Devilish by Maureen Johnson
Would you do anything for your best friend? What if you
had to save their soul from the Devil?
This is the million-dollar question in Maureen Johnson’s
young adult fiction novel, Devilish.
Jane and her best friend Allison are embarking on their
senior year of high school. Jane is confident and even a little rebellious,
while Allison is introverted and awkward. Their mission to get a “little” ( a
freshman that does whatever they want for them) on their first day of school
creates enough anxiety in Allison to cause her to vomit on the first freshman
she sees. Embarrassed, and now more unpopular than ever, Allison heads home in
tear, but not before a freshman named Lanalee mysteriously shows up and
volunteers to be Allison’s little. Jane feels very sorry for her friend,
knowing she would be a laughing stock at school. However, the next day was
completely fine. Allison showed up looking and feeling more confident than
ever. Everyone in the class notices and they start to respect her. Allison’s
sudden transformation baffles Jane; she became more and more popular each day.
Allison stops hanging out with Jane and even starts to date Jane’s (ex whom she
is not over yet.) Jane finally confronts Allison about her betrayal and finds
out the truth: Allison sold her soul to the devil for popularity and she has to
do what the devil says. And by the way, the devil is Lanalee—Allison’s “little”!
In order to get Allison’s soul back,
Jane must make her own contract with
the teen devil. If she fails, Jane and Allison will lose their souls forever.
Does Jane have what it takes?
This is a very
witty story mostly about typical teenage girl-stuff—until the Devil comes into
play. Johnson seems to juxtapose the genres of comedy and the paranormal quite
nicely in this entertaining story of good vs. evil. I think this would be a
great read in middle and high schools to get reluctant readers interested in
fiction. Young girls will relate to many themes in the story which include
popularity, boyfriends and best friends.
Pros: fun read,
interesting themes, plot twists, simple/colloquial language
Cons: Kind of a
long read (but it’s such a page turner I don’t think reader will mind)
Pick up Devilsih, here:
Check out more
books from New York Times Bestselling author, Maureen Johnson:
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