Devoured Review

Devoured - Amanda Marrone
*September 22nd, 2009 SimonPulse

Megan’s twin sister Remy died in an accident nine years ago, and she’s been haunting her ever since. Knowing how crazy that sounds, Megan keeps this secret to herself and tries to lead a normal life. But when she takes a summer job at Land of Enchantment to keep an eye on her new boyfriend and his lovesick best friend, Samantha, she meets fellow employee Luke who can see Remy, too. Things get even twistier because Megan’s new friend Ari is sporting a massive crush on Luke, who seems to be developing a massive crush on Megan…making for a love triangle that’s positively possessed.

Megan wants to keep her distance from Luke, but when Remy’s visions get crazy violent; she knows she needs his help. Because someone’s definitely in danger...the only question is who?

With Devoured, Amanda has brought a whole new facet to the concept of the fractured fairytale - and is it ever refreshing! Disregarding the apple on the cover/spine, the lack of mention of fairytale roots otherwise might have one not even making that connection initially. And in this case, it seems to work best this way - for those who are fans of Snow White, it adds a little extra zing; for those who aren't, it still works great as a stand-alone YA paranormal/romance/mystery/and so much else.

I'll admit, the paranormal mysterious aspect of the premise is what intrigued me at first. But then, having read the book and going back to the synopsis on the back - it doesn't really do the story justice. From that description it sounds like a more contemporary type of tale, but it's really not as superficial as the middle section makes it out to be.

In the case of Devoured, I would say that incorporation was definitely one of Marrone's fortes. The way that threads of the Snow White were intertwined with the story, the way that contemporary elements were incorporated, the way that the paranormal elements were injected - it all made for a fun read. Remy's appearances and spooky prophetic warnings were definitely one of the strong points; they added suspense, spookiness, and intrigue. The only thing that could've been introduced a little more smoothly would've been one of the foreshadowing symbols, as it seems a little too sudden and hard-hitting.

Although there are tragic elements to it, overall as a novel, Devoured is a pretty fun read. And in keeping with that, most of the principal characters had interesting traits. Ari, Megan, Remy... they were all very interesting and well-portrayed. It might've been nice to get a little more insight into some of the minor characters as well though, but that's not a major factor. The pacing could have been a little smoother, but at the same time, as it is contemporary, things don't always happen on a linear, constant, timeline, so it could make sense that way. Once you get into it, the story moves along nicely though.

With an intriguing premise, beautiful incorporation of Snow White and chilling elements, Marrone's Devoured is a spooky fun read. And what great timing, especially with Halloween right around the corner?

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