Monday Book Review: THE DEVIL YOU KNOW by Shawna Romkey, #YA

The Devil You Know, by Shawna Romkey
Speak of the Devil Book Three
Published February 2016

About the Book:

Holy Hell!

After battling her way back from Hell only to discover Luc didn't make it out, Lily must rally the angels to descend back into the Devil's domain. Now she has thirty days to rescue her angelic warrior boyfriend and break the curse to free God before Lucifer and his demon army destroy all of humanity on Earth. Forget passing the eleventh grade. Lily must face the ultimate final exam to give the Devil his due and save the world before the reapers catch up and deliver the death she cheated from them a year ago.

My Take:

I've been a fan of Ms. Romkey's  work since the very first book, and have been anticipating the end of this trilogy for a very long time. Luckily, the book didn't disappoint. The Devil You Know once again takes our heroine to Hell and back again, both physically and emotionally.

Poor Lilly is never going to graduate high school at this rate.

Between acting as an intermediary form of communication between heaven and earth, fighting off demons, and falling in love with an angel, she missed out on prom, exams... and, oh yeah, any kind of normal life. And now she's got the angels of death hot on her trail, eager to correct their earlier mistake when she survived the car accident that started it all. Did I mention that Lucifer is still after her? You know, the Devil himself.

We all hate spoilers in reviews, so I'm really trying not to go there.... except to comment I wasn't at all sure how this series was going to be able to tie up the loose ends or come up with a satisfying ending. I mean, there was a lot at stake by the end of book two and things seemed bleak for our heroes. How could true love triumph against the Devil himself?

With some neat twists and a few sad surprises, the author is surprisingly able to wrap the story into a satisfying conclusion to the series.

If you like angel-versus-demons YA (which might as well be its own sub-genre), I definitely recommend giving this series a try.

Book one is Speak of the Devil, Book two is The Devil Made Me Do It, and then this final one,  The Devil You Know.  The first one? I had to read three times before book two even came out. Kinda like when I read Hunger Games when it first came out and got to that tragic last line "end of book one"... and threw the book across the room. The hardcover library book. You're so lucky as a reader, because this trilogy is complete and waiting for you. As Pokemon would say, Gotta catch 'em all! 

Buy all three on AMAZON:

SPEAK OF THE DEVIL 

THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW

Banned Books: The Hunger Games

I guess I wasn't totally surprised to find THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins on the list of Top 10 Banned Books for last year. Even though the book was first published in 2008 (and assigned as summer reading for incoming freshmen to Harwich High School in 2010) it didn't receive the close attention of parents until the movie and the associated hype exploded last year.

I was one of the first readers to check this book out of my local library in January 2009 - and then had to wait until September for CATCHING FIRE to be released! And then wait again for MOCKINGJAY. (The agony!) It seems crazy to me that people would want to ban such engaging works of literature, books that make you think outside the box, beyond your current life.

THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy was third on the list for last year. The website quotes the reasons, abbreviated as: "Reasons: anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence."

The original Publisher's Weekly review compared the book to Aldous Huxley's BRAVE NEW WORLD, another favorite of book banners, but that's aimed at adults. Parents object to THE HUNGER GAMES being targeted at children.

I explained Banned Book Week to my twelve year old, and explained that some parents wanted to take THE HUNGER GAMES out of schools and local libraries. That some parents didn't feel the book was appropriate for children. Here's what she wrote in response - all in her own words:

HUNGER GAMES PARANOIA

By Teagan

    I believe that The Hunger Games should not be banned from book stores and libraries. The main character, Katniss, is trying to protect her family from starvation, and ends up saving her sister from being thrown into the arena.

Parents can tell their children what not to read, by not letting the book into their home, but taking it from libraries and book stores is like having jurisdiction over what other peoples’ children can and cannot read.

The whole series is about family, teamwork, and love. It is an inspirational, message to young readers that they can accomplish the greatest tasks. The Hunger Games is a great, well written book that is an experience that readers should not be deprived of.

 Today my daughter and I are re-reading our favorite parts of the trilogy in honor of Banned Book Week. What are you reading?