Slice of Cherry

Reader: Elise S
Age: 15
Title: Slice of Cherry
Author: Dia Reeves
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Pub Date: 01/04/2011
Galley: Yes
Annotation: Kit and Fancy Cordelle are descended from a line of witches, summoners, and serial killers. As hormones and murderous tendencies grow, are they strong enough to let each other go?
Recommend: Yes
Convince us to read the book: This book is not for everybody by any means. You need a strong stomach, the ability to look past details for what's really going on (heads twisting off, the fact that the sisters are very often covered in blood and gore, etc.), and an appreciation for the psycho aspect of them. But if one has these things, Slice of Cherry becomes an interestingly twisted coming of age story. There's magic, mystery, family, life and death (more of the death, but whatever), and love. Fans of Tim Burton will find a good read here. Just don't eat after a meal.
Compelling Aspect of the Book: This is the most twisted coming of age story I have ever read. Fancy and Kit's characters are so different from anybody I have ever read about, and still very real and interesting. I loved the juxtaposition of Fancy's obsession with the past, and little kid stuff, and then her creative killing, which is sort of an extension of that. The most interesting relationship to watch was between the sisters. Their coming to terms with their differences, it was so different, but still made sense given their situation. Dia Reeves takes a really good look at what limitless power does to people, and comes up with an elegantly twisted story.
Did you finish: Yes
Were you disappointed with the book: One of the things Dia Reeves could work on in this book is pacing. She spends a ton of time on the killing over and over, when she could cut some of it out and go straight to the conflict between the sisters and the boys, and the bit with Madda. In the long beginning, things were just weird enough that it kept me reading, but the plot only heated up in the last section. I also questioned the town's reaction to the newfound vigilantes, it seems like there would be more fear than happiness.
Cover: This is one of the coolest covers I've ever seen! The pastel teacups perfectly represent Fancy, with the blood giving it that edge that it needs. Then add the Corpse Bride font on top of that, and it's a Tim Burton-esque masterpiece! The image is very striking, and is great for the plot and whole book. The problem with the annotation, though, is that it doesn't put enough emphasis on the supernatural aspect of the book. I went into this thinking it was going to be realistic fiction, and the sudden appearances of dead rising, fantasy creatures, and other worlds threw me off.
Age Range: 14-17
Quality: 4Q Better than most
Popularity: 4P Broad general teen appeal