Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers Publisher: Tor Teen (September 14th, 2010) Reading Level: Young Adult Paperback: 364 pages
Source: Purchased Series: Personal Demons, book #1
Rating: 5 of 5 stars Frannie Cavanaugh is a good Catholic girl with a bit of a wicked streak. She's spent years keeping everyone at a distance—even her closest friends—and it seems her senior year will be more of the same… until Luc Cain enrolls in her class. No one knows where he came from, but Frannie can't seem to stay away from him. What she doesn't know is that Luc works in Acquisitions—for Hell—and she possesses a unique skill set that has the King of Hell tingling with anticipation. All Luc has to do is get her to sin, and he’s as tempting as they come. Frannie doesn’t stand a chance.
Unfortunately for Luc, Heaven has other plans, and the angel, Gabe, is going to do whatever it takes to make sure that Luc doesn’t get what he came for. And it isn't long before they find themselves fighting for more than just her soul.
But if Luc fails, there will be Hell to pay… for all of them.
Review: I'll admit that I am a sucker for the love triangle and this brought that concept to amazing heights. In this story Frannie is stuck between Heaven and Hell, literally, and as much as this refers to her soul, it also refers to her heart. Luc is sent to tag her soul for Hell but he has a few problems along the way. First, Frannie takes him by surprise and he is suddenly drawn to her. Second, Gabe shows up.
Luc knows Gabe and he wonders why there seems to be such a struggle to tag Frannie's soul. As he discovers more surrounding the mystery of Frannie's ability, he begins questioning his own intentions towards Frannie. Personal Demons switches from Luc and Frannie's perspective. Sometimes I am not a fan of various points-of-view but it worked in this story. I enjoyed getting to know Luc on a new level and without that chance, I don't think his feelings could have been as easily understood. This is as much Frannie's story as it was Luc's.
I do wish I could have learned a little more about Gabe. He remains a bit of a mystery for me but I do think he has a heavier focus in the sequel, Original Sin.
A big part of this book isn't simply the external struggle for Frannie; it's her own internal struggle as well. Frannie has a lot of guilt regarding her brother's death. Even though she is from a Catholic family she questions her own faith. I honestly felt for this character and what she had been through. I could understand her reasoning and see how difficult her situation would be.
Although Personal Demons could be seen as mainly that dark internal struggle, Lisa provided so many opportunities for humor. I found myself laughing out loud often! One of my favorite characters was Frannie's grandfather. He was a no-nonsense type of guy and brought some very loving conversations to the mix. I enjoyed his strong connection with Frannie and his hopes for her.
But c'mon this book immediately gained my interest because of the concept (choosing between Heaven and Hell) and the characters (Hot guys!) Luc is hot, sexy, mysterious, hot, funny, and did I mention hot? What I found interesting was that he could have been the one who remained a mystery but through his perspective we are able to learn a lot about his character. To me even now, Gabe is the mystery. I truly look forward to learning more about him. Personal Demons is a roller-coaster of emotions for Frannie and the reader! One choice and two amazing guys makes for one hot read!
*My apologies for using"Hot" so often in this review; however, no other word would suffice. Thank you.
Original Sin, book #2, will be released July 2011. Cover art is not available right now.
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