Review: Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins
Series: Sweet Evil #1
Publisher: HarperTeen (HarperCollins)
First published: May 1st, 2012
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 447

Goodreads Summary:
Embrace the Forbidden

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?

This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.

Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

My Rating: 5.0 / 5

First thoughts:

This novel broke my heart and only put it together to break it again, turning this into one of the most bittersweet love stories that I have read so far. With a very interesting angel / demon lore and a love interest that will make every girl swoon, Sweet Evil was impossible to put down and didn't take long to secure its place in my list of favorites.

More detailed:

After having read the awesome summary, stared at the gorgeous cover, and read so many raving reviews for Sweet Evil I had extremely high expectations and couldn't help but grin while reading it as I realized that every single expectation was actually met. This turned out to be one of my new all-time favorites and I can't wait to find out how Anna and Kaidan's story will continue.

While I always seem to have lots of luck when picking up angel stories, I am very happy that Sweet Evil can be added to the list of awesome angel novels, together with e.g. the Unearthly series by Cynthia Hand. But in constrast to that one, Sweet Evil has a delicious seductive feeling to it which makes it even harder to put it down and think about something else but Kaidan Rowe.

Sweet Evil is definitely an awesome read for anyone who prefers a slightly more grown up Young Adult story, because Anna and Kaidan's interactions will definitely make you want to switch places with Anna and enjoy this half-demon's touches and kisses.

As a main character, Anna is very likeable with a voice that's easy to listen to and that ensures that you experience the things right along with her. The discoveries she makes about herself and the world aren't the easiest to digest, but she doesn't change her moralities and tries to be the person she always envisioned herself to be.

The other characters we are introduced to are very diverse and while some of them are not people you'd ever like to meet, I fell in love with some of the others. Especially some of the Nephilim Anna meets are quite three-dimensional characters that I'm sure will be intriguing to find out even more about in the sequel.

All in all, I'd love to force everyone to read this book because it's just as amazing as everyone has been saying. I know that some people have problems finding angel books they like, so if you're one of them you should definitely give Sweet Evil a chance. And if you're just looking for your next favorite read, get a copy as well. I don't think anyone will be disappointed by Wendy Higgins' debut novel.

Challenge(s):

Debut Author Challenge 2012

Have you read Sweet Evil? What did you think about it?
Do you plan to read it?

I'd love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to leave a comment below!
Carina

New Distractions #03

New Distractions is a weekly feature on Fictional Distraction, inspired by various memes that make us share the new books we got during a week, e.g. In My Mailbox by The Story Siren, This Week in Books by Pop Culture Junkie and Stacking the Shelves by Tynga's Reviews.

The books I received:

Bought:

Sweet Evil | Insurgent | City of Lost Souls

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Wow, I think I could spend the rest of my life reading just these books. I'm so excited for all of these and really hope that there'll be as awesome as I'm expecting them to be. Sadly I don't have much time to read my "own" books at the moment, so I'm afraid that they'll possibly have to wait until my summer vacation to be finally picked up, but I'm tempted to ditch my reading schedule and read these pretties 24/7. :D 

What new books did you get last week?

Carina

Distractive Obsessions #05

Distractive Obsessions are books that are going to be released very soon and that I'm dying to read - books that I know I'm going to be obsessed with until I'll finally hold them in my hands and read them.

This week's pick is SWEET EVIL by Wendy Higgins.

It's going to be published on May 1st, 2012 by HarperCollins.
ISBN: 9780062085610 | pre-order: The Book Depository / Amazon / B&N

Read the first 98 pages here.

Goodreads Summary:

What if there were teens whose lives depended on being bad influences? This is life for sons and daughters of fallen angels in Sweet Evil.

