The Reckless Kind Hardcover – November 9, 2021 by Carly Heath

Description

Author: Heath Carly

Color: Black

Package Dimensions: 27x217x506

Number Of Pages: 336

Release Date: 09-11-2021

Details: Product Description
A genre-defying debut, this queer historical YA centers a wild and reckless trio who fly in the face of small-town tradition—full of compassion, love, and determination to live the lives of their choosing.

It’s 1904 on an island just west of Norway, and Asta Hedstrom doesn’t want to marry her odious betrothed, Nils. But her mother believes she should be grateful for the possibility of any domestic future, given her single-sided deafness, unconventional appearance, and even stranger notions. Asta would rather spend her life performing in the village theater with her fellow outcasts: her best friend Gunnar Fuglestad and his secret boyfriend, wealthy Erlend Fournier.

But the situation takes a dire turn when Nils lashes out in jealousy—gravely injuring Gunnar. Shunning marriage for good, Asta moves with Gunnar and Erlend to their secluded cabin above town. With few ties left to their families, they have one shot at gaining enough kroner to secure their way of life: win the village’s annual horse race.

Despite Gunnar’s increasing misgivings, Asta and Erlend intend to prove this unheard-of arrangement will succeed. Asta trains as a blacksmith; Erlend cares for recovering Gunnar. But as race day approaches, the villagers’ hateful ignorance only grows stronger. With this year’s competition proving dangerous for the trio, Asta and Erlend soon find they face another equally deadly peril: the possibility of losing Gunnar, and their found family, forever.
From School Library Journal
Gr 9 Up-It’s 1904, near the Norwegian Sea, and budding actress Asta’s parents think that because of her single-sided deafness, she should marry horrid Nils. Asta, however, longs for queer-platonic intimacy beyond marriage with her one-armed best friend Gunnar and his secret boyfriend, the young theater director Erlend. When jealous Nils attacks and wounds Gunnar, the three friends flee to a remote farm. They abandon the theater, and their solution to financial precarity is for Asta to train as a farrier, tame a wild horse, and win a Christmas sleigh race. This emotionally grounded queer fairy tale is anchored by Asta and Erlend’s attempts to protect their shared object of desire. Asta is mischievous and scrappy; Erlend is princely. Both the blindness of his privilege and his greatness of heart allow him to abandon luxury for love. And Gunnar? Using Asta and Erlund-but not Gunnar-as narrators produces surprising revelations. The book excels when depicting Gunnar’s life with chronic pain, without miraculous cures. The writing and description are vivid; however, there’s an ambiguity as to whether Asta lives in a historical or a semi-fantastical context. The afterword provides useful information on the novel’s representation of medical conditions, yet sources for local details like Valkyrie sapphires and marriage horses would be enriching, not to mention information on the period’s queer culture. VERDICT This work will tug the heartstrings of anyone who loved Mackenzi Lee’s The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue and wished Frozen lived up to its queer potential.-Katherine Magyarody, Texas A&M Univ., College Stationα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review
Praise for The Reckless Kind

“A beautiful and triumphant debut; this trio of fierce yet loving queer teens boldly making their way in the world has won a place in my heart, just like they will yours!”
—
Sarah Glenn Marsh, author of the Reign of the Fallen series

“Three queer disabled teens forge their own path to love, family, and independence in this nuanced, delightful, and beautifully set historical adventure. If you read to be inspired that a better future is out there and in your control, this is the book for you.”

—Dahlia Adler, editor of That Way Madness Lies
“Carly Heath’s writing jumps off the page to create an immersive world with lovable, queer characters who