The Scratch Daughters, by H.A. Clarke

Review copy provided by the publisher.

This is a sequel to The Scapegracers, and it is very very sequel--I strongly recommend that you read the first volume first, because a lot of the plot and character arc are directly dependent on its events.

One of the things I loved about the first book that was kept here--and even to some extent expanded—was how clearly Clarke respects teenage girls and their friendships for who and what they are--not trying to make them into adults in order to give them respect but looking at this particular stage of human life with love. In this book there are nonbinary teens in this category as well, and Clarke is scrupulous never to deadname a character who changes their name in the middle of the book, which is just lovely.

The friendships themselves are not entirely smooth sailing, as you might expect for any high school novel to begin with, but certainly for one about a coven, particularly a coven whose pet book demon is in rather unusual living quarters at the moment. The titular daughters of Scratch--who were also the titular Scapegracers of the last book--are making their presence felt around town, putting spells on violent people (especially boys and men) to make sure they can’t hurt people (especially teenage girls). And that kind of behavior is never without pushback.

One of the things that I found particularly interesting and well-done in this book is that sexuality can be a motivation without the motivation being “and then I want to have sex with this person.” Coming out stories are important, and stories where people’s sexuality just is are important, but this is neither of those things, this is a story where sexuality as distinct from sex is a plot motivator, and I don’t see that
nearly as often as I’d like.

The kids make the kind of trash decisions that teenagers are prone to, and the adults around them make the kind of trash decisions that adult are prone to—but in neither case is it universal. There are always people in both groups who shine as examples of how to human in tough circumstances, some of them in tweed blazers and some in shimmery lip gloss. And some trying out both.

How I feel about the ending depends on whether this is the last book or whether there will be another. As it stands, the ending felt a bit abrupt to me, and a bit too easily tied up in a bow. If it’s just the end of this volume, okay fine; if this is all we get in this series, ehhhh I wish there was a bit more denouement.

Seeds for the Swarm, by Sim Kern

Review copy provided by the publisher.

Rylla McCracken is a denizen of the Dust, the impoverished region that used to be known as the American Southwest before the aquifers were pumped dry. She has always yearned for something more, something better--education, but also a place to live where clean water--any water--is widely available. A place where life can flourish across a landscape, not just in narrow bands and with imported resources.

And Rylla's activism wins her such a place: a scholarship at Wingates University. Wingates is filled with passionate young thinkers like Rylla--most of whom have far easier upbringings in places outside the Dust. But--you know there was a but, and there's more than one--Rylla's cultural background has definitely not prepared her for this. Even the methods of accessing online information are different in this brave new world. She misses her family, particularly her older brother and his partner. And the climate disaster she always knew existed is much, much worse than she thought. The students and faculty at Wingate are supposed to be finding ways to help the planet survive and thrive--but Rylla almost immediately stumbles on evidence that all is not as it seems.

This is a book that definitely remembers the "punk" part of solarpunk. It is not a subtle book. It is three chords and a
yell. And the stuff it is yelling about is worth yelling about. Climate change, economic inequality, species extinction…there's a lot to hit hard here, and Kern really turns up the amp up to 11.

This is not without drawbacks. The addiction subplot in particular seemed to be very linear and handled so simply as to be nearly simplistic--which is not my favorite thing to do with a difficult topic so many people have immediate experience of. But in general, moshing around the world they've created gives Kern a chance to mull over a large range of ideas, through a wide-eyed and justly angry young woman. Rylla makes mistakes. Some of them are incredibly stupid mistakes. But they're not out of character stupid mistakes; they are exactly the sort of thing a person with her personality and background would do when plunged into a tech-saturated academic environment without
support or cultural background to navigate it. There's a seque coming, and the plot requires it--but I'm excited to see where it goes.