Sweet Evil

I'd nearly given up on good young adult books.
They were all the same. I would transition from one book to the next and it all felt the same.

So I started reading New Adult books. And it was a nice change for awhile. Until the same thing happened. Same type of book, but a different book, a different author. No originality.

So I picked up Sweet Evil after it had been sitting in my to-read pile for a century, and dove in.

And holy hell was I in for a treat.

This book is massive. 447 pages of demons and angels and road trips with the son of Lust.
YES PEOPLE! THE ACTUAL SON OF LUST! He plays the drums so there's the icing on that little, sexy cupcake.

and I stayed up till midnight reading. and I still wasn't even halfway done.

I was soaking everything in.

The writing bleed through so easily and the story sucked me in.

I needed to know what would happen. I need more of Kaidan and Anna. Mostly Kaidan.

And now I need the second one pronto.

Officially out of my YA reading slump.

(I'm sorry, this review is kinda old)

I loved Sweet Evil. It’s one of the best debut novels I’ve read in ages. The book has a perfect blend of romance, danger, and adventure. The plot twists and turns like that of a long-time author. Something was always around the corner.

Anna was an amazing character. The only thing I disliked was how fast and hard she fell for Kaidan. She barely knew him, and yet she was very near stalking him. That kind of crush comes from knowing that person for a little while. Soon after, it’s very obvious Kaidan feels the same way though. Their romance is one bumpy ride. In other words, it will not be easy.

I know I’ve already said it, but I love Sweet Evil. Everything fits together and it’s set up perfectly for a wonderful sequel.

Barely survived

I must admit, I wasn't expecting a book on angels and demons to be like this. I'm shocked.

When I first started reading Sweet Evil, I was prepared to be disappointed, in fact, I'm always prepared. I hate getting my hopes up and then find it was all for nothing. To be frank, I wanted to put this down since the first 20 pages were annoying and it didn't make sense; then it started to get better on page 60 and I was smiling like an idiot. I also really hate reading about fallen angels, angels, demons, etc., because the authors tend to get stuff wrong when talking about Christianity. Yes, I'm a Christian. Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick, for example, was just awful. The stories were twisted; also A Touch Mortal by Leah Clifford, that book was a joke. Angels swearing and whatnot -- aren't they supposed to be angelic/holy beings? Anyway, but Sweet Evil was totally different and interesting. So why am I giving this 3.5 stars? Because I was expecting something more and it took be 8 days to finish. I liked this book, don't get me wrong, I just don't think it deserves 5 stars -- from me.

Awesome stuff I loved in Sweet Evil:
Anna, our female heroine, has the ability to sense other people's emotions: whether they feel lustful, prideful, angry, depressed, in love, happy, anxious, etc., etc. How awesome is that? Also, I thought she was going to be a Bella-type character but she wasn't. I liked her -- though she did some things that was no bueno -- not good. I'm going to talk about that later on, though.

The Romance Mrs Higgins could write some seriously hot kissing scenes. Kaidan, Kaidan, Kaidan -- that bad boy we all love; to top it off, he's a drummer. I'm not going to write a lot about this, you'll just have to read it for yourself. ;)

Anna and Jay's friendship: I seriously loved their friendship and I am definitely glad Higgins didn't make them end up together or wrote a clichéd story line about best friends falling in love or they are in love but are afraid to say something because they don't want their friendship ruined. Yawn. Thank you, Higgins, for steering clear on that. Jay and Anna have this same problem with being attracted to alcohol, Anna senses his emotions and immediately wants to befriend him so they could both keep each other sane. I love how Jay fights for her, too (view spoiler).

The Dukes: whoa! I loved how Higgins wrote this! We all know the story of Lucifer/Satan's fall, right? Well, after he and his followers were cast down, these fallen angels are roaming the earth. There are 200 hundred demons (I think called Legionnaires) and 12 Dukes of the 7 deadly sins and some from the Ten Commandments: The Dukes of Wrath, Adultery, Substance abuse, Lies, Gluttony, Greed, Envy, Lust, Pride, Theft, Hatred, and Murder. These Dukes have children so they can continue to to their bidding to make the world a better place for them. If you fail to do your work, you will be punished or sentenced to death.

Anna is the daughter of the Duke of Substance abuse, hence the reason why she's so attracted to drugs and alcohol. She doesn't know this yet because her father has been in jail since she was born. But after meeting the mysteriously handsome Kaidan, she unravels what she really is and what must be done.

Background: Anna is a teenage girl who has the ability to see other peoples emotions, which she has come to terms with, since her adoptive mother claims not to know much about them. While attending a concert with her best friend, Anna meets hot drummer who has a very interesting aura, and who asks her some strange questions about her background. A story of good versus evil and light versus dark, Anna must choose where she will stand.

