Divah

Gr 9 Up—Seventeen-year-old Itzy Nash is staying at the swanky Carlyle Hotel in New York City for the summer, but she's not at all excited. She has to stay with her grouchy Aunt Maude, she misses her father, a demon stows away in her duffel bag, and that's just the beginning of Itzy's problems. The teen is caught in the middle of an epic war between angels and demons, a war that started during France's Reign of Terror. Right at the center of the battle are Luc, the handsome and mysterious fallen angel, and the Divah, the most powerful demon of all. Armed with Hermès scarves and Evian water, Itzy and an army of angels and demon-hunters must try to bring down the Divah before she can raise the Gates of Hell in the middle of the Upper East Side. This book tries very hard to be several things at once—fantasy, romance, gothic thriller, historical fiction—but it doesn't do any of them particularly well. Appelbaum's dialogue feels stunted, and her characters aren't as well realized as protagonists in other YA fantasy romances. Readers will be very confused by this book. One character's dialogue will especially deter reluctant readers: "Do you vhish to know vhat it vas zat flashed zrough my mynd vhen first I saw you?" References to Hermès, Evian, and the Carlyle are too niche for most teens. Also, they won't be able to connect with Itzy.