Devoured [Paperback]

Despite the fact that I was a bit disappointed in Devoured, I have to give Ms. Marrone credit for the story line-- there's no doubt about it, it was definitely very unique! A modern (and slightly twisted) remake of the childhood tale "Snow White", Devoured is sure to grab your attention from page one. Hold on to your seat-- this is one fast-paced, quick read that you will no doubt devour in one sitting (no pun intended, of course! ;-))

I picked up the book under the false assumption that it was about vampires-- and I think this is one of the reasons why I wasn't completely enthralled by the story. It was no one's fault but my own, but it did ruin the rest of the book for me. The back blurb doesn't really give a lot away, so when someone online told me it was about vampires, I just believed them-- I didn't have the book yet, so how would I know they were wrong?

So to help clarify a bit, here's a quick explanation of the book plot (as it relates to the original Snow White): The owners of the park are suppose to be the equivalent to the Evil Witch from Snow White, trying to steal the girls' beauty and youth by cutting out their hearts and, well, eating them. And the talking mirror is also brought in, though it's a bit different, and it can grant wishes, not just show you things. When girls start coming up missing from the amusement park, and Megan starts wondering about all of this, she soon finds herself falling into weird situations that one usually only finds in nightmares and scary stories.

Moving on to the real analysis: The characters. They were... interesting, to say the least, but I do wish Marrone would have developed them a bit more, allowed them to connect more with each other. The whole story seemed a bit rushed in fact, which isn't a good thing in a book. Maybe it was just me, but for a story such as this, I think the 250 some-odd pages could have been stretched out a bit without dragging on.

However, I can't say that the whole book was entirely flawed-- it simply didn't grab my attention and hold it like her last novel (and my favorite of her works so far) managed to. I can't say what it was exactly, but whatever was in the last one that gave it such spark, seemed to be missing from this one.

And I want it to be clear that my rating for this book is a happy medium-- it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't a 'Wow!' moment for me either. It's neutral, and my over all opinion on it could go either way in the future. Maybe I'll come back to it at another time and find myself going 'Why didn't I fall in love with it the first time around?'. It happens, rarely, but it has happened.

3.5/5 stars! Again, this is just personal preference, and if you think this book sounds good, go for it! I hate discouraging people to not try a book just because it wasn't my favorite one, especially when I have no concrete reasons to back up my negative opinion. Marrone does do a good job at taking a story that we've all grown up listening to, and turning it into a modern, creative novel. I'll tell you one thing-- I'm definitely going to be weary around amusement parks like the one described in this book! ;)

This book was a fun read. When I started it, I thought wow, finally a YA supernatural romance that doesn't take itself so seriously. Some of the elements she was introducing were really fun connections to the snow white story. I enjoyed the characters- it was a nice "ensemble cast". The story does turn really dark at the end and I think the author did an excellent job in switching from a light hearted fairy tale to a grim one. The biggest surprise is that this book, aside from having the fairy tale thing going on, and a charming romance, also has a really good ghost story. The character of Remy will tug at your heart and I think it was this part of the story that was the most effective. I have read other books by this author and felt that this was by far her best effort. I probably won't recommend it to younger teens, but older ones should really enjoy it.

As a side note, this edition contains alot of typos and misspellings. This book and its author get a heartfelt 4.5 stars but the editor gets 1.

Devoured proved to be quite a delectable little morsel, tangy and crispy like a freshly bitten apple, it was a bit different than standard YA fare, it had a bit of magic to it but it was realistic enough to be believable. The story is supposed to be a spin on the Snow White fairy tale but with modern twists and I have to say I was very curious how that was going to work, especially since the title is so raw and bold, you sort of aren't sure what to expect, but the story is fun, scary, spicy and interesting at the same time.

Megan has lost her twin sister Remy in a car accident, the same accident that has left her father in a comma. That one moment has flipping her life upside down, mostly because her sister's ghost seems to follow her everywhere, but things take on a bizarre turn when her new summer job at the Land of Enchantment stirs the ghost crazy and makes Megan unsure if it's as safe as it seems. Her reasons to work there are simple, her mother doesn't seem to have time for her and Megan's boyfriend works there too, with his best female friend who gives Megan an upset stomach from worrying about their unnatural closeness. Her relationship being threatened forces her to take the job to keep an eye on them, but when fore warnings of pain and death seem too bizarre to accept she lets go and joins the park, taking a step in a very dark direction. Pretty soon she makes some new friends, and a few enemies and awakens something that as crazy as it sounds, hungers for flesh, her flesh.

The author did a great job of making this fun and modern and something that I got so engrossed in that I read it in a very few sittings, this book was a breeze and hard to put down at the same time, I can't wait to read more from Amanda Marrone. I liked the teen voice she uses, it was perfect, just what I would want from YA fiction.

- Kasia S.

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