Review: Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen (ARC) @PenguinTeen #yalit #FirstToRead

Title: Saint Anything
Author: Sarah Dessen
Publisher: Viking Juvenile (Penguin Random House)
Release Date: May 5, 2015
Acquired Via: First to Read
Peyton, Sydney's charismatic older brother, has always been the star of the family, receiving the lion's share of their parents' attention and—lately—concern. When Peyton's increasingly reckless behavior culminates in an accident, a drunk driving conviction, and a jail sentence, Sydney is cast adrift, searching for her place in the family and the world. When everyone else is so worried about Peyton, is she the only one concerned about the victim of the accident?

Enter the Chathams, a warm, chaotic family who run a pizza parlor, play bluegrass on weekends, and pitch in to care for their mother, who has multiple sclerosis. Here Sydney experiences unquestioning acceptance. And here she meets Mac, gentle, watchful, and protective, who makes Sydney feel seen, really seen, for the first time.

My Review

I am a newer convert to the Sarah Dessen cult following, but I have loved almost everything I have read by her, and I enjoyed her newest as well. Saint Anything has that Sarah Dessen touch with the focus on family and friends in a believable coming of age story, but it's darker than any other Dessen novel I've read (I have only not read Dreamland). However, even with the darker touches, I still closed the novel with a smile on my face.

Review: Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff

Title: Fiendish
Author: Brenna Yovanoff
Publisher: Razorbill (Penguin)
Release Date: August 14, 2014
Acquired Via: First to Read
Clementine DeVore spent ten years trapped in a cellar, pinned down by willow roots, silenced and forgotten.

Now she’s out and determined to uncover who put her in that cellar and why.

When Clementine was a child, dangerous and inexplicable things started happening in New South Bend. The townsfolk blamed the fiendish people out in the Willows and burned their homes to the ground. But magic kept Clementine alive, walled up in the cellar for ten years, until a boy named Fisher sets her free. Back in the world, Clementine sets out to discover what happened all those years ago. But the truth gets muddled in her dangerous attraction to Fisher, the politics of New South Bend, and the Hollow, a fickle and terrifying place that seems increasingly temperamental ever since Clementine reemerged.

My Review

When I first saw that wonderfully creepy cover, I just knew that I had to read Fiendish. The author combines a lot of elements with magical realism and the result is a beautifully written, creepy take on small town life. There's a little bit of tarot cards mixed with witches but with a little bit hillbilly thrown in as well. Add in some young star-crossed lovers and small-town prejudices. Speaking of tarot cards, this is one of several books I've read this year concerning the mystical cards, and I'm really liking all the different translations and uses of the cards. But all this adds up to a great take on magical realism that is just a little bit shy of horror. I loved the mix of bold and subtle changes of normal mysticism and magic from witches to "craft" and the elements to Dirt, Creek, Heat, Light and Breath, among others.