Unleashed
(Jinxed #2)

McCulloch's (The Oathbreaker's Shadow) vividly imagined Toronto-set middle grade series opener intertwines smartphone technology with the hallmarks of classic science fiction via a fun, insightful narrative and bright voice. Lacey Chu, 12, lives with her mother in a "corporate mini city" that's grown up around the campus of Moncha Corp., developer of baku--robotic companions that blend companionship with smartphone utility. Her dream is to begin seventh grade at the highly competitive, corporate-run Profectus Academy with an eye toward becoming a baku creator like her father, who disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Lacey is rejected despite excellent mechanical and coding skills, but when she rescues a nonfunctioning, battered baku--a cat that she names Jinx--she's suddenly admitted. After spending the summer repairing Jinx, she joins Profectus's hypercompetitive world, navigating friendships, social changes, academic excellence, and her decidedly and uncharacteristically headstrong baku. With a sharp eye toward the rising awareness of device addiction and a keen sense of wonder, McCulloch's tale is a feast for the imagination that celebrates women in STEM fields. Ages 8-12. Agent: Molly Ker Hawn, the Bent Agency. (Jan.)

Gr 3-7—Lacey Chu has been working her whole life toward being accepted to the elite Profectus Academy, a junior division of MonchaCorp, makers of the ubiquitous "baku" (part smartphone, part robotic pet). Admittance to the school comes with financial support, prestige, a guaranteed school-to-corporation pipeline job, and a top-level baku. Unfortunately, despite her expert fabrication skills, Lacey is rejected from Profectus, or is she? When she fixes a broken and abandoned baku, she finds herself on the fast track after all. Jinx, her found cat baku, is more than he seems. Unlike other bakus, he can think and act for himself, and he can connect deeply with his human partners. With Jinx at her side, Lacey quickly becomes embroiled in the school's Baku Battle culture (a science fair meets the "Hunger Games") and in the dangerous dark side of MonchaCorp. Marketed as the "Golden Compass for the digital age," this title doesn't have much in common with the "His Dark Materials" series beyond the animal companions—it's an exposition-heavy ode to capitalism that leans heavily on common tropes (a mysteriously missing parent, a broke kid at a fancy prep school, a school obsessed with gratuitous battle culture, a well-connected nemesis, and a cute older boy). An unquestioned admiration for start-up culture and tech monopolies is woven into the book's themes, although the evils of corporate competition are also addressed. But for all that it is an enjoyable read with just enough genuine friendship and suspense to draw readers in. The novel ends on a predictable cliffhanger, opening the door to sequels. VERDICT A thin but a fun read.—Katya Schapiro, Brooklyn Public Library

Gr 4-6-This immediate sequel to Jinxed (2020) picks up with our hero, budding engineering genius Lacey Chu, in the hospital recovering from a mysterious coma, and missing her beloved "baku" electronic companion, Jinx. Her memory of recent events is spotty, but she knows that all is not well at MonchaCorp, the company entity that employs, trains, informs, and entertains most of her city and the wider world. She's not sure whom she can trust, but with the help of some old friends and neighbors (and some unexpected informants), she realizes she's in a race against time to keep everyone she knows from being "updated" into pleasant, sedate, ambitionless automatons. McCulloch taps into real concerns about the ubiquity of smart tech and data collection, presenting Lacey and her allies with a series of twists that make it increasingly clear how little they can control or conceal from a once-benign corporation-but the author shies from any real shift in ideas, resolving the plot with a weak promise of corporate responsibility once the villains are removed. VERDICT Predictable but pleasant, this is a fun, unchallenging read, full of deus ex machina solutions and lucky breaks. The talking animal robots don't hurt!

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

The diverse team’s determination and resourcefulness mesh with and support Lacey’s resilience and drive. A fast-paced duology closer full of STEM adventures. (Science fiction. 9-13).