The Frenzy by Francesa Lia Block

  Summary (courtesy of GoodReads):  Love is a werewolf, influenced by the moon and terror, and always about to change. Liv has a secret. Something happened to her when she was thirteen. Something that changed everything. Liv knows she doesn't belong anymore-not in her own skin, not in her family . . . not anywhere. The only time she truly feels like herself is when she's with her boyfriend, Corey, and in the woods that surround her town. But in the woods, a mysterious woman watches Liv. In the woods, a pack of wild boys lurks. In the woods, Liv learns about the curse that will haunt her forever. The curse that caused the frenzy four years ago. And that may cause it again, all too soon.While Corey and Liv's love binds them together, Liv's dark secret threatens to tear them apart as she struggles to understand who-or what-she really is. And by the light of the full moon, the most dangerous secrets bare their claws. . . .

And here's what I thought:  What I find appealing about Francesa Lia Block is that she uses simple language to convey things are complex, making her stories seem almost a deceptively simple.    That being said, she takes the familiar werewolf story and gives it a bit of a twist.    Liv really wasn't a character I warmed to, but I found her story interesting.  At first, I wasn't sure what was really going on with her, but as the story went on, I felt like I was picking up on more clues.  However, as I said, I really didn't warm to her.   She's 17, but sometimes, seems to act younger than that.  She has two close friends, but she sometimes takes them completely for granted.   She's not really happy where she is, but it doesn't seem like she has plans for the future ---- although you could say it's completely in her character to live in the present.    But sometimes, it just seemed like I was skimming the surface with her, and never really knew her.

What I did enjoy were some of the other elements of the story.  Take the town Liv lives in, for example.  It sounds haunted and creepy --- I mean, it has an abandoned steel mill and a prosthetics shop right in town!  I liked how mysterious the town was, and actually wouldn't have minded having more details about it.   I thought Liv's boyfriend, Corey, was an appealing character (although he seemed a little too good to be true).   However, overall, I thought this was an okay story.  Not bad, but not a favorite.

Thoughts on the cover:  I like how the cover reflects how Liv is described in the book, with red hair and green eyes.  The fact that it's a closeup on her eye really draws you in.

Where I got this book:   Courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales ARC Tour