Dark Star - Bethany Frenette

Synopsis: Audrey Whitticomb has nothing to fear. Her mother is the superhero Morning Star, the most deadly crime-fighter in the Twin Cities, so it's hard for Audrey not to feel safe. That is, until she's lured into the sweet night air by something human and not human--something with talons and teeth, and a wide, scarlet smile. 
Now Audrey knows the truth: her mom doesn't fight crime at night. She fights Harrowers--livid, merciless beings who were trapped Beneath eons ago. Yet some have managed to escape. And they want Audrey dead, just because of who she is: one of the Kin. 
To survive, Audrey will need to sharpen the powers she has always had. When she gets close to someone, dark corners of the person's memories become her own, and she sometimes even glimpses the future. If Audrey could only get close to Patrick Tigue, a powerful Harrower masquerading as human, she could use her Knowing to discover the Harrowers' next move. But Leon, her mother's bossy, infuriatingly attractive sidekick, has other ideas. Lately, he won't let Audrey out of his sight. When an unthinkable betrayal puts Minneapolis in terrible danger, Audrey discovers a wild, untamed power within herself. It may be the key to saving her herself, her family, and her city. Or it may be the force that destroys everything--and everyone--she loves. (From Goodreads)

Superheroes. in. Minneapolis. OMG. It's about time someone recognized Minneapolis for superhero setting potential. Plus. Plus! It mentions my hometown. You have no idea how happy this makes me - because people who LIVE in Minnesota vary rarely have actually heard of my hometown. So awesome.

Oh yeah, the book itself. Blew me away. Because not only does it have an awesome setting, but the story and the characters are pretty epic as well. When you have a superhero for a mother, of course nothing is normal - but then you throw in some demons and family heritage, then things start getting crazy. I love that Audrey isn't normal, she has a talent (seeing the future), but she isn't the most powerful. She's still super important and a kick-ass heroine. It is so easy to root for Audrey and the cast of characters that surround her are incredible. Her mom is strong, even if she's a little absent (hey, keeping Minneapolis safe is an around the clock job). Her best friends are great - a girl with a blond pixie cut who wears a lot of glitter, nicknamed Tink and Gideon the super-energetic best friend.

Ohhhkay, and LEON. The boy has teleportation powers. And he uses them so adorably. It's great at building tension and frustration - he disappears when things escalate (fights, potential romantic moments, etc...) which is annoying, but in a good way. Not to mention - there's a baking fight in which his teleportation is used very effectively. Of course, this works well the other way around - he's very good at popping in at the best moments. Not to mention he's adorable. It was precious watching him and Audrey's relationship evolve.

The superhero lore, the group that supports the superheroes, and the superheroes themselves were all handled very well. This alternate reality of Minneapolis felt so real and it was so easy to fall into this story. I loved their history and the way that Audrey fit into the group dynamic. She's figuring out where she fits in the grand scheme of things, all the while coming to terms with who she is and who her family is. Very true to teenage drama. But with magical twists, everything is so much more intense.

If you can't tell, I'm all gushy over this book. Reading it on the train was rather difficult, because it was hard not to paint my emotions all over my face while reading it. It gets kind of embarrassing to grin like an idiot or have your eyes wide in horror, for no good reason. But oh well. So worth it. I love this books so much. I was sold on Minneapolis, completely excited when my hometown was mentioned, but the rest of it just made me fall hopelessly. Don't miss this amazing book!

Sweet Evil - Wendy Higgins

Synopsis: What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?
This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.
Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns? (From Goodreads)

This wasn't a book I was even going to pick up - until so many people started raving about it. A lot of people seemed a little bowled over by how awesome this book turned out to be. And I think the hype actually got to be a little much because I was then expecting much more. Basically, I thoroughly enjoyed this story, but I was let down as well. It was good, but it didn't have that greatness to it that I came to hope for. There are a few things I love and a couple that could send me off on long rants.

So let's start with what I love. This really is a unique take on demons and angels. I didn't believe it when I heard people say this. It's kind of hard to believe in unique views anymore - they always seem to be derivative of something or following some kind of obvious pattern. But I really don't think I've read any kind of fallen angel novel like this before - and I've read a lot. Fallen angels are always super human and seem to have control. But these ones are complete slaves to this extra power they have. They have to answer to the higher powers - the actual demons - and their punishment is pretty intense. There's really no way out - their choices boil down to: be bad and lead others into temptation or be tortured for eternity. Which clearly sucks.

