 21, 2015
Wall Street Journal: Five low-level hackers are forcibly recruited by an anonymous three-letter government agency to work on a mysterious project. When these “zeroes” can’t resist using their access to hack the government itself, they uncover something downright diabolical. This taut thriller will reinforce your paranoia about big government, big data, and that big, nerdy barista who just seems to know too much.
Booklist: Best-selling Charbonneau’s newest thriller examines the dark side of social media. When 16-year-old Kayla’s friend introduces her to NEED, a new social networking site that’s giving teens exactly what they say they need in exchange for them completing a task, Kayla is quick to participate. What she needs is a new kidney for her brother, who won’t live long without one. But things quickly escalate to a fever pitch. Told in first-person chapters from Kayla’s point of view and alternating with third-person chapters focused on other teens in her community, this is a fast-paced read that teens antsy to untangle the mystery will devour. At times, the premise stretches plausibility, particularly when only Kayla seems to grow suspicious as the body count ramps up. Some teens may be turned off by the portrayal of their generation as having so little conscience, while others may find it right on the mark. Hand to teens looking for a thought-provoking, timely thriller. Charbonneau has an ample audience, and odds are good they will be eager for this one, which has all the excitement of a summer blockbuster.
Ferguson offers women’s fiction a fresh new voice with her first novel, a delightful tale about the roads we choose in life. Readers will enjoy following Molly Sullivan from one New Year’s Eve to the next, the chapters (each a different month between the bookend holidays) cleverly alternating between “if she said no” and “if she said yes.” The brilliant epilogue ties it all together perfectly. This is a unique take on a familiar plot!
Library Journal: VERDICT: This is an accomplished debut, with a heroine whose motives are murky, seemingly even to herself. The twists and turns our unreliable narrator takes as she pushes the Aurdwynn nobles to rebel reveal her goals yet also expose her loneliness. We’ve only seen a fraction of the world of the Masquerade and a glimpse of Baru’s plans, setting the stage for a compelling series.
RT Book Reviews: In Chapelwood, Priest manages the very difficult task of jumping decades ahead — with a cast winnowed by the events of the previous novel in the series and the passing of years — and writing an equally gripping Lovecraftian thriller where our heroes are nearing or at retirement age and are pitched fully out of their normal settings. In some ways, this book is even scarier than the first, with their monstrous opponents coming to almost total power through good old-fashioned prejudice and hate; it feels very much like Borden, Wolf and their few allies are the last decent people in town.