Wow! I loved this book and can't wait to read more from this author. Much gorier and spookier than I would normally read. Love the strength and growth of the main female character and the twists and turns that the story took. The fantasy aspect kept me able to read without (too many) nightmares. ( )

This was a page-turner and I wasn't ever sure what was coming next! The book starts out strong and just keeps building from there. I wasn't expecting it to have as much magic/supernatural elements as it did, but it somehow still felt really grounded in reality and just added to the story in a really interesting way. I liked how believable Abby was as a teenager, despite the incredibly dangerous and bloody situations that she kept getting into. She certainly was quite "street smart" but it made sense given her background. This book had a pretty big cast of characters, yet they all had really distinct voices and personalities and I really felt immersed in this fully fleshed out world. ( )

I found that this book follows themes that are less covered by authors, in such a way as this.

It has voodoo themes, but follows Haitian vodou which I think is part of an unrepresented religious culture, and sheds light on the darker side of what vodou is believed to be capable of, in a dark gory mystery story that follows themes of growing up in the foster system, religion with even some teen angst thrown in. Drago even delves into how children in a foster system develop coping mechanisms and become independent earlier.

Abby, the main protagonist, is a foster child living near a pier that she is inexplicably drawn to. One night her and a younger foster sib are at the pier after curfew and get cornered by a gang. Whereupon they are rescued by a man Abby names Rags. The story then follows Abby’s discovery of who, or what, Rags is, and her dive into the world of Haitian vodou, corruption and black magic. ( )

Abby lives in a foster home - one of the good ones, where the foster parents actually care about the kids. When one night she and her foster sibling are attacked at the pier, they are saved by an unnaturally fast and strong being looking like a homeless person, whom Abby names 'Rags'. From now on Abby seems to have a strange connection to the mysterious Rags, and when the foster home is threatened to be taken by some dubious investors by force, Abby knows that only Rags will be able to help them. But is she willing to pay the price it will cost her?
I really liked the explanation of Rags' origin, how Abby was accidentally involved and how it all worked out in the end. Also, the mix of supernatural elements and family drama worked pretty well, and though some minor characters were stereotyped, Abby and Rags were shaped into convincing main characters. This was a fast, action-packed and blood-soaked, but also very moving drama about a girl and what she would do to keep her family save... ( )

Abby's early past is a mystery, but she has been a ward of the Atlantic City foster care system for over the last ten years of her life. A good chunk of that time has been spent in an old hotel-turned-foster home near The Boardwalk. And the place is a home to her, one that becomes threatened by bad guys—violent men, the kind of violence that only greater violence can conquer, and Abby encounters just the hero who doles out that kind of salvation, if she's willing to pay the price for it.

I admit, I rolled my eyes when I thought this story was stacking up to be mom & pop vs. ruthless developers, the orphans vs. a heartless system, an it'd-be-a-shame-if-something-were-to-happen-to-your-family trope because ever since David and Goliath and right on through Snidely Whiplash has this territory been visited enough that it's been paved with infertile concrete.

Or so I thought.

But here, it works.

David had the Almighty, and Abby has Rags. Her family's conflict with the bad guys is only a vehicle for her developing relationship with Rags—his own mysterious origin, the effects they have on each other, their patience to communicate in spite of a language barrier, for goodness sake. Clues build unobtrusively and mysteries fall away at a natural pace. Abby speaks directly to the reader once in awhile, but neither does that feel out of place. Her foster family's rules balance out the chaotic violence, and we're reminded that one's fate is ultimately bound in whom you choose to trust.

I received a free copy of this book for the opportunity to review it, and I had the luxury to let it keep me up all night until I finished it. It was worth the reading hangover. I recommend it, especially if you like supernatural YA and urban exploration. There's a little bit of romance, but just enough to deepen the poignancy of the story. ( )