BOOK REVIEW: Survival Show

 

SURVIVAL SHOW
by Juno Dawson
Available now

Scottish refugee Taryn Beck loves to sing, but there's only so far that will take her in the post-War world. With her father approaching the maximum life expectancy of refugees and her brother in desperate need of expensive medical care, a solution occurs to her: audition for Starmaker, an international talent competition. It's an all-or-nothing solution. Winners get everything they ever dreamed of, but each week's loser is executed live on air, sacrificed as part of series sponsor Project Population.

Against all odds, Taryn is one of the final ten. Even better news? This season of Starmaker is forming a five-girl group to be named DOLLHOU5E, so her chances have shot up considerably. But meeting her heroes and working toward her dreams brings with it bloodthirsty jealousy, uncomfortable truths, and a look behind the curtain at a corporation that's even more corrupt than it appears on the surface. Even if she escapes being gassed in the Pyramid, a "win" might not be an escape.

In her afterword, Juno Dawson describes her ultimate YA novel as "The Hunger Games meets Spice Girls," and that's absolutely Survival Show. There's clearly a lot of love for girl groups, especially British and Korean, with a heavy lean into music stan culture. While it's clearly an affectionate lean, it doesn't avoid looking at the toxic side of both the fandom and the industry. Some chapters are bookended by trashy tabloid articles and toxic social media feeds: a reminder that even the most conscientious celeb can only escape public opinion for so long.

We're in a flood of dystopian literature at the moment, and being awash with any genre makes me more critical of it. (See recent reviews of mine for more of that.) It's as un-nuanced as dystopian fiction tends to be, with each week's bottom contestant executed in a glass pyramid flooded with Barbie-pink gas. Where Survival Show stands apart from so much recent dystopian fiction is that the in-between world — the space between now and the story — feels fleshed out and lived in. The worldbuilding is not lazy. The entire political landscape of the globe is reinvented, and that space between is packed with fictional entertainment spoken about with the same casual tone as real-world pop stars. It makes everything feel lived-in and believable. Plus, it has the side effect of making the reader pause and consider the real-world brands that survived into the book's corporate dystopia. Whole nations have fallen, but Hello Kitty remains.

Survival Show pulls no punches. Characters really do die, and "don't worry, she survived actually" fake-outs are few and far between. There are stakes, and even the "unlikable" characters among the Starmaker participants have some mitigating factor about their story. It's complicated and difficult, and that's a very good thing.

DRINK PAIRING: Elixir of Hydration
While Survival Show is extremely gruesome, it also adheres to its aesthetic. Velvet Hammer's Elixir of Hydration is pink and sparkly, and it's definitely much better for your health than everything the Starmaker cast put the girls of DOLLHOU5E through. Use my affiliate link for a discount on this and other sparkly book-inspired elixirs from Velvet Hammer!

FEATURED CANDLE: Spice Factor
This citrus and ginger candle is meant to evoke slow-burn romance, but the name is reminiscent of a certain girl group that inspired much of Survival Show. (And the bright color reminds me of Taryn's mid-season rebranding, complete with hair extensions.) Use my affiliate link to save on this and other bookish candles from Frostbeard!

BOOK REVIEW: Local Gods

 

LOCAL GODS
by Melinda Salisbury
Available now

Folk horror is seeing something of a resurgence in recent years, both on the screen and on the page. While not every offering digs fully into the genre, the new novel Local Gods goes surprisingly deep into those classic vibes. Starting as a typical coming-of-age story with a little bit of oddness (and perhaps romance) around the edges, it slowly unravels into a tale of otherness, ancient curses, and human hubris.

Sylvie Singer has become public enemy #1 in her hometown since returning, thanks to her father swindling the locals and disappearing with the money. Her only hope is to earn her high school diploma (and thus a small trust fund from her grandmother) and disappear. As the entire town turns their back on her, she scrapes by in an unfinished railway station in the cursed West Woods, surrounded by stark-white carnivorous animals. Other than local goth girl Chantry and occult shop owner Zelda, Sylvie's only constant companion is Illican: a horned man who leaves her gifts and to whom she feels herself inexplicably drawn.

As the town sinks further into ruin, Sylvie begins searching for ways to save both it and Illican. But the deeper she digs into the history of the town, the more mysteries she encounters, and the more aggressive the locals get. As animals disappear and businesses are shut down, Sylvie resorts to desperate measures to save her home. Unfortunately, the locals are about to resort to desperate measures of their own.

At the outset, Local Gods (while well-written and interesting from the first page) feels like a YA romance with the vague trappings of folk horror. But the further down the rabbit hole you follow Sylvie, the more the truth starts to unfold. Fans of The Wicker Man, Midsomar, Starve Acre and other full-on examples of the genre will see familiar beats start to emerge slowly, culminating in a dramatic, fiery finish.

The only reason I would tell you not to read Local Gods immediately is because it feels like such a fall book. Should you read it? Absolutely. But it begs for a read (or re-read) during the darkest, coldest months.

TEA PAIRING: Letters of Lavender
Flowers are a big part of the communication between Sylvie and Illican, and the dark floral Letters of Lavender feels like a perfect fit for this setting. Use my code KARA15 for 15% off this and other book-inspired teas from Chapters Tea & Co.!

FEATURED CANDLE: Baba Yaga's Hut
This limited-edition candle's notes of wood and ember are absolutely the vibe of this book... especially the final chapter or two. Use my affiliate link for a discount and check out more bookish candles from Frostbeard!

BOOK REVIEW: Killing Sadie

 

KILLING SADIE
by Rachel Peterson
Available now

Given the simultaneous broad allure and ethical issues surrounding the true crime genre, I am hugely in favor of there being more accessible crime fiction. When done well, it scratches that itch without mining the trauma of real people. Killing Sadie is a strong entry in this genre... and, quite frankly, does right what so many other books like it do wrong.

The "Sadie" of the title is one of a pair of beautiful, popular twins. And she was murdered last night. Now, the three survivors on the scene are being questioned. Her boyfriend Ben is suspected of killing her murderer in self defense. Her best friend Liz blames herself for the horrors of the night before. And her twin sister Jayne, who never approved of Liz's presence, is learning for the first time how it feels to be on her own. Through their separate testimonies, the reader starts to develop a picture of the fateful party where Sadie lost her life, and the literal months and years of circumstances leading up to the tragedy.

But (and I don't think it's a real spoiler to say this) at least one person isn't telling the whole truth. And everything clicks into focus in the final stretch, when Sadie tells her side of the story from beyond the grave.

I tend to judge contemporary crime novels a little unfairly heavily, simply because so many don't give the reader credit for reading comprehension or analytical skills. But Killing Sadie is, without exaggeration, one of my favorite books of the summer. It attempts all the things I see done wrong so often and does them right, including and especially multiple narrators. It seems to be the trend in YA fiction in particular, but in many cases it seems like what the author really wants is third-person omniscient, because the characters never truly think or speak differently. But in Killing Sadie, each narrator has a unique voice and perspective that adds to both the plot and the intrigue.

This is one that demands multiple readings. Early on, it's clear that each narrator is wording things carefully even in their own inner thoughts. Do the police "need to believe" certain claims because they're true or because they support an alibi? Are nervous tics present because someone is lying or because this is a distressing situation. And when accounts of the night in question don't match up, who do we believe? Even if you do suss out part of what's going on, the whole truth is both surprising and narratively satisfying.

It's so rare to just... not have any problem whatsoever with a book. And it feels great to say "It's just good. Just read it."

TEA PAIRING: Secrets in the Garden
Our narrators were subjected to less-than-relaxing bagged green tea, so let's swap in some that's actually good! This summery new blend adds watermelon and lime to green tea for a brew that's fantastic hot or iced. Use my code KARA15 for 15% off this and other tea blends from Chapters Tea & Co.!

FEATURED CANDLE: Summer Thriller
A past seasonal candle inspired by books just like Killing Sadie: summertime thrillers that keep you intrigued. The blend of oud, amber, and coconut carries a tinge of vacation months with an undertone of creepy vibes. Use my affiliate link to get a discount on more book-inspired candles from Frostbeard!

BOOK REVIEW: The Season of Light and Darkness

 

THE SEASON OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS
by Jillian Cantor
Available August 4

Dystopian novels are the "it" thing right now, and that could be for a couple reasons. On the one hand, The Hunger Games is huge and lots of people want a piece of that. On the other, there's a data center in my state whose mere existence is killing cows. So, you know. It could really be either or.

A book falling into the current hotness does not automatically make it bad, but it does (for better or for worse) make me look on it with a somewhat more critical eye. Is this a diamond in the rough that's going to stand out above its peers and prove that the subgenre has teeth? Or is it going to be just one more for the pile? In the case of this book, my answer (at the moment) is a resounding "I have no idea."

The basic plot run-down sounds like an idea with legs but not a lot of thought given to how to evolve said idea. One of our many protagonists is Ellie, whose scientist father decides that the best way to weather an incoming horrible presidency is to cryogenically freeze himself and his family for ten years. However, Ellie is found only three years into President Lyon's four-year term. She awakens to a country reinvented: ReAdmission programs brainwash the public, force all women to bleach their hair and go into stereotypically "lady" professions, and science and medicine are outlawed. However, there are rebels who hang on, including Ellie's brother Scott who refused to join the family in cryosleep. Meanwhile, ReAd Olivia finds herself shaken out of her blissful ignorance by a peanut allergy.

The thing with The Season of Light and Darkness is that the prose is good and it's clear this came from a lot of very current feelings. And I want to emphasize that the prose is good, because the rise of generative AI is bringing with it the idea that anything polished can't possibly be human. No matter how I feel about a book in terms of how it spins its plot, I will always champion human writing, and any critiques I have just mean it's worth bothering to take time to critique.

There were two big feelings I came away from with this. One was that the worldbuilding felt rushed. The springboards from which this story originated are relatively obvious, and it's a little hard to demand subtlety and subtext in dystopian narratives. The problem is, a lot of what's played out starts to crumble under the lens of real-world experience.

Why would an educated man believe that four years of bad sociopolitical decisions could be walked back in six years, enough that it would be worth waking his family that early? In fact, why would a scientist consider a science experiment a safe place to store his family in the wake of a movement that's doing away with science? Unless we discover in a later book that her parents were plotting an elaborate suicide, it doesn't scan.

Similarly, the horrors of ReAdmission feel a little too blunt. Again, it's difficult to demand nuance from a dystopian novel. But as much as I liked the characters and their particular concerns — Ellie feeling guilty for longing for prom when the world is burning was great, for instance — the overarching intrigue feels patchy and undeveloped. If we were only seeing through Ellie and Liv's eyes as they come out of their respective hazes, it would be one thing. But so few things click, even as we accompany freedom fighters, that the thread of ReAd feels more like an all-purpose bogeyman than a legitimate statement.

There are other issues at play. The fact that the only undrugged, unhazy women in the narrative are sidelined or outright killed, even as Liv proclaims she doesn't need a man to save her, feels a little harsh. Even in a narrative denouncing the systemic subjugation of women, it's the male protagonists who get to be grey and nuanced.

I wanted to like The Season of Light and Darkness, and I especially wanted to see how it handled difficult situations like when and how to take action in a crisis. But it feels like so much of the story was focused on being visually striking that a lot was lost in the actual meat of the story.

I'd love to be proven wrong in later volumes, and I'd love to see this prose shoring up something really insightful and incisive. But the first book, while an interesting series of character studies, doesn't really thrill. Nonetheless, I am ready and willing to eat my words if later books prove these concerns either incorrect or part of some bigger narrative plan.

TEA PAIRING: The Dragon's Flame
Between a group of freedom fighters burning through the current regime and Ellie needing a serious thaw, this warming cinnamon spice tea is my pick for this pairing. Use my code KARA15 for 15% off this and other teas from Chapters Tea & Co.!

FEATURED CANDLE: Elven Vale
This month's limited-edition candle is thematically worlds apart from the story, but the calming natural scents bring to mind a world left behind, and one that our heroes can hopefully find once again. Use my referral link for a discount on other bookish candles from Frostbeard!

BOOK REVIEW: Adventure in the City of Stories

 

ADVENTURE IN THE CITY OF STORIES
by Emma Otheguy
Available July 21

Cousins Jorge, Camila, and Siggy are in big trouble when they discover that their aunt is in possession of some valuable — and missing — items. A book and two puppets belonging to librarian and storyteller Pura Belpré have mysteriously shown up in Tía Xía's home, and simply returning them could lead to some major misunderstandings. Fortunately, their aunt has a secret: a small fleet of time-traveling boats that can only be steered by members of her family!

Together, the four travel back to 1930s New York, where they plan to return the items to their old home. But standing in their way is the wife of a pencil magnate, set on putting Puerto Rican people (and people she assumes are Puerto Rican) in their place. With Tía Xía's magic, and the magic of stories, the family works to help a local girl blow the whistle on her father's employer, return Pura Belpré's belongings, and get home to the present day safely.

This new book follows Otheguy's Cousins in the Time of Magic, which I haven't read. However, it takes little time to immerse oneself in this world, with its straightforward but unique magic system. The story also blends historical figures with historically-inspired original characters, painting a vivid picture of early 20th century New York (its ups and its downs). In addition to the history lesson, readers will also learn some legendary children's stories.

I recommend reading Adventure in the City of Stories with your kids. Not because there's anything difficult or objectionable in it, but because it opens doors to a lot of frank discussions and potential questions. It's a literal learning experience (complete with endnotes and a bibliography), but it's also an opportunity to discuss some more difficult topics with young people. There's very little nuance in the verbal bullying of the book's villain, which might feel a little blunt to older readers; but for kids, the frank depiction might help them recognize issues in their own lives.

TEA PAIRING: Magical Library Butterbrew
This story takes place across several libraries, many of which have surprising and magical things happening in them. This smooth butterscotch tea is inspired by cozy magical libraries, which seems just about right for this particular story. Use my code KARA15 for 15% off this and other book-inspired teas from Chapters Tea & Co.!

TEA REVIEW: Three More Teas from Plum Deluxe

 

In addition to the Literary Tea collection I reviewed not long ago, Plum Deluxe were also kind enough to send along three more teas they thought might suit my taste. I'm not about to let a good tea go un-shouted-out, so here we are again with a new trio of reviews!

This set of teas isn't on any particular theme, but rather is a selection from across their catalogue.

Welsh Dreams Herbal
While I'm not a big herbal tea drinker, I'm trying to get better about cutting my caffeine after a certain time of day. So good herbals and decafs are always nice to find. This is a soft, comforting blend with a honeybush base and notes of peppermint and vanilla. But it's not strong, candy-like peppermint. It's sweet but not too sweet, and very relaxing at the end of the day.

Picard Black Tea Blend
This is the blend I've had my eye on for some time... after all, I'm a Star Trek fan and an Earl Grey fan. Plum Deluxe has several interesting twists on Earl Grey, and this is another of them. The cinnamon pecan flavoring makes it taste almost like a pastry, which gives it a sort of breakfasty feel. While it's not my favorite of their Earl Greys (that would be their Grantham Grey), it's still an extremely nice one.

Porch Sippin' Pecan Black
Maybe I'm just desperate for autumn, but this tea was my favorite of the trio. This black tea has a very strong, sweet praline flavor with big fall vibes. This would make an incredible milk tea, either hot or iced. And especially now, in the heat of summer, it was a welcome dose of cool-weather feelings.

If you'd like to try these or any other teas from Plum Deluxe, be sure to use my affiliate link! And check out my previous review, showcasing their Literary Tea collection.