Book Review: Swoon by Nina Malkin

Swoon

By: Nina Malkin

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Genre: Young Adult

Source: Purchased by Reviewer

What would you do if the man of your dreams just happened to be a vengeful spirit intent on exacting centuries old revenge on your town and family? Would you still be able to love him? Would it really matter that he had a devilish streak of wickedness?

Dice has to face all those questions and more during her time in Swoon, CT. The story begins innocently enough as two cousins, Dice and Pen, are goofing off in the village green. Pen decides to add a little adventure and climbs an old ash tree, but she gets more than she bargains for during this little bit of exercise. Falling from the limb she was perched on, Pen hits the ground and is never quite the same as a result. No, it’s not a fatal injury – it’s worse. She has become possessed with the spirit of Sinclair Youngblood Powers, a spirit who was killed in the height of his youth who has the taste of blood on his lips.

Nina Malkin weaves a wonderful tale – it is not only a paranormal romance, but also a mystery as well. Dice and Sin work together to piece together a murder mystery that has been unsolved since the late 1700′s. Can solving the crime end Sin’s revenge bender? Could this knowledge release Sin and finally let him go in peace? Furthermore, is Dice strong enough to let him go?

This story is one that is full of intrigue, plot twists, and romance. It is a bit darker than some other YA novels on the market these days; I would highly recommend that parents of younger teens read the book themselves first before making the decision on if their child should read it. Serious issues come up in the book quite frequently which might be a bit too much for a younger reader.

I do have one negative comment that I feel I need to make. Don’t get me wrong, I adored this book, but some aspects of it had me cringing. For example, the nickname thing got to be a bit annoying after awhile. Nobody in Swoon goes by their actual name – Candice becomes Dice, Penelope becomes Pen, and Sinclair becomes Sin. On the surface it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, but after meeting the entire cast of high school characters (each with a nickname in tow) it was somewhat tiresome trying to keep them all straight. I also have to admit that some of the words Dice uses drove me insane as well. For example, she calls her mom “Momster”. Please don’t let this little quirks keep you from finishing the novel – it is well worth it.

I promise Sin will live up to his name! He is one of the most captivating literary males I have had the pleasure of spending time with lately. You will be trying to decide if you love him or hate him throughout the entire book. I, for one, choose love.

Brief Summary from the Simon & Schuster Website:

Sin is coming… Prepare to Swoon.

Torn from her native New York City and dumped in the land of cookie-cutter preps, Candice is resigned to accept her posh, dull fate. Nothing ever happens in Swoon, Connecticut…until Dice’s perfect, privileged cousin Penelope nearly dies in a fall from an old tree, and her spirit intertwines with that of a ghost. His name? Sinclair Youngblood Powers. His mission? Revenge. And while Pen is oblivious to the possession, Dice is all too aware of Sin. She’s intensely drawn to him—but not at all crazy about the havoc he’s wreaking. Determined to exorcise the demon, Dice accidentally sets Sin loose, gives him flesh, makes him formidable. Now she must destroy an even more potent—and irresistible—adversary, before the whole town succumbs to Sin’s will. Only trouble is, she’s in love with him. What do you do when the boy of your dreams is too bad to be true?