Poison Princess

October 1, 2012
In Louisiana, there’s every kind of crazy. There’s the crazy of a grandmother locked up in the madhouse. There’s the crazy of the seething Cajun boy, Jackson, with bandaged knuckles, a drinking problem, and nightmares. And there’s the crazy of 16-year-old Evie, who sees hallucinations that have bloody and all-too-real effects in the real world. In the days before the Flash, a disaster that decimates the planet, Evie is mostly concerned with dodging her boyfriend’s plans for her virginity and surviving the last two years of high school. Her visions of writhing vines and a savagely murderous red witch are just something she has to deal with. After the Flash, Evie faces a whole new reality: she’s not crazy. The “hallucinations” were true. Adult romance author Cole moves past apocalypse into pure horror as she launches her first series for teens: bracketing Evie’s narrative of self-discovery is her chilling encounter with a serial killer who keeps girls—and bodies—in the basement. For fans of Freddie and Jason, Cole’s tarot-themed supernatural thriller will hold a similarly lurid fascination. Ages 14–up. Agent: Robin Rue, Writers House. (Oct.)■

February 1, 2013

Gr 9 Up-Apocalypse meets tarot card-inspired fantasy in Cole's occasionally bloody, sometimes romantic novel (S & S, 2012). The first title in the series is centered on Evie Greene, a wealthy 16-year-old from Louisiana who had just returned from a summer stay in a mental health clinic before the Flash, an earth-scorching cataclysm. One of the few females to survive, she joins forces with tough boy classmate Jackson Deveaux to find her grandmother in North Carolina, believing that she can interpret the meaning of Evie's visions. Along the way they meet other teens discovering their own tarot card character powers and together they fight off the desperate remnants of society left in lawless America. Following an argument with Jackson, Evie sets out on her own. She ends up recounting her journey to Arthur, a despotic, would-be alchemist, who lures Evie into his lair where he enslaves teen girls to test his often-fatal potions. Finally, recognizing her own destiny, in a brutal climax Evie brings her powers as Poison Princess. Narrators Emma Galvin and Keith Hobbs enhance this first-person story with an intense mix of the sinister, conflicted, and sensual internal feelings expressed by Evie and Arthur. Add this to collections for listeners who like action, multilayered narrative, and fantasy's somber side.-Barbara Wysocki, Cora J. Belden Library, Rocky Hill, CT

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