Review: Mortal Kiss by Alice Moss

 

Book Description:

In Faye McCarron’s sleepy New England town of Winter Mill, the snow has arrived a little ahead of season—September, to be exact. But Faye and her best friend Liz are too busy reporting for the school paper to give the sudden chill much thought, especially with two new boys, Lucas and Finn, heating things up. Mercy Morrow, a wealthy heiress, has baffled the community by moving into a remote old mansion in the woods, bringing her charismatic son Lucas with her. And while Finn may be a member of the Black Dogs, a motorcycle gang taking over the streets, Faye can’t help but be intruiged by his gruff, dangerous allure.

Soon, Faye and Liz realize that romance may be the least of their worries. A dead body has turned up in the woods, the Black Dogs are on the prowl, and the snow just won’t stop falling. As the temperature drops and Halloween approaches, the girls must discover the dark and menacing secret at the heart of Winter Mill—before it’s too late. 

Book Information:

Pages: 341

Publisher: Bantam Children

Series: Mortal Kiss #1

Book Review:

*Sighs* This book was pretty disappointing for me. The description sounded pretty interesting: dead bodies in the woods, a gang settling in a small town, werewolves, and a millionaire and her son moving in. In my mind, these things added up to an amazing storyline. Unfortunately, the story didn't really cut it.

The characters within the book don't really have any depth. Liz and Faye are best friends, and they're both quite childish despite the fact that they're high schoolers. They spend most of their time shopping, picking out clothes, and getting ready for dances. Faye is caught between two boys, Finn and Lucas. Finn is the typical "bad" boy. He's in a gang called the Black Dogs, and he's drawn to Faye because she looks like someone he used to know. Lucas is the son of Mercy Morrow. I think Lucas could have been really likeable but his character wasn't quite developed enough for that. I especially disliked the scene's in which Jimmy (a "loveable loser" who has a crush on Liz) stutters and behaves extremely awkward–they just irked me. All these characters combined formed a book that was truly difficult to finish reading.

In Mortal Kiss, the characters find out some terrifying secrets about their neighbors, but they take it a bit too well. None of the characters are really surprised when they find out what's really going on in their town. There are some bombs dropped within the book, but the lack of suspense prevents the piece of information from really having an impact. I actually read a hilarious review on Goodreads in which someone compared Mortal Kiss to the Vampire Diaries, and I could definitely see the similarities.

Nevertheless, there were some aspects of the book that had great potential. I thought the idea of the plot was pretty interesting. I think this is the sort of book that teens on the younger end of the "young adult" age spectrum might enjoy because it's actually okay if you ignore the utter lack of character development and suspense. I think I would have enjoyed this book if I had read it at a younger age, but it just didn't do it for me.

BTW, I'm not entirely sure what the title has to do with the actual book.

Rating: 2/5