Half Finn, half African-American and full-on crazy (she’s a diagnosed manic-depressive and is prone to hallucinations), Hanna has never really fit in anywhere. But when she comes to Portero, Texas after her father’s death to reunite with the mother that gave her up as a baby, she finds a town as crazy as she is. Has Hanna finally found a place she belongs?You know a book is weird when one of the scenes involves a mother and daughter luring a naked boy out of a lake and then cutting him up (which ultimately leads to his death) and you barely bat an eye...because that’s not even the weirdest thing that’s gone down.
Although I’ve been to fictional towns as monster-filled as Portero before, I never have come across someone quite as fearless and well, odd, in her thinking as Hanna. Soon after she meets monster hunter (and love interest) Wyatt, she begs him to take her hunting so she can impress her mother. And then she wears a fancy dress to fight in, explaining, “It’s easier to be careful in dresses. You have to be or you end up flashing your underclothes or destroying beautiful fabric. Dresses force you to be on guard.” (p 185-186 ARC edition, may not be the same as final published version).
But as bizarre as the setting, the plot, and the characters are, Debut Author Reeves uses them to really explore some serious issues such as racial identity, mental illness and abandonment, giving the book a depth beyond your usual YA urban fantasy fare. I know this one won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but if you’re open to the experimental, you might just find yourself enjoying the undeniably rich, strange flavor of BLEEDING VIOLET.
BLEEDING VIOLET came out this month in hardcover. Find out more about it at the author’s website.
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