Review: Family - Micol Ostow

Where I got it: Amazon Vine

Rating: 4 stars
Cover Rating: 3.5 stars (It's pretty creepy, the girl without a face, but that might make me pick it up.)
Genre:Young Adult
Publication Date: April 26, 2011
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Page Count: 376 p.

mel is a shell of a girl. raped by her "uncle" and abandoned by her mother. mel decides she must head to the city of angels, california. this is where she meets Him, Henry. He is the thing that can save her. she can do His bidding and in turn He will let her into the family. with the family and Henry, mel might be able to fill in all those dark spaces inside. when life with the family turns dark though, mel has to decide if it can still fill her up, or if she will have to try to be whole somewhere else.

This was a very intense story. I wish I didn't know so much about the Manson family going into it. It distracted me, because I kept trying to compare people and decide who each character represented. This was very well written though. Mel's character was intense and broken and drugged, and it made her story have a sort of repetitive haze. Sometimes the repetition was a bit much, but overall I loved the effect it lent to the story. I appreciated that everything was lowercase, except for Him, Henry, He. It showed what a significant role Henry played in the life of the family and it's members. I can see how someone could get sucked into a position like Mel and the others. If you are already a little weak, and looking for people who might respect and love you, a family could seem ideal. If they make you feel good, you may even go to any lengths in order to remain with them. You may even do things you know in your gut to be wrong, because in your mind, it's the right thing to do. It also helps when your tripping on acid and the like. I really love reading about cults, even though they send chills up my spine. This book is very outside the box of Micol Ostow's other novels(Crush du Jour, Gettin' Lucky etc.), but luckily it was completely fantastic. If you have ever been interested at an inside look of a girl who finds herself going along with a cult, this may just be the one for you. Be careful though, because Mel's narrative is addictive and might just leave you wanting and needing something yourself. This is a book everyone should read, it may not be a light and fun read, but you'll be glad you read it.

First Line:
"i have always been broken."

Favorite Lines:
"her driver's license says that she is nineteen and that she has come to us from the far east—new hampshire."

"when I was six years old, i drowned. [luckily it didn't take.]"