Chasing Shadows

Starred review from August 5, 2013
Avasthi (Split) delivers a superb novel about grief, friendship, and mental illness, mixing in graphic-novel elements and themes from Hindu mythology. When Holly’s twin brother, Corey, is murdered after a free-running session, Holly and her best friend Savitri (Corey’s girlfriend) are shattered. Savitri reconsiders her plans to leave Chicago to attend Princeton, while Holly, who was also wounded in the attack, has visions of a snake god named Kortha holding her brother hostage in the afterlife. The investigation into the murders is also wreaking havoc on Holly’s parents (especially her police officer father), and a subplot about the friendship between Savitri and Holly’s ex Josh adds depth to the story. Holly’s visions, as well as some real-world action, are told in striking illustrated sequences from Phillips, reflecting Holly’s diehard love of comics and her increasingly uncertain grip on reality. More significantly, Avasthi avoids any pretense of easy, happy answers or shortcuts, offering a painful and realistic vision of the aftershocks of a horrific moment of violence. Ages 14–up. Author’s agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. Illustrator’s agent: Shannon Associates.

September 1, 2013
Two friends alternate narration and struggle with grief and trauma after a violent murder. Freerunners who fearlessly climb and jump through the city as an urban obstacle course, Holly, Savitri and Corey are nearly inseparable--Holly and Corey twins, Savitri and Corey dating, Holly and Savitri best friends. But then a gunman murders Corey and gravely wounds Holly. Comatose Holly dreams that a snake man, Kortha, claims Corey for the Shadowlands. Phillips' masterful dream illustrations, marked by fluid, bold lines and strong angles that create impeccable clarity and movement, provide intermittent graphic-novel segments. The strategically deployed illustrated sections pack major narrative and emotional punches. Upon waking from her coma, Holly can't let go of her dreams. She latches onto her favorite comic-book character, a vengeance-bound superhero named Leopardess. Meanwhile, Savitri struggles to support the ever more distant and erratic Holly at the cost of dealing with her own needs. The two desperately try to make meaning of Corey's death and find his killer. The girls are sympathetic in different ways, and their development as characters is natural, logical and seamless. Avasthi deftly weaves story elements and narrative techniques--two narrators, the graphic portions and even a flawlessly executed second-person passage--to create a rich portrait of friendship and the depths of reality-shattering grief. Haunting, mesmerizing and intense. (Graphic fiction hybrid. 13 & up)

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Starred review from November 1, 2013

Gr 8 Up-Teen twins Holly and Corey, children of a Chicago police officer, are fast friends with Savitri, who is also Corey's girlfriend. One night after the three complete a challenging freerunning session, Savitri witnesses a hooded shooter targeting Corey and Holly in their car. Corey is killed and Holly is hospitalized in a coma. Devastated, Savitri diligently attempts to revive Holly and tries to identify the shadowy murderer, perhaps someone seeking revenge against the twins' father. When Holly finally awakens, Savitri realizes that her friend has changed. She refuses to accept her brother's death and slips into a downward spiral of delusion through which she believes she can rescue him from a fantasized Shadowlands, inspired by the Hindu myths she learned from Savitri. Savitri, determined to heal Holly, even considers turning down her acceptance to Princeton to stay close by. When Holly's deteriorating mental health begins to directly impact Savitri and puts her very life in jeopardy, Savitri must make important choices between friendship, loyalty, and survival. Fans of Cecil Castellucci's Year of the Beasts (Roaring Brook, 2012) will especially appreciate this book's themes and its hybrid format that alternates chapters from Savitri's and Holly's points of view in both compelling text and adept black-and-white graphics-graphics that ultimately deliver a sad and powerful twist.-Diane P. Tuccillo, Poudre River Public Library District, CO

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2013
Grades 9-12 Avasthi pulls a dramatic 180 from her gritty debut, Split (2010), with this hyperstylized, graphic-novel-infused superhero-origin storythough even that doesn't suffice for this genre-bender. Seventeen-year-old twins Holly and Corey, along with SavitriHolly's best friend and Corey's girlfriendare a team of skilled freerunners who use the Chicago cityscape as their own improvised acrobatics course. It's not this dangerous hobby that kills Corey, though; it's an apparently random shooting. Devastated, Holly begins to conflate one of Savitri's comic-book characters, the Leopardess, with her own obsession to find Corey's killer. Is Holly the Leopardess reborn? And is the Lunatic Voice telling her that she can save Corey from the so-called Shadowlands madness? The continual stylistic grace notes in the dual point-of-view voices often prevent a smooth narrative flow. But Phillips' graphic interludes make for visceral thrills when words, or reality, fail the characters, adding further interest to this rare avenger story that takes mental illness seriously. It's a lot to mesh, and it doesn't always work, but it's undoubtedly bold and unique. Avasthi continues to impress.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2014
Savitri's boyfriend Corey is killed and her best friend, Holly (Corey's sister), is injured by a seemingly senseless shooting. With the killer at large, Holly teeters on the brink of sanity. The narrative alternates among Savitri's voice; a second-person narrator; and Holly's perspective, told through first-person text and dramatic graphic novelstyle interludes. Avasthi delves deeply into the pysche of both girls.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2014
Savitri's best friend, Holly, and her boyfriend, Corey, are fraternal twins. The trio is into free-running, using the urban Chicago landscape as their own personal acrobatic obstacle course. Following one of their runs, Corey is killed and Holly is seriously injured by a man who, seemingly senselessly, sprayed bullets into their car. Savitri, headed to Princeton, had been on the verge of breaking up with Corey but now feels obligated to help Holly recover, even if it means sacrificing her own dreams and studying at a local college. While Corey's killer remains at large, a grief-stricken Holly teeters on the brink of sanity. The narrative alternates among Savitri's voice, the voice of a second-person narrator ("You're told there's nothing you can do but wait and watch"), and Holly's perspective, told through both first-person text and dramatic graphic novel-style interludes interspersed throughout the story. Avasthi delves deeply into the pysche of both girls, and in less capable hands the juggling of the magical realism of the comic panels, the adrenaline rush of the plot, and the staccato cadence of the second-person narration would be too gimmicky. It not only works here but seems like a natural fit for this visceral story of love, grief, and madness that is both action-packed and psychologically acute. jonathan hunt

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)