1 post tagged “horror”
Devilish
By Maureen Johnson
Okay, I had read (and enjoyed) Maureen Johnson's three earlier books (Key to the Golden Firebird, Bermudez Triangle, and 13 Little Blue Envelopes) and this is a really big departure from her earlier books. Which is a good thing, I think, because it probably gets tiresome to write uplifting chick lit romance titles - and this is very far from that mold.
Devilish is the story of teenage genius Jane, who does well academically but had bad attitude has not endeared her to the teachers at her all-girl's Catholic school. She doesn't mind, though, content with her anti-establishment ways - although her best friend Ally is desperate to be popular. Desperate enough... to sell her soul to a devil, masquerading as one of their schoolmates.
The selling of the soul happens fairly early on, and the rest of the book centres on Jane figuring out how to help her friend. Along the way she befriends a cute boy who may or may not be a vampire (but who is definitely undead in some capacity), a mysterious order dedicated to fighting demons, and a large number of evil historical figures who want her to join with them. The story is quite goofy in places, and then adventure-y in others - kind of a similar balance to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer show.
Jane is a rootable heroine, and the supporting characters are all interesting, if some come across as a little shallow. And I am not sure why Jane is such good friends with Ally in the first place, when our only glimpses of pre-deal-with-the-devil Ally show her to be an anxious, unpleasant character. But it is nice to see a book about the strength of two girls' friendship, and I also enjoyed how Jane comes to realize that she is better off without the ex-boyfriend she spends much of the book pining after.
Overall, I think this is a pretty solid read, on par with Maureen Johnson's other books. But, like her others, I didn't completely buy into the characterizations of the main characters - maybe her style is just kind of distanced from them emotionally. None of her books are my all-time faves (although 13 Little Blue Envelopes is seriously great, and definitely in my top 20) and this one probably lands somewhere in the middle.
However - vampire novels are making a resurgence for teen girls, so this is a very timely publication and will probably do very well.
Rating: A good pick for girls ages 12 to 16, especially those who already read Stephanie Meyer's "Twilight" and are looking for another contemporary vampire-style novel.
By Maureen Johnson
Okay, I had read (and enjoyed) Maureen Johnson's three earlier books (Key to the Golden Firebird, Bermudez Triangle, and 13 Little Blue Envelopes) and this is a really big departure from her earlier books. Which is a good thing, I think, because it probably gets tiresome to write uplifting chick lit romance titles - and this is very far from that mold.
Devilish is the story of teenage genius Jane, who does well academically but had bad attitude has not endeared her to the teachers at her all-girl's Catholic school. She doesn't mind, though, content with her anti-establishment ways - although her best friend Ally is desperate to be popular. Desperate enough... to sell her soul to a devil, masquerading as one of their schoolmates.
The selling of the soul happens fairly early on, and the rest of the book centres on Jane figuring out how to help her friend. Along the way she befriends a cute boy who may or may not be a vampire (but who is definitely undead in some capacity), a mysterious order dedicated to fighting demons, and a large number of evil historical figures who want her to join with them. The story is quite goofy in places, and then adventure-y in others - kind of a similar balance to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer show.
Jane is a rootable heroine, and the supporting characters are all interesting, if some come across as a little shallow. And I am not sure why Jane is such good friends with Ally in the first place, when our only glimpses of pre-deal-with-the-devil Ally show her to be an anxious, unpleasant character. But it is nice to see a book about the strength of two girls' friendship, and I also enjoyed how Jane comes to realize that she is better off without the ex-boyfriend she spends much of the book pining after.
Overall, I think this is a pretty solid read, on par with Maureen Johnson's other books. But, like her others, I didn't completely buy into the characterizations of the main characters - maybe her style is just kind of distanced from them emotionally. None of her books are my all-time faves (although 13 Little Blue Envelopes is seriously great, and definitely in my top 20) and this one probably lands somewhere in the middle.
However - vampire novels are making a resurgence for teen girls, so this is a very timely publication and will probably do very well.
Rating: A good pick for girls ages 12 to 16, especially those who already read Stephanie Meyer's "Twilight" and are looking for another contemporary vampire-style novel.
