Bookseller Publisher Review
Waking Romeo is a stunning reimagining of the classic tale of Romeo and Juliet --meets Wuthering Heights , meets epic time-travelling extravaganza. The main story revolves around Juliet and a group of teens from across time, led by Heathcliff, who are rescued from the brink of death and who come together as humanity's last hope. In this story Romeo and Juliet are not star-crossed lovers from the middle ages but instead exist in a bleak future that is dependent on their love story having a not-so-tragic end, with Romeo waking from his sleep-like death. Kathryn Barker easily pulls off the multiple timelines of the narrative, making the story easy to follow while diverging enough to stay thrilling. She builds a rich world far removed from the present, yet still so imaginable, and her re-writing of the classic, beloved characters of Romeo, Juliet and Heathcliff is brilliantly done. While keeping the characters recognisable and familiar, Barker also adds layers of depth to their teenage mindsets. These layers make sense and seamlessly work with the overall plot to save Romeo. Making Juliet a writer really adds to the idea of her taking control of her own story, a theme that runs throughout the novel. Waking Romeo is highly recommended for fans of science-fiction and timeless love stories. Readers who enjoyed A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray and A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee will enjoy this book. Tracy-Kate Simambo is a poet and former Djed Press mentee.
School Library Journal Review
Gr 8 Up--A science fiction retelling of the timeless Shakespeare play. It's 2083 and Jules and Romeo survived their star-crossed love, but not without dire consequences. Also, the world is ending. While Jules and Romeo are Settlers living in London, everyone else is desperately trying to use time travel to escape to a better future. Except, the future never gets better. Ellis knows this because he's a Deadender and lives at the end of time. The Deadenders are the few people who can travel backwards in time and they're trying to save the world. The latest mission, Wake Romeo, sends Ellis to 2083 where he must work with Jules to save the future. Barker creates an interesting concept for a dystopian world that is lost in a drawn out, overly complicated plot that relies on readers knowing Shakespeare's plays and Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. Likewise, the Shakespearean five-act plot results in awkward pacing that could frustrate readers. Where Barker excels is demonstrating the reality of the Romeo and Juliet love story as Jules must deal with the consequences of her actions and her changing feelings for Romeo as she matures into an adult. Barker also creates a representative cast of characters. Jules is coded white and has a disability. Ellis is Black and other supporting characters are people of color. VERDICT Recommend to readers comfortable with non-linear narratives and familiar with classic literature.--Kaetlyn Phillips
Publisher's Weekly Review
This fast-paced, brilliantly futuristic Romeo and Juliet variation splits and swirls timelines, ecological collapse, and hope into a virtuoso five-act telling. In 2083, two years after Romeo and Jules attempted suicide in crumbling post-collapse London--a ruin once regularly raided by time travelers who can flee forward, but never back--lovesick Jules is left with a nerve-deadened arm and the blame for Romeo's cerebral catatonia. Via specialized technology, 19-year-old Ellis, a Black 19th-century Englishman whisked to the end of time, offers Jules her heart's desire--waking Romeo--secretly ensuring with a rare drug that Romeo and Jules's son is born to invent Ellis's AI friend and prevent humankind's fall. But as an ominous enemy stalks them across time, and futures snarl, both Jules and the world might finally have a chance to change for the better. Packed with Shakespearean references both playful and somber, Barker's (In the Skin of a Monster) eye for beauty, and perspectives on suicide and tragedy's impacts never feel forced. This breathtaking, meticulously plotted adventure revitalizes a classic into a vital call to hope for the pandemic generation. Ages 12--up. Agent: Sara Burnes, the Gernert Co. (Jan.)
Kirkus Review
Star-crossed lovers get a science-fiction spin in this time-travel tale. It's 2083, and having survived her attempted-suicide-by-knife, 18-year-old Juliet "Jules" Capulet is surly and scarred, unromantic but still reckless, while Romeo Montague remains in a coma. She and the other Settlers are squatting in a ruined London while the rest of humanity became Travelers, using pods to escape to the future. Meanwhile, Heathcliff Ellis is a Deadender, plucked from an imminent demise to save humanity and able to jump around in time. Tasked with waking Romeo and, circuitously, ensuring his own future/past, Ellis scrambles to save the reluctant Jules. Certainly not the first time-traveling or dystopian Shakespearean retelling, this melodrama delivers a grungy end-times aesthetic even as it suffers from shaky logic and repetition. Also wearisome is the gimmick that self-avowed Shakespeare-fan Jules is writing Romeo and Juliet to add to the classic canon. Barker crams in many quotes from across the Bard's oeuvre, often without attribution and out of context; while readers who are ardent Shakespeare fans may recognize and appreciate them, for others it renders this futuristic tale unevenly archaic and disjointed. Romeo and Jules are cued as White; Ellis is black. A redemption story about loving both well and wisely that doesn't coalesce. (Science fiction. 14-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