Review: Um wow! Read this. Higgins does a wonderful job pulling in her reader, starting off a little slow but building up the pace. Anna slowly learns about her heritage which has to do with angels and demons, and then she meets Kaiden (hottie!). The book is a whirlwind of questions, half-assed answers, lust, love, and good vs. evil. I have read quite a few books about Angels recently, and Higgins has been the best so far, she put a whole new spin on the Nephilium and how they can and cannot interact with humans. The characters are strong willed, witty and altogether fun.
I had a great time reading this and could not put it down. Highly recommended for lovers of teen romance, series, angels, demons, and road trips ;)

I picked this book up on a whim; I had seen it on some website and recognized the cover when I was in the store. Because it was an impulse buy it took me a little while until I took it off my shelf to actually read—when I did start reading, the thing was over before the weekend was. I didn’t want to put it down.

It was a good book, and a nice take on both Nephillme and biblical based stories. Though I really liked the main character, she didn’t feel as real as she could. Anna Whitt is the narrator of the story, and she was raised to be extremely innocent. So innocent that she’s very trusting, even if that could end up hurting her later on. This hyperactive sense of innocence and blind trust was nice, but at the same time made her feel fake.

The interactions between Anna and Kaidan, or Anna and alcohol help and hinder her at the same time. The blind trust in Kaidan when they go on a little trip seems a little extreme, and the drastic change when Anna gets a taste of alcohol is interesting but it feels like a whole different character—a little too sudden of a shift. The way she, Kaidan and other characters fight, or embrace their base nature was interesting to watch, and made you wonder how you would act if you were in their situation.

The plot was nice, and I really enjoyed the story. The only thing that held it back was the fact that Anna didn’t always feel like a real person. She felt so innocent, and so trustworthy that it was just… unrealistic, because she was pretty bad at making decisions for her safety. I found myself enjoying the moments that she was ‘working’ with alcohol a lot. I hope her character goes through some realistic developments in the later books.

One word. Amazing.

Another word. Captivating.

An even better word. Seductive.

I was completely swept away by Sweet Evil--which is great because it's another book I can reread, but it sucks becauseI have to wait an entire year for the next one to come out! Grrrr.

I absolutely love Wendy Higgins characters. They're original and fun, dark and sexy. Even though some people have complained that her Nephilim are the same old, same old, I completely disagree. I thought her idea of the Neph was completely original; I mean, in most books, the Neph are good--fighters of evil. But in Wendy Higgins book, they are the sowers of discord and chaos. I really enjoyed a different look at the children of angels.

And the guys are to die for! Kaiden (pronounced Ky-den...even sounds sexy) is the son of the Demon of Lust. That one statement should tell you that this book is full of amazing romance---whether its real or fake! I won't say much because I don't want to spoil it, but I fell for Kaiden, and I am positive you will too!!!

I really enjoyed Anna, too. She is the heroine of the book, the daughter of an angel and a demon. I really felt for her as she struggled to decide which nature to follow--her pure or sinful nature. And, it wasn't like she just snapped her fingers and said, "Oh I'm good and I can resist all temptation." She falls for temptation over and over again, which is real. I enjoyed seeing her grow, andI still enjoy seeing her struggle with her feelings for Kaiden.

Overall, this is a MUST READ. One of the best books of 2012--I'm predicting!

Sweet Evil is basically a story about a girl who lives a totally normal life and, BAM, suddenly finds out she's an angel/demon's secret lovechild. And throw in some eye-candy, or more specifically, Kaiden, add water, stir, and there! You have your average YA angel/demon story.

I heard nothing but amazing-ness about the book, so needless to say, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. Sadly, I was very much disappointed. The entire story was very much stereotypical and molded by cookie cutters, which doesn't cut it.

Anna is just your average girl-next-door. She's sweet, does her homework, and doesn't go out partying. In the first chapter of the story, the first few pages portrayed her as a perfectly coherent person, if not lacking in the self-esteem area. Then she sees Kaiden, which turns her into a mess of a fan girl who only sees a hunk of hotness. Does this sound familiar? Then Anna goes into the washroom and stumbles upon a pair of girls talking about - surprise, surprise - the level of attractiveness Kaiden warrants, which launches her into a bout of jealousy. And she spews something out of the blue about Kaiden having an STD. Level of relevancy? Next to none.

I think that was a totally Overly Attached Girlfriend moment.

As for Kaiden, he's fairly predictable. Hot, irritating, and a womanizer. I could probably do without the third, but even so, it's not really working. I mean, how many times do you hear the same description for a male character? I can only read "He's so hot" so many times. Seriously.

The plot didn't really have much structure. There was too much emphasis on the road trip, with Anna and Kaiden getting all angsty with each other, but nevertheless a bit of a pain in my head. The road trip along probably took up a good two-thirds of the novel and I genuinely wish it had been condensed a little. After the road trip, things actually dragged much, much more. During the road trip Anna at least had a goal, a destination, but after? It was aimless, with characters simply drifting around to fill up the pages.

Sweet Evil might have had a bit of potential, but it definitely wasn't for me. I can definitely see why other readers would absolutely love it, but I wouldn't go for it. I'd probably read its sequels, just to get it over with, but they'd not be too high on my TBR list.

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Without going crazy paranormal, Wendy Higgins gives us a angel and demon book full of real characters. The begining is stretched out and the romance is built upon beautifully. You will def be craving the next book.