Into a Million Pieces by Angela V. Cook

Into a Million Pieces by Angela V. Cook

Goodreads Synopsis
Allison McKready is a succubus. So is her twin sister. But while Allison spends her summer break hiding in the library behind her Goth makeup, Jade fools around as often as she can. Allison can’t believe Jade would ignore their mother’s fatal example so recklessly, but concealing a cursed bloodline and its dangerous effects is far from Allison’s only problem. Mean girl Julie’s snob mob is determined to ruin her summer, and Aunt Sarah’s Bible thumping is getting louder. Only her new friend, Ren Fisher, offers safe haven from the chaos of her life.

When one of Jade’s risky dates leads to humiliation and sudden tragedy, Allison reels, and Ren catches her. But as her feelings for him grow, so does her fear that she’ll hurt him—or worse—in an unguarded moment. The choice is coming—love him or save him—but Allison might not live to make it. One way or another, the curse will have its due.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

TRIGGER WARNING FOR ABUSE AND SUICIDE TALK AND OCCURRENCE.

I really enjoyed this one -- but to a point. I thought that the characters were well developed and I wasn't too offput by the semi-instalove, but I did not think that the twist at the end was well delivered.

One thing I was a huge fan of was the succubus mythology. I liked the idea that the girls got a euphoric rush by making out with guys because they were stealing their life force. I liked that there was a backstory to it but that both girls knew it was happening and had to deal with it. Basically, I really enjoy when "monsters" try to adapt to living in the real world (see: Being Human). I thought that the idea that these girls were told that they couldn't love someone was really interesting and I was a fan of how both girls took different approaches to dealing with this fact.

I was a little bothered by how both girls seemed to brush off the abuse and the fact that Jade was beat up by Chris for not wanting to sleep with him. That put a sour taste in my mouth. I also thought that Allison was a little rude to her sister considering what happened but I thought that her behaviour was a pretty accurate portrayal. I thought that their mother's suicide was well done, in a sense. I liked that both girls talked about it and grieved about it but that they didn't take it too lightly. They understood that there was a heavy weight behind it that shouldn't be mirrored and took it as a way to ensure they did not fall into the same mistakes as their mother.

I liked Ren and his involvement in the story. I was really glad that the major conflict wasn't whether or not Allison and Ren could sleep together because then I would not have enjoyed the story. The only thing I would have liked was more build up to their romance and their declarations of love. I thought a week of actually dating was a little too quick for me, but I was also okay with them being together. I would like to see how they fair now that they are separated.

I wasn't a fan of the twist at the end. I thought it was a little cheap and not extremely well executed. When the lead up to the twist was revealed, I started looking more critically at characters and even thought that it would make more sense for Ren to have killed Jade. But I didn't think there was enough lead up to who the actual killer was for me to be satisfied with it.

Overall: 3/5 stars. I enjoyed this one and liked the story but the twist kind of killed it for me.