Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Review: Devilish by Maureen Johnson

Title: Devilish
Author: Maureen Johnson
Publisher: Razorbill (September 2006)
Source: Library

From GoodReads:

The only thing that makes St. Teresa's Preparatory School for Girls bearable for Jane is her best friend Ally. But when Ally changes into a whole different person literally overnight the fall of their senior year, Jane's suddenly alone—and very confused.

Turns out, Ally has sold her soul in exchange for popularity—to a devil masquerading as a sophomore at St. Teresa's! Now it's up to Jane to put it all on the line to save her friend from this ponytail-wearing, cupcakenibbling demon . . . without losing her own soul in the process.

This YA take on Faust in a Catholic girls' high school is clever, fun, and full of tasty surprises.

I know, I know. This is not the season to be reviewing a book about the Devil (or his/her minions), but it is such a fun read I couldn't help myself. It should be known that I simply adore Maureen Johnson anyway, so it's no surprise that I loved this book as much as I did. Devilish is a completely new take on the "sell your soul to the devil" story.

I remember high school very well, and there were probably moments where selling my soul to be popular would have seemed like a good idea. You can't help but feel bad for Ally - she's just the shy, awkward, desperately wanting to fit in girl that lives inside each of us. But, at the same time, she goes to some pretty drastic extremes to make her high school dreams come true. It doesn't take long to figure out that Ally has done something bad - very bad - and it's up to Jane to make it right.

It's a classic "two wrong things don't make a right" situation when Jane makes her own bargain with the devil in order to try and save Ally. And that's not even the complicated part!

I just loved Maureen Johnson's writing in Devilish. It's a fast-paced read, full of humor and heart. You immediately feel bad for Ally, but at the same time, you can't believe how far Jane is willing to go to save her friend. And, the cast of supporting characters come alive from the first page.

Devilish is a story that is too sweet to be scary, but still packs a powerful punch!

Final Thoughts: The perfect end of the semester read!

1 comment:

  1. I read and reviewed this book and you nailed it on the head. This book is to sweet to be scary !

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