I also love that Wendy Higgins took the seven deadly sins - and a few other grave sins - amplified them, and gave each character their own sin that they were trained to tempt people with. But all these sins are things that teenagers either dabble in or carry around with them - lust, addiction, envy. If you're forced to indulge in these sins all the time, would they really be that attractive? It's an interesting twist on sin.

So the core principles of this story were great. The cast of characters were wonderful. But I had some issues with Kaidan. *gasp* I know. He's dreamy. I can see that. But seriously. He's the son of lust. He's never been loved a day in his life. He doesn't know what it means to love. He makes this very clear. The only thing I appreciated about him was that he answered all of Anna's questions and never claimed to do anything "for her own good." Well, maybe he did once - but that really was for her own good and it wasn't a situation where he took away Anna's control "for her own good." It's clear they have a connection, but really it's one of those situations where I can't see it ever working out. Especially because she'd basically have to put up with him hooking up with other girls all the time, just because of who he is. Nope. Can't get on the Kaidan fan wagon. SORRY.

There were moments in this book where I was wondering if the extraneous information was necessary. It's a long book and I definitely feel like it didn't need to be that long. There are some things I feel could have been cut or condensed. Particularly in the first 100 pages or so. But even with my few problems with this book, I definitely enjoyed reading it. I'm very excited for the next installment in the trilogy and I'm anxious to find out more about Anna and the other demon children.

Possess - Gretchen McNeil

Synopsis: Fifteen-year-old Bridget Liu just wants to be left alone: by her over-protective mom, by Matt Quinn, the cute son of a local police sergeant, and by the eerie voices she can suddenly and inexplicably hear. Unfortunately for Bridget, the voices are demons—and Bridget possesses the rare ability to banish them back to whatever hell they came from. Literally.
Terrified to tell her friends or family about this new power, Bridget confides in San Francisco’s senior exorcist, Monsignor Renault. The monsignor enlists her help in increasingly dangerous cases of demonic possession, but just as she is starting to come to terms with her freakish new role, Bridget receives a startling message from one of the demons. And when one of her oldest friends is killed, Bridget realizes she’s in deeper than she ever thought possible. Now she must unlock the secret to the demons’ plan before someone else close to her winds up dead—or worse, the human vessel for a demon king.


Do you remember the Friends episode where Joey is reading The Shining and he gets scared and puts it in the freezer? I felt the need to do that with this book. I was actually tempted to stuff it in the back of the freezer, behind all the food that never gets eaten, where it would naturally ensure that I woudln't be attacked by demons in the middle of the night. Seriously, these were the thoughts running through my head reading this book. It was so freaking scary.


So Bridget has the ability to exorcise demons, to speak to demons. Which means, there are a lot of really scary demons in this book. I read it in the middle of the day and felt the need to turn on all the lights (books like these are probably bad for the environment...or at least damaging to the electric bill) and convince myself that no, I did not just hear scratching. No, there are no phantom demon cats here.


Nothing in this book is sugar-coated. The demons are there, and they're mean - but I think what makes them that unforgettable, monsters in your closet, kind of scary is the vivid and incredible places they show up. I think this is where the genius of GretchenM McNeil lies. She's able to put Bridget into demon situations, with the right aprropriately creepy backgrounds. The houses in this book come to life - they breathe and shudder. Even places where you'd associate with safety begin to make your skin prickle. There's a doll shop - I don't think I need to explain more about that. Then there's the cathedral in which just has the feeling that it's waiting to be filled by something sinster. The whole attitude of the book is dark, but these settings just push it over the top into terrifying.


Then there's this whole element of trust. You don't know who's telling the truth because everyone is accused of lying or not being trustworthy. By the end, you just suspect everyone is lying. My only annoyance with this book is the tagline on the  cover that says "There's only one rule of exorcism: The spirits lie." Well, in the book there are FIVE rules that she follows. That's just a little thing, but I bring this up because it's ingrained before you even open the book that there's some truth-telling issues. This, along with all the things that could potentially possess you in the middle of the night, make it difficult to sleep easy after finishing this book.


So if you like scary stories, this is a good one. It's sensational AND substantial (I know I didn't really get into substance here because there's so to talk about in the sensation side of it, but I promise  it's there. Grief and moving on are a big component of this book). As far as I know there isn't a sequel coming out - but there should be! I want more. Gretchen McNeil does have another book coming out in Fall 2012, called Ten which is also horror, but of a serial killer nature. I discovered Gretchen through the YA Rebels YouTube channel. She vlogs every Monday, and she's wonderful. Something to definitely check out! Here's her latest YA Rebel post.