Tenderhearted Southern girl, Anna Whitt, was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage, and her will-power is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

A cross-country trip to meet her father forces Anna to face the reality that hope and love are not options for her kind. When she confronts her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

A few people were already lucky enough to get an ARC and have already read this. Am I jealous? Yes! Why? Because according to their reviews (e.g. Fiktshun's here), Sweet Evil does not only sound incredibly awesome - it actually lives up to these expectations. I have pre-ordered a copy a while ago and now I'm dying to get my e-mail from The Book Depository that they have it and will send it to me soon. Until then - go ahead and read my awesome interview with the lovely Wendy Higgins here.

Which book are you obsessing over at the moment?

Author Interview: Wendy Higgins (Sweet Evil)

Today I'm so happy to welcome Wendy Higgins, author of the upcoming YA paranormal novel Sweet Evil, on Fictional Distraction. Wendy has been so kind to answer a few questions for us, some of them about the book that I've been dying to read so badly. Thank you so much, Wendy, for your time!

Goodreads Summary of Sweet Evil:

What if there were teens whose lives depended on being bad influences? This is life for sons and daughters of fallen angels in Sweet Evil.

Tenderhearted Southern girl, Anna Whitt, was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage, and her will-power is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

A cross-country trip to meet her father forces Anna to face the reality that hope and love are not options for her kind. When she confronts her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

For all these Twitter-fanatics out there: Try to describe yourself in 140 characters.

A wife & a mother, a romantic & a daydreamer, sensitive & spiritual, believer in hope & love. Can also be a paranoid, impatient worry-wart.

While there are a few lucky ones who already got to read Sweet Evil, what would you like to tell those who are waiting for its release? What should they expect and whom would you recommend it to?

It’s almost here!!! I would recommend it to open-minded, mature readers who enjoy dark love stories.

What can you tell us about Sweet Evil’s characters? Are some of their traits based on people you know – or maybe even yourself?

There may be small pieces of myself and other people I know in my characters, but none of that was intentional. I set out to make them uniquely their own. Anna is the ultimate good girl, both because of her nature and the way she was nurtured, and Kaidan is the ultimate bad boy…for the same reasons.

What was your favorite part of writing Sweet Evil? What was the hardest part?

My favorite part was writing the tension between Anna and Kaidan, building it up to those few precious moments of sweet release. The hardest part was trying to get the plot right. I did a lot of revising.

As I read on your website, it was Inkpop.com that not only helped you edit Sweet Evil, but also to publish it. How would you describe your experience with this community? Would you recommend your way to becoming a published author to other aspiring writers? Or do you have any other advice for them?

I definitely recommend online writing communities to aspiring writers, both for the feedback and the support offered by other writers. It’s a must! Inkpop no longer exists, so unfortunately the possibility of publication through that means has ended, but writers should keep their eyes open for contests and such. Dreams can come true in the most untraditional ways. You never know. :) And my best advice is to write what’s on your heart - whatever story is nagging you, no matter what anyone might think, and don’t be discouraged by rejection. It’s part of the process.

Do you have favorite authors that inspired you and influenced your writing? Which books do you usually prefer to read and would recommend to everyone?

I don’t know if I was necessarily inspired by any particular author. But I definitely have faves. I love Richelle Mead’s work, and I’d highly recommend her Vampire Academy series.

Despite dealing with the lives of teenagers, many people from various age groups love the Young Adult genre. What made you decide to write a YA novel and what do you like most about this genre?

I think the YA genre has raised the bar for writers. Lovers of YA, both adult and teens, are a very vocal readership--they tire easily of clichés and storytelling that does not meet their standards. But they’re also an avid, excited group of readers and their love of books is contagious.

Many adults, such as myself, are drawn to YA because we remember what it was like to be a young adult and it’s fun to live those moments of self-discovery all over again.

And one last question just for fun: If you could live in any fictional world for one day, which one would that be?

Wow, so many awesome choices. But I think I’d love to live in the magical world of Harry Potter and Hogwarts if I could. Oh, to have a magic wand to clean my house…*sigh*

Add Sweet Evil to your Goodreads shelf.
Find Wendy Higgins on Twitter.
Pre-order Sweet Evil: TBD | Amazon | B&N

Are you as excited for Sweet Evil as I am? 

Carina