Fiendish
by Brenna Yovanoff Book Review by Miranda Moses (Fraser) ISBN: 9781595146380 I discovered this book on a list of "creepy" YA books perfect for your Halloween reading list. The cover and description drew me in and I immediately put it in my Amazon cart. While Brenna's other "creepy" books seem to be better rated, this one has a real love hate rating system going on in the goodreads discussion section. I can see why and would like to jump into it. To begin with, the story is about a girl who's been trapped underground for over ten years. When someone discovers her and brings her to the surface everyone is confused. Why was she underground all this time? Who locked her away? How had she survived? And worst of all why does it seem that no one remembers her existence? They know her family but not her. Strange things are happening and the superstitious town folk are claiming her as a fiend. All of this sounds great, right? Spooky chick buried underground held down by willow roots with no explanation. That for me was the sum total of the creepy factor. The story continues with Clementine, the girl from the cellar, being obsessed with the boy who pulled her out. This turns into a weird love story that I would have been more invested in had I not been expecting this to be a scary book. It's even listed as a horror on goodreads, so that's disappointing. However their friendship is really cute as they both uncover more about themselves and their past. As well as come together to hone their craft. See there is obviously more to the story than a bunch of superstitious rednecks. There is magic in these back woods and the children of these bloodlines have to deal with the brunt of the hate. Not to mention learn to keep their magic low. In conclusion I do think this was an overall good story. I expected so much more and I think that's where my disappointment stems from. If you go into it ignoring the creepy cover and the spooky description then you will probably enjoy the love story and the adventure. I was on the edge of my seat and I did race through the pages waiting to see how it ended. But does it deserve to be on a list for YA horror? Absolutely not. I am going to try some of Yovanoff's other books and see if they are more fitting for that genre, so probably keep and eye out for those reviews. Read on my fellow book worms may we one day have Belle's library. And as always, links to the author's pages can be found down below.
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