I always like to see what my counterparts on the Cybils young adult speculative fiction panel have chosen as finalists! I started listening to these first thing in January, and only realized when I went to start writing reviews that I’d missed the one book. Here at last is the epic compilation of my short takes on all seven books.

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross. Read by Rebecca Norfolk and Alex Wingfield. Wednesday Books/Macmillan Audio, 2023. Listened to audiobook on Libby.
What 18-year-old Iris Winnow wants more than anything is for her older brother to come back from the war – where he was called by the song of a goddess – and for her mother to stop spending all their money on alcohol, as she’s been doing since her brother left. But since neither of those are in her control, she needs to get the position as the full-time columnist for the Oath Gazette, where she currently writes obituaries. Unfortunately, she has a rival in the wealthy and well-educated Roman Kitt, already the publisher’s favorite. Iris types letters to her brother on her typewriter and slips them under her wardrobe door… and after a long period of silence, starts getting letters back. The drama intensifies as we learn who the letters are coming from, and the publisher becomes adamant that there is no war, even as more and more young people go off to fight, never to be heard from again. The suspense and the romance are both dialed way up in this novel with World War I feels. Dual narrators work very well to bring both Iris and Roman to life. If you have strong feelings about cliffhangers, be sure to have the sequel, Ruthless Vows on hand as well. Major characters read as white.

Fault Lines by Nora Shalaway Carpenter. Running Press Kids, 2023. ISBN 978-0762480999. Read from a library copy.
Isolated 17-year-old Viv spends a lot of time in the tree stand her recently deceased aunt built, the only place she can still feel her energy. When the tree sinks into the ground, that energy leaves, and Viv is convinced it has to do with the fracking that’s been making increasing inroads into their rural Appalachian community. Dex has just moved to the community for his mother’s job on the pipeline – the first job in a long time that will pay for them to have a place nicer than a run-down apartment. Though they’re on opposite sides of the environmental issues, Viv and Dex are drawn to each other in this sensitive and nuanced story. Viv and Dex read as white, while Viv’s best friend is Black and Dex’s Latine.

The Half-Life of Love by Brianna Bourne. Read by Pete Cross and Stephanie Willing. Scholastic, 2023. ISBN 978-1338712667. Listened to audiobook on Libby.
In this alternate present-day world, most people have a seizure exactly halfway through their lives, letting them and everyone around them know exactly which way they will die. Flint had his when he was just 8, and is now quite reluctantly spending his last 41 days in a rented house with his divorced parents, who are trying to get along and have cheerful family bonding moments for their last days. September lives in this small town, home of the Half-Life Institute, where she is interning. Ever since her own little sister died, she’s wanted to find a cure for the half-life, and she wants this even more as she and Flint fall in love. This is a tender exploration of familial, friend, and romantic love, as well as the value of science and life itself. The narrators highlight Flint’s gradually softening cynicism and September’s hopefullness and grief. Major characters read as white.

Isles of the Gods by Aimee Kaufman. Read by Nikki Patel, Homer Todiwala, Donnabella Mortel, Vidish Athavale, and Steve West. Listening Library, 2023. ISBN B0BF7NY8CR. Listened to audiobook on Libby.
Teen sailor Selly really wants to find a ship to take her to find her father, who should have been back from the Northwest Passage a month ago. Instead, she finds herself on another ship in her father’s fleet – secretly chartered to carry the disguised crown prince to the Isle of the Gods to complete the sacrifice he should have completed years ago. Unfortunately, since he’s put it off so long, it will take a bigger sacrifice to keep their kingdom safe. Doubly unfortunately, their rival kingdom is determined to prevent the sacrifice to awaken their long-sleeping god and bring their kingdom back to ascendency. The world-building mixes technology of different time periods, with sailing ships, magic, Greek-like gods, and electricity all mixing. As you can tell by the long list of narrators, the story is told from multiple different perspectives, including some from the opposite side, all interesting and mostly sympathetic. As I’ve come to expect from Aimee Kaufman (see Illuminae, Ice Wolves, and Aurora Rising) this is a high-action, swashbuckling adventure with a side of romance. Characters have a variety of skin tones, sexual orientations, and economic backgrounds. Book 2, The Heart of the World, is due out September 17, 2024. I’m looking forward to it!

The Q by Amy Tintera.Crown Books for Young Readers, 2022. ISBN 978-0593486177. Read from a library copy.
17-year-old Maisie Rojas has grown up in the Q, as the quarantine zone that used to be Austin is called. It’s divided into area controlled by different ruling factions, and Maisie is in a high position as part of the ruling family. When teen Lennon, the son of the President of the United States, is kidnapped and dropped into the Q, she’s able to give him a vaccine that will keep him safe from the disease that everyone in the Q has – but only for 48 hours. After that, he’ll be susceptible to the disease and stuck in the Q for life. It’s a battle for their lives as they journey through multiple territories trying to escape enemies and rivals. Lennon and Maisie are both learning more of the reality of life on the other sides of the borders that have separated them – and meanwhile, losing their hearts to each other. Can there be a happy ending for them?? Maisie is described as Latine, while Lennon is white.

Revelle by Lyssa Mia Smith. Narrated by Taylor Meskimen and Kirt Graves. Balzer + Bray, 2023. ISBN 978-0063239265. Listened to audiobook on Libby.
Luxe Revelle is the star of her circus-style family’s show on the magical island of Charmant, just offshore from New York City. But it’s the 1920s, and Prohibition is threatening her family’s livelihood – how can they make a living when they can’t get the alcohol they need to draw people in and them tempt them to pay for magical experiences in gemstones. So when the younger son of the current mayor, part of the wealthiest family on the island, offers to help her family out of its bind – including giving them a permanent building instead of the collapsing tent they’re all living in – Luxe can’t refuse. Then she meets Jamison Porter, who’s just arrived on the island and finds it startlingly familiar. He’s an orphan who’s been traveling with some of Luxe’s family, who introduces them. Sparks fly immediately – but their attraction must be kept a secret while Luxe is officially dating someone else, and there are layers and layers of secrets with the power to hurt multiple people. Meanwhile, there are random but recurring attempts on both their lives with no apparent motive. All the drama, feels, romance, and impossible choices are here in a glamourous 20s setting. Luxe and Jamison both read as white, though some of Luxe’s cousins/best friends are Black. Once again, the romance and mysteries are shown to good effect through the use of dual narrators.

Threads that Bind by Kika Hatzapoulou. Read by Mia Hutchinson-Shaw. Razorbill/Listening Library, 2023. ISBN 978-0593528716. Listened to audiobook on Libby.
The world in which we find ourselves feels something like the 20s or 30s, but seems to be a post-apocalyptic world, (is it just me who tries to figure out when and where the story is set?) the descendants of the Greek gods pass their powers on to their descendants – at least those who have the correct number of siblings. Io is the youngest Ora sister, and she and her older two sisters have the powers of Fates to weave, draw, and cut the threads of life. Even though it’s a gift of the gods, Cutters are feared rather than respected, so Io keeps her skill as secret as possible in her work as a private investigator. Then she finds that someone is cutting the threads of women, leaving them not dead but in a zombie-like state – and those women then go on to commit murders. Her effort to solve this mystery leads to her finally meeting the man that she’s bound to with a fate thread – who is an assistant to the dreaded Mob Queen – and to the highest and lowest depths of society. The world is vibrant and multi-cultural, with one of Io’s older sisters in a sapphic relationship. Though I enjoyed all the finalists, I could definitely understand why this one won the award. The story is definitely not over by the end of this book – Hearts that Cut, the second book in the duology, came out earlier this June.