I've come to expect a certain element of speechlessness every time I finish a Shusterman novel. A few audible gasps, some moments of gripping the pages so tightly in effort not to fall over in terror, etc. – the usual. However, I was not prepared for the thriller/urgent call to environmental action that is Dry. It's terrifyingly relevant to consider the ramifications of living in a world that's out of drinkable water. And the father-son Shusterman duo push this near-future dystopian narrative along around multi-dimensional and complex characters to wrestle with the question of how far desperation can take humans away from their humanity. It's been days since I read it, but I'm still haunted by this book.
Dee Guerrera has been wrongfully convicted of her stepsister's murder and dumped on Alcatraz 2.0, the most popular prison on social media. She's innocent, but no one cares. They're here to see justice served--and in this world, there's an app for that. All Dee wants is stay alive long enough to figure out who really killed her stepsister, but she'll be lucky if she makes it through the week. Gruesome, funny, and fast-paced, readers will root for Dee while also enjoying the clever traps and elaborate deaths planned by the island's thematic serial killers. Will she survive Prince Slycer, who dresses his victims like Disney Princesses? What about the Gucci Hangman's fabulous and fashionable murder scenes? Part murder mystery, part biting satire, and all fun. --Lish
This is a book about relationships wrapped in the a guise of apocalyptic-landscapes, strange biotech, nameless cities, and survival-horror.
Come for the 5-story tall bear and feral, ruthless children.
Stay for the soul-crushing exposition of personal connections torn apart by guilt and distrust.
Kickbutt protagonist Abbie has superpowers that get her in trouble wherever she goes, but she's trying to return her mother's ashes to her homeland. Magruder's art style shifts seamlessly from lush and expansive to quirky and expressive as she respectively focuses on world- and character-building. For fans of Marjorie Liu, Faith Erin Hicks, and those who wish Cece Bell's El Deafo was set in a dystopian desert wasteland